Virtue and Vice - Holy Soldier

Holy Soldier is a Christian Heavy Rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1985, Holy Soldier released its self-titled debut on Word/A&M Records (Myrrh imprint) in 1990 to critical and commercial acclaim. Two years later, the band followed up their debut with Last Train, another critical success. The commercial success of Last Train, however, did not live up to its critical acclaim, and the record label promptly dropped the band from its roster. Shortly thereafter, lead vocalist Steven Patrick abruptly left the group.

Undaunted by Patrick's unexpected departure, the band quickly replaced Patrick with Eric Wayne, who helped move the band into a grungier sound. Wayne's lower vocal register allowed Holy Soldier to compete in the metal market with the likes of Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Crash Test Dummies, and Soundgarden. After Holy Solider's reinvention and extensive touring, the band was signed to ForeFront Records in 1994. Once again recruiting the production skills of David Zaffiro, Holy Solider released Promise Man the following year. Despite the success of Promise Man, ForeFront Records dropped the band from its label. In 1997, after a short hiatus, Holy Soldier independently produced a live retrospective album featuring both current frontman Eric Wayne and original vocalist Steven Patrick. After the release of Encore, Holy Soldier officially disbanded.

In 2005, the original Holy Soldier line-up reunited in August for a concert and possible studio album follow-up. Unfortunately, Steven Patrick's reunion with his former band members was extremely brief. Suddenly without its original lead vocalist for the second time, Holy Soldier recruited original drummer Terry Russell's brother, Don, to replace Patrick. As of 2006, the band continues to perform live.

Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.