STRATOVARIUS, the iconic pioneers of symphonic metal, are thrilled to announce the release of their highly anticipated digital single, ‘Heroes’ through earMUSIC.
This unreleased gem is a key highlight from their critically acclaimed album ‘Survive‘, the band’s first studio release in nearly a decade.
Since its launch, ‘Survive’ has taken the metal world by storm, amassing over 11 million streams on Spotify alone. This is showcasing their evolution and renewed energy while staying true to their symphonic roots.
To accompany the release of ‘Heroes’, Stratovarius is excited to debut a brand-new lyric video, bringing the song’s powerful message and captivating energy to life.
Fans can look forward to an immersive visual experience that complements the soaring melodies and electrifying guitar riffs of this standout track.
Live report by David Araneda (words) and Ricardo Santos (images).
Finnish Power Metal pioneers STRATOVARIUS are currently touring their home country for a few special spring shows. Last Friday night was the turn of Helsinki and the place chosen was no other than Nosturi, one of the most beloved concert venues in the Finnish capital, and which is sadly going to be demolished during this year. What originally seemed to be just one more gig in a career that spans over thirty years, ended up bringing a few nice surprises for their loyal fans. Some people were aware before the show that Timo Tolkki, former guitarist and main composer of the band, had announced in social media that he would attend the show and meet them ten years after his departure.
On this occasion there were no opening bands, so people came just in time for STRATOVARIUS’ show. The room was packed with metalheads of all ages, and as soon as the lights went down we knew we were in for a treat. After a short intro, the band came to the stage and kickstarted the show with ‘Eagleheart’, the overly melodic opening track of “Elements Pt. 1”. I must confess that this is not one of my favorite songs of theirs, but it seems to be popular among the fans. The crowd was as “excited” as you can expect from a Finnish audience, but after a few years living in this country I’ve gotten used to that and it doesn’t bother me anymore.
The next in line was the powerful ‘Phoenix’, which was quite a surprise since it hasn’t been part of their regular setlist during the last few years. Frontman Timo Kotipelto used the chance to greet the audience and thank them for coming. It’s amazing how this guy doesn’t seem to age, and although his voice has suffered a bit from all the years on the road, he still delivers some very high notes and manages to captivate the audience. He then introduced one of the new songs included in their latest compilation album “Enigma: Intermission 2”. I’m talking about ‘Oblivion’, a slower yet effective tune which features a more modern sound, and which was received with respect and approval by the crowd.
‘Shine in the Dark’ is one of their most recent hits, with quite good airplay till these days. The great vocal work of Kotipelto supported by Matias Kupiainen and Lauri Porra’s backing vocals, made this of the highlights of the first part of the set. Then they jumped back to 1998 with ‘SOS’, another deep cut that I wasn’t expecting to hear. The catchy melody of recently released ‘Enigma’ was performed for the first time in Helsinki, and with great results. At this point we have to say that although only two of the current members were part of the classic STRATOVARIUS line-up, Kupiainen, Porra and drummer Rolf Pilve have injected some fresh blood into the band.
One of the first special moments of the evening came with ‘4000 Rainy Nights’ preceded by a beautiful guitar intro by Kupiainen and followed by an innovative bass solo by Porra. This song brought me back to my teenage years, when I discover STRATOVARIUS for the first time in the early 2000’s. They continued with more material from “Destiny”, no other than the ten-minute epic title track, full of contrasts and succeeding at creating a mystic atmosphere. Then it was time for maestro Jens Johansson to shine in the keyboards and indulge us with the first chords of ‘Black Diamond’, one of their all-time classics that the crowd sang at the top of their lungs. The band leaves the stage for a little break.
The encore started with the lovely ballad ‘Forever’, which was the only reference to their masterpiece “Episode”, and which always proves to be a special moment of their show. But the greatest surprise of the evening would happen next, when they invited former drummer Jörg Michael to join them onstage and delight us with an unforgettable version of ‘The Kiss of Judas’. Although they didn’t have a lot of time to rehearse, the German powerhouse did not disappoint and seemed very happy with his fellow bandmates after so many years. A historic moment that we we’re lucky to witness. Rolf Pilve came back to the drumkit to perform the infectious ‘Unbreakable’, another of their latest radio hits taken from 2013’s “Nemesis”.
As usual, they closed the concert with ‘Hunting High and Low’, arguably their most successful song, one that features all their trademark elements and allows them to interact with the audience. After one and a half hours of majestic virtuosity, the local heroes left the stage for good with an overwhelming ovation. The band seemed very moved by the reaction of the crowd and later shared some pictures with Timo Tolkki and Jörg Michael backstage. For the first time in over a decade, four fifths of the classic STRATOVARIUS line-up shared the same room, with only bassist Jari Kainulainen missing. Apparently, some scars have slowly started to heal, opening a little hope for a possible reunion in the future.
Setlist:
(Intro)
Eagleheart
Phoenix
Oblivion
Shine in the Dark
SOS
Enigma
4000 Rainy Nights
Destiny
Black Diamond
Encore:
Forever
The Kiss of Judas (with Jörg Michael)
Unbreakable
Hunting High and Low
Words by David Araneda, Images by Ricardo Santos.
To see all the show photos by Ricardo Santos, go here!
Stratovarius feat. Jörg Michael – The Kiss of Judas (video credits for Janne Lahti’s YouTube channel)
earMUSIC, Tarja and Stratovarius are happy to announce the release of a very special, very limited 10” vinyl single. Only available during their upcoming joined tour, the exclusive picture vinyl is limited to 500 copies worldwide. It includes songs from the artist’s recent releases – Tarja’s “Act II” and Stratovarius’ “ENIGMA: Intermission 2” and is a true collector’s item.
SIDE A – TARJA
1. Love To Hate
2. Undertaker
SIDE B – STRATOVARIUS
1. Enigma
2. Unbreakable (Orchestral Version)
The “A Nordic Symphony“ tour promises not one but two outstanding performances in one night with the bands also including songs from their recently released albums in the setlist.
“ENIGMA: Intermission 2” features three brand newsongs as well as, for the first time in the band’s history, four beautifully arranged orchestral versions of popular Stratovarius songs. The album is similar in concept to “Intermission”, released 17 years ago between “Infinite” and “Elements”, in the sense that these seven tracks made in 2018 are completed by nine very rare, very hard to find power metal gems. With over 30 minutes of brand new material and 50 minutes of previously rare metal, “ENIGMA: Intermission 2” is definitely a killer release filler!
It is going to be released this Friday, on September 28th, 2018 as CD Digipak and Digital on earMUSIC.
“Act II”, the follow up to Tarja’s worldwide Top 10 chart success, combines two incredible, yet slightly different live performances on video: The first chapter, “Metropolis Alive”, has been filmed two months prior to the release of Tarja’s 2016 success “The Shadow Self” in an intimate surrounding at renowned Metropolis Studios in London, UK. “Act II’s” second chapter has been recorded on November 29th, 2016 at the magnificent Teatro della Luna in Milan, Italy and includes numerous hits from all four Tarja albums. It was released this July.
Starting October 1st, Tarja and Stratovarius will be touring all over Europe together with on “A Nordic Symphony ‘18”:
STRATOVARIUS, the top name in the melodic power metal scene, are back with a new album – with some fresh and some very rare material!
“ENIGMA: Intermission 2” features three brand newsongs as well as, for the first time in the band’s history, four beautifully arranged orchestral versions of popular Stratovarius songs. The album is similar in concept to “Intermission”, released 17 years ago between “Infinite” and “Elements”, in the sense that these seven tracks made in 2018 are completed by nine very rare, very hard to find power metal gems.
With over 30 minutes of brand new material and 50 minutes of previously rare metal, “ENIGMA: Intermission 2” is definitely more killer than filler!
Take “Enigma” and “Oblivion” for example, fresh from the studio in 2018 and most definitely two killer songs. Both combine an epic melody with a bombastic chorus and heavy riffs for Stratovarius’ trademark sound and remind of “Unbreakable” from their 2013 album “Nemesis”, the most streamed song in the band’s history.
Or “Kill it with Fire” and “Castaway”, two epic and full blown power metal tracks that were previously only heard by Japanese fans.
The official song stream video for “Oblivion” is now available on earMUSIC’s official YouTube Channel, here:
The sweeping melodic power metal grandeur of Stratovarius, together with Timo Kotipelto‘s powerful yet emotional voice, is very much present on all of the 80 minutes of this release. This spirit truly makes “ENIGMA: Intermission 2” closer to a full new studio album than to a mere compilation.
The album is going to be released on September 28th, 2018 as CD Digipak and Digital on earMUSIC.
1. Enigma (BRAND NEW STUDIO SONG – recorded 2018)
2. Hunter†
3. Hallowed††
4. Burn Me Down (BRAND NEW STUDIO SONG – recorded 2018)
5. Last Shore††
6. Kill It With Fire*
7. Oblivion (BRAND NEW STUDIO SONG – recorded 2018)
8. Second Sight*
9. Fireborn†
10. Giants*
11. Castaway*
12. Old Man And The Sea††
BRAND NEW ORCHESTRAL VERSIONS (all recorded 2018)
13. Fantasy
14. Shine in the Dark
15. Unbreakable
16. Winter Skies
*previously unreleased in Europe †rare bonus track
†† rare bonus track – for the first time on CD
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
This autumn, Stratovarius will be touring all over Europe together with Tarja on “A Nordic Symphony ‘18”
Needless to say that one can await big things when the queen of heavy rock, the brightest star of the symphonic rock scene and certainly the most internationally well-known Finnish female voice in the world of music TARJA TURUNEN and her band team up for a tour with one of the the most successful, enduring power metal bands in the world, who influenced a whole genre with heir distinguished mix of fast progressive metal and a melodic approach, symphonic metal originators STRATOVARIUS.
Soprano, composer and songwriter, Tarja reached international fame co-founding and being for nine years the voice and image of the Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish, collecting with them Gold and Platinum Record Awards in several countries. Leading into a not less successful solo career starting of in 2005 when Tarja started to walk alone. Since then she dedicates every December in bringing to Finland and abroad the magic of her Christmas shows. Plus Tarja’s flawless ability to blend rock and classic lead to several collaborations i.e with Alice Cooper, Within Temptation, the German electronic artist Schiller, Doro Pesch and the British father of Tubular Bells Mike Oldfield.
But the unique synergy between Tarja’s classical and rock inspirations is fully expressed in her solo rock career. By now she released four multi-platinum and gold awarded albums “My Winter Storm” (2007), “What Lies Beneath” (2010) “Colours In The Dark” (2013) and the most recent ones “The Brightest Void” / “The Shadow Self” (2016). After the successful release of the unexpectedly dark album “From Spirits And Ghosts (Score For A Dark Christmas)“ (2017) and the following Christmas shows, Tarja is ready to offer a closure for her recent heavy rock albums, with her second live video and CD. Following the same line of its predecessor, “ACT II” will be released in summer 2018.
Not less important, if not even more, than albums and collaborations, has been for Tarja to perform live on stage in front of her audience with more than 800 shows worldwide during her career so far.
It has been more than 30 years since Stratovarius got together – 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 as well as over 30 years extensive touring world wide. With their distinguished mix of fast progressive metal and a melodic approach, symphonic metal originators Stratovarius became one of the most influential, successful and enduring power metal bands 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 songwriting. 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.
Recently Stratovarius presented their long awaited “Best Of” album, which included 29 hits and fan favorites (and there could have been more!). As well as started a reissue campaign of all their 16 studio albums, with one of the band’s most successful and most loved albums “Destiny” (originally released in 1999) and the cult live album “Visions Of Europe” (originally released in 1998). The series will be continued in summer 2018 with the not less loved albums “Episode” (originally released in 1996) and “Visions” (originally released in 1997), again packed with rare and newly recorded bonus material.
Now these two major players from Finland decided to go on A Nordic Symphony ‘18 Tour together and not only who is aware of both acts history can hint that this will have some more exiting surprises than just outstanding extra ordinary shows by Tarja with her band and Stratovarius!
A Nordic Symphony ‘18 – routing:
01.10.2018 – Frankfurt – Batschkapp
02.10.2018 – Kiel – Max
03.10.2018 – Hannover – Capitol
05.10.2018 – Karlsruhe – Substage
07.10.2018 – Utrecht – TivoliVredenburg
09.10.2018 – Bochum – Matrix
10.10.2018 – Cologne – Essigfabrik
11.10.2018 – Saarbrücken – Garage
13.10.2018 – Solothurn – Kofmehl
14.10.2018 – Grenoble – La Belle Electrique
16.10.2018 – Rome – Orion
17.10.2018 – Milan – Alcatraz
18.10.2018 – Munich – Backstage
20.10.2018 – Innsbruck – Music Hall
21.10.2018 – Prague – Forum Karlín
22.10.2018 – Berlin – Festsaal Kreuzberg
24.10.2018 – Gdansk – B90
25.10.2018 – Krakow – Studio
26.10.2018 – Dresden – Reithalle
28.10.2018 – Budapest – Barba Negra
29.10.2018 – Sofia – Universiada Sports Hall
It has been more than 30 years since STRATOVARIUS got together and became one of the most influential, successful and enduring power metal bands in the world – and 27 years since the release of their debut album “Fright Night” in 1989. It is about time that their 16th studio album strong catalog and their rare live releases are going to be reissued in high quality packaging with a refreshed artwork by the band’s trusted cover artwork designer Gyula Havancsák, extensive liner notes and, even more importantly, rare and newly recorded bonus material. On top, all albums will be remastered.
The reissue campaign is set to begin with one of the band’s most successful and most loved albums “Destiny” (originally released in 1998) and the cult live album “Visions Of Europe” (originally released in 1998). Both albums will be released as 2CD Digipak and digital in October 2016 on earMUSIC.
“Destiny”, with its opulent, bombastic melodies and song structures, is regarded as one of the most important albums in the genre of melodic metal and secured the pole position in their home country Finland. Also thanks to the hit “S.O.S.” which made it to #2 in the Finnish single charts. The 2016 edition of the album includes the rare live bootleg “Visions Of Destiny” which has been recorded in October 1999 during their triumphant, album accompanying tour. With over 60 minutes, the CD perfectly captures the band’s energetic live spirit.
“Visions Of Europe” follows up on the mind-blowing live whirlwind that is Stratovarius. Recorded in 1997 during the band’s tour to their hit album “Visions” – Rock Hard named it one of the 500 greatest rock and metal albums ever – one killer song follows another on the over 1 ½ hour long live set: “Kiss Of Judas”, “Speed Of Light”, “Father Time” as well as the Stratovarius classic not to miss “Black Diamond”.
All Stratovarius albums will be re-released throughout 2016 and 2017, including extensive booklets and a lot of bonus material.
Tracklist “Destiny”
CD1 – Destiny
1. Destiny
2. S.O.S.
3. No Turning Back
4. 4000 Rainy Nights
5. Rebel
6. Years Go By
7. Playing With Fire
8. Venus In The Morning
9. Anthem Of The World Bonus Tracks
10. Cold Winter Nights (European Edition Bonus Track)
11. Dream With Me (Japanese Edition Bonus Track)
12. Blackout (US Edition bonus track)
CD2 – Visions Of Destiny
1. Destiny
2. Paradise
3. Speed Of Light
4. S.O.S.
5. Anthem Of The World
6. Forever
7. Black Diamond
8. The Kiss Of Judas
9. Distant Skies
10. Forever
Tracklist “Visions Of Europe
CD1
1. Intro
2. Forever Free
3. Kiss Of Judas
4. Father Time
5. Distant Skies
6. Season Of Change
7. Speed Of Light
8. Twilight Symphony
9. Holy Solos
CD2
1. Visions
2. Will The Sun Rise?
3. Forever
4. Black Diamond
5. Against The Wind
6. Paradise
7. Legions
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