I'm an 18 year old music addict from Germany. I preferably listen to Progressive and technical (Death) Metal, although I also enjoy other types of metal/music.
I also play drums for Technical Death Metal band IN DEMISE (www.in-demise.de , www.myspace.com/indemise), check us out if you're interested!
If you're interested in linking to my blog, just write me at darkrevelation3000-3000@yahoo.de ! Feedback is appreciated, too!
Enjoy the blog!
Hey everybody! Back with another post on a band that arose from the ashes of CYNIC:
Aghora
Genre: Progressive/Jazz Metal
Formed: 1995 in Miami, Florida (USA), active
Members:
Santiago Dobles - Guitar (also in Cynic) Alan Goldstein - Bass Diana Serra - Vocals Giann Rubio - Drums Sean Reinert - Studio Drums (also in Cynic, Gordian Knot, Anomaly, Portal, Sean Malone, formerly in Death)
Former: Sean Malone - Bass (also in Cynic, Office Of Strategic Influence, Anomaly, Clockwork, Gordian Knot) Charlie Ekendahl - Guitar (also in Mendacity) Richard Komatz - Drums Jonathan Orriols - Guitar Danishta Rivero - Vocals Andy Deluca - Bass Ian Hayes - Drums Alex Meade - Guitar
Aghora is a progressive metal band formed in 1995 by Guitarist Santiago Dobles, rising from the ashes of pioneer Progressive Death Metal band CYNIC. As their name indicates, the lyrical and artwork theme is focused on eastern philosophy (Aghora is a a particular school of Hindu Tantra). In 2000 they released their first album, self titled Aghora, recorded in 1999 with Sean Malone, Sean Reinert, Charlie Ekendahl, and Danishta Rivero - so 3 members of Cynic were in the band at that time. In the last 6 years the band has undergone various lineup changes and had been recording and working on their new album Formless that was just released. I recommend you check em out if you're out for something that's not new, but unique - I'm not the biggest fan of female vocals, but they really create a style of their own!
Sean Reinert & Santiago Dobles recording "Kali Yuga" in 1999:
Bands already featured:
Abstract Shadows Adagio Behold... The Arctopus Cellar Door Chaoswave Circus Maximus Dream Theater Into Eternity Nevermore Pagan's Mind Spiral Architect Symphony X
(just search this blog or look in the archive for the band you're interested in - scroll up to the top)
Hey everybody! As promised, I'll now cover a rather unknown band that definitely stands out of the crowd and is treasured by insiders: the instrumental NY three-piece...
Behold... The Arctopus
Genre: Progressive Technical Instrumental Metal
Formed: 2002 in New York City (USA), active
Members:
Mike Lerner - Guitar Colin Marston - Warr Guitar (also in Dysrhythmia, Byla, Infidel?/Castro!) Charlie Zeleny - Drums (also in Blotted Science)
Discography:
2002 - We Need A Drummer (demo) 2003 - Arctopocalypse Now... Warmageddon Later (demo) 2005 - Nano-Nucleonic Cyborg Summoning (EP) 2006 - Orthrelm/Behold... The Arctopus (split)
Behold... The Arctopus was founded in New York City during the late months of 2002, with Colin Marston on Warr guitar and Mike Lerner on electric guitar. Without a drummer, the pair went searching for one through numerous advertisements in local newspapers and auditions. During this time without a drummer to supply the required acquisition, Colin spent months programming the drums with the demo tracks he and Lerner had already written and recorded. Two songs, "We Need a Drummer" (which became "Alcoholocaust" on their following debut Arctopocalypse Now... Warmageddon Later EP) and "We Still Need a Drummer" ("You Will Be Reincarnated As An Imperial Attack Spaceturtle", also on their subsequent debut EP). A bootleg titled "We Need a Drummer" with both of these demos has being circulating the web with no official release of both the original demo tracks currently available. After over a year without a drummer, they stumbled upon a New Jersey local named Charlie Zeleny, who after merely twenty minutes of jamming with the band was accepted as a certified member. Zeleny comprehended the band's conceptual techniques quickly, having perceived the programmed drumming sheet music from the We Need a Drummer demo songs and finally recorded them in 2003 for their debut EP, released by Epicene Sound Systems. The cover was designed by Daniel Rizer. This was succeeded upon in 2005 with their EP "Nano-Nucleonic Cyborg Summoning", consisting of three new songs showing major developments. It was by now Behold... The Arctopus were nationally touring with other tech metal orientated acts like Colin's other band Dysrhythmia, Yakuza, Time of Orchids, Kayo Dot, The Dillinger Escape Plan and Orthrelm, with whom they later released a Split EP with In 2006 they were signed to Black Market Activities/Metal Blade and on August 22 the same year they released a full-length album, "Nano-Nucleonic Cyborg Summoning (reissue)", combining their two EPs "Nano-Nucleonic Cyborg Summoning" and "Arctopocalypse Now... Warmageddon Later" and a full live set. In a recent radio interview with Garry Way, Colin mentioned that a new Behold... The Arctopus album is in the works with "five songs written and three songs learnt". It's set for release in mid 2007.
Charlie Zeleny is also part of the band "Blotted Science", a technical all star project featuring Ron Jarzombek and Alex Webster from Cannibal Corpse. I'll cover that as soon as they reveal more info bout the whole thing...
Hey everyone! Please excuse the fairly long pause I took - I was busy with stuff that kept me from sitting one for a good hour. But now I'm back with a post on a more popular band:
Nevermore
Genre: Progressive Power/Thrash Metal
Formed: 1992 in Seattle, Washington (USA), active
Members:
Warrel Dane - Vocals (also in Sanctuary, formerly in Serpent's Knight) Jeff Loomis - Guitars (also in Sanctuary, formerly in Experiment Fear) Van Williams - Drums (also in Pure Sweet Hell) Steve Smyth - Guitars (formerly in Testament, Dragonlord, Vicious Rumours) Jim Sheppard - Bass (also in Sanctuary, formerly in Alice In Chains)
Former:
Guitars: Pat O'Brien (also in Cannibal Corpse, Chastain, formerly in Ceremony, Monstrosity) Tim Calvert (also in Forbidden) Chris Broderick (Jag Panzer) - live guitars in 2006
Discography:
1992 - Utopia (demo) 1994 - 1994 demo 1995 - Nevermore (album) 1996 - In Memory (EP) 1996 - The Politics Of Ecstasy (album) 1999 - Dreaming Neon Black (album) 2000 - Dead Heart In A Dead World (album) 2000 - Believe In Nothing (single) 2003 - Enemies Of Reality (album) 2005 - This Godless Endeavor (album)
After the disbanding of Sanctuary, Warrel Dane, Jeff Loomis and Jim Sheppard decided to found a new band, adding Van Williams to the line-up and naming it Nevermore. Founded in the epicentre of Grunge at it's high time, Nevermore persisted as a metal band and were recognized by Neil Kernon, a producer now famous for having worked with bands like Judas Priest, Queensryche, The Rolling Stones and Cannibal Corpse (what a mix!), who produced their self-titled debut, which eventually scored them a record deal with Century Media Records. They subsequently recorded "The Politics Of Ecstasy" (with Pat O'Brien) and "Dreaming Neon Black" (with Tim Calvert), then switched to recording with Andy Sneap and recorded "Dead Heart In A Dead World". While they had risen to worldwide fame amongst different parts of the metal community, Nevermore was encountering problems: Century Media cut the budget for their coming album, so they had to stay in Seattle and hired ex-Queensryche guitarist Kelly Gray - probably the biggest mistake of their career. Kelly Gray completely destroyed the sound quality of "Enemies Of Reality" (my favourite Nevermore album), which, was still quite well-received though. The guitars sounded indefinite, the drums like plastic buckets and frying pans. Also, Warrel Dane was beginning to suffer from his constant alcohol consumption. But he eventually managed to become sober and improve his voice. Century Media, facing the fans' criticism about the sound, then gave the band money to re-mix the album. They gave it to Andy Sneap, who gave the album a whole new dimension. Shortly after, they added their live guitarist Steve Smyth to the constant line-up. They then recorded their best received album to date, entitled "This Godless Endeavor". The press gave it full ratings and declared it album of the month with almost no exceptions. However, another setback followed: Steve Smyth was diagnosed with kidney failure on April 30th 2006. All live activities of 2006 had to be managed by Chris Broderick. Luckily, Smyth received a kidney transplant in December 2006 and is already feeling a lot better. In my opinion, Nevermore is a band that has a place in metal history. Their sound is unmistakable, and their combination of blazingly fast soloing and mind-bending riffs with Dane's operatic voice and a certain catchiness makes them stand out from the crowd. If you like metal, and you enjoy your metal unique, definitely check them out (if you don't have already!)!
After the last post, I'll return to cover some more Prog Metal standards; now it's time for the probably biggest Prog Metal band following Dream Theater:
Symphony X
Genre: Progressive/Neoclassical Power Metal
Formed: 1994 in Middletown, New Jersey (USA), active
Members:
Sir Russell Allen - Vocals (also in Star One, Ayreon, Russell Allen's Atomic Soul, Allen/Lande) Michael Romeo - Guitars (also in Redemption, Kotipelto) Michael Pinnella - Keyboards (also in Michael Romeo, Michael Pinnella (solo projects)) Mike LePond - Bass (also in Distant Thunder, Heathen's Rage, formerly in Painmuseum, Sleepy Hollow) Jason Rullo - Drums (formerly in Redemption)
Former:
Thomas Walling - Drums Thomas Miller - Bass Andy DeLuca - Touring Bass (also in Mullmuzzler) Rod Tyler - Vocals (formerly in Overlorde)
Discography:
1994 - Danse Macabre (demo) 1994 - Symphony X (album) 1995 - The Damnation Game (album) 1997 - The Divine Wings Of Tragedy (album) 1998 - Twilight In Olympus (album) 1998 - Prelude To The Millennium (compil.) 2000 - V - The New Mythology Suite (album) 2001 - Live On The Edge Of Forever (live album) 2002 - The Odyssey (album) 2005 - Rarities & Demos (compil.)
Symphony X were founded in New Jersey in April 1994. Guitarist Michael Romeo had already been receiving a lot of praise and attention for his self produced solo-tape "The Dark Chapter", which eventually led to the birth of Symphony X. Joining Michael at first was bass player Thomas Miller, who had played with Michael on numerous occasions in the past. Soon after that, vocalist Rod Tyler and drummer Jason Rullo were recruited and finally with the arrival of Michael Pinnella, the Symphony X line up was complete and ready to record their first album. Their first self titled album was recorded in Autumn 1994 and was subsequently released in Japan in December of the same year, immediately making a big impression on fans of the Progressive Metal scene all over the world and achieved excellent reviews in Japan.
Only eight months after the release of their debut album, Symphony X recorded and released their second album "The Damnation Game". Before that though, the band parted ways with vocalist Rod Tyler in early 1995 and Russell Allen was soon chosen as his replacement. With their majestic vocal harmonies and classical overtones, the band pushed the boundaries of Progressive Music and spearheaded a new direction in the genre. The reactions of both fans and press alike to the album was very enthusiastic and the band were beginning to generate a world-wide positive awareness.
Towards the end of 1996 Symphony X began work on their magnum opus "The Divine Wings Of Tragedy". While the previous album had still shown a lot of obvious influences, "Divine Wings..." really showed that the band had come into their own at last. The album also made a huge impression on the European press with tracks like 'The Accolade' and the 20 minute title track poised to become classics of their genre. In readers polls of all the major rock magazines Symphony X scored high with the album and the press showered the band with praise. 'Divine Wings...' was soon regarded as one of the best albums of its genre for 1997.
Shortly before entering the studio to record the next album, Jason Rullo left the band for personal reasons, and was replaced by Thomas Walling. Entitled 'Twilight In Olympus', the album soon proved to be yet another milestone in the band's ever evolving career. Sales were incredibly strong, along with the usual excellent reviews in the rock press and calls for a European tour. However, Thomas Walling and Thomas Miller were unable to tour with the band, and Jason Rullo decided to return to the band. Andy DeLuca was brought in to handle the bass work for the tour. Symphony X crossed the Atlantic for a three week jaunt across Europe with English band Mindfeed as the supporting act. The tour proved to be quite a success, with sold-out performances in Germany, Holland, Switzerland, Italy and France, further strengthening the band's already growing fanbase. After the tour, it was mutually agreed by Thomas Miller and the band that his departure from the band would become permanent, and after many auditions, they found his replacement in Mike LePond. In the fall of 1999, dividing up their recording time between Michael Romeo's in-home studio, 'The Dungeon' and Trax-East in New Jersey, the band was back in the studio busily writing and recording what was sure to be another Symphony X masterpiece - V: The New Mythology Suite, and then their last effort called The Odyssey. Those last two albums are very different from each other; while "V" is very smyphonic and classical-orientated, "The Odyssey" saw Smyphony X move into a heavier direction, with a biting distortion and guitar riffs reminiscent of Pantera. Right now, Symphony X are still working on their next album, notably the longest wait for new material the fans ever had to endure (possibly related to the numerous side projects of the members like Russell Allen's Atomic Soul, Allen/Lande, Michael Pinnella, Redemption, Kotipelto and so on, as well as Mike LePond being struck by Chron's disease in May 2006, which is an inflammatory bowel disorder and led to the cancelling of all gigs for at least six weeks. They are now hoping for a release in Spring 2007. Let's hope that'll be the case...
Hello everyone! I guess some of you are familiar with Spastic Ink's song " A Wild Hare". I always wondered what the deal with this song is; it didn't quite seem to make sense on its own. But I recently found out that the song is in fact a visual-to-music transcription of scenes featuring Thumper the rabbit from Disney's 1942 classic "Bambi", the guitar "voicing" Thumper. I finally came across a full video to the whole song:
Hello everyone! After a christmas break, I'm back with a logo (as you may have noticed) and a post about a widely unknown band:
Abstract Shadows
Genre: Progressive Power/Heavy Metal
Formed: 1999 in Sao Paolo (Brazil), active
Members:
Alberto Lima - Guitar José Cardillo - Keyboards (also in Holy Sagga, Lost Inspiration) Hélvio Poletti - Bass Neno Fernando - Vocals (also in Portrait, Destra) Gustavo Cardoso Rodrigues - Drums
Abstract Shadows is a band from Brazil founded by Alberto Lima and Helvio Poletti in mid-1999, originally under the name "Abstract". The band, back then an instrumental three-piece, started to gain attention in the local scene. However, in 2002, they were forced to change their name because of another Brazilian band with the same name which was already founded in 1992. They decided to extend it to "Abstract Shadows". Subsequently, they teamed up with a keyboarder (José Cardillo) and a vocalist (Luciana Vidal, shortly after replaced with Neno Fernando), they started a different approach. After contributing to a Dream Theater Tribute, they recorded a self-titled EP in 2003, followed by the first full length "Symphony Of Hakel" in 2004. One interesting thing is that Alberto Lima seems to be playing the guitar with inverted stringing; meaning a left-hander playing a right handed guitar in a left-handed stance without re-stringing the guitar. Check it out in the video of "Symphony Of Hakel" below. In that video, the bassist also plays a figure on two different octaves simultaneously at the beginning. I'm sure we can expect some more interesting stuff from them in the future...
Hey everybody! Back with another post on a band that arose from the ashes of CYNIC:
