Lillian Axe

Formed in Michigan as a melodic rock quintet, Lillian Axe began when Ron Taylor took the vocal slot alongside guitarists Steve Blaze and Jon Ster, bassist Rob Stratton, and drummer Danny King. Ratt’s Robbin Crosby discovered the group, bestowed their name, and produced the self-titled 1988 debut, a collection that fused catchy hard-rock tracks with sharply defined pop sensibilities. Their follow-up, Love + War, proved even stronger, built around expansive atmospheric pieces that proved both soaring and instantly memorable. Despite the quality, sales remained weak and MCA ended the relationship. In 1990 Gene Barnett replaced Danny King while Darrin DeLatte took over for Rob Stratton, after which the band spent several years on the independent Music for Nations roster. Following the 1993 release of Psychoschizophrenia, the members chose to disband, prompting Steve Blaze to launch Near Life Experience alongside his brother Craig Nunemacher. At the close of the decade Lillian Axe reunited briefly to support the rarities set Fields of Yesterday. Numerous personnel shifts later brought the core back to the studio in 2007, where Blaze and his new vocalist Derrick LeFevre cut Waters Rising. Sad Day on Planet Earth appeared in 2009, Deep Red Shadows followed in 2010, and XI: The Days Before Tomorrow arrived in 2012. One Night in the Temple completed the sequence in 2014.