Highly acclaimed guitarist GUS G. recently announced that he is set to release his new album, titled “Fearless”, on April 20th. “Fearless” is the successor to 2015’s “Brand New Revolution” and marks the FIREWIND mastermind’s first release since exiting Ozzy Osbourne’s band in 2017.
Gus has just released a new video for the track ‘Letting Go’, check it out:
Also announced are some European tour dates, where Gus will be appearing as special guest of Jesper Binzer, vocalist of Danish rock band D-A-D.
GUS G. “Fearless Tour”
Special guest of Jesper Binzer:
06.04. Copenhagen, Pumpehuset
07.04. Helsingborg, The Tivoli
13.04. Malmö, KB
14.04. Göteborg, Sticky Fingers
15.04. Stockholm, Debaser
17-20.04 Full Metal Cruise
08.05. Hamburg, Knust
09.05. Aschaffenburg, Colos-Saal
10.05. München, Backstage
11.05. Essen, Turock
Pre-order “Fearless” in the AFM webshop now! https://shop.afm-records.de/gus-g./
Available as CD, Digipak, ltd. colored Vinyls & super limited (100 units only!) exclusive white/blue splatter Vinyl!
“Fearless” Tracklisting:
01. Letting Go
02. Mr Manson
03. Don´t Tread On Me
04. Fearless
05. Nothing To Say
06. Money For Nothing
07. Chances
08. Thrill Of The Chase
09. Big City
10. Last Of My Kind
Bonus tracks on Digipak/Vinyl:
11. Little Ain´t Enough
12. Aftermath
Line-Up: Gus G. (Guitar) Dennis Ward (Vocals/Bass) Will Hunt (Drums)
Highly acclaimed guitarist GUS G. has announced that he is set to release his new album, titled “Fearless”, on April 20th. “Fearless” is the successor to 2015’s “Brand New Revolution” and marks the FIREWIND mastermind’s first release since exiting Ozzy Osbourne’s band in 2017.
Pre-order “Fearless” in the AFM webshop now! https://shop.afm-records.de/gus-g./
Available as CD, Digipak, ltd. colored Vinyls & super limited (100 units only!) exclusive white/blue splatter Vinyl!
On “Fearless” Gus joins forces with vocalist/bassist Dennis Ward (Pink Cream 69/Unisonic) and drummer Will Hunt (Evanescence, Black Label Society).
“Dennis and I have collaborated very closely for a number years, he produced the current Firewind album Immortals, among other things. We’re on the same musical wavelength and simply continued our cooperation after the Firewind production,” Gus describes his relationship with the multitalented German-American. “I sent him demos of and ideas for my new songs and once we had enough material and started to think about vocalists, Dennis suggested recording the album as a trio. A lot of people don’t realise that Dennis is not only a brilliant songwriter, bassist and producer but also an excellent singer. I immediately liked his suggestion because this would be very different from everything else I’ve done before.”
“Will was at the very top of my wish list. Fate smiled on me because we played at the Frankfurt music fair 2017 during my tour with Steve Stevens, and Will stayed at the same hotel. So I approached him, we talked for a while and he agreed. Last August he came to the studio and recorded the drum parts for the whole album within two and a half days. A real pro with a great groove and an awesome punch.”
Which applies not only to Hunt and Ward, but of course also to Gus G. himself, who once again proves to be a phenomenal guitarist on “Fearless”, presenting technical skills which exclude all possibility of doubt and a compositional talent that allows his fellow musicians to shine. Hard-as-nails metal tracks such as the opener ‘Letting Go’, ‘Mr Manson’, which is driven by a dark bass/guitar riff, and the subsequent melodic ‘Don´t Tread On Me’ immediately propel the new album into the desired direction. At the same time, the three instrumental songs give listeners an idea of the outstanding talent of the 37-year-old who is easily on a par with George Lynch (‘Mr. Scary’) and Michael Schenker (‘Into The Arena’). “A lot of fans have asked me to record more instrumental tracks. Voilà, here they are,” grins Gus. Last but not least, the successful cover versions of the Dire Straits classic ‘Money For Nothing’, which surprises with an unusual change of key after the noteworthy intro, deserves a mention. But it’s certainly not the only surprise that this amazing album holds in store!
Tracklisting:
01. Letting Go
02. Mr Manson
03. Don´t Tread On Me
04. Fearless
05. Nothing To Say
06. Money For Nothing
07. Chances
08. Thrill Of The Chase
09. Big City
10. Last Of My Kind
Bonus tracks on Digipak/Vinyl:
11. Little Ain´t Enough
12. Aftermath
Line-Up: Gus G. (Guitar) Dennis Ward (Vocals/Bass) Will Hunt (Drums)
It’s now been a year since Greek power metal giants FIREWIND released their 8th studio album “Immortals”. The band have had a busy hardworking year and joined German metal legends RAGE on their European “Seasons Of The Black” tour in early January. I caught up with guitar virtuoso Gus G. before their joint headliner show at the Corporation in Sheffield on 22nd January, where C.O.P. UK were also performing as special guests.
Gus is fast becoming my most interviewed artist and it’s always great to catch up with him on the road. This time around, we had a short video interview, discussing FIREWIND updates and the forthcoming solo album from Gus, as well as the increasingly familiar issue musicians face with lost or damaged instruments. There was also a few laughs as you will hear (apologies it’s louder from behind the camera!) and an interesting cat story! Henning Basse, Johan Nunez and Bob Katsionis were also there and there’s some input from them in the background at one or two stages. You can read a few excerpts and watch the full chat below:
Discussing how “Immortals” was received, Gus stated:
“Really good – we didn’t expect we were going to extend the tour so much. Actually when we first set out, we were only looking at doing that tour last year, tour about a month and play a couple of festivals and that’s it. And then you know, these offers started coming in. We were invited to go to Russia and now this Latin America tour and then Rage asked us to go out with them. So we’ve kept busy actually through the whole year.”
With Gus G in Sheffield 2018
Talking about the forthcoming solo album:
“I’m still a baby solo artist. I’m working on my third album now. I was surprised when I did my first solo album that I had offers to go out there and play, then I started thinking about all those things and developing my show.
It’s going good – it’s been a little bit stressful because there was touring in between and I had to make some decisions to change members and how I was gonna do it this time. I wasn’t sure about if I was gonna have any guests or not and then I decided not to have any guests, so it’s gonna be more of a power trio set up. It’s Dennis Ward, he’s gonna be handling vocals and bass and Will Hunt of Evanescence is playing drums on the record. It’s coming out in the spring.”
On the subject of missing instruments which happened to FIREWIND on this tour and other occasions, Gus explained his feelings:
“I think the airlines just need to get it together. When that happens to us, we’re always left in an airport wondering ‘OK, so now what?’ You really need to stay calm about it and hopefully people are going to be nice enough to help you out and track your gear and hopefully it’s not damaged. It is very frustrating, it’s happened to us quite a few times the last two or three years now.
Usually I’ll tweet about those things, I’ll call out the airlines, I don’t like to be that guy who bitches online – I’m usually a very positive guy about those things. But sometimes you have to go at them and hopefully somebody will be like ‘oh we messed up here, we better fix it.
It does have an effect on the show. Yesterday (21st January) we had a lot of delays, we had to cut our set short in the end and we were hoping to do it better with no soundchecks. At the end of the day it’s also rock ‘n’ roll and you have to just go in and do it. That’s the situation and you work with it and get it done.”
For all the updates on FIREWIND and the rest of the tour dates, check their official Facebook page here and the official website at this location.
AFM Records have announced that former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist and FIREWIND mastermind Gus G. has signed a worldwide deal with AFM Records; for his solo band GUS G.
“I’m very excited & happy to confirm that I’ve signed a worldwide solo record deal with one of Europe’s premier record labels, AFM Records! In my opinion, AFM is one of the few labels today that care for artist development, their team is really passionate about what they do and they have fresh and exciting ideas. We briefly worked together on Firewind’s “Immortals” album for the North American territory and now I’m looking forward to the full scale collaboration on my next solo album”, Gus G. states.
A brand new studio album is in the making currently and will be released in April 2018.
But before, GUS G. will play a North American tour with Vinnie Moore, kicking off on November 28th in Derry, New Hampshire – presenting a surprising, brand new power trio line-up for the very first time: Gus will be joined by Dennis Ward on bass / vocals and Richie Monica on drums.
“Metal fans might know Dennis as the bass player from the bands Unisonic and Pink Cream 69”, says Gus. “What people might not know about him is that he’s a multi-talented songwriter, producer AND singer. Since me and Dennis have been working on songs for Firewind’s latest album release but also now on my upcoming solo record, I only felt it was natural to invite him to play this music with me on stage. So, obviously forming a power trio is a new setup and we’re really looking forward to rocking the US crowds this Winter but also with my upcoming album tour cycle.”
AFM A&R Timo Hoffmann: “After releasing Firewind’s latest studio album “Immortals” in North America earlier this year, we are beyond excited that Gus decided to make AFM the new label home for his solo career as well. No words needed to praise the man’s qualities – Gus was a household name and highly acclaimed musician/songwriter long before he joined Ozzy’s band. Ever since its inception, he is the driving force behind Firewind and in addition has established a solo career, delivering outstanding up-to-date hard rock with finesse. Fans can look forward to a fantastic new GUS G. album which will see the light of day in April 2018.”
“Gunslinger” tour dates (w/ Vinnie Moore):
Nov. 28 – Derry, NH @ Tupelo Music Hall
Nov. 30 – Cleveland, OH @ Cleveland Agora
Dec. 01 – Detroit, MI @ The Token Lounge
Dec. 02 – Joliet. IL @ The Forge
Dec. 03 – Milwaukee, WI @ Shank Hall
Dec. 06 – Sellersville, PA @ Sellersville Theater
Dec. 07 – Brooklyn, NY @ Saint Vitus Bar
Dec. 08 – Stanhope, NJ @ The Stanhope House
Dec. 09 – Somerville, MA @ Once Ballroom
Acclaimed guitarist GUS G. of Greek melodic Power metal masters FIREWIND checked in not only to comment about the recent “God Of Riffs” decoration given from 2017’s edition of Germany’s Metal Hammer Awards, but also to send an update as far as live-activities with both FIREWIND and the GUS G. solo band.
“Thank you Metal Hammer Germany for honoring me with the ‘God Of Riffs’ award! Such an acknowledgment from the Metal community means a lot to me & only makes me wanna get better & make some killer new riffs now!” – GUS G.
Continuing promoting both the latest FIREWIND album release “Immortals” as well as the GUS G.’s sophomore solo-effort “Brand New Revolution”, here are the next live-shows including a Spanish tour for FIREWIND commencing today:
FIREWIND – Live 2017:
12.10.2017 Barcelona (Spain) – Sala Boveda
13.10.2017 Valencia (Spain) -16 Toneladas
14.10.2017 Pozal de Gallinas (Spain) – Atalaya Rock Festival
15.10.2017 Vigo (Spain) – Sala Master
27.10.2017 Rome (Italy) – Jailbreak Club
28.10.2017 Vouziers (France) – Vouziers Metal Fest
GUS G. – “Gunslingers” US Tour 2017 (w/ Vinnie Moore)
28.11.2017 Derry, NH – Tupelo Music Hall
29.11.2017 Cleveland, OH – Agora Ballroom
01.12.2017 Detroit, MI – Token Lounge
02.12.2017 Joliet, IL – The Forge
03.12.2017 Milwaukee, WI – Shank Hall
06.12.2017 Sellersville, PA – Sellersville Theater
07.12.2017 Brooklyn, NY – St Vitus
08.12.2017 Stanhope, NJ – Stanhope House
09.12.2017 Somerville, MA – Once Ballroom
FIREWIND – Live 2017:
14.12.2017 Ioannina (Greece) – Stage
15.12.2017 Thessaloniki (Greece) – Principal
16.12.2017 Athens (Greece) – Gagarin 205
RAGE + FIREWIND – European Tour 2018:
04.01.2018 Bochum (Germany) – Zeche
05.01.2018 Speyer (Germany) – 101
06.01.2018 Milano (Italy) – Legend Club
07.01.2018 Pratteln (Switzerland) – Z7
09.01.2018 Munich (Germany) – Backstage
10.01.2018 Salzburg (Austria) – Rockhouse
12.01.2018 Prague (Czech Republic) – Nova Chmelnice
13.01.2018 Zlin (Czech Republic) – Masters of Rock Café
14.01.2018 Kosice (Slovakia) – Collosseum
15.01.2018 Budapest (Hungary) – A38
16.01.2018 Bratislava (Slovakia) – Randal Club
GUS G. – Live 2018:
15.-20.04.2018 Palma/Marseille (Spain/France) – Full Metal Cruise
FIREWIND – Live 2018:
02.-04.2018 Wacken (Germany) – Wacken Open Air
FIREWIND’s 8th studio album, “Immortals” was released earlier this year via Century Media Records and managed to enter various international sales charts upon release as follows: Greece: # 6, Germany: # 72, Switzerland: # 45, Belgium (Wallonia): # 98, USA / Top New Artist Albums: #22, USA / Current Hard Music Albums: # 34.
“Immortals” marks the first time FIREWIND used an outside co-producer, working with Dennis Ward (Unisonic, Pink Cream 69), who not only engineered, mixed and mastered the album, but also co-wrote it together with Gus G. Next to the standard jewel case CD and Digital Download formats, “Immortals” is also released as LP on 180gr vinyl with a poster as well as the entire album on CD as bonus. Additionally, there is also a limited edition Mediabook CD with expanded booklet, 3 stickers and a bonus track.
Greek power metal giants FIREWIND recently unleashed their highly anticipated new album “Immortals”, their first in five years on their longstanding label, Century Media Records. The new material has been going down a storm with fans on the current European tour promoting “Immortals” and Metal Shock Finland Senior Manager Alison Booth had a quick catch up with guitar maestro GUS G. before the band’s performance in Sheffield, on 17th February.
Check out a few excerpts of the chat below, with the full audio on the player (background noise courtesy of a fan heater!):
Discussing “Immortals” and and the fan reaction, Gus stated:
“We’re surprised ‘cos we brought a lot of the new CD’s with us for our merch, but apparently everybody already has the CD and they already know the lyrics and they’ve already been singing along, which is pretty amazing! It’s refreshing you know. I think we came up with the right kind of album. From the feedback I got I think that’s what a lot of our fans have been waiting for, I think this is how the band should be sounding today honestly. It’s pretty clear to me what the sound and direction should be like and the good thing with this album is that it doesn’t only have the right sound, but it also has the right message. I’m just glad it made a lot of our fans happy.“
GUS G. The Corporation, Sheffield February 2017
Being back on the road with FIREWIND:
“Yeah it’s cool, it’s good! It’s a good vibe with the guys always. We haven’t done this for a while, we did a few gigs last year to warm things up. This is like our first club tour in five years, it’s exciting to do this again.”
On Henning Basse now being permanent vocalist for FIREWIND, Gus enthused:
“He really fits with what we’re doing right now. He’s one of the best of this genre right now in Europe for sure. As you know, you saw my solo band two years ago and he was singing there with me. That’s when we reconnected again and he was still looking for a band to join full time and we were looking for a singer. We started talking about it on that tour and one thing led to another and here we are!”
Talking about future FIREWIND shows, Gus revealed:
“Russia’s a place we always wanted to play, so it finally happens now, we also have some shows in Cyprus and Greece in March. Depending on how it goes we’re looking at doing some other territories – we’d love to go to South America, we’ve never been there. It would be the first time if it happens, so it’s in the talks right now. I’m not sure if it’s gonna happen but we would love to go there.”
Visit the official FIREWIND Facebook page here and the official band website with the rest of the “Immortals” tour dates at this location.
