LIVIN’ EVIL from France, is a heavy metal band that started their journey back in the early ‘90s. They released a couple of demos in 1993 (‘’The Tree of Evil’’) and in 1995 (‘’Illusory Dreams’’) before entering a period of hiatus sometime after 1996.
However, in 2022, the bassist Jérôme Viel decided to resurrect the band and to release a new album in the memory of the original member Patrick Pairon who untimely passed away in 2018. The debut full-length album of the band ‘’Prayers and Torments’’ was released in 2023 and it was a remarkable, very strong and really nice album that included 14 songs and notable guest appearances (Timmo Tolki, Roland Grapow, Kosta Vreto and others). At the time Tasos Lazaris (vocals) and Fabio Alessandrini (drums) were appearing as guest musicians but now have actually fully joined the band.
My first comment about the album is regarding the cover art of the album.
The aesthetic that emerges from a piece of art, such a music album is very important for me. The painting in the cover is called ‘’The March of the Knights’’ (‘’La marche des chevaliers’’) and is a creation of a great French artist, Gustave Doré, that belonged to the artistic and cultural movement of romanticism of the 19th century. The choice of this painting as cover for the album, from the band, was indeed excellent and grabbed my attention, even before listening to the album.
Let’s delve into the album. The first three songs that are opening the album, ‘’Symposium’’, ‘’Wings of Pegasus’’ and ‘’Under the Banner of the Damned’’ totally blew my mind away right away from the very beginning. Fast blazing guitars from J.A. Jacq and Kiato Luu, with raging epic vibes – riffs, thundering drums from Fabio Alessandrini, magnetizing bass lines from Jérôme Viel and the magic voice of Tasos Lazaris are scorching the battlefield. So, you’d better heed the battle cry!
It is not a secret that Tasos Lazaris (also in FOTRESS UNDER SIEGE, STEEL ARCTUS) is one the best Greek heavy metal singers and definitely one my favorite ones. I have seen performing live in Thessaloniki and I can tell that I am very enthusiastic about all the progress that he is making from year to year. In this album, his performance really amazed me.
His voice right now is nothing less than a magnificent versatile instrument adept at ascending to soaring high notes, delivering powerful, rallying cries, and carrying emotive, epic passages and thrilling vibratos with equal finesse. Lazaris possesses that rare talent for imbuing every word with a sense of majesty and conviction, firmly establishing him as an undeniable force within the contemporary heavy metal vocal sphere, according to my humble opinion.
In general, the album has an amazing galloping rhythm, blazing passion, epic heavy metal grandeur, eight beautiful songs and a singer that combines the flair of Bruce Dickinson and Geoff Tate, making that one of the best that I have listened to in 2025.
What else can you ask?
Listen and buy this album yesterday!! (ASAP – as soon as possible)
‘’ The Warriors of the King’’ has been independently released on the 13th of May 2025 and is available on CD and Digital format (bandcamp).
Check the discussion about the album in our forum pages.
