Human Fortress is a melodic power metal band from Germany. It all started in 1997 when guitarists Torsten Wolf and Volker Trost joined with bassist Pablo J. Tammen to form a band called Timezone. Shortly after recording a demo, the collaboration ended.
Would you believe it ? This guy has been in the music business for over 30 years, and now Jon Oliva is releasing his first ever solo album. How this record or rather the songs on it originated, I’ll try to tall you in a few words.
Since its beginnings in 2001-2002, Masterplan seems to have had it’s ups and downs. Founded by former Helloween members Roland Grapow and Uli Kusch who in the beginning were joined with master vocalist Jorn Lande. A bright future seemed to lay ahead of them, as their first album was highly successful, followed by an equally successfully second album ‘Aeronautics’.
Formed in 1997, Chicago based Rock band Soil rose and took over that particular scene. After their first independent release, the band was the first rock group signed by the legendary Clive Davis to J Records. The band achieved mainstream success with their major label debut "Scars" in 2001. The band did have some trouble with their line up until reuniting with their original vocalist Ryan McCombs in October 2011.
Although this band has been a favourite Industrial Metal act of mine since their 1992 hit album Psalm 69: The Way To Succeed And the Way To Suck Eggs, and in spite of the fact that I only once was given the honour of reviewing an album by the band, I still acquired most of he band's (regular) studio albums (including the first two completely Dance-geared recordings).
After leaving Accept, and forming his own band U.D.O. mister Dirkschneider has kept on releasing album after album, sticking to it’s musical Accept roots so to speak.
German band “The New Black” have been rocking the scene since 2009. Since then they have been making music that they themselves describe in a very fun way,
“...This is our kind of party: Black Label Society bring the booze, Pantera spice it up, Thin Lizzy add some taste, and Alter Bridge smooth it over before Metallica turn it black... And you can be there, too”.
Helker was formed in Buenos Aires, Argentina by guitar player Mariano Ríos and bassist Christian Abarca. The current line-up features guitar player Leo Aristu, drummer Hernán Coronel metal vocalist Diego Valdez. Helker is widely considered as the leading South American heavy metal band to emerge from Argentina.
Gama Bomb is an Irish trash metal band, witch was founded by School friends Joe McGuigan (bass) and Philly Byrne (vocals) who met up with Luke Graham in 2002. Soon, they built up a small but loyal following which they consolidated with a rigorous touring schedule and frequent forays into self-released recording. The band first gained attention with their demo entitled The Survival Option in that same year.
I remember when I bought DAD’s album ‘No Fuel Left For The Pilgrims’, which wasn’t their first album of course, but whatever. I was greatly impressed by what these guys brought. Rock music, and even good rock music, with a large dosis of humor, which was quite unusual, and still is. I also bought the follow up album ‘Riskin’ It All’, and then seem to have lost sight of this band.
