A Colorado band formed in 1981, Jag Panzer's style was basic British metal influenced by bands like Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. Originally founded by guitarist Mark Briody, bassist John Tetley, drummer Butch Carlson, and vocalist Harry "The Tyrant" Conklin, they released their debut mini-album in 1983. The band moved to Los Angeles to seek out another guitarist, settling on Joey Tafolla, who contributed a great deal to the group's most memorable material. The group's debut album, Ample Destruction, did not bring success as quickly as Tafolla expected, and he left, eventually joining Alice Cooper's band and recording as a solo artist for Shrapnel Records. Carlson and the Tyrant left shortly thereafter, with the Tyrant briefly joining Riot and later forming his own band, Titan Force. Briody and Tetley re-formed the group in 1987 with a new lineup (including vocalist Daniel Conca), and their resulting demo got them a deal with Auburn Records and the opportunity to record a new album. In 1996, the original lineup reunited (with the exception of Carlson, who was replaced by drummer Rikard Stjernquist) for the album The Fourth Judgement, produced by Jim Morris (Death). Age of Mastery followed in 1998, and two years later Jag Panzer returned with Thane to the Throne. Summer 2001 saw the release of another hard-hitting metal effort, Mechanized Warfare. The band would go on to issue two LPs in 2004, their previously bootleg-only debut, Chain of Command, which was recorded in 1987, and the all-new Casting the Stones, the latter of which would be the last studio outing to feature guitarist Chris Broderick, who eventually left the band to join Megadeth. The group disbanded after the release of 2011's Scourge of the Light, citing the increasing costs of touring as a mitigating factor, but they returned in 2017 with album number ten, The Deviant Chord. ~ Steve Huey