Sonic Perspectives

There is hardly a more pivotal figure for the development of the thrash metal scene than Jon Zazula. The owner of the Rock and Roll Heaven record store, he started booking bands like Raven, Anvil and Venom, and his life changed after a demo tape of a band called Metallica fell on his hands. Initially skeptical about the demo, as soon as he played, he felt he should do something with this band. That changed the life of Lars, James, Cliff and Dave forever.

Jon went on to form the Megaforce Records label, and managed bands like Anthrax, Testament and Overkill, among others. He also helped propel Ace Frehley‘s career when he left Kiss, and as time went on and tastes changed, he promoted acts like King’s X, Warren Haynes and Ministry, to name a few. All this was done in parallel with raising a family and having artists crash at his place and create havoc, while he and his wife Marsha scratched heads and raised eyebrows and did their best to pay the bills.

With so many ups and downs, misfortunes and big wins, it’s no wonder that Jon has a lot to tell. Helped by Harold-Claros Maldonado, Jon tells his story on a brand new book called “Heavy Tales – The Metal. The Music. The Madness”, to be released on October 29th. Thrash metal fan and contributor Rodrigo Altaf recently spoke with Jon, and they discussed the origins of thrash, the success and failure of certain bands, and what was the force that drove him to create the soundtrack of a whole generation of metal-heads. As usual listen to their talk below and remember to subscribe to our Podcast in several platforms to listen and be notified about new interviews and contents we publish on a daily basis.

The post Legendary Megaforce Records Founder JON ZAZULA Reflects On His Upcoming Book and The Birth Of Thrash Metal: “CLIFF BURTON Used To Read Bedtimes Stories to My Daughter for Her to Sleep” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

In late 2018, Anneke Van Giersbergen released “Symphonized”, an 11-track live album which registered two career-spanning concerts alongside the Residentie Orkest The Hague. The album comprised solo tracks as well as compositions from Vuur, The Gentle Storm and The Gathering reimagined with the orchestra.

Now on the 27th year of a prolific career, Anneke is touring North America with Amorphis and Delain, on a 28 day trek. She also joins Amorphis on stage to sing the hit “Amongst Stars”, which was part of Amorphis’ amazing effort of 2018, “Queen of Time”.

While Anneke was ready to go on stage in Toronto, Sonic Perspectives incessant collaborator Rodrigo Altaf took time to discuss with her the current tour, upcoming plans, her daily routine on tour and more. As usual listen to their talk below and remember to subscribe to our Podcast in several platforms to listen and be notified about new interviews and contents we publish on a daily basis.

The post ANNEKE VAN GIERSBERGEN On Touring With AMORPHIS and DELAIN: “I Really Enjoy The Personal and Intimate Gigs, And They’re A Great Buildup To The Heavier Shows” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

“Soul Shifter” is the 9th solo album from acclaimed guitarist Vinnie Moore, considered one of the originators of shred guitar. Besides eight influential solo albums, and six albums and a live DVD as a member of rock royalty legends UFO, Moore has made countless album guest appearances, and has even recorded the soundtrack for a Pepsi TV commercial. He’s been a member of Alice Cooper‘s band and was opening act for RUSH on their “Roll The Bones” tour with his own band. His solo and UFO recordings as well as live performances have amassed rave reviews all around the globe from both fans and music press, catapulting him into guitar icon distinction. He has been an inspiration for fans and guitarists worldwide.

Moore‘s new album features guest appearances by legendary artists Rudy Sarzo (OZZY OSBOURNE, QUIET RIOT) and Jordan Rudess (DREAM THEATER), with Richie Monica on drums, Michael Bean (bassist from Vinnie‘s “Time Odyssey” album), John Cassidy (keyboards) and John Pessoni (drums). Vinnie pays homage to his influences on this album that is a perfect follow up to 2015’s “Aerial Visions”, incorporating elements of funk, jazz  blues, in a very interesting mix. Songs like “Brother Carlos” that he wrote that as a tribute to Carlos Santana or “Heard You Were Gone” written about the late CEO of Dean Guitars Elliott Rubinson who was also a member of Vinnie’s touring band. “Soul Shifter” has what you’d expect from Vinnie Moore, awesome vibrato, great tone, and one of the best guitarists out there today, and it will be out October 9, 2019 on his label Mind’s Eye Music.

Sonic Perspectives collaborator Rodrigo Altaf had a very colorful conversation with Moore, where they touched upon several subjects: being a member of UFO for more than 15 years, opening for Rush, how “Soul Shifter” came to form, what guitars were used in the recording of the record and much more. As usual listen to their talk below and remember to subscribe to our Podcast in several platforms to listen and be notified about new interviews and contents we publish on a daily basis.

The post VINNIE MOORE Reflects On New Album: “I Don’t Want to Be Pigeonholed As One Type of Player Stylistically, I Get Bored Of Doing The Same Type Of Music Over and Over Again” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

The second and final part of the two ProgPower postmortems podcasts (you can listen to the first one here).

Early September really is the most wonderful time of the year for a group of dedicated metalheads who flock to Atlanta for the annual ProgPower USA festival. To recap the last two days of the twentieth edition of the festival, Talking Perspectives host Gonzalo Pozo linked up with longtime attendees Matt Harper and Imminent Sonic Destruction bassist Bryan Paxton and two first-timers, Alexa O’Hara and SP contributor Samantha Buckman. Here they dive into the last two days of the event with performances by 12 bands, including Poets Of The Fall, Threshold, Seventh Wonder, Orden Ogan, Psychotic Waltz, Demons and Wizards and many more.

So have a seat, and brace yourself yourself to listen to these guys analyzing the unique culture of the festival and why it makes it so special, and obviously dissecting each performance, band after band for almost two hours and a half. Relive what went down a month ago during the first final two days of the Festival, and get in your walled and alarms ready to snag your passes for next year when they go for sale. Remember tickets for days 3 and 4 will go on sale Saturday, October 12 at 10 AM Eastern Time via Ticketmaster. Only 900 tickets will be made available to the general public, and the event has been consistently selling out, with a record sold-out in a mere 3 hours last year. The final lineup and the ticket information for days 1 and 2 will be announced shortly.

Listen to this episode and share it around your social media channels for your friends to know about arguably the best metal event in the US right now.

Slideshow photographs by Norrsken Photography and Design, Wilkinson Image and Design and Stephen Schmidt Photography 

The post TALKING PERSPECTIVES: PROGPOWER USA XX Retrospective – Days III and IV (Episode No. 28) appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Early September really is the most wonderful time of the year for a group of dedicated metalheads who flock to Atlanta for the annual ProgPower USA festival. To recap the first two days of the twentieth edition of the festival, Talking Perspectives host Gonzalo E. Pozo and Sonic Perspectives totalitarian overlord Joel Barrios linked up with longtime attendee and Imminent Sonic Destruction bassist Bryan Paxton and two first-timers, Alexa O’Hara and new SP contributor Samantha Buckman. In the first of two ProgPower postmortems, the crew discusses each band’s performance, the behind the scenes happenings that are needed to make the festival happen in the first place, and even make room for a surprise appearance by ProgPower co-promoter Milton Mendonça and his boundless admiration for Day 2 headliners Evergrey.

So have a seat, and brace yourself yourself to listen to these guys analyzing each performance, band after band for almost 90 minutes. Relive what went down a month ago during the first two days of the Festival, and fear not, days 3 and 4 are coming tomorrow. Listen to this episode and share it around your social media channels for your friends to know about arguably the best metal event in the US right now.

Slideshow photographs by Norrsken Photography and Design, Wilkinson Image and Design and Stephen Schmidt Photography 

The post TALKING PERSPECTIVES: PROGPOWER USA XX Retrospective – Days I and II (Episode No. 27) appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Having toured the world with acts like Whitesnake, Billy Idol, Foreigner, Ozzy Osbourne and The Dead Daises, Brian Tichy is ready to embark on an ambitious journey. With influences ranging from deep blues to hard rock, and acoustic folk to metal, his new band Silverthorne is a welcome shot in the arm of modern rock. Aside from Brian’s skills on drums, Silverthorne features the soaring powerhouse vocals of Englishman Pete Shoulder, and the ever dependable bassist Daniel Spree. The video for their first single, “Tear The Sky Wide Open”, can be seen below.

With its ominous riff, huge chorus, driving bass, weighty drums and a groove that evokes the vast expanse of the Southern California canyons from where the band was born, “Tear The Sky Wide Open” has already got fans salivating. The teaser video for the track received over 20,000 views in its first 24 hours of release across the bands social media platforms. On this song, you may hear elements that are not unlike being at a Led Zeppelin concert with Cream and Free opening, while Soundgarden and Queens Of The Stone Age hang at the bar.

Sonic Perspectives collaborator Rodrigo Altaf discussed Silverthorne’s plans with Brian Tichy, and they also spoke about his other endeavors, the state of the music business today, and many other interesting topics. As usual listen to their talk below and remember to subscribe to our Podcast in several platforms to listen and be notified about new interviews and contents we publish on a daily basis.

The post BRIAN TICHY Elaborates On His New Band SILVERTHORNE: “We Have Powerful Guitars, Kickass Vocals and a Raw, Organic Production, Just Like the Biggest Bands in Rock N’ Roll” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

In a genre where it’s hard to stand out and not sound like a million other bands, one has to admire the uniqueness of Elvenking. Formed in 1997, this Italian Folk Power Metal outfit has released ten full length albums, the latest of which is their most ambitious project to date. “Reader Of The Runes – Divination” is an adventurous journey into a mystic world of runes, magic and ancient powers far away from the visible. It’s an album that breathes freshness while still being totally loyal to the unique sound of the band.

Such an ambitious concept needs time to be fully developed, and the band is planning to continue the story on a few follow up albums. During the first chapter of this odyssey, the characters of the story are presented, and the music was carefully crafted to accompany the storyline and the different moments and moods of the journey. Mysticism, magic and runes are combined in this compelling adventure, and it doesn’t take long for the listener to be fully transported to a different time and a fictional world.

We recently published a review of “Reader Of The Runes – Divination” (you can read it here). Now it’s time to dive deeper and find out more details about the album, as told by Elvenking’s founding members Fedrico “Aydan” Baston (guitars) and Davide “Damnagoras” Moras (vocals) to our expert  interviewers Michael Francisco and Rodrigo Altaf, who talked to each one of them separately in the same day. Listen to this combined talk below and remember to subscribe to our Podcast in several platforms to listen and be notified about new interviews and contents we publish on a daily basis.

The post ELVENKING Members AYDAN and DAMNA Reflect About New Album: “It Will Take Us Probably Two More Records to Conclude the Story of ‘Reader Of The Runes'”” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

The Darkness are ready to embark on the most ambitious album/tour cycle of their career. On the new album “Easter is Cancelled”, the band concocted a concept which questions their own existence, the relevance of other rock bands, and celebrate triumph in the face of adversity at the end of the journey.

Produced by guitarist Dan Hawkins, “Easter is Cancelled” is a bold statement where the band decided to go big or go home on all its aspects: lyrics, music arrangement…and big they went, with a tale that is in equal parts love, laughter and heartache.

The death of rock ‘n roll is one of the album’s main themes.This contentious subject is tackled head-on on opening track “Rock and Roll Deserves to Die,” an exhilarating, kaleidoscopic mini-rock opera which swings from bucolic folk to heads-down riffing and finds the band threatening to drive a stake through the heart of the whole genre. The Darkness love rock ’n roll. But right now, rock ’n roll is doing itself no favors.

Fresh out of a tour opening for Ed Sheeran, which got the band a lot of exposure to an otherwise largely unreachable audience, The Darkness is getting ready for the release of the adventurous “Easter is Cancelled” on October 04th. Sonic Perspectives collaborator Rodrigo Altaf sat with bass player and original band member Frankie Poullain. The two discussed the album at length, the plans to play it in full on the upcoming tour, and much more.

Follow their chat on the link below and don’t forget to stalk us on social media via Facebook and Twitter.

The post THE DARKNESS’ Bassist FRANKIE POULLAIN Expands On New Concept Album: “We Are Throwing the Gauntlet to Other Bands, And Questioning What Rock N’ Roll Is In 2019” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.