Heavy metal and sword-and-sorcery are bedfellows. Muscular dudes and powerful lasses fighting against darkness and chaos in a swirl of steel and fire makes for perfect thematic material for metal bands.

Which begs the question: Who is the most sword-and-sorcery band in the land?

If you answered the mighty Manowar you are probably correct; I’m not going to lay down hazel staves and demand trial by combat in some heavy metal holmgang over that choice. Manowar’s S&S cred speaks for itself. Eternal Champion has a case, too.

But today I’m giving the title to Manilla Road. Founded in 1977 in Wichita, Kansas, Manilla Road was a semi-obscure but important heavy metal pioneer that went all in on horror and S&S.

After the death of founder, vocalist, and lead guitarist Mark “The Shark” Shelton on July 27, 2018, Manilla Road disbanded. But their metal legacy remains, hewn into the living rock of our favorite fantasy subgenre.

How deeply?

Manilla Road had the look of S&S. The band liked posing for publicity photos in renaissance garb, cloaks, and studded leather, clutching swords and daggers. And their album art, in particular Open the Gates (1985), The Courts of Chaos (1990), Spiral Castle (2002) and Mark of the Beast (2002), could easily have served as a cover of a 1960s Lancer anthology or the interior art of an issue of Amra.

They had the sound of S&S. Song titles like “The Books of Skelos,” “Death by the Hammer,” “Lemuria,” “Black Lotus,” and “Atlantis Rising” should give you a pretty good idea of the nature of the band’s thematic and lyrical content. Others like “Hour of the Dragon,” “Road of Kings,” and “Frost Giant’s Daughter” leave no doubt. Manilla Road is the soundtrack to a Robert E. Howard Conan story. Some of their songs are heavy with the atmosphere of the Weird, evoking the stories of Clark Ashton Smith, while their heavier stuff channels Howard and Poul Anderson.

And most of all they had the spirit of S&S. Manilla Road’s credentials go beyond appearance and lyrics; sword-and-sorcery was in their soul. Former keyboardist E. C. Hellwell wrote three stories for DMR Books’ Swords of Steel series. Here’s the story behind that cool bit of S&S trivia, per the DMR website:

During the recording of Manilla Road's Playground of the Damned, E.C. Hellwell came to Mark Shelton with a short story he had written, called “Acheronomicon.” Shelton read it, and thought the story was so brilliant that he had to put it to music. Shelton had done this before in the early days of Manilla Road. The songs "The Riddle Master," "Cage of Mirrors" and "Time Trap" were all based on Hellwell's stories.

Not even Manowar can lay claim to S&S prose fiction.

In an interview published on the now-defunct Cimmerian Shadows website, Shelton acknowledged sword-and-sorcery as a chief influence, along with the likes of H.P. Lovecraft and Edgar Allan Poe:

(Question): I can’t let the phrase “Sword & Sorcery” pass by without further comment, so why not ruminate a bit on this particular breed of fantasy? In my view, fantasy in general – but particularly S&S – is something that either chimes deep within one’s core, or passes by utterly unheeded. Personally, I can’t imagine not being moved into shuddering awe by the thought of forbidden jewels smouldering behind darksome draperies; of the clatter of unearthly armor across snow-clad wastes; or of toppled empresses pining in exile for their sundered, exotic thrones. You?
(Answer): Hell, that is why Robert E. Howard is my favorite author. He gives you all of that in his stories. Man, the Conan stuff is so just what you said. And yes it is an incredibly cool genre of authorship. I can’t get enough when it is well done. Whether it be cinematic or written or musical, adventure fantasy always tugs at my soul.

Manilla Road never achieved great commercial success. I suspect that may have something to do with Shelton’s vocals; to be honest he sort of sounds like Skeletor. Which is again very S&S but not necessarily conducive to airplay. They were also hard to classify, alternating between thrash and classic metal, and perhaps subverted the expectations of conservative metal fans seeking an Iron Maiden or Metallica clone. But they had their hardcore fans, particularly in Europe, and today several metal bands list them as an important influence.

Shelton, an erudite reader who frequently dropped Poe, Howard, and H.P. Lovecraft into interviews, was Manilla Road’s heart and engine. For most of their career the band was a three-piece act, and Shelton not only sang on most of their albums but also served as lead guitarist. Riffs, solos, leads … the dude not only shredded, but branched out into tasteful classical solos in the vein of Tony Iommi. His death at age 60 left a big hole in the industry.

In the history of notable metal deaths Shelton’s ranks high on the badass scale. Shortly after performing at the Headbangers Open Air Festival in Germany Shelton met his end like some fallen warrior of old—on stage, in the arms of bandmate Bryan Patrick:

"Last night I was able to hold Mark in my arms until the paramedics got there," Patrick said. "I comforted him. He felt no pain, folks. He went quick. He suffered a heart attack. The stage was very hot last night — a lot of smoke. I was even struggling for a moment. And there were a couple of moments where I checked on him to make sure he was okay, and he gave me the nod. 'Keep poundin', brother.' He went out on top."

To mark the fifth anniversary of his passing I’m offering up my five most swordly and sorcerous Manilla Road songs. YMMV as they have many others to choose from.

1. Necropolis. A story about a warrior who enters a city of the dead in search of plunder. Most S&S line: “In the crypts of Atlantean kings, I found what I was looking for.”

2. Queen of the Black Coast. Follows the same beats of the classic Conan story of the same name. Most S&S line, “Take me back, across the sea, of Vilayet, to my queen.”

3. The Riddle Master. A man receives a strange note passed under his door by a menacing demonic presence, challenging his views of what constitutes reality. Most S&S line: “With blazing steel I’ll fight, the evil in the night.”

4. Road of Kings. Song title from a Robert E. Howard poem of the same name, later expanded into a pastiche Conan novel by Karl Edward Wagner. Most S&S line: “What do you see in your mind’s eye? Is it the fate of mankind to die?”

5. The Deluge. A song about the sinking of Atlantis. Most S&S line: “To all shores they did flee, warned in time by the Priests, Atlantis' key, The Eye of the Sea.”

I’ll throw in a bonus track: “Flaming Metal Systems,” arguably their most popular song and perhaps their best. It kicks ass.

If you’re interested in giving Manilla Road a try I recommend starting with Crystal Logic (1983), which most consider their best album start to finish.

Although Shelton is gone and Manilla Road disbanded, the spirit of Howard and sword-and-sorcery lives on in their music. I like to think the Cross Plains bard would have appreciated Shelton’s metal interpretation of his stories.

Up the Hammers!

Brian Murphy is the author of Flame and Crimson: A History of Sword-and-Sorcery (Pulp Hero Press). Learn more about his life and work on his website, The Silver Key.