Sonic Perspectives

Few artists are as busy as drummer Mike Portnoy in the music industry today. A proud “member of 83 bands” – a fictional number which might just as well be true eventually – this year he has toured with Metal Allegiance, The Neal Morse Band, The Winery Dogs and Flying Colors, and did a tour [...] The post MIKE PORTNOY Talks New SONS OF APOLLO Album: “MMXX Is Us Taking the Band Into The Present and The Future” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Not many metal acts can look back at as comprehensive, multi-faceted and varied a career as Rage. Founded in spring 1983 in Germany, the band surrounding vocalist/bassist Peavy Wagner has integrated a wide range of stylistic nuances into its musical concept. There have been releases which focused primarily on hard thrash sounds, but also recordings [...] The post RAGE Mastermind PEAVEY WAGNER Talks New Album Sound: “The Idea Was to Bring All RAGE Styles Together in A Homogeneous Way” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Hugh Syme is a graphic artist whose name has been indelibly linked to Rush since he did his first work for the band, the cover of “Caress of Steel”. He is responsible for ALL but the first 2 of Rush‘s album cover artwork. He also created Rush‘s famous StarMan logo, though he never imagined the [...] The post World Renowned Graphic Designer / Art Director HUGH SYME Talks Working with RUSH, DREAM THEATER and Many Other Bands appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

It’s that time of year again, when I solidly insert my earbuds anytime I enter a retail space, avoid shopping centers like the plague, and the both the suburbs and the sorority girls next door begin to reek of pumpkin spice. You know what that means… It means everyone who thinks they know more than [...] The post TALKING PERSPECTIVES: A 90 Minutes Chat About Our Favorite Progressive Rock Albums of 2019 (Episode No. 32) appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

On November 22, doom metal wizards AVATARIUM released their heavy and emotionally dense new album “The Fire I Long For”. The new effort sees them return to their epic doom roots whilst paying their respects to rock legends like RAINBOW, LED ZEPPELIN and THE DOORS. Born from epic doom laden mastermind known as Leif Edling [...]

Molly Hatchet, the unstoppable ambassadors of Southern Rock, are back again with a new live offering, entitled “Battleground”. Their last album of original material might be too far back in the rear-view mirror now, but their relentless touring schedule proves that they’re still a force to be reckoned with. The musicians surrounding guitarist Bobby Ingram [...] The post BOBBY INGRAM of MOLLY HATCHET Reflects On Band’s New Live Album: There’s A Unity You Can Hear On This Record: Between The Fans and The Band, And Musically” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

After four or five years of discussions about a possible collaboration with Frontiers Records, renowned German producer, guitarist, and songwriter Sascha Paeth agreed to join forces with the Italian label and launch his new band, Masters Of Ceremony. The resulting and recently released album “Signs of Wings” (you can check our review of the album [...]

Bruce Soord started The Pineapple Thief twenty years ago, but almost feels like they have become a new band in the best sense of the word. The group has been reinvigorated by drummer extraordinaire Gavin Harrison joining the band as a full-time member, who also collaborates with Bruce on their new material. This has brought [...]

Drawing influences from the origins of metal as much as from alternative rock, Prong has always been a difficult band to categorize. They rose to fame in the mid 90’s when songs like “Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck” and “Beg to Differ” got a lot of rotation on MTV. Refusing to be pigeonholed, their [...] The post PRONG Mastermind TOMMY VICTOR Reflects on Upcoming EP Release: “The Record Business is Strange Right Now. Maybe Releasing EPs Is a Good Formula Moving Forward” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

November 1st represented a new chapter in Voyager‘s already extensive career: their seventh full length, “Colours in the Sun”, was unveiled, bringing all the classic elements that their fans learned to love. Catchy choruses, crushing riffs, tasty keyboard lines and an expansive sound, which is heavy and yet captivating. Having played ProgPower US and ProgPower [...] The post VOYAGER’s Guitarist SCOTT KAY Reflects On “Colours In The Sun” Album: “Having a Consistent Lineup Has Really Helped Us Build Momentum” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

“It’s getting really hard to book headliners,” laments ProgPower Festival Day 2 honcho Milton Mendonça… so the motherfucker booked TWO. Tease that he is, ou outro terror do brasil (o primeiro terror being our very own Rodrigo Altaf) has spent the better part of two months posting minute-long videos on ProgPower’s Vimeo page. Thoroughly whetting the [...] The post TALKING PERSPECTIVES: Dissecting PROGPOWER USA XXI Lineup for Day 2 (Episode No. 31) appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

A month ago hundreds of progressive rock fans gathered together at New Jersey for three days of music and friendship. For a festival younger than my kindergarten-aged nephew, Progstock sure has brought some incredible talent to New Jersey. Having already featured such luminaries as In Continuum, Glass Hammer, the Dave Kerzner Band, and Enchant, the [...] The post TALKING PERSPECTIVES: A Recap of PROGSTOCK Festival 2019 (Episode No. 30) appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

In the fall of 1994, multi-talented musician Kevin Gilbert had an idea.  He and some friends would perform the Genesis classic The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway for Progfest in Los Angeles. He had just two weeks to put it together. So he called in some guys who are now well-known but, back then, were just [...] The post DAVE KERZNER and NICK D’VIRGILIO Remember KEVIN GILBERT and GIRAFFE on the Anniversary of Their Performance of THE LAMB LIES DOWN ON BROADWAY: “This Show Changed Our Lives and Careers.” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Like it or not (and I kinda don’t), there’s been an upswing in 80s nostalgia going for a few years now. I personally suspect that two bands will remain when the dust settles after this resurgence: The Night Flight Orchestra, and a raucous little collective called Iron Kingdom. Hailing from British Columbia, childhood friends Chris [...] The post IRON KINGDOM Members Talk New Album and Their Love for Heavy Metal: “This Is The Music We Always Wanted to Play, That’s Why We Sound Real” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Certain artists simply transpire versatility, and refuse to be pigeonholed in a single style. That’s the case with guitarist Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal, whose career has taken a million twists and turns since he decided to play an instrument, after listening to “Kiss Alive!” at the age of six. Having toured the world with Guns N’ [...] The post Concert Review / Interview with RON BUMBLEFOOT THAL: “I Had to Learn a New Way to Sing for the Recent Tour with ASIA” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

In March 2019 ECLIPSE main songwriter Erik Martensson was voted one of the top 10 songwriters in the world by renowned Japanese metal magazine BURRN! In the years following the release of the 2012 album “Bleed & Scream”, ECLIPSE has become one of Sweden’s most prolific heavy rock bands. Together with guitar virtuoso Magnus Henriksson, [...] The post ECLIPSE Singer ERIK MARTENSSON Reflects on New Album and the Formula for Writing Catchy Songs: “Writing Complex Songs Is Easy, the Most Difficult Thing Is to Write a Simple Song with Hooks” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Never a band to rest on their laurels, Blind Guardian have always moved forward and changed their sound from time to time. From their speed metal beginnings, to absorbing thrash influences in subsequent releases, and finally establishing themselves as power metal ambassadors, there was always something new with every release. For epic performances at Wacken [...] The post BLIND GUARDIAN Leader HANSI KÜRSCH Talks “Legacy Of The Dark Lands” Album: “I Feel Relieved And Proud It, And It Was a Natural Step for BLIND GUARDIAN to Record an Album Like That” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

With four full-length albums and a notable guest appearance under her belt, Canadian singer Leah has been making waves lately with her distinctive other-worldly take on Celtic-inspired folk metal. Fresh off last year’s collaboration with Testament‘s Eric Peterson on the third Dragonlord album as well as her own album “The Quest,” the Vancouver-based siren quickly [...] The post Canadian Singer LEAH On The Metal Lifestyle: “It’s Bigger Than The Music. The Music Is Just Part Of The Culture.” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Very few people in metal today embody the term “persistence” as much as Frankie Banali. Having formed Quiet Riot in the 80’s and reached the top of the charts in 1983, going above Michael Jackson‘s “Thriller” and The Police‘s “Synchronicity”, Frankie surely had his share of hardships since then. He faced a million lineup changes [...] The post FRANKIE BANALI Reflects On QUIET RIOT’s New Album and the Support for His Fight Against Cancer: “I Had No Idea That the Response Worldwide Would Be So Positive and Touching” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

The Swedish progressive band Opeth released their thirteenth studio album, “In Cauda Venenum,” on September 27. Widely hailed as a more focused and biting effort than its more psychedelic predecessor, “In Cauda Venenum” sees the band perfecting the sound they adopted after their more metallic era came to a close nearly a decade ago. On [...] The post TALKING PERSPECTIVES: Dissecting Opeth’s “In Cauda Venenum” / Satan And Rainbows Podcast / Summer Concerts Retrospective (Episode No. 29) appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.