Yes, they've had quite a few missteps, strange decisions, and failed promises over the years. It all just adds to me not being able to really trust the band on any level. I'm not sure if Joey has a mental illness, but without a doubt he's got a massive ego and a "persona" that he clings onto. On one hand I'm okay with it, because Manowar is full of bravado and over-the-top manliness, so of course the spokesperson of the band has to have an ego to match that. But it also is getting a little pathetic watching him do his same old shtick at 65 years old. It also is a bit saddening seeing footage of this Final Battle tour. They're claiming the shows are so epic and destructive, but in reality it's two old men and two hired guns playing their classic songs sloppily and against a pretty cheap looking backdrop. Also this Final Battle tour has been going on for 3 years now, with no end in sight.

Yeah, despite posts on the Manowar FB talking about how great the shows were the footage seems a bit lacking in fire. Still I'd go see them since I missed the only shot I recall having a few years back.

Thunder in the Sky was really good. A band like Manowar shouldn't be releasing EPs though IMHO (I'm not sure that anyone should).

The new live footage sounds really good to me and I'd like to see them live.

So... a farewell tour that ultimately is not really a farewell tour?

How shocking!

As a band they've taken most of their queues from KISS since 1987, so this makes perfect sense.

lol. you mean "cues", not "queues"... that's what you brits like to do in the shops

Regardless, it's a true statement.

Manowar take both queues and cues from KISS.

I don't see it.

they haven't announced more than one "farewell" tour (yet), no solo albums, the only ridiculous piece of merchandise was possibly the condom, and that was like ages ago and it does tie in to the manowar "lifestyle", it's not like they are selling coffins or lunchboxes, you don't see manowar tees on lowlife celebrities (thank f), plus, unlike $immon$ and co, they keep releasing new material. not to mention somewhat more obvious "differences" like the "die in battle" mentality, as opposed to the "have a good time" one of kiss. so, how did kiss influence manowar since 1987?

I'm not enamoured by much manowar have done post-1988, but let's keep it real, shall we?

In the old days the strategy was to announce a farewell tour, do it, then a couple years later get back together with either some or no acknowledgement at all of the previous "final" tour. Nowadays, the strategy as perfected by Slayer and ManOwaR, is to do a goodbye tour and then just never stop adding dates to it. The modern style of a bunch of smaller legs makes it easy to just add on another leg to the tour and hope nobody notices.

^ So I am waiting for old schoolers Black Sabbath to do a come-back tour

And Scorpions. Oh, wait... Do the final tour. Then come back with an album, and tour...

Both drawn by the same artist by the way. Kinda see it now?

Manowar is KISS through a Conan lens. Comic book, over the top, kings and all. Just barbarians but they still want to fuck and play (and hunt and ride bikes I guess)

The difference is that Manowar is (or rather was) 100 times better musically but 1000 times less apt commercially. Joey's talents in the bass is easily surpassed by Gene's talent for commerce...

nah, that's just an album cover. you could stretch it to a few more manowar covers, but even as such that's a far cry from Joe Yorkshire and sidekick's claim that they take most of their cues from them...

'Blow Your Speakers' could have very easily been a mid-80s KISS track, too.

seriously? that's all? one song = "most of their cues" ?

They both suck. So, there is your link.

As a troll, ACFAN8895 has taken most of his queues from Acrobat since 1987, so this makes perfect sense.

[It's midnight here, I'm tired, double post by botching a simple edit job.]

I wouldn't say there is a musical connection, although since 1987 they most certainly did go for the big sound and give more room to what was otherwise the one or two rock songs. With the exception of Battle Hymns which was the other way around since they hadn't fully realized their music vision, Animals or All Men Play on Ten were the exception - and the epic songs the norm. Then in 1987 spearheaded by their first video too, they tried the ROCKING but failed (so Kings of Metal for the next and forever), however they most certainly watered down their music vision to something more party friendly perhaps?

But what I meant was the overall image and spirit of the band is really informed by KISS. 4 superheroes (check Joey's description of any of his bandmates, it's beyond ridiculous everytime), the hyperbolic shit, the costumes even. It's just that instead of 4 comic book personas that ROCK you got 4 barbarian party animals dying for Metal. I'm sure Joey would have loved to be able to have a KISS-sized show everytime.

Again, musically I consider Manowar one of the absolute Greats of Metal, game changers, able to even make Quorthon shift his music vision and I consider KISS way overrated (I mean musically, because culturally they must be responsible for half the bands I am listening to being inspired to pick up an instrument) but I do find funny that nobody sees that Manowar's iconic personas being so influenced by Kiss. I think it's obvious.

Hot take who cares this band is shit

A not-so-subtle way of saying that Manowar's impending splitup is coming...

Quite sad to hear that a powerful and heavy heavy/power metal band from the early '80s are about to break up.

While Dungeon_Vic did a good job summing up Manowar's KISS influence, I think I'll add more to it (lest aloof sends a black arrows of death my way). Simply put, if KISS are trying to be the world's most "larger than life" rock band, then, Manowar are doing the same with heavy metal. Take KISS's 1976 album, Destroyer, underneath all the bells and whistles, it's pretty much a straight-forward hard rock album with some excellent songs and a slightly more sinister edge in some parts. I think Demaio really applied that Kings of Metal - it's mostly straight-forward enough to appeal to a large number of metal fans, has plenty of anthems, but also it has that sense of cinematic grandeur, the orchestral flourishes, the sense of aiming for something bigger than just another metal album. They're very comparable (right down to their inconsistency).

Clearly, Demaio is not that influenced by KISS as a musical force (you won't get many direct similarities in terms of individual songs), but KISS is his inspiration in terms of how to market a band, the "us versus them" mentality, the ridiculous merch, the "will they won't they" farewells. The "Scott's kid is sick, so he needs to leave the band" versus "Ace is from another planet and therefore he has trouble walking on stage" spiel. The talented guitarists who were ousted... KISS is ManOwar's spirit animal. Right down to the fact that you have to type their band names in funny ways.

Honestly, though, in terms of influence, maybe only Black Sabbath have had a bigger influence on Manowar. Manowar are weird in the sense that they've always sounded like their own thing and never really much like anyone else (to the point at which Demaio's main influence these days is, well, Joey Demaio).

Another obvious parallel is the rotating guitar and drum positions.

Another parallel is that KISS has a guy who says "you wanted the best, you got the best"

Manowar has this guy.

1. I am a chick

2. I have no idea who Acrobat is.

have you considered moving to Yorkshire? they have pudding!

trying to keep this short, and seeing how I've practically responded to most of the above in my previous "serious" post, I sort of see where Vic the Greek and Joe Yoork are coming from, but I don't agree. there's a very distinct difference between Kiss' open "we are in it for the money (and the girls and the fame)" approach and Manowar still living with their parents and having day jobs, for.ex.

I'm gonna spin Each dawn I die now, if no one minds...

I will spin Animal. Have a feeling like that.

"Manowar" is always 4 guys, only one of which lived with his parents as an adult AFAIK.

Pretty much every metal guy has a day job of some sort unless you made millions in the 80s and 90s.

I always got the impression that the Manowar guys, at least Joey in particular, were just really bad at budgeting.

I suspect whatever money they made went right back into the band, trying to always do something bigger next time.

I mean, look at the venues they play in Europe. I see pictures of them in arenas and shit all the time. Given that much smaller bands manage to eke out a living, there's no reason for them to be doing as badly as they apparently were/are outside of misplaced priorities. ToB is right in that they probably put a lot of the money back into the band, and I bet DeMaio is insistent on doing so at the cost of paying the other band members. I'd imagine hauling that big ass PA system of theirs around and setting it up/tearing it down every single night costs a LOT of money that other bands don't spend.

Being true and fighting the world isn't cheap.

I was thinking the same thing. Sure, they could save some money buying crackerjack clothes, but they'll never do it.

Manowar's Budget of Steel has plenty of money for jeans and leather though.

This is correct. Have you seen how much chains and leather costs these days?!

Or is it jeans and leather?

Are crackerjack clothes some kind of sailor outfit? A foreigner doesn't know. Post pictures of crackerjack clothes.

I'm not sure that it has any real meaning outside the minds of metal's oiliest warriors.

Yeah, but ManOwaR sell polo shirts on their site, and polo shirts are close to the ultimate in "crackerjack clothes", so I feel like ManOwaR may just be full of shit.

A polo with ManOwaR on it is removed from crackerjack status.

Fucking poser....