Medieval Steel - Medieval Steel - LP

Medieval Steel were orignally formed in Memphis, Tennessee in the spring of 1982. In the beginning they were playing covers in local clubs, before starting to write their own material (which was later compared to bands like Queensryche and Crimson Glory).

"Once we solidified the line-up, we started playing out," explains vocalist Bobby Franklin today, "and the next step was apparent to us that we needed to write and record our own music if we expected to go somewhere in this business."

It took the band another two years to record the songs "Medieval Steel", "Warlods", "Battle Beyond The Stars" and "Echoes" for their now legendary debut EP. "When I wrote and recorded it, I had no idea it would take on a life of its own," reflects Bobby Franklin. "I would say we probably had ten or eleven songs to choose from. The reason we did not record a full album was financial. The recordings went smooth and quick. We would rehearse three to four hours a day for about two weeks, so we were well prepared." He adds: "At this time we were all young guys, working regular jobs. We knew we had something special."

The EP came out on SUR Records, a label in Memphis that owned a studio: "They had no metal bands and mostly did country and blues. So I must say it was a shock to their system having us come in. But they were all good people and treated us well. Jack Holder was the engineer and co-produced. He played in a band called Cobra, after that he decided he wanted to be an engineer/producer, and he was excellent at it. I believe 3,000 vinyl copies were pressed, and I think there were 1,000 cassettes. As soon as it got to Europe, people heard about it and they were gone in no time."

The song "Medieval Steel" has over the years become well-known in European metal circles. Bobby Franklin on the band's signature song: "When you have a song such as 'Medieval Steel', and it's your band name, it has to be powerful and significant to stand the test of time. When we do our shows, people wait with baited breath for that song. There have been so many times I couldn't hear myself singing that song because the crowd was so loud."

Currently Medieval Steel are working on a brand new studio album.