Kingdom Come (band)

Infobox musical artist |
Name = Kingdom Come


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Background = group_or_band
Origin = United States
Germany
Genre = Hard rock
Heavy metal
Blues rock
Years_active = 1987–present
Label = Polygram, Frontiers, CD-Maximum
Associated_acts =
URL = http://kingdomcome.de
Current_members = Lenny Wolf
Eric Foerster
Frank Binke
Hendrik Thiesbrummel
Past_members = Danny Stag
Rick Steier
Johnny B. Frank
James Kottak
Carsten Klick
Yenz Leonhardt

Kingdom Come is a hard rock band fronted by Hamburg-born vocalist Lenny Wolf. The group's first album, Kingdom Come was that band's only international hit. The musical style on their debut was very close the to the early blues-rock style of Led Zeppelin leading to a backlash from critics and the band being dubbed "Kingdom Clone" in the press. [ [http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/kingdomcome Rolling Stone] ] The band currently consists of an entirely German line-up.

History

The group was formed in 1987 after the breakup of Wolf's moderately successful rock project Stone Fury. Wolf's new record company, Polygram, allowed him incredible freedom to assemble Kingdom Come's lineup and direct its sound, and he recruited Pittsburgh-based lead guitarist Danny Stag, Louisvillians Rick Steier (guitar) and James Kottak (drums) and Northern Californian Johnny B. Frank on bass. Kingdom Come marked the first band where Wolf sang without playing guitar. (The frontman later admitted that, for a while, it was a very awkward adjustment.)

Kingdom Come's sound was thought by many to be highly derivative of Led Zeppelin's, to the point that some listeners initially thought that Kingdom Come was actually a Led Zeppelin reunion. [ [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:w1ua6j5h71t0~T1 allmusic.com bio] ] In 1988, Lenny & company released their debut LP, "Kingdom Come".

They toured in England supporting Magnum on their Wings Of Heaven tour during that year.

The band's first single, "Get It On," was a big enough hit on AOR stations that the band's eponymous debut went gold. Their second single/video for the power ballad "What Love Can Be" received much airplay on US radio and MTV. By the time the single/video "Loving You" was released, the album had sold to platinum status in the United States, Germany and Canada, among other music markets. The band was chosen to open for the North American Monsters of Rock tour in 1988, supporting Dokken, Scorpions, Metallica and Van Halen. Following that, they were tapped to support the Scorpions on their North American "Savage Amusement" tour, until they were forced off. (According to Stag, Lenny Wolf found the stage ramps reserved for the Scorpions' set irresistible. After several reprimands from The Scorpions' management, the singer continued to use the full stage and the band was asked to forfeit the rest of the tour.)

Quickly, the band was directed by management and Polygram to get a new recording available. In 1989, Kingdom Come released their next LP, called "In Your Face". However, the subsequent backlash against the band's perceived appropriation of a similar Led Zeppelin sound (earning them the derisive moniker of "Kingdom Clone") hurt their commercial appeal, and after the band's second album failed to sell well, all members other than Wolf quit the group.

Stag went back to Pittsburgh and immersed himself in blues and classic rock projects earning him further respect including an acclaimed instructional video. Steier and Kottak went back to Kentucky and assembled the short-lived Wild Horses, who released an album on Atlantic Records. Both would later resurface in Warrant. James Kottak did not go unnoticed by the Scorpions and eventually earned a place as their permanent drummer. Frank has kept a very low profile for the last several years. With a new lineup, Kingdom Come managed one more international release on Polygram ("Hands of Time"). By 1993, Wolf had returned to Germany to regroup. With a new, mostly German lineup, Kingdom Come remains active with several subsequent releases and tours in Europe under their collective belt.

After "Bad Image" Lenny Wolf, and band, released "Twilight Cruiser", "Live & Unplugged", "Master Seven", "Too". These albums were recorded in the best traditions of hard rock: great riffs, touching ballads, wise lyrics. The next recordings "Independent" and "Perpetual" are very good albums, too; their sound became more 'industrial' and cosmic. The newest album released by Kingdom Come is "Ain't Crying For The Moon", and the latest tour was in November 2006 through the Russian Federation. Kingdom Come continues to be a viable band making and writing rock music with a good following mainly in Europe to its credit.

Lenny Wolf: "If you like a lot of emotions, acousticly, industrially and heavy try Kingdom Come. If you like it tell your friends, if not --"

Members

*Lenny Wolf -- Lead vocals and more
*Eric Foerster -- Lead guitar
*Frank Binke -- Bass guitar
*Hendrik Thiesbrummel -- Drums and percussion (piano)

Discography

Albums

*"Kingdom Come" (1988)
*"In Your Face" (1989)
*"Hands of Time" (1991)
*"Bad Image" (1993)
*"Twilight Cruiser" (1995)
*"Live & Unplugged" (1996) (live)
*"Master Seven" (1997)
*"Balladesque" (1998) (compilation)
*"Too" (2000)
*"Independent" (2002)
*"Perpetual" (2004)
*"Ain't Crying for the Moon" (2006)

ingles

*"Get It On" (1988)
*"What Love Can Be" (1988)
*"Do You Like It" (1989)

References

External links

* [http://www.lennywolf.com/ Kingdom Come] – The Kingdom Come Official Website
* [http://www.myspace.com/lennywolf on MySpace]
* [http://www.mcapozzolijr.com/kingdomcome.html Band Interview about the release of the "In Your Face" album, 1989]