Best Of

Stratovarius-2016

STRATOVARIUS, one of the most influential, successful and enduring power metal bands in the world, release their long awaited “Best Of” album on May 6th on earMUSIC.

What started in 1985 under the name Black Water left a trail of 16 studio albums, ten Top 5 chart positions in their native country Finland and more than 40 top chart positions around the globe. Their distinguished mix of fast progressive metal and a melodic approach made symphonic metal originators Stratovarius one of the top names in the world.

After a few bumpy steps and stones in the band’s line-up, Stratovarius’ song writing found its peak in their recent studio works “Elysium”, “Nemesis” and “Eternal”. All milestones in sound, creativity and song writing.

It happens rarely nowadays, especially in metal, that a band creates one magic song after the other. Stratovarius are surely one of the few exceptions, now presenting 29 hits and fan favorites (and there could have been more!) on their long awaited “Best Of” album, which is going to be released as 2CD Standard Edition, 3CD Limited Edition and Download.

Both CD editions are released in a high quality packaging with liner notes written by exceptional keyboardist Jens Johansson and rare picture material from the band’s private archive. The Limited edition also includes the exclusive 60 minute bonus CD “Live At Wacken 2015”.

As a special treat, the “Best Of” features the brand new song “Until The End Of Days” from the current band line up consisting of Timo Kotipelto, Jens Johansson, Mattias Kupainen, Lauri Porra and Rolf Pilve.

All hand-picked by the band and adding up to 2 ½ hours of pure Stratovarius bliss, the songs give metal fans and those to be, a great selection of the band’s impressive work, including classics such as “Black Diamond”, “Hunting High And Low” and “Speed Of Light” as well as more recent material such as the most streamed song in the band’s history “Unbreakable” and “Shine In The Dark” from their recent studio album “Eternal”.

All songs are remastered by the band’s long-time companion Mika Jussila of Finnvox Studios.

Jens Johansson explains: “It’s been 20 years since the Episode album, we’re all getting older but this stuff sounds as fresh as ever. Could it be that Stratovarius has discovered the fountain of Eternal Youth!? You may feel younger, but we can’t actually (legally) promise you’ll be younger after listening to this best-of album, but we can guarantee one thing: when you put it through your speakers, it will play Until the End of Days!!
To me it’s a testament to the fact that paying attention to song writing and production was expensive, but so worth it. The songs, the sound and the performances really have stood the test of time.”

Timo Kotipelto adds: “Wow! 20 years in Stratovarius have passed at the speed of light! I still remember when I joined the band and was happy to do some power metal. And I am very happy to still be able to do it after all these years! This collection of songs is an excellent selections and a cool way to remember the history of the band from the past to the present! I hope you will enjoy it as much as we did while selecting the songs. Rock the Metal!”

All Stratovarius albums will be re-released throughout 2016 and 2017, including extensive booklets and a lot of bonus material.

Tracklist “Best Of”

CD1
1. Until The End Of Days (brand new song)
2. My Eternal Dream
3. Eagleheart
4. Speed Of Light
5. S.O.S .
6. Forever Free
7. Wings Of Tomorrow
8. No Turning Back
9. Break The Ice
10. Distant Skies
11. Will The Sun Rise?
12. A Million Light Years Away
13. Under Flaming Skies
14. Darkest Hours
15. Winter Skies
16. I Walk To My Own Song
17. Maniac Dance

CD2
1. Halcyon Days
2. Will My Soul Ever Rest In Peace?
3. Destiny
4. Paradise
5. Deep Unknown
6. Elysium
7. Black Diamond
8. If The Story Is Over
9. Unbreakable
10. Forever
11. Shine In The Dark
12. Hunting High And Low

CD3 – Live At Wacken 2015 (only available on Limited Edition)
1. Intro
2. Black Diamond
3. Eagleheart
4. Against The Wind
5. Dragons
6. Legions Of The Twilight
7. Paradise
8. Shine In The Dark
9. Speed Of Light
10. Unbreakable
11. Hunting High And Low

Stratovarius will perform songs from past and present throughout festivals in Europe this summer:

16.04.2016 – Dettelbach, Metal Franconia (GER)
21.05.2016 – Risteily, RadioRock (FIN)
04.06.2016 – Plzen, Metal Fest (CZ)
11.06.2016 – Kouvola, Vaakuna Piknik (FIN)
23.06.2016 – Nummirock 2016 (FIN)
22.07.2016 – Peurunka, John Smith Rock Fest (FIN)
11.08.2016 – Villena, Leyendas del Rock (ESP)
19.08.2016 – Zvolenská, Slatina More Than Fest (SLO)
24.09.2016 – Milano, Spazio Rock Festival 2016 (IT)

http://www.stratovarius.com
http://www.ear-music.net
http://www.facebook.com/earMUSICofficial
http://www.youtube.com/earMUSICofficial

Led by Kai Hansen, one of the most loved metal icons of the last 30 years, GAMMA RAY has influenced and shaped the genre since 25 years. Simply put, year after year they became – and stayed – one of the most solid flagships in Classic and Power Heavy Metal and still are its undisputed kings.

Now, after eleven studio albums and the release of their recent studio album “Empire Of The Undead” almost one year ago – the most successful record in the band’s history yet, GammaRay is ready to get their first selection of their best and most representative songs on one album.

“THE BEST (Of)” is going to be released on January 30th, 2015 on earMUSIC.

The record features a great variety of tunes, spanning from the band’s first ever album “Heading For Tomorrow” to highlights picked out of albums such as “Powerplant“ and “To The Metal!”. The songs – all hand-picked by Mister Kai Hansen himself – give metal fans and those to be a real cross-section of the band’s extensive work so far. This adds up to a selection of over 25 songs, all re-mastered by Eike Freese (i.a. Deep Purple). Liner notes written by Kai Hansen complete the package and give a deep insight into the work of this exceptional talent.
All Gamma Ray albums will be released throughout the year 2015, including extensive booklets and a lot of bonus materials.

“THE BEST (Of)” will be released as 2CD Standard Edition, 4-vinyl-Gatefold and as a special treat: a high-quality 2CD Limited Edition in an elaborate and exclusive leather-style package. It’s strictly limited to 10.000 units worldwide and simply a must-have to add to your collection – or to start off with it.

Gammaray-best-of-cover