New Anneke group VUUR release trailer for debut album

New Anneke group VUUR release trailer for debut album

Anneke van Giersbergen’s new band VUUR have unveiled the cover artwork and tracklist for their forthcoming debut album, ‘In This Moment We Are Free – Cities’. The 11-track LP is due for release on October 20th via InsideOut Music and includes ‘Days Go By – London’, which the band released early June and can be heard here:

Regarding the cover artwork, band founder Anneke says:
“The cover is designed by Black & Finch with whom I’ve previously worked on the ‘Verloren Verleden’ release.

The lyrical themes of this album revolve around cities and freedom. Exposure to big cities can be overwhelming and you can feel engulfed by everything around you. At the same time it’s easy to be a stranger in a big city and for me that brings out a feeling of freedom as well. This past year I’ve thought a lot about the virtues of rural versus urban life, since me and my family are moving back to the city. It’s very exciting, but at the same time I know that sense of urban solitude from past experiences. The cover artwork represents this duality.”

VUUR’s full length debut was produced by Joost van den Broek, who was also involved in the writing process. Others co-writing partners are Mark Holcomb (Periphery), Esa Holopainen (Amorphis), Daniel Cardoso (Anathema), and both of VUUR’s guitar players wrote a song as well.

‘In This Moment We Are Free – Cities’ tracklist:
01. My Champion – Berlin
02. Time – Rotterdam
03. The Martyr And The Saint – Beirut
04. The Fire – San Francisco
05. Freedom – Rio
06. Days Go By – London
07. Sail Away – Santiago
08. Valley Of Diamonds – Mexico City
09. Your Glorious Light Will Shine – Helsinki
10. Save Me – Istanbul
11. Reunite! – Paris

Dream Theater announce US dates for Images, Words & Beyond Tour

Dream Theater announce US dates for Images, Words & Beyond Tour

Dream Theater has announced the third and final leg of their “Images, Words & Beyond 25th Anniversary Tour,” which sees the pioneering group celebrating the 25th anniversary of their milestone RIAA gold-certified album, Images & Words. The North American headline dates kick off September October 25th at Oakland’s Fox Theatre. The trek takes the band throughout the US, including dates at NYC’s Beacon Theatre and L.A.’s Wiltern, as well as a stop at the Sony Centre in Toronto.

Like previous legs, the show will be presented as an “Evening with Dream Theater,” with no opening act. The tour will feature an unparalleled live set of Images & Words in its entirety, along with fan favorites from their deep, widely-acclaimed catalog.

Said founding guitarist John Petrucci of the upcoming trek, “We are so psyched to bring our Images, Words & Beyond tour to North America this Fall! It’s hard to believe that it’s already been 25 years since Images was released! We’ve been having a blast playing those songs each night, and sharing memories and stories from our time in the studio back in 1992. We know that this is such an important album to so many of our fans, both old and new, so we plan on making this a really special night by playing I&W in its entirety as well as breaking out some rare material, and a few of our latest tunes, in order to make this landmark evening compete. We hope to see all of you there! Don’t miss it”

Presale tickets for select headline shows will be available beginning Wednesday July 26th, 10 AM (local time), followed by a public onsale July 28th, with the remainder of the presales launching one week later, August 2nd, with a public onsales of August 4th.

For more information (and all up to the minute presale and ticketing information,) please visit www.dreamtheater.net/tour/.

Dream Theater recently concluded the European leg of the “Images, Words & Beyond 25th Anniversary Tour”, playing to sold-out crowds across Europe. The upcoming North American run caps off a year-long celebration of their ground-breaking album, Images & Words. After a short break in early 2018, the band will return to the studio to begin work on a follow up to their most recent opus, The Astonishing.

Dream Theater upcoming tour dates are as follows:
10/25 Oakland, CA Fox Theater
10/26 Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern
10/28 Phoenix, AZ Celebrity Theatre
10/29 ABQ, NM Kiva Auditorium
10/31 Denver, CO Paramount Theater
11/2 Wichita, KS Orpheum Theatre
11/3 Chicago, IL Chicago Theater
11/4 Peoria, IL Peoria Civic Center
11/6 Cincinnati, OH Taft Theater
11/8 Pittsburgh, PA Palace Theatre
11/9 Detroit, MI The Fillmore
11/10 Buffalo, NY Rapids Theatre
11/12 Toronto, ONT Sony Centre
11/14 Albany, NY The Palace Theater
11/15 Boston, MA Orpheum Theatre
11/16 New York, NY Beacon Theater
11/18 Asbury, Park, NJ Paramount Theater
11/19 Philadelphia, PA Merriam Theatre
11/27 Baltimore, MD The Lyric
11/28 Raleigh, NC Memorial Auditorium
11/29 Nashville, TN War Memorial Aud.
12/1 Austin, TX Bass Hall
12/2 Dallas, TX The Pavilion
12/3 Houston, TX Cullen PAC

Animals as Leaders and Periphery announce co-headlining tour

Animals as Leaders and Periphery announce co-headlining tour

Periphery and Animals As Leaders team up for what is sure to be one of the year’s most talked about tours, launching a North American trek, dubbed The Convergence Tour, on Oct. 31.

“This tour is a long time coming,” said Animals As Leaders’ guitar player Tosin Abasi. “Beyond being some of our favorite musicians, the guys in Periphery are some of our favorite people! Our careers share common roots and at times, common members. We can’t wait to bring this show to you all.”

“We are incredibly excited to hit the road with our good friends in Animals as Leaders this fall,” adds Periphery guitar player Mark Holcomb. “While we’ve done some short runs and one-off shows with AAL over the years, the idea to do a full-scale, co-headlining tour of North America has been something both our camps have discussed for the better part of seven years. Unfortunately, we were never able to line things up. Until now. We were also able to snag two amazing bands for portions of this tour as well, Car Bomb for the first half and Astronoid for the second half. ”

The Convergence Tour:

October 31 Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall
November 1 Chicago, IL The Vic Theatre
November 3 Grand Rapids, MI The Intersection
November 4 Detroit, MI St. Andrew’s Hall
November 5 London, ON London Music Hall
November 7 Norfolk, VA The NorVa
November 9 New York, NY Playstation Theater
Novembr 10 Providence, RI Lupo’s
November 11 Philadelphia, PA The Electric Factory
November 12 Pittsburgh, PA Stage AE
November 14 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade
November 15 Nashville, TN Marathon Music Works
November 17 San Antonio, TX Alamo City Music Hall
November 18 Dallas, TX Gas Monkey Live
November 19 Houston, TX White Oak Music Hall
November 21 Phoenix, AZ The Marquee
November 22 Las Vegas, NV Brooklyn Bowl
November 24 Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern
November 25 San Francisco, CA The Regency Ballroom
November 27 Portland, OR Crystal Ballroom
November 28 Vancouver, BC The Commodore Ballroom
November 29 Seattle, WA The Showbox
December 1 Salt Lake City, UT The Complex (The Grand)
December 2 Denver, CO Ogden Theatre

Car Bomb opens Oct. 31 – Nov. 15 while Astronoid supports Nov. 17 to Dec. 2. Tickets for all shows are available this Friday, July 28 at 10 am local time.

Kaipa announce new album ‘Children of the Sounds’

Kaipa announce new album ‘Children of the Sounds’

Legendary Swedish progressive rockers Kaipa, led by mastermind Hans Lundin, have announced the release of their new studio album ‘Children of the Sounds’ for September 22nd, 2017. The band’s 13th album, and 8th since the act were reborn in 2002, this album features the line-up of Lundin, accompanied by Per Nilsson (Scar Symmetry), Morgan Ågren (Karmakanic), Jonas Reingold (The Flower Kings, Karmakanic), Patrik Lundström (Ritual) & Aleena Gibson, plus a guest appearance from violinist Elin Rubinsztein.

Hans comments: “In November 2014 when I was still filled with all the energy I had captured during the summer I started to write the new songs. What really made me push the start button this time was a magic spirit that filled my whole body after visiting a concert with Morgan Ågren and his band ‘Mats & Morgan Band’. I woke up the morning after the concert and still felt that enormous groove filling every part of my consciousness. I realized that I had to canalize all this energy somewhere so I decided to start to write some new music. I had also found a lot of inspiration from the long bicycle rides that I made during the summer in the open land-scape around Uppsala. It was like if the notes were rising up from the billowing fields I passed and the words were falling like raindrops from the clear sky. So now I suddenly had found the key to open up all these ideas that had been slumbering at the back of my mind for a while. All the beauty and the wondrous inspiration from nature in combination with this
“enormous groove” made me create five long songs during the next months.”

The track-listing for the album is as follows:
1. Children of the Sounds 11:31
2. On The Edge of New Horizons 17:10
3. Like A Serpentine 12:52
4. The Shadowy Sunlight 6:57
5. What’s Behind The Fields 9:31

The result is as colourful musically and lyrically as Kaipa devotees will expect from the band’s rich discography dating back to the debut opus released in 1975. Formed in 1973, Kaipa never shied away from experimentation, embracing fresh elements and sounds manifesting especially on the albums released in the 2000’s. ‘Children Of The Sounds’ is no exception, the album burns with creative fervour and spirit most vividly displayed on the title track, the 17 minutes long ‘On The Edge Of New Horizons’ or closing track ‘What’s Behind The Fields’. It embodies a powerful, positive energy and artistic brilliance that is irresistible and true to the genre’s very essence.

Concert Review: Styx in St. Louis, MO 7/2/17

Concert Review: Styx in St. Louis, MO 7/2/17

Show: United We Rock Tour with Styx, REO Speedwagon, Don Felder, July 2nd, 2017
Venue: Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre – St. Louis, MO in Maryland Heights, Missouri
Review and Pics by; Jon Fiala

To help celebrate the country’s oldest classic rock radio station’s 50th birthday, St Louis’ KSHE 95 had the United We Rock tour make a stop at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre for their annual Pig Roast. Veteran classic rock groups Styx, REO Speedwagon, and Don Felder were at the top of their game again.

Touring in support of their latest CD, The Mission, Styx worked together as a well oiled machine. As the entry music, “The Overture” from The Mission, played, each member came up one at a time to take their position on stage. Todd Sucherman, drummer since 1995, Ricky Phillips bass since 2003, Lawrence Gowan on keyboards since 1999, and finally the dual guitar mainstays of Tommy Shaw and the Godfather of Styx, James ‘JY’ Young. “The Overture” seemed like it was written specifically for this grand entrance as they hit its final chord together for a dramatic extension until Todd counted in the opening song “Gone, Gone, Gone”, with its Jeff Beck inspired opening lick. Lawrence led it perfectly as he bounced all around the stage and was in command of the crowd of near-capacity of 20,000 in the 90 degree weather. When the perfect harmonious blended chorus hit, one knew that they were at a Styx show.

They then brought the crowd back into their classic catalog, going back to 1978’s “Blue Collar Man” and celebrating the 40th anniversary this Friday of their breakthrough album The Grand Illusion by playing the title track, which included an extended key changed guitar solo. The crowd, whose average age of the crowd was seemingly above age 50, went wild as the boys began the song that jumpstarted their career, going back to 1973’s “Lady.” 1975’s Equinox’s “Light Up”, with its perfect harmonies, sounded just like the album. JY took the lead vocals on it and the current cover holder of Modern Drummer magazine put his own spin on the fills that made it shine. The addition of Todd Sucherman to the band has really brought a new dynamic to the group and his own spin which he puts on the classics is very exciting to hear.

The new CD was visited again with its second release, “Radio Silence,” seeming to channel its inner Man in the Wilderness. JY brought started celebrating our nation’s independence a couple of days early with his classic Miss America, which never sounded better. Founding member and original bassist Chuck Panozzo was brought up for the “Foolin’ Yourself” as he played his Rickenbacker while Ricky switched to a double neck guitar. Next was Tommy’s “Too Much Time on My Hands” has always been a fun song to watch the band play.

Lawrence is a very accomplished keyboardist, and he took a quick solo spot to play a short piano piece, “Khedive,” from the new CD and then getting the enthusiastic crowd involved in the singing as asked them to play off of him for the operatic portion of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”, and then a short portion of the Beatles’ “Golden Slumbers.” Lawrence then began the classic intro to their most played song in concert, “Come Sail Away” as the rest of the band made their way back to the stage to conclude the show with pure raw energy, as Lawrence spun around like someone in their twenties, not sixty. Chuck rejoined for this conclusion as he and Ricky made it a double bass encounter which is always a treat. It was truly magical.

The encore saw even more energy with 1980’s “Rockin’ the Paradise” and Tommy’s classic “Renegade” as JY threw enough guitar picks into the crowd to probably earn a silver medal behind Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen. Todd’s thumping gong drum made the a cappella middle portion sound even more powerful. The crowd was totally theirs for the entire set as they PA played the end of The Mission’s Outpost, which sealed the deal for the crowd.

As someone that grew up in a small, rural town in Nebraska, and whose junior high years were dominated by radio and vinyl, I spent much of my spare time delving into everything that was Styx, definitely annoying all of my classmates and family. My prized possession was the poster of the band that came with the Grand Illusion album which I proudly displayed above my bed. It is incredibly comforting to know that my fondest childhood memories are even more vibrant. Even with some major lineup changes, this band is still at the top of their game and never disappointed in any way.

The evening also included a short set from the Michael Stanley Band whose first album dates back to 1969. The Eagles’ Don Felder was up next. He and his band played what seemed like every non-Desperado Eagles’ song and sounded just like the original. Tommy Shaw joined him on stage for Take It Easy on guitar, and switched to banjo halfway through. REO Speedwagon concluded the long evening by also playing a stellar set loaded with classic rock radio staples.

Concert Review: Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress, London, England 6-28-17

Concert Review: Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress, London, England 6-28-17

Show: Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress w/Next To None
Venue: Koko, Camden UK
Review by: Faye Sanderson
Photos by: Marco Segafreddo

Mike Portnoy, drummer extraordinaire and founder/ex-member of progressive metal heavyweights Dream Theater, is back on tour. Only this time, instead of touring with one of the many bands he’s been part of since he left Dream Theater in 2010, Portnoy is bringing thirsty audiences a full rendition of his ‘Twelve Step Suite’: a suite of five songs spanning five albums over seven years. The twelve-step suite charts his progression through the twelve steps of the Alcoholics Anonymous programme, a group therapy he credits with his ongoing recovery from alcoholism (it’s been seventeen years since his last drink). The suite is ambitious, taking us into the darkest recesses of Portnoy’s struggle with addiction, from admitting his powerlessness over alcohol to reaching a place where he’s now extending the hand of support to fellow recovering alcoholics.

Minus the rest of his old bandmates in Dream Theater, Portnoy has recruited another group of phenomenally talented musicians in the form of five sixths of Haken (minus drummer Ray Hearne) and American guitarist Eric Gillette (Neal Morse Band) to bring this ambitious, once in a lifetime event to fans across the world. On Wednesday night, Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress tour kicked off in London’s Koko. There’s a special kind of delight in being the first audience of a tour and not knowing what to expect, for those of us (especially myself!) who are unable to resist checking setlists before the night. I knew it was going to be an awesome night from the moment we filled into the venue and several rows of fans started up impromptu karaoke to the house music, instrumental versions of well-loved Dream Theater songs. Anyone who’s attended a Dream Theater gig prior to 2010 knows the camaraderie felt at a Dream Theater show is something special, and it was amped up to the max by knowing we were going to see this music performed by Portnoy himself, the heart and soul of Dream Theater that’s been sorely missed since his departure.

Support came in the form of Next to None, with Portnoy’s son Max on drums. For those concerned their place on the tour was purely due to the family connection, fears were laid to rest within the first couple of songs as N2N showed us their infectious enthusiasm and insane chops; guitarist Derrick Schneider is surely one to watch, bringing both excellent playing and soaring, clean vocal harmonies to the mix effortlessly. I saw them support Haken on a recent tour and there’s been a clear improvement in their stage presence in just a few short months: give them a few years to further hone their songwriting skills and continue to mature and they’ll be ones to watch.

The main event arrived, and we were thrust back into Dream Theater’s glory days with the opening from what is arguably their most revered album Metropolis Part II: Scenes From a Memory (1999), the concept album by which all others have been judged in the past thirteen years since I first fell in love with it. To say this was a surprise is an understatement, one which left my friend and I shouting to one another ‘is this actually f*cking happening!?* in disbelief as tears formed in my eyes. The beauty of Overture 1928 and Strange déjà Vu is in the way opening instrumental passage gives every musician chance to take centre stage for solo melodies, a true display of the musicianship ahead of us during the rest of the show. If there was any concern that it would be strange seeing DT music played by Haken this was put to rest within seconds: not only are they more than capable of nailing the complex rhythms and technically demanding lines inherent in Dream Theater, they’ve made it known on social media they’ve long been massive fans of Dream Theater’s music, growing up listening to them and honing their skills to Dream Theater like so many of the rest of us in the audience. There’s always a danger that something is lost in translation when music you love is played by a new group of people, but the love that every single member clearly felt for what they were playing was impossible to miss even for fans who’d never heard of them before. Haken are renowned for bringing a huge party to their shows (having been lucky enough to see them several times before myself), so the mix of them with Portnoy and the astoundingly competent Eric Gillette created a gig with levels of excitement and showmanship often missing in what some see as the navel-gazing, introspective nature of the progressive genre. It was beautiful to see a band of musicians paying tribute to the music of their youth, and the knowledge that they were fans as much as those of us watching leant a strangely intimate atmosphere where it felt like everyone was in it together.

Moving on, 1994’s The Mirror bridged the gap between the optimistic vibe of Scenes and the darker, heavier twelve-step suite ahead. Kicking off with the Glass Prison, crafted to show us exactly how it felt for Portnoy to feel trapped inside his addiction, fan hysteria seemed to hit a record high for the night with every last person I could see around me singing each line word and visibly anticipating and responding to every single lick, sweep, pinch harmonic and drum fill like only die-hard fans of Dream Theater are able to.

Second in the suite is This Dying Soul from 2003’s Train of Thought, Dream Theater’s Metallica-infused, heaviest, darkest record to date, giving everyone plenty of opportunity to develop a sore neck the next day. Third up, The Root of All Evil, we were treated to seeing guitarist Eric Gillette handle all vocal duties, a nice move which switched things up a little and no doubt gave singer Ross Jennings chance to catch his breath from what must surely be one of the most demanding singing gigs of his career. The penultimate track, Repentance, is a brief but much-needed lull which gave both the band and audience chance to sit back for a moment and enjoy the few minutes break in headbanging and jumping around. Repentance deals with the AA steps which involve making amends for your sins and seeking forgiveness for those you have wrong, and features prog legends Steven Wilson and Mikael Akerfeldt apologizing for their mistakes during the middle passage of the track. A particularly delightful moment came when their faces floated across the screen behind the stage, leading to them both getting their own individual and hearty rounds of applause and cheers.

The final song of the suite came in the form of the Shattered Fortress, a song which somehow manages to weave in myriad themes and melodies from the previous four tracks, while adding enough new material that it sounds triumphant and complete rather than derivative. My favorite song of the suite for many reasons, it’s hard to describe the way an already brilliant song became transcendent when performed at the end of the forty-four minutes of music which gave life to it. I can only try and imagine how it must have felt to be Mike Portnoy at that moment, seeing 1400 fans singing back at him his own determination to extend support and guidance to other alcoholics at the beginning of their own journey into recovery.

by Simon Robins

There are no real words that can do justice to how much it meant to finally see one of my favorite pieces of music performed live after giving up all hope of ever being able to do so when Portnoy left the band (though the length of this review kinda counteracts that claim). Though Dream Theater have carried on and have my enduring respect for all that they’ve created, the atmosphere at their shows has been lacking ever since Portnoy soul walked out of the door. Seeing the show tonight made me realize that although I’ll always follow Dream Theater whatever path they take, the magic that made them the greatest band in the world was contained within Mike Portnoy. It says a lot that this was more of a Dream Theater gig like I used to know and love than any of the shows I’ve seen without Portnoy. For one fifth of the band and a bunch of his friends to pull this off truly says it all.

Unsure what to expect from the encore, I waited with bated breath until the band came back on stage and kicked off with one of the highlights from Scenes from a Memory, Home, before playing the revered The Dance of Eternity. Notorious amongst the world of progressive metal for its insistence on changing time signatures every bar or two and requiring some of the most technically complex solo parts heard from Dream Theater (which says a lot), The Dance of Eternity was, I thought, a clear display of prowess which cemented my view that Haken are possibly the most underrated musicians in modern prog music, especially keyboard player Diego Tejeida who was, along with Eric Gillette, undoubtedly the star of the show the whole gig for his note-perfect performance and bombastic, wonderfully over the top keytar solo sections. Having watched a few fan videos back on YouTube while writing this review, I was struck again by how skillfully he was able to interpret and play 2+ hours of some of the most physically and mentally demanding keyboard work in the genre. Though most of the show was spent watching him play, it was one of those rare gigs were there wasn’t a weak link within the band.

The gig ended, fittingly, with Finally Free from the end of Scenes from a Memory, nicely bookending the show. I remembered to look around me before the end of the song, and saw how every single person in the audience was stood, mesmerized, singing along, plenty with tears in their eyes. It felt just like the many times I saw Dream Theater with Portnoy, where the audiences all seemed to feel like they were in something together, finding something within Dream Theater’s music they possibly (like me) had never found elsewhere. Dream Theater fans are nothing if not a community, and it was bittersweet to see that despite all of the water that’s passed under the bridge in the band’s recent history, the love for their music prevails and is utterly timeless.

So there you have it. I went expecting the twelve-step suite, I came away with that plus five songs from Scenes from a Memory, with more atmosphere and energy and meaning than any of the occasions I’ve seen Dream Theater play in recent years. For myself, their seminal concert DVD Live Scenes from New York has always been the ultimate gig DVD and one which expresses and captures perfectly the emotions that first caused me to fall hopelessly for Scenes. I’ve spent years ruing the fact that I wasn’t at that particular gig, but tonight genuinely felt like we got our own version of Live Scenes from New York: a gift I presumed would never come since the parting of Portnoy from the band. I’m unashamed to say that my mascara was running as the band left the stage, and I felt certain that I’d never be fortunate enough to experience a show or experience like it again in my lifetime.

Portnoy has stated that after this tour, he will no longer be playing Dream Theater’s music, citing it as closure for him. If you’re a fan of the band and able to get to any of their dates for the rest of the tour, you won’t be disappointed. As sad as it is to think that this is something I’ll never be able to experience it again, the fact I experienced this gift at all is something I’ll cherish within my heart for the rest of my life as an evening shared with friends old and new watching some of the most emotionally deep, meaningful, personal music I’ve ever been lucky enough to find and fall in love with. Portnoy took a risk putting together this tour and putting himself out there by playing Dream Theater music while the rest of the band are still writing and gigging and attracting their own huge audiences, but it paid off better than I could have possibly imagined. If this is his closure, he now knows that however long he spends away from the band he grew and nurtured and turned into the international success it is today, we fans will always be grateful for everything he gave the world of music and that he has our enduring love and respect. It takes guts to take your own intimate battles and set them out for others to consume and critique, but what Portnoy has achieved with the Shattered Fortress tour is a triumph.”

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