Today in 1987 Savatage released the album Hall of the Mountain King Tampa, Florida Heavy/Power Metal, Progressive Metal/Rock Status:On hold Years active: 1979-1983 (as Avatar), 1983-present Savatage is a heavy metal/progressive metal band founded by the brothers Jon and Criss Oliva in 1979. The band is known for recording many rock operas. Early on, Savatage was a traditional heavy metal band, who stood out from the pack due to guitarist Criss Olivas uncommonly heavy riffing and vocalist Jon Olivas unique vocal stylings. Following the failure of Fight for the Rock, an attempt to commercialize their sound, Savatage began moving in a more operatic direction, releasing a number of rock opera albums in collaboration with producer Paul ONeill. After the tragic death of Criss Oliva, the band soldiered on to continued critical acclaim but diminishing commercial success. However, Oliva and ONeill lucked out when a single from Dead Winter Dead, Christmas Eve (Sarajevo 12/24), managed to crack the singles chart. The song, a reworking of a classic Christmas hymn, acted as a launching pad for the immensely successful Trans-Siberian Orchestra project. Savatage is currently considered to be split up. Guitarist Chris Caffery, vocalist Zakk Stevens, and even Oliva himself have all collaborated to some extent on each others solo projects. Rumours persist that the band will eventually perform a few farewell shows with a companion live CD/DVD release. Atlantic Records Jon Oliva – The Grit (lead vocals, piano) Criss Oliva – The Crunch (guitars) (R.I.P. 1993) Johnny Lee Middleton – The Thunder (bass guitar, backing vocals) Steve Wacholz – The Cannons (drums, percussion) Additional musicians Robert Kinkel – keyboards Ray Gillen – backing vocals on Strange Wings (R.I.P. 1993) Chris Caffery – guitars (touring band member only) 1. 24 Hrs. Ago (4:55) 2. Beyond The Doors Of The Dark (5:08) 3. Legions (4:50) 4. Strange Wings (3:45) 5. Prelude To Madness (3:13) 6. Hall Of The Mountain King (5:33) 7. The Price You Pay (3:51) 8. White Witch (3:21) 9. Last Dawn (1:08) 10. Devastation (3:37) Total Time: 39:26 A music video was made for the song Hall of the Mountain King. Reissues: CD by Edel Music AG in 1997 with the bonus track: 11. Stay (02:48) CD by SPV GmbH on February 4th 2002 with the bonus tracks: 11. Hall of the Mountain King (Live) (06:00) 12. Devastation (Live) (03:36) Digipak CD by earMUSIC on October 21st 2011 remastered with the bonus tracks: 11. Castles Burning (Acoustic Version) (04:04) 12. Somewhere in Time / Alone You Breathe (Acoustic Version) (04:39) Hall of the Mountain King is the fourth studio album by the American heavy metal band Savatage, released in 1987 under the direction of producer Paul ONeill. It is their first album produced by ONeill, who was assigned to the band after the tour in support of Fight for the Rock. This album shows the beginning of Savatages exploration of progressive metal, in their search for new forms of musical expression. Many fans consider this album the original turning point in their musical identity, distinguishing between the old and new Savatage. It is not a concept album, but it has a constant tone (of darkness, in this case) and is more complex than their previous albums, with two entirely instrumental tracks that go beyond simple guitar riffs and solos, namely Prelude to Madness and Last Dawn. Through Paul ONeills connections, he brought in Ray Gillen of Badlands fame (credited as Ray Gillian) to perform a vocal duet at the end of Strange Wings. Prelude to Madness is an arrangement of Griegs In the Hall of the Mountain King from the Peer Gynt suite. Oddly, Grieg is not credited for this song, but for the following title track - which ironically, is an original song. The intro of Prelude to Madness features keyboards and guitar playing Mars, the Bringer of War from Gustav Holsts suite, The Planets. This was the first album to feature the album cover drawn by artist Gary Smith, who was responsible for lead guitarist Criss Olivas airbrushed guitars at the time. Hall of the Mountain King reached position No. 116 in the US Billboard 200 albums chart youtube/watch?v=QdGD3Ukb3Q0
Posted on: Sun, 28 Sep 2014 16:22:05 +0000
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