As a heavy metal band hailing from Fayetteville, NC in the mid 80's, it was pretty much a

given that you weren't going to make a mark within the burgeoning metal scene.  But, for

the band known then as Overlorde, that's exactly what happened.  Formed in 1980 by

guitarist George "Wildman" Koerber and bassist Darrell Collins. vocalist Steve Sosa the

quintet unleashed their

first demo, entitled 'Medieval Metal' in 1985, which immediately caught the attention of the

underground metal tape trading faithful. “ Koerber reflects, “To sell over 10,000 copies of

that cassette with local store sales, sales at live shows, and tapes trade by mail opened

doors for labels to listen to our material.” "Keeper of the Flame" from that very demo found

its way onto the highly influential Metal Massacre series of compilation albums two years

later when it appeared on Metal Massacre VIII, alongside Sacred Reich and Viking,

amongst others.  “Being on Metal Massacre gave us status and we were now opening for

every Hard Rock/Metal band that came through North Carolina. Suddenly our name was

known across the world. ” 1987 also saw the band release their second demo and take to

the road, hitting Raleigh, Charlotte, Myrtle Beach and Richmond, VA, and other regional

markets with the likes of Kix, Savatage, NC legends Nantucket, Leatherwolf, Ace Frehley

and more, often at the request of those bands.

2012 saw the release of 'Medieval Metal Days: The Demo Years.'  A twelve song collection

released on vinyl via the German label Heavy Forces Records. Koerber says, “Heavy

Forces approached me and wanted to release material from our 24 track demos and

practice tapes recording out on LP – and then we released it on CD with a bonus track, an

updated version of “Keeper of the Flame.” In fact, the two versions of “Keeper of the Flame”

that are posted on YouTube from that original demo are closing in on an impressive

combined total of 120,000 views

In 2015 the newly branded OVERLORD SR gave the world 'Still Standing,' which they

released on their own.  Still inspired by the NWOBHM, the band was firing on all cylinders,

even including an updated version of "Full Speed Ahead (2014)," which was originally

released on that first demo. 

2016 saw the release of Still Alive and Standing which Exitus Stratagem Records is

reissuing while the band writes a new album. “The label is locally based and a couple of the

guys happened to show up at a gig one night after we had given them a copy of ‘Still

Standing’ and they loved how we sounded live and told us they wanted to do a brand new

record with us, which will see the light of day in 2021.”

Recorded completely live with no overdubs at The Rock Shop Music Hall in their hometown

of Fayetteville in December of 2015, the twelve songs on offer show the band at its most

raw. George explains how the record came together, “August 1, 2015 was the night of the

show and we mixed down a few weeks later at Sound Images of NC. We think it shows off

our best material as well as shows you what we really sound like live. There are no

overdubs on this album.”

A new lease on life and a new, brighter outlook thirty years after their formation sees the

re-energized Overlord SR keeping that flame burning.

The new album "Prepare for the King" was released on March 4th, 2022 on Exitus

Stratagem Records. The album has seven new songs from the band, will be available on

CD, vinyl LP, and Digital  Download, and streaming.

On April 8th, 2022 saw the re-release of the 1985 demo "Medieval Metal" on cassette for 

those who have wanted this epic four song demo. Get your copy in our store here.

The band opened for several bands the Fall of 2021, playing festivals. Bands enclude

Megadeth, Five Finger Death Punch, Seether, Lamb of God, Corrision Of Conformity,

Trivium, Hatebreed, Theroy of a Deadman, Wage War, Anthrax, Testament,

Black Label Society,Sabaton, Killswitch Engage, 10 Years, to name a few.

Crowds were in the numbers of 20,000 plus opening for these headlining bands.