Overture! Many Hard Rock and Metal bands adopted the term from Classical music. However, over the years it’s become more typical for Hard Rock and Metal than any other genre I think. A fancy word, right? …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE
Heavy Metal has been outsider art for much of it’s existence, and the vast majority of what falls under the billowing shroud of “Metal” remains art produced by and for outsiders. Discounting the worldwide ubiquity of a few bands like AC/DC. Metallica, and Guns N’ Roses, the various strains of Metal may inspire extreme loyalty but not always a giant fan base. Fates Warning traveled artistic byways fairly early on in their career that set them apart even among the rest of the outsiders practicing the craft of Metal, boldly exploring uncharted musical and emotional territory that no other Metal bands had set foot in before, and very few have successfully since. The largest seismic shift happened not when original vocalist John Arch left Fates after the release of their third album, 1986’s thrilling Awaken The Guardian, nor did it occur for the Thrash-inflected follow up, No Exit. The first album to feature Ray Alder, No Exit features some of the fantasy themes evident in the first three albums, but combined the introspective instrumentation present there with more philosophical and personal lyrics. MTV Headbanger’s Ball mainstay “Silent Cries”, the ripping single from that album, combined a shredding guitar riff with Alder’s expansive range, painting a harrowing yet intimate portrait of a child rendered mute by being ignored and misunderstood. The song serves as a precursor to one of the single biggest risks ever taken by a Metal band, especially a band recently switching vocalists and getting national airplay. Fates Warning completely changed their sound to be more Progressive on 1989’s Perfect Symmetry and the quantum leap in their songwriting and playing was enhanced by a shift in lyrical subject matter that set them apart from virtually every Metal band of the time, regardless of subgenre. Where the rest of the Metalscape was filled with songs …READ MORE
Featuring new albums from Fates Warning, Death Dealer, Motörhead & Lords Of Black! …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE …READ MORE
Five years on since their last studio album Armored Saint have returned with their 8th studio album, Punching The Sky. Mick Burgess called up bassist and songwriter Joey Vera to talk about the making of the album, the plan for playing live and a quick update of his other band, Fates Warning. The recent passing of Eddie Van Halen has come as a shock to many. What did Eddie mean to you? I never met Eddie but I am just a giant fan like so many other people. He was a game changer not just for guitar players but for music in general. When that first record came out, I was in LA listening to KISS and Queen but when that record came out and hearing “Eruption” and “You Really Got Me”, my jaw was just on the floor. I’d never heard anything like that before. He set the bar so high and flipped everything on its head. He was so influential. I’m from LA like Van Halen and I saw them on their very first tour and they made a huge impression on me. I was about 15 or 16 years old at the time. That stays with you forever. It’s such a tragedy to lose him. I think everyone was shocked. Nobody knew that his health had deteriorated so rapidly. It’s really, really sad and he’ll be missed for sure. You have a new album, Punching The Sky out very soon. How do you feel ahead of its release? We’re looking forward to the release. The press has had the record for a couple of months now and we have two singles out and the response has been very positive so far. The fans seem to like the couple of songs they’ve heard and the press seem to …READ MORE
As drummer with the legendary Warlord in the early 80s Mark Zonder helped to pioneer what was to develop into Prog Metal. He took drumming to previously unknown territory in a 15 year stint with Fates Warning. As well as playing on hundreds of sessions, he is currently a member of The Graham Bonnet Band. Mick Burgess caught up with him during his busy schedule in his studio to chat about his career and Warlord in particular. You were due to be over in the UK last week with The Graham Bonnet Band but you injured your shoulder. What happened there? I had rotator cuff surgery two months ago as eight months ago I woke up and it was hurting. I thought it’d go away and did a bunch of touring with Graham and traveled across the world and it just never got any better. I had surgery and it’s OK. I can play but it’s a bit sore. I can lift my arm up but it’s a bit painful still. I have an implant in my arm with these cables that hold the muscle together. I’m doing the therapy so hopefully it should be OK soon. It’s not so much the playing but the travelling and the lifting and stretching that you do when going from one place to another. Everything’s good and I’m not too bothered about it. I should be back on the road in Japan in March. What the doctors were worried about was if it kept ripping and ripping then it’d be a whole different thing and I’d have been out for over a year. How did you end up hooking up with Graham Bonnet in the first place? Believe it or not, Giles Lavery his manager ended up singing with Warlord for a couple …READ MORE
Shortly after their triumphant appearance at Keep It True Festival 2016 with their original ’80s line-up, Fates Warning returns with their twelfth album. Already since its predecessor, Frank Aresti is back on guitar, and even more than on Darkness In A Different Light the band returns to an older sound (that had left with Aresti in 1996). Theories Of Flight requires a few spins before the opulent melodies and complex arrangements really sink in, but once they do it becomes evident that Fates Warning has arguably delivered the best Metal album of 2016 so far with long, epic songs like ‘The Light And Shade Of Things” paired with hymns like the enchanting “Seven Stars”. Be sure not to miss this one! Songs from this new release will be featured at 6:00/18:00 CET & Midnight/Noon EST on the day indicated. All featured DAILY ALBUM PREMIERES will have a short review posted the day it’s on the show! The FRIDAY edition of the Daily Album Premiere show contains 3 tracks from each of the Daily Premiere Albums featured during the week. Be sure to tune in here!
American-based Progressive Metal veterans Fates Warning have released their 11th studio album entitled Darkness In A Different Light… their first in 9 years. There’s lots of history still in this band, with Ray Alder on vocals, Frank Aresti and Jim Matheos on guitars, Joey Vera handling bass duties, and Bobby Jarzombek (also works with the Halford band) on drums. Darkness In A Different Light sounds very “polished” and smooth, if you will… sort of a blend between Melodic Rock and Progressive Metal. Although an enjoyable listen, the main drawback is an over emphasis on lyrical vs. musical passages.
Fates Warning has always suffered from the so called “little brother syndrome” when it comes to their better known big brothers Dream Theater and Queensrÿche as far as public awareness goes. For some reason, when talk of Progressive Metal starts, Fates Warning gets easily left out. Fates Warning’s music seems to be known only among the privileged few. With an album as strong as this, that tendency will hopefully change. Any fan of Progressive Metal is only doing themselves disservice by ignoring this band. The album starts with the sound of crickets with an approaching storm in the background, which is a perfect metaphor for what’s to come: peace and rage. One end of the spectrum associated with clear summer days and the other with powerful forces. The first track, “Left Here,” sets the tone for the acoustic feel that runs through the whole album. The single “Simple Human” stops suddenly as the eerie intro to “River Wide Ocean Deep” takes over, and introduces female background vocals, which remotely remind of the crying sort of Egyptian-style singing. Singer Ray Adler’s vocals move in softly… whispering at first, and slowly gaining power and raising in volume and strength. Mid-song, machine gun drumming and a drilling guitar step in until Ray’s vocals reappear. The song eventually slows down, ending with a strong bassline. “Another Perfect Day” brings back the acoustical vibe. Despite the dark lyrics, this song has the lightest atmosphere of all of the songs. “Heal Me” is a perfect example of how the songs on this album sound simple, but on closer look, are anything but simple. A true master of ones craft can make things seem simple even when they are difficult, as the saying goes. “Heal Me” is also custom-made for all hi-fi-freaks out there, with all of …READ MORE