Ohio power metal band SOLAR FLARE have released their new single “Born to Burn”. The song is from their upcoming self-titled EP which will be released on May 23, 2020.
About eight years ago or so, I bought this EXODUS cassette single at a thrift store for fifty cents. Fifty cents!! It’s still sealed too! I wanted to keep it as an EXODUS collectible, you know? The A side is ‘Objection Overruled’ – the single from their 1990 studio album ‘Impact Is Imminent’.
The B side is a (never before released) cover song of the legendary Ted Nugent’s ‘Free For All’. I don’t recall this cover song ever making it to a future EXODUS album; thus this cassette single is the only way one can own it on a physical format, unless vinyl or CD single versions were released as well?
I really dig these cassette singles from the past and I have a few more to show and tell in the future. Thank you for visiting Metal Odyssey and Metal Forever. – Stone
This cassette single was released on Capitol Records.
EXODUS Line-up On ‘Impact Is Imminent’:
Steve “Zetro” Souza – vocals, Gary Holt – guitars, Rick Hunolt – guitars, Rob McKillop – bass, John Tempesta – drums
Let’s only hope the festival season can get rejuvenated once again, especially by this mid September. God only knows what this coronavirus has in store for us all. In the meantime, I believe it is healthy to look towards the future and scope out the concert and festival dates that are currently being planned in months ahead.
Judas Priest headlines the Rebel Rock Festival, on September 18th, in Orlando Florida at the Central Florida Fairgrounds. This year is marking the 50th Anniversary of the iconic Judas Priest. Why Limp Bizkit is still a headliner is a scary mystery to me. Life surely is strange, indeed. I did check out this festival website and saw that Machine Gun Kelly is performing as a top bill too. Whatever. Judas Priest is king. Metal be thy name. – Stone
USA, here we come! Here’s the next bunch of US dates for 2020! So much looking forward to this! Hope to see y’all! Love you!!! Cheers, Doro
April 16.2020 – Phoenix, Arizona (USA) Club Red
April 17.2020 – San Diego, California (USA) Brick By Brick
April 19.2020 – Los Angeles, California (USA) Rainbow 48th Anniversary Party (free show)
May 02.2020 – Columbia, Maryland (USA) M3 Festival
May 03.2020 – Poughkeepsie, New York (USA) The Chance
May 04.2020 – Sellersville, Pennsylvania (USA) Sellersville Theater
May 06.2020 – Cleveland, Ohio (USA) The Winchester
May 07.2020 – Chicago, Illinois (USA) Reggies
North America, We heard you and now it’s your turn… MERCYFUL FATE are headlining this year’s Psycho Las Vegas in August, this will be our only appearance in North America this year. Get your tickets now at vivapsycho.com | The curse of the pharaoh awaits…
We will release “Maid In Japan – Future World Live 30th Anniversary” on April 10, 2020 (CD/DVD, Blu-Ray, LP, & Digital) via Frontiers Music srl. More details to be released in the coming weeks, but as you’ll see from the tracklisting, the release includes a performance of FUTURE WORLD in its entirety!
Tracklisting CD / DVD / BR:
1. Fw30 (Intro)
2. Future World
3. We Came To Rock
4. Love Games
5. Yellow Rain
6. Loud ´N´proud
7. Rodeo
8. Needles In The Dark
9. Eye Of The Storm
10. Long Way To Go
11. Mother Of All Lies
12. Kingmaker
13. Bull’s Eye
14. Little Drops Of Heaven
15. Sin-Decade
DVD and Blu-Ray:
– The videos:
+Little Drops Of Heaven
+Mother Of All Lies
+Nuclear Boomerang
+My Soul To Take
+A Heart Without A Home
+Kingmaker
+Face The World
+Bull’s Eye
+Last Beauty On Earth
+Serpentine
+Will You Still Kiss Me (When I See You In Heaven)
– Balingen Documentary
– Japan Documentary
Feb. 26 – Anaheim CA – House of Blues
Feb. 27 – San Francisco CA – Slims
Feb. 28 – Las Vegas NV – House of Blues
Feb. 29 – San Diego CA – House of Blues
Mar. 01 – Phoenix AZ – Crescent Ballroom
Mar. 02 – Albuquerque NM – Sunshine Theater
Mar. 04 – San Antonio TX – Aztec
Mar. 05 – Corpus Christi TX – House of Rock
Mar. 06 – Houston TX – Warehouse
Mar. 07 – Dallas TX – Gas Monkey
Mar. 08 – New Orleans LA – House of Blues
Mar. 09 – Tampa FL – The Ritz
Mar. 10 – Orlando FL – House of Blues
Mar. 11 – Atlanta GA – Buckhead
Mar. 12 – Charlotte NC – Underground @ The Fillmore
Mar. 13 – Silver Springs MD – The Fillmore
Mar. 14 – Montclair NJ – Wellmont Theater *
* with M.O.D. featuring Billy Milano and DEMOLITION HAMMER
Archon Angel was born from a meeting between producer/guitarist Aldo Lonobile (Secret Sphere) and former Savatage and Circle II Circle vocalist Zak Stevens during the making of Timo Tolkki’s Avalon’s ‘Return To Eden’ album, of which Aldo produced and played guitar and Zak did some guest lead vocals. The two soon started talking to Frontiers about the concept of working on new music together, which was met with great enthusiasm from the label.
Aldo submitted to Zak some song ideas which were reminiscent of the classic Savatage sound, the two felt the magic was there, and thus no time was wasted in getting together to craft an absolutely striking metal album. Aldo was also helped in the songwriting department by some of the most outstanding writers and musicians from the Italian Rock scene including Simone Mularoni (of DGM and Sweet Oblivion) and Alessandro Del Vecchio (Aldo’s bandmate in Edge of Forever and of course Jorn, Hardline, etc.).
The album itself deals with a central character, the “Archon”, who is a modern-day angel figure. The idea goes back to the religious system of Gnosticism. The only difference is that we are immersing the Archon’s story into modern-day times. The Archon is a medium that brings messages to God (Demiurge) from the people of Earth. The only real concept to the album is that they simply follow the story and life and times of the modern-day “Archon” and his life, as he is called upon to protect the people of the earth through frightening turbulent times.
On the first single, vocalist Zak Stevens says, “The title track accompanies the Archon on his journey in transitioning from a successful businessman, who leads a life of excess and egoism, to a superhero who will clean up the city and eventually, save the world from self-destruction. In the song, he is reminiscing about his past and the family he left behind, while summoning the power that called him to save the world to “hear him.”
About the filming of the video, Zak continues, “After an arduous search for the perfect city and videographer, we settled on Pittsburgh, PA for my scenes. The band was filmed in Genova, Italy, near the famous Porto Antico. In Pittsburgh, we shot atop Mt. Washington, overlooking downtown, much like the Archon would be doing as he pondered his future. The weather didn’t cooperate the first day as it was a rainy day. But one of the coolest moments occurred while filming the video….one of the locations was right across from Heinz Field during a Pittsburgh Steelers [football] game. At the apex of the song, the crowd erupted in cheering at the perfect time, and people who were watching us film were caught by surprise. It really contributed to my overall mindset during that portion of the song. I felt like they were cheering for the Archon and it mimicked a true live performance. I can’t wait to get out there and perform this song live with Archon Angel.”
Archon Angel are currently working on booking some live shows to present the band in the live environment, but their exclusive live premiere will happen at the 2020 edition of the 70000 Tons Of Metal Cruise.
If Savatage is a favorite of yours, then Archon Angel’s “Fallen” may well be your album of the year in 2020!
Lineup:
Vocals – Zak Stevens
Guitars – Aldo Lonobile
Bass – Yves Campion
Drums – Marco Lazzarini
Keyboards & Piano (Studio) – Antonio Agate
TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW for our REVELATIONS OF THE ANCIENTS North American Tour! Joining us are our friends in Pestilence (official) and The Black Moriah. We hope to see you on the road!
We’re very excited that our second album ‘The Burning’ will be released on 17th January 2020. To support the new record, we’ll also be touring the US for the very first time:
January 2020:
Sat 18th – Orlando, FL – Ace Cafe
Sun 19th – Tampa, FL – Brass Mug
Mon 20th – Pensacola, FL – Vinyl Music Hall
Weds 22nd – Houston, TX – Scout Bar
Fri 24th – San Antonio, TX – The Rock Box
Sat 25th – Dallas, TX – Trees
Sun 26th – Memphis, TN – Growlers
Tues 28th – Nashville, TN – The Cowan
Weds 29th – Joilet, IL – The Forge
Fri 31st – Cleveland, OH – The Odean
February 2020:
Sat 1st – Lexington, KY – Manchester Music Hall
Tues 4th – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade
Weds 5th – Jacksonville, FL – Jack Rabbits
Sat 8th – Monsters of Rock Cruise
Sat 15th – Fort Lauderdale – Revolution Live
Mon 17th – Savannah, GA – Victory North
Tues 18th – Greensboro, NC – The Cone Denim
Weds 19th – Lancaster, PA – Chameleon Club
Thurs 20th – New York, NY – Gramercy Theatre
Fact #1: The only effects used on the Black Sabbath debut album from 1970 are the thunderstorm and eerie tolling bell, as heard on the intro to the title track.
Fact #2: Bassist Geezer Butler was influenced by Frank Zappa.
Fact #3: The second studio album from Black Sabbath, (1970) Paranoid, peaked at #12 in America, while continuing to chart for 70 weeks.
Fact #4: Back in 1978, the mighty Van Halen opened for Black Sabbath on their Never Say Die! tour.
Fact #5: Ted Nugent opened for Black Sabbath on their Technical Ecstasy Tour, back in 1976.
AMARANTHE will be returning to North America for a major headlining tour, spanning August to the beginning of October of 2020! Special guests will be Battle Beast and Seven Spires. Check the dates, cities, and venues below!
Aug 20 ’20 Baltimore, MD – Soundstage
Aug 21 ’20 Worcester, MA – The Palladium (MA)
Aug 22 ’20 New York, NY – The Gramercy Theatre
Aug 23 ’20 Philadelphia, PA – Theatre Of Living Arts
Aug 25 ’20 Montreal, QC – Club Soda
Aug 26 ’20 Quebec City, QC – Imperial de Quebec
Aug 27 ’20 Ottawa, ON – Mavericks
Aug 28 ’20 Toronto, ON – MOD Club
Aug 29 ’20 Angola, IN – The Eclectic Room
Aug 30 ’20 Westland, MI – Token Lounge
Sep 1 ’20 Chicago, IL – Concord Music Hall
Sep 2 ’20 Belvidere, IL – Apollo Theater
Sep 3 ’20 Des Moines, IA – Wooly’s
Sep 4 ’20 Minneapolis, MN – The Cabooze
Sep 5 ’20 Winnipeg, MB – Park Theatre
Sep 6 ’20 Regina, SK – The Exchange
Sep 8 ’20 Edmonton, AB – The Starlite Room
Sep 9 ’20 Calgary, AB – Dickens
Sep 11 ’20 Vancouver, BC – The Venue
Sep 12 ’20 Seattle, WA – El Corazon
Sep 13 ’20 Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theatre
Sep 14 ’20 Sacramento, CA – Holy Diver
Sep 15 ’20 San Diego, CA – Brick by Brick
Sep 16 ’20 West Hollywood, CA – Whisky a Go Go
Sep 18 ’20 Tempe, AZ – Club Red
Sep 19 ’20 Las Vegas, NV – Backstage Bar and Billiards
Sep 20 ’20 Salt Lake City, UT – Liquid Joe’s
Sep 21 ’20 Denver, CO – Bluebird Theater
Sep 23 ’20 Dallas, TX – Trees
Sep 24 ’20 Austin, TX – Come and Take it Live
Sep 25 ’20 Houston, TX – Scout Bar
Sep 26 ’20 New Orleans, LA – House of Blues
Sep 27 ’20 Lake Buena Vista, FL – House of Blues
Sep 29 ’20 Racine, WI – Rt 20
Sep 30 ’20 Pittsburgh, PA – The Crafthouse
Oct 1 ’20 Charlotte, NC – The Underground
Oct 2 ’20 Cincinnati, OH – Riverfront Live
Tickets are on sale now! Check all ticket links at amaranthe.se/tour
The numbers are in and I couldn’t be more thankful🙏 I’m breathing, I’m creating and I’m surviving in a completely different music world. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your continued support and for helping me get to where I’m going. I could never do it without you👊 “TEN” is a huge success and I can’t wait for 11😉 Sincere gratitude👆🙌🙏 Now who’s ready for some 2020 shows? God Bless you all.
STRYPER will be playing live in Mexico, this February! Visiting Mexico City, Chihuahua and Monterrey, respectively. Check out the dates and ticket links below.
BUY TICKETS: February 20, 2020 – Mexico City, Mexico
BUY TICKETS: February 21, 2020 – Chihuahua, Mexico
BUY TICKETS: February 22, 2020 – Monterrey, Mexico
Infected Dead made a grand impression with their Lovecraftian cosmic horror debut Archaic Malevolence and have left fans salivating for more ever since. Today the band proudly reveal a blistering new single and video to sate those in wait, a track entitled ‘The Rache’ out now via Hostile Media.
The video was shot in the woods of Heathfield, Sussex UK earlier this summer with Loki Films. Vocalist Lou Ede elaborates: “The song is loosely based on the lesser known Lovecraft short story ‘The Hound’ so the main concept we had in mind was to give the allusion of the band being stalked by the titular monster, I think the director did a great job of getting that across.”
“We are delighted to finally be unleashing our first fresh track since Archaic Malevolence. It was great to be back working with Wynter Prior (producer) and work is well underway on our debut album, we’re really excited to share the first glimpse of what we’ve been up to over the past year.”
‘The Rache’ was produced by Wynter Prior, while Inner Sound overseen mixing and mastering. Luciferium War Graphics manned the helm once again for the epic artwork.
Catch Infected Dead Live in UK with Bloodshot Dawn next month!
International extreme power metal unit DRAGONFORCE will kick off their anticipated North American headlining tour this week. The trek will commence on October 1st in Tucson, Arizona and conclude October 12th in Ventura, California. Support will be provided by Dance With The Dead and Starkill. The following day, the band will set sail as part of the first annual Megacruise. See all confirmed dates below.
DRAGONFORCE w/ Dance With The Dead, Starkill:
10/01/2019 Encore – Tucson, AZ
10/02/2019 Sunshine Theater – Albuquerque, NM
10/03/2019 Vinyl @ Hard Rock – Las Vegas, NV
10/04/2019 Strummers – Fresno, CA
10/05/2019 Cargo – Reno, NV
10/06/2019 Hawthorne Theater – Portland, OR
10/07/2019 The Red Room – Vancouver, BC
10/08/2019 El Corazon – Seattle, WA
10/11/2019 August Hall – San Francisco, CA
10/12/2019 Ventura Theater – Ventura, CA
10/13/2019 Megacruise – Los Angeles, CA* DRAGONFORCE only
DRAGONFORCE is touring in support of their eighth full-length, Extreme Power Metal, released worldwide on September 27th via Metal Blade Records. Produced in Los Angeles, California by Damien Rainaud at Mix Unlimited, Extreme Power Metal was also recorded, in part, on guitarist Herman Li’s livestream channel on Twitch (twitch.tv/hermanli) with participation from fans. To preview the record, and to view the band’s recently-released video for “Razorblade Meltdown” visit metalblade.com/dragonforce.
DragonForce – Razorblade Meltdown (New Official Video)
The Grammy-nominated extreme power metal group is based in London, England. Their platinum-selling record, Through The Fire And Flames, brought them international acclaim and was featured as the most-challenging song on Guitar Hero III. Their energetic and humorous live performances have won them fans on every continent.
The group is known for their long, complex, and fast guitar solos performed by Herman Li and Sam Totman, who founded the band after meeting through a classified ad in 1999. Since then, the band has released seven studio albums, including Valley Of The Damned (2003), Sonic Firestorm (2004), Inhuman Rampage (2006), Ultra Beatdown (2008), The Power Within (2012), Maximum Overload (2014), and Reaching Into Infinity (2017). 2019 brings the next chapter in DRAGONFORCE history: Extreme Power Metal!
Regarding Extreme Power Metal, Li says, “This album again combines the best of DRAGONFORCE in an even bigger, more epic way than we have ever done before. We are so excited for fans to hear it!” The keyboards of the new album were performed by Coen Janssen of symphonic metal titan Epica, adding a new dimension to the album. Notes Totman, “We worked really closely with Coen on this new album. We are so happy with what he has brought into this new album. Every fan will be so happy to hear his majestic playing!”
Drawing from a wide range of influences, the band’s sound combines the sing-a-long choruses of classic ’80s rock with triumphant, uplifting melodies and fantasy-themed power-metal-inspired lyrics. As a nod to their passion for all things video-game related, the band frequently incorporates retro game sounds and melodies into their recordings and live shows.
Following the release of Extreme Power Metal, DRAGONFORCE will begin their world tour in support of it. Li promises, “In this age, where our music is easily accessible, I am not going to waste time trying to describe the sound of our new album. I’ll let the music do the talking! However, what I can tell you is, our upcoming tour will be our biggest in a decade. We have a massive epic production and a really special surprise for VIPs. We can’t wait to see everyone out on the road!”
Finnish melodic metal group PHOENIX TITAN have released their powerful debut album AVATAR OF FIRE. The album is available as CD and listenable on online streaming services.
Phoenix Titan is a five-piece group from Finland playing tight melodic metal. The history of the band began 2014 and all the band members have around 20 years experience of recording and playing live on several different bands.
The debut album ”Avatar of Fire” is released on September 27th 2019 via Inverse Records. The recording of the album began on summer 2017 and the final studio tracks were recorded early 2019. The album is recorded and produced by Aksu Hanttu (S-Tool, Tuoni, Entwine) and mastered by Svante Forsbäck at Chartmakers. Common denominator on all of the album tracks is catchy riffs and melodies combined to fierce energy.
Phoenix Titan – Avatar Of Fire – Track List:
Torment Of Vanity
Metal Shark
Accused
Ride For Vengeance
Will I Ever Find My Peace?
Napalm Phoenix
(In)Sanity
The Game
Chosen One
Line-up:
Harri Ahola – vocals
Santtu Rautiainen – guitar
Topi Vuorela – guitar
Tatu Rautiainen – drums
Juhana ”Jusa” Ovaska – Bass
Band comments on the recording process:
“We wanted to put effort to the quality of the recording on every production phase. Even as it took a lot more time, nerves and bad humor than we expected. The professional work can be seen and heard on the record. We are really satisfied with the album and we are looking forward the live shows to come.”
W.A.S.P. is happy to announce their participation in the upcoming KnotFest Festival in Bogota, Colombia, on December 6th 2019.
We look forward to seeing you there!!
If you’re a band or musician and would like your music reviewed or be interviewed by Stone, please click the link under the “ALBUM REVIEWS ARCHIVES” section below!
Metal Odyssey's Rock, Hard Rock and Heavy Metal Hall of Fame! These Are The Rock And METAL Legends Wrongfully Ignored By "The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame"
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