News January-June 2004
June-16-2004
- Danish nitty gritty sleaze band SWITCHBLADE now has a deal with Perris Records. The band features the talents of KEN ANTHONY on vocals, CARSTEN OLSEN on bass, THOMAS LOCKE on guitars and FRANKIE ? on drums.
Their debut album "Switchblade Serenade" is for sale on their website.
- More good news from my homeland is that MARTIE PETERS has booked time this month at TOMMY HANSEN's Jailhouse studio. MARTIE PETERS himself and JAN ELIASSON will do the final mastering later - sign him up someone!
- Swedish melodic rockers BROKE[N]BLUE has now signed to MTM. And LARS ABRAHAMSSON & Co. is now working on a new album planned to be released later this year. Song samples will be available as soon as they are recorded!
June-03-2004
- The brand new FROZEN RAIN site is online now. There you can find all info and latest
news about this interesting Belgian AOR project with lots of international guests. You can listen to some sound clips of the forthcoming album.
- Hell bent for ....weather?: PÄR HOLMGREN and PERERIK ÅBERG, the two most famous meteorologists on Swedish national TV (SVT), have put together a band that will perform at this year's Sweden Rock Festival 10-12 of June. The band SPRIDDA SKURARS ("Scattered Showers" in Swedish), will perform well-known hard rock classics with re-written lyrics in Swedish !! On stage will be well-known names from the Swedish rock and metal scene: LARS CHRISS (LION'S SHARE) on guitar, THOMAS BROMAN (HUGHES TURNER PROJECT, ELECTRIC BOYS, JOHN NORUM) on drums, SAMPO AXELSsON (GLENN HUGHES, CRAWLEY) on bass/guitar, DR, ROCK (106.7 RockKlassiker, HIROSHIMA) on drums and JANNE HELLMAN (HIGHWAY STARS) on keyboards/vocals, plus a "very special secret guest." A warm-up show took place on Sunday (May 30) at Fredmans in Uppsala, Sweden.
- German melodic rockers S.I.N. are busy working on the follow up on last years "Somewhere to Nowhere". The new album is called "Equilibrium". And according to the band there new material is heavier and features much more guitar work - great!!
May-21-2004
- From Denmark (and Tasmania) there are good news for all fans of MIKE TRAMP - he has a new design for his web site. On this you will be able to read news, see lots of pictures and even visit a little "shop-section" to buy different stuff covering most areas of his career.
- From Norway there are exciting news regarding STAGE DOLLS - following the success of last years compilation "Good Times - the essential Stage Dolls" the three musicians has decided to release a whole new album. The record will be called "Get a Life" and in Norway it will be out May 24th!
- From Sweden there are only a small month to the new album with outstanding melodic rockers HOUSE OF SHAKIRA called "First Class" available through Lion Music.
May-03-2004
- Finally some exciting news from Denmark: Within the next year the duo PARBER & KERSTEIN will make a new CD. The working title is "Play this Game" and will be with JAN PARBER back on the lead vocals! YEAH!
- FATE will soon go in the Jailhouse Studios to record a new track called "Everything about you" for a MTM combilation later this year and maybe as a bonus track for the long awaited re-release of "Scratch N Sniff". This winter the band will make a whole new album.....!
- German hard rocker WILD FRONTIER has changed the line up. THORSTEN GEIS will replace guitar player THOMAS VITT, who has left the band after 8 years - and Thomas Ellenberger is new keyboarder. The band will start the recordings for a new album in July!
April-27-2004
- Norwegian guitar maestro TOR TALLE (remember "Song for the Heart" featuring Jörn Lande?) is working on a new album called "Where there's still time". This time he wil be using TONY MILLS from SHY on the track "When I close my Eyes" and PETER SUNDELL from GRAND ILLUSION on "I will follow you" - more news as I get them!
- GRAND ILLUSION - by the way - has just been in Denmark at TOMMY HANSEN's Jailhouse Studios getting ready for their newest album "Ordinary just won't do ". Oh, happy days....! In a couple of days there will be a taster on the song "The best is yet to come" co-penned with STEVE OVERLAND on their website!
- KURT VEREECKE and his project FROZEN RAIN is at the final stages recording a new album! There are 3 short sound samples on the bands website - "Little Angel", "Waiting for you" and "My Heart believe it's true". On the as yet unnamed album there are several "hot shots" like TOMMY DENANDER, OLLIE OLDENBURG and DAN PALLADINO featured.
- WALTER TROUT and his backing band THE RADICALS is on the move in Germany, Switzerland, France and Austria before too long, check out his website for exact tour info. On CNN you will be able to see WALTER TROUT walking around the streets of Vilnius, Lithuania talking to Richard Quest today and on May 2nd!
April-14-2004
- Former KISS-guitarist BRUCE KULICK - now with GRAND FUNK RAILROAD has been to Sweden for a couple of days making a special appearence for the new LION'S SHARE album "Audiovision". LION'S SHARE's follow-up to 2001's "Entrance" will be recorded this fall/winter and will feature new vocalist NILS PATRIK JOHANSSON (ASTRAL DOORS, SPACE ODYSSEY, WUTHERING HEIGHTS) and drummer MATS KARLSSON.
- ... and former GRAND FUNK RAILROAD guitarist and founder MARK FARNER will perform at the Swedish festival Silja Rock with his new project - the N'rG Band.
- Silja Rock also presents acts like LESLIE WEST, CONNY BLOOM and the new young Swedish hope TRADING FATE - with an average age of only 17!
April-06-2004
- The newly re-united DANGER DANGER featuring TED POLEY back on the leading vocals will perform at the Sweden Rock Festival 10-12 of June alongside bands like TNT, EUROPE, MONTROSE et cetera... - hope it's not April fool!
- The unbreakable Dane MIKE TRAMP has put down the basically good idea of re-uniting WHITE LION - more news as I get them. In the meanwhile you can see the guy live in April/May, if you live in Austalia, that is...
- ROBIN McAULEY now has his own website with lots of photos, tourdates and a webstore. In the store you are able of buying the '99 released album "Business as usual" in the Japanese edition.
March-23-2004
- FATE-vocalist PER JOHANSSON (aka Henriksen) has been in the Jailhouse Studios with TOMMY HANSEN and mixed four additional tracks to the forthcoming two re-releases of their "A Matter of Attitude" and "Scratch N Sniff" albums planned to be a part of MTM Classix series.The four tracks are: "Hardcore Romance", "Just a Stranger", "Memories of you" and "Don't do drugs" all tracks originally from around 1992. And more surprising news are that the latest incarnation of the group PER JOHANSSON, PETER STEINCKE, BJARNE HOLM and SÖREN HOFF are talking about the options for another round!! And maybe a live appearence at the Deep Impact festival in Munich! Perhaps with CLAUS LINDY doing the drums on that show.
- And while we are at the Danish news...: MARTIE PETERS has just uploaded soundsamples from his forthcoming album on his website. The tracks are: "The Beast inside", "#1" and "Heart is an empty Space".
- ECLIPSE, the Swedish melodic hard rock band, will be having a release party at Hard Rock Cafe in Stockholm for new album "Second to None" April 2 (Friday).
The same morning, Eclipse will host the well know radio show Rockklassiker (Rock Classics) in Stockholm. They will perform live in the studio. Radio host for the show is no one less than IAN HAUGLAND, drummer from EUROPE.
March-12-2004
- After the departure of vocalist BENNECH LYNGBØ - guitarist/vocalist TERJE EIDE has started to work on the long awaited second album with Norwegians ON THE RISE and has a new and very informativ web site up and running.
- ... and more things seems to be happening in Norway these days: The happy and mad glam band WIG WAM parcicipated in the Norwegian edition of the European Music Contest, and became 3rd! The debut album, called "667 The Neighbour of the Beast" has 2 tracks produced by OLE "IDOLE" EVENRUDE.
- The very special Swedish melodic band HOUSE OF SHAKIRA will soon be releasing their new album called "First Class" on new label LION Music.
March-01-2004
- CROSSFADE's long awaited album "White On Blue” is supposed to be one of the most wonderful Westcoast albums ever recorded! This ambitious Swedish band features among others GÖRAN EDMAN on vocals, PER LINDVAL and SVEN LINDVALL from A-HA's touring band. LARS HALBÄCK on guitars has played in bands since the 70`s when he was in Hard Rock acts, during the 80´s AOR type band and founder of CROSSFADE together with RICHARD STENSTRÖM on keyboards.
- LIONSHEART the legendary British hard rock band fronted by
former GRIM REAPER/ONSLAUGHT singer STEVE GRIMMET is back with a new studio album called "Abyss", due out on May 3rd 2004 on Frontiers Records. The band are back with the line-up that has been together for the last
three years including IAN NASH on guitars, EDDIE MARSH on bass and STEVE HALES on drums and keyboards
- Danish guitarist B. JOE has just made his debut as an author with a book regarding the Danish Neolithic Age - check the link here. The book is followed by a forthcoming album called "Danselabyrinten" (Labyrinth of Dance) - interesting ;)
- MARTIE PETERS has just uploaded news and soundsamples from his forthcoming album on the website.
February-13-2004
- Former keyboard player in PRETTY MAIDS and producer of DE 5 JÖRGEN THORUP has a new solo record out called "Free Man" - expect a CETERA/EAGLES kind of album!
- Swedish band ECLIPSE is ready to release their second album titled "Second to none" on Frontiers Records. Since their debut there has been a few line-up changes - nowadays the band features: ERIK MÅRTENSSON (vocals and guitar), MAGNUS HENRIKSSON (guitar), MAGNUS ULFSTEDT (drums) and FREDRIK FOLKARE(bass).
- According to their website Danish band PANGEA is finally ready to release their 3rd album called "House of Love" - let's hope it is final, this time!
February-04-2004
- MARTIE PETERS has just finished recordings and has already mixed 4 tracks for a forthcoming album in coorporation with JAN ELIASSON at Tocano A/S. The tracks are "Take on the Edge", "#1", "The Beast inside" and "Heart is an empty Space". He is - by the way - looking for a record deal!
- JOEY SINOPOLI and partner in crime JOE "CIID" BIRARDI are producing the next SINOPOLI album. It will be titled "Don't bleed on my Parade", in Europe released through Generation Records. I'm looking forward to that!
- Denmark has come up with a new neo-classical/progressive supergroup - EVIL MASQUERADE. The band is fronted by guitarist HENRIK FLYMAN known from WUTHERING HEIGHTS and vocalist HENRIK BROCKMAN Ex- ROYAL HUNT. Special guest star on the album is ANDRÉ ANDERSEN. Their debut "Welcome to the Show” will be released in Europe on April 5th 2004 through Frontiers Records.
- German/British melodic rockers S.I.N. has replaced the original bassist with URSULA "OUZO" RASCHKE. At the moment they are working hard to make a follow-up to last years "Somewhere into Nowhere" on MTM.
February-01-2004
- The Swedish "super group" TOKEN has some bad and some good news. Bad news is that the original vocalist and bassist has left the band BUT good news is that the band has found some suitable replacements and is currently recording their second album. The release is scheduled this spring.
- German hard hitters IRON SAVIOR has got themselves a new bassist and it is the one and only YENZ "CHEYENNE" LEONHARDT from the Danish shock rockers =Y= who recently was helping KINGDOM COME on live jobs.
- There is a taster here on the track "Sweet FA" from the album "The Sweet according to Sweden" which is due on February 9th through Rivel Records featuring among others TOMMY DENANDER of course.
January-19-2004
- Danish prime rockers PRETTY MAIDS has started writing material for a new studio album. The band is also planning to do some festival jobs this summer although guitarist KEN HAMMER was struck by a bloodcloth in his heart just before Christmas!
- CORNERSTONE will be giving a major gig in Copenhagen February 20th in Vega. Supported by Danish retro-metallers FORCE OF EVIL featuring members of FATE/MERCYFUL FATE.
- There are some activities in Sweden too: EUROPE is rumoured to compete in the Swedish competition of the European song Contest 2004 ?!? And MTM has signed two acts recently Westcoast band CROSSFADE featuring singer GÖRAN EDMAN for an April release. Besides that HEARTPLAY - featuring KIMMO BLOM from URBAN TALE - is ready to release their 2nd album this summer.
January-01-2004
- TERJE EIDE has started demoing and pre-production on the new songs for the long awaited second album with Norwegians ON THE RISE probably a late 2004 release. Meanwhile Mr. EIDE has parted company with co-vocalist BENNECH LYNGBØ, but will continue the band name.
- ZERO NINE from Finland released two sadly overseen albums in the mid 80's called "White Lines" from 1985 and "Intrigue" from 1986 - both albums will be re-released by Poko Rekords/EMI Finland! The band was at the time best known from their 3rd album "Blank Verse" - it was produced by one IAN GILLAN.
- ... and speaking of re-issues: MTM Classix will release two forgotten Swedes, RECKLESS' self titled album from 1993 with 3 bonus tracks and the only album from AXIA from 1986 featuring the talents of multi-instrumentalist PEO PETTERSSON! Not to forget the album "A matter of Attitude" with the Danish band FATE.
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