White Wizzard is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, formed in 2007. They have released one EP and four albums: ''

Over the Top Over the top may refer to: Music * "Over the Top", a 2017 song by Hey! Say! JUMP * ''Over the Top'' (Cozy Powell album), 1979 album by British drummer Cozy Powell * ''Over the Top'' (Infinite album), 2011 album by South Korean band Infinite * ...

'' released in 2010, ''

Flying Tigers The First American Volunteer Group (AVG) of the Republic of China Air Force, nicknamed the Flying Tigers, was formed to help oppose the Japanese invasion of China. Operating in 1941–1942, it was composed of pilots from the United States Ar ...

'' released in 2011, '' The Devil's Cut'' released in 2013, and '' Infernal Overdrive'' released 2018. Throughout the band's history, it has undergone numerous lineup changes, with only Jon Leon remaining a stable member of the band. The end of the band was announced by Jon Leon in April 2018, however, he announced that he was reassembling the band in March 2019.

History

Formation and early history: 2007–2010

White Wizzard was formed in Los Angeles in the summer of 2007, as Jon Leon's response to the "angsty" and "screamo" music that dominated the heavy metal scene at the time:

"I saw so many old school
metalheads A metalhead is a member of the heavy metal subculture. Metalhead may also refer to: Music * ''Metalhead'' (album), 1999 album by Saxon * "Metalhead", a song by Blotto * "Metalhead", a song from the 2008 Miss Kittin album ''BatBox'' * Metalheadz ...
at these summer festivals, but what else is out there? Who else can they look forward to seeing after they leave the show that can really give them the same thrill? They're all still here, but there's nothing in today's scene that moves them any more – nothing that inspires them. I think we can change that."

The first incarnation of White Wizzard was hastily assembled and featured bassist Jon Leon, vocalist James-Paul Luna, guitarist James J LaRue and drummer Tyler Meahl. In late 2007, White Wizzard recorded its self-titled

demo Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to: Music and film *Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release * ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes * ''Demo'' (Deafhea ...

, ''

White Wizzard White Wizzard is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, formed in 2007. They have released one EP and four albums: ''Over the Top'' released in 2010, ''Flying Tigers'' released in 2011, '' The Devil's Cut'' released in 2013, and '' Inf ...

'', which would be released in mid-2008. The band also filmed a music video for the demo's opening track "High Speed GTO", which won the award for Best Music Video in the 2008 Action On Film Festival. After releasing the EP, Leon and the rest of the band disagreed on what musical direction to take and split apart with the other three members moving on similarly styled band,

Holy Grail The Holy Grail (french: Saint Graal, br, Graal Santel, cy, Greal Sanctaidd, kw, Gral) is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miracul ...

.Bennet, J. "Holy Grail: L.A. shred lords bring back NWOBHM like it never left", Decibel, No. 065 (March 2010), p. 30. During mid-2008, Leon was contacted by

Earache Records Earache Records is a British independent record label, music publisher and management company founded by Digby Pearson in 1985, based in Nottingham, England, with offices in London and New York. The label helped to pioneer extreme metal by rel ...

and asked to put the song "High Speed GTO" on Earache's compilation album ''Heavy Metal Killers''. Motivated by this opportunity, Leon doubled his search efforts and eventually formed the second lineup of White Wizzard, featuring vocalist Wyatt Anderson, guitarist Erik Kluiber, guitarist Chad Bryan and drummer Jesse Applehans, though he was succeeded by Giovanni Durst after a short while. They released the EP '' High Speed GTO'' at this time. White Wizzard has worked exclusively with Producer/Engineer Ralph Patlan since 2008.

''Over the Top'': 2010–2013

On March 9, 2010, the band released its first full-length album, ''

''. The album was mostly well received by critics. The band toured North America with

Korpiklaani Korpiklaani (Finnish: ) is a Finnish folk metal band from Lahti who was formerly known as Shamaani Duo and Shaman. History Shamaani Duo While other folk metal bands began with metal before adding folk music, Korpiklaani started with folk music ...

Týr (; Old Norse: , ) is a god in Germanic mythology, a valorous and powerful member of the and patron of warriors and mythological heroes. In Norse mythology, which provides most of the surviving narratives about gods among the Germanic peoples, ...

, and Swashbuckle in January 2010. The North American tour was followed by a short UK tour with

Edguy Edguy is a heavy metal band formed in Fulda, Germany in 1992. History Demos, AFM years (1992–2003) Edguy was founded in 1992 by 14-year-old students Tobias Sammet, Jens Ludwig, Dominik Storch and Dirk Sauer. The name "Edguy" was an affecti ...

in March 2010, which began at Hammerfest II. White Wizzard had its live debut with its third lineup – featuring Michael Gremio and Lewis Stephens – at the famous

Download Festival Download Festival is a British-created rock festival created by Terrance Gough, held annually at the Donington Park motorsport circuit in Leicestershire, England (since 2003); in Paris, France (since 2016); at Parramatta Park, Sydney (since 201 ...

in June of that same year, opening the Ronnie James Dio stage on Sunday. In March 2010, White Wizzard was nominated for Best New Artist in the Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards 2010. On October 5, 2010, Earache Records presented the band's new single, "Shooting Star", on YouTube. It was also released as a 7" Vinyl Single. This is the only White Wizzard release with vocalist Peter Ellis. On September 19, 2011, the band released its second full-length album, ''

'' which featured vocalist Wyatt Anderson. On August 1, 2012, the band released the song "Torpedo of Truth" with a new vocalist Joseph Michael (Midnight Reign, Peppermint Creeps), cousin of the late

Ronnie James Dio Ronald James Padavona (July 10, 1942 – May 16, 2010), known professionally as Ronnie James Dio, was an American heavy metal singer. He fronted and founded numerous bands throughout his career, including Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and H ...

Lineup and label changes, hiatus: 2013–2018

In April 2013, Earache Records announced White Wizzard would release a third album titled ''The Devil's Cut''. The album featured the stable lineup of Jon Leon, Giovanni Durst, Will Wallner, Jake Dreyer and Joseph Michael. Vocalist Joseph Michael was fired by Leon on October 7, following a disagreement between the two. Shortly after, guitarists Jake Dreyer and Will Wallner left the band, leaving only Leon and drummer Giovanni Durst as members. Following these disagreements and abrupt lineup changes, Earache Records parted ways with White Wizzard on October 9, 2013. On March 18, 2014, the band released the single "Marathon Of Dreams" via their new label White Wizzard Records; it featured Jon Leon on lead vocals and Devin Lebsack on drums. On April 1, 2016, White Wizzard released its new single "Break Out". In July 2016, the band announced a new album to be released in 2017 called '' Infernal Overdrive''. Guitarist James J. LaRue and singer Wyatt Anderson had rejoined the band at this point, with new drummer Dylan Marks also joining. ''Infernal Overdrive'' was released on January 12, 2018. The album received mostly positive reviews and was more well received than White Wizzard's previous release. On April 24, 2018, Jon Leon announced the immediate end of the band on Facebook; "So unfortunately I have to announce that White Wizzard is over. There will be no more albums or live shows."

Reformation: 2019–present

On March 26, 2019, Jon Leon announced on the White Wizzard Facebook page that he was reassembling the band with past members. Leon also stated that he had plans to do a

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...

campaign to fund a new album. White Wizzard released the single "Viral Insanity" featuring

Mark Boals Mark Robert Boals (born December 5, 1958) is an American heavy metal vocalist and occasional bassist, best known for his vocals with Yngwie Malmsteen. He is currently a member of the band Foundry. Boals' first album with Malmsteen, 1986's '' ...

on March 4, 2021. In June and July 2022, White Wizzard toured as direct support for

Anvil An anvil is a metalworking tool consisting of a large block of metal (usually forged or cast steel), with a flattened top surface, upon which another object is struck (or "worked"). Anvils are as massive as practical, because the higher th ...

performing 40 shows throughout the US. The tour marked the beginning of a new lineup for the band with Michael Gremio on vocals, Will Wallner on lead guitar, Jon Leon on bass, and Devin Lebsack on drums.

Musical style

White Wizzard is notable among many heavy metal bands for drawing influence from older,

traditional heavy metal Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With roots in blues rock, psychedelic rock and acid rock, heavy metal bands developed ...

bands such as

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...

and Dio, and is often considered part of the new wave of traditional heavy metal. These influences include melodic

guitar riffs A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accomp ...

combined with aggressive drumming and wailing or singing vocals.

Band members

The original lineup of White Wizzard included bassist Jon Leon, vocalist James-Paul Luna, guitarist James J LaRue and drummer Tyler Meahl. The band split up shortly after the release of the EP, and was reformed by Leon, along with vocalist Wyatt Anderson, guitarist Erik Kluiber, guitarist Chad Bryan and drummer Jesse Applehans. Applehans was replaced by Giovanni Durst after a short while. James-Paul Luna, James J LaRue and Tyler Meahl formed

in 2008. In April 2010, it was announced that guitarist Erik Kluiber had been replaced. At the same time vocalist Wyatt Anderson also left the band. The new lineup was revealed in June 2010, with Michael Gremio, formerly of Nebraskan power metal band

Cellador Cellador is an American power metal band based in Denver, Colorado. Originally from Omaha, Nebraska, the band was founded in 2003 by Chris Petersen, the band's primary songwriter, as a direct contrast to the overcrowded metalcore and death me ...

, on vocals, and Welsh guitarist Lewis Stephens replacing Kluiber. Gremio is the only White Wizzard vocalist not featured on any of their releases. By September 2010, the lead vocals had been taken over by Peter Ellis. On February 2, 2011, second vocalist Wyatt Anderson returned to the band, replacing a departing Peter Ellis. On June 27, 2011, the band announced that it had parted ways with Wyatt Anderson once again. On September 8, 2011, Jake Dreyer was selected to become the band's new guitarist. On May 1, 2012, British guitarist Will Wallner joined the band just days before a show in Tokyo, Japan. Joseph Michael joined the band as vocalist in August 2012. In October 2013, while on tour in the UK Jon Leon fired Joseph Michael after he and the other bandmates called him out on theft of band funds. On October 9, 2013, Giovanni Durst, Will Wallner and Jake Dreyer made statements announcing their departure from White Wizzard. By March 2014, Jon Leon had taken over as lead vocalist and Devin Lebsack had joined as drummer. On December 1, 2015, White Wizzard announced the return of High Speed GTO guitarist James J LaRue. On or around July 25, 2016, the band welcomed back singer Wyatt "Screamin' Demon" Anderson and guitarist James J. LaRue. On April 23, 2019, Jon Leon released an official press statement regarding the band and the new lineup, which features former members Michael Gremio on vocals, James J. LaRue on guitar, Will Wallner on guitar, and Devin Lebsack on drums.

Timeline

Discography

;Studio albums *''

'' (2010) *''

'' (2011) *'' The Devil's Cut'' (2013) *'' Infernal Overdrive ''(2018) ;EPs *'' White Wizzard ''(2008) * '' High Speed GTO'' (2009) ;Singles * ''Over the Top'' (2010) * ''Shooting Star'' (2010) * ''Marathon of Dreams'' (2014) * ''Break Out'' (2016) * ''Storm the Shores'' (2017) * ''Viral Insanity feat. Mark Boals'' (2021) * ''Flight of the Icarus'' (2021) * ''Witch Riders'' (2022)

References

External links

White Wizzard
at the

Encyclopaedia Metallum Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives (commonly known as Metal Archives per the URL or abbreviated as MA) is an online encyclopedia based upon musical artists who predominantly perform heavy metal music along with its various sub-genres. E ...

{{Authority control Heavy metal musical groups from California Musical groups from Los Angeles Musical groups established in 2007 2007 establishments in California