Final Conflict

Final Conflict emerged in 1985 as a song-focused neo-progressive outfit from Stoke on Trent, England, blending art rock with hard rock and pop elements in a manner reminiscent of Saga alongside the later work of Marillion and Galahad. The founding lineup consisted of vocalists and guitarists Andy Lawton and Brain Donkin together with keyboardist Mark Price, bassist Tony Moore, and drummer Arnie Wheatley.

The group’s opening pair of albums, Channel 8 in 1987 and The Time Has Arrived in 1989, appeared only on cassette. Their debut compact disc arrived in 1991 with Redress the Balance; at that point Moore shifted to a second keyboard role while David Bridgett entered on bass, and Darren Bland took over the drum chair after Wheatley’s departure. Buoyed by favorable reaction, the band next captured its most widely embraced release, the concept album Quest. Before those sessions, Steve Lipiec assumed keyboard duties in place of Price and Moore exited, with Chris Moyden installed on drums.

Although prospects appeared promising, Final Conflict’s association with the Dutch imprint SI Music ended abruptly when the label collapsed, leaving the group without direction. They subsequently aligned with Germany’s Angular Records, which issued Stand Up in 1997. Despite strong notices from both reviewers and listeners, the album failed to reach Angular’s primary distributor and therefore fell short of commercial expectations. Bridgett departed in 1999, succeeded on bass by Chris Chalk.