┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│■ ■│
│ .-/ .-. │
│ _.-~ / ___ | ~-._ │
│ \:/ -~| / __/| .\:/ │
│ / || (:/:| \ │
│ / /\/| |:\___\| |\ \ │
│ / /:::|.::/:::/:.|:\ \ │
│ / /:::/ \\/:::/::/:::\ \ │
│ / .::\ \-~~~~-/\/:.. \ │
│ /..:::::\ /:::::..\ │
│ /::::::::- -::::::::\ │
│ \:::::-~ ~-:::::/ │
│ \:-~ ~-:/ │
│ METAL CLASSICS ARCHIVE │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│ P R E S E N T S │
│ │
│ │
│ + Axel Rudi Pell - Magic Moments-25th Anniversary Special Show + │
│ │
│ │
│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Information ║ │
│╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Release Date.Jun-07-2015 Encoder......L3.97 -V2 --vbr-new ║ │
│║ Genre........Heavy Metal Graber.......EAC ║ │
│║ Year.........2015 Khz/Bitrate..44,1/ Br ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Ripper.......anthem Songs........cd1: 7 cd2: 9 cd3: 8 ║ │
│║ Covers.......Yes Url... www.axel-rudy-pell.de ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Notes ║ │
│╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Artist : Axel Rudi Pell Rating : You Decide! ║ │
│║ Album : Magic Moments-25th AnniversaryLabel : SPV ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Description : ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ On one hot summerÆs night in July of 2014, the ║ │
│║ last three hours of the Bang Your Head Festival ║ │
│║ in Germany were brought to life during an ║ │
│║ explosive set from Heavy Metal guitarist Axel ║ │
│║ Rudi Pell who was celebrating his 25th ║ │
│║ Anniversary as a solo artist. To document this, ║ │
│║ he invited a whole host of special guests to ║ │
│║ play with him and his band over the course of ║ │
│║ the night including his old band mates from ║ │
│║ STEELER, a few former band members and a whole ║ │
│║ myriad of special guests to play with him and ║ │
│║ naturally of course, when you have a show this ║ │
│║ special, you want to document it and sure enough ║ │
│║ that is exactly what happened as this show was ║ │
│║ recorded for a live CD, DVD and for the first ║ │
│║ time in ARP history, a Blu-Ray as well and the ║ │
│║ end result is ôAxel Rudi Pell & Friends û Magic ║ │
│║ Moments: 25th Anniversary Showö which is due for ║ │
│║ release next month and IÆll be reviewing the CD ║ │
│║ version of the show and I have a feeling that ║ │
│║ this is going to be my longest review to date so ║ │
│║ here we go. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ IÆll start by saying that I am already familiar ║ │
│║ with Axel Rudi Pell as he was the first musician ║ │
│║ to get me into Heavy Metal after I found out ║ │
│║ that Johnny Gioeli, who I already knew from the ║ │
│║ video game band CRUSH 40 was a vocalist for his ║ │
│║ band so I checked out his stuff shortly ║ │
│║ afterward and straight off the bat, I liked what ║ │
│║ I heard so I soon became a fan and I have heard ║ │
│║ every single work of AxelÆs since discovering ║ │
│║ him sometime in 2009 and I have seen him live ║ │
│║ twice to date as well. I always get excited for ║ │
│║ any new releases from this mastermind so I ║ │
│║ instantly reserved a promo of this once details ║ │
│║ were released and the album was made available ║ │
│║ for me to get my hands on to listen to and ║ │
│║ review and IÆm here to find out if the end ║ │
│║ result was indeed full of Magic Moments or not. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ The first disc of the three CD set opens up with ║ │
│║ a total of four STEELER songs before going into ║ │
│║ three songs from AxelÆs back catalogue featuring ║ │
│║ two of his former vocalists, Rob Rock and Jeff ║ │
│║ Scott Soto respectively who each belted out a ║ │
│║ song or two they had previously sung on AxelÆs ║ │
│║ solo albums from the 90Æs including ôNasty ║ │
│║ Reputationö, ôWarriorö and ôFool Foolö with the ║ │
│║ latter two still being played live by JSS to ║ │
│║ this day. I will admit that I was never a big ║ │
│║ fan of AxelÆs old band STEELER so I wasnÆt ║ │
│║ expecting much when I listened to those songs ║ │
│║ during their four song reunion set but I wonÆt ║ │
│║ deny that the sound was pretty tight as was the ║ │
│║ band which is pretty impressive when you bear in ║ │
│║ mind that they havenÆt played together for a ║ │
│║ long time so I will give them points for that. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ As for the three songs from AxelÆs solo back ║ │
│║ catalogue, the first one featuring Rob Rock was ║ │
│║ pretty sweet despite me not being a huge fan of ║ │
│║ his voice but the next two featuring Jeff Scott ║ │
│║ Soto were pretty kickass but I knew it would be ║ │
│║ as I am a fan of JSS and I got to hear the two ║ │
│║ songs he sang on his 30th Anniversary tour last ║ │
│║ year which was pretty sweet so listening to him ║ │
│║ belt out these two classics reminded me of that ║ │
│║ show I went to and if anything, JeffÆs voice has ║ │
│║ gotten stronger since he was the vocalist for ║ │
│║ AxelÆs band and you can really hear that in his ║ │
│║ performance. Only complaint I have is that I ║ │
│║ wish that more songs could have been played from ║ │
│║ the back catalogue but I guess that due to time ║ │
│║ constraints that wasnÆt possible so IÆll ║ │
│║ overlook that bit. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ The second disc comprises of a total of around ║ │
│║ nine or ten songs featuring his current band ║ │
│║ mates including Johnny Gioeli on vocals, Volker ║ │
│║ Krawczak on bass, Bobby Rondinelli on drums and ║ │
│║ Ferdy Doernberg on keyboards. Throughout this ║ │
│║ portion of the show, the band belted out tunes ║ │
│║ from the newest ARP solo album ôInto the Stormö ║ │
│║ including the title track, ôLong Way to Goö and ║ │
│║ ôBurning Chainsö as well as tunes from ARP ║ │
│║ albums released in the 21st century including ║ │
│║ ôStrong as a Rockö, ôMysticaö, ôRock the ║ │
│║ Nationö, ôThe Masquerade Ballö and ôToo Lateö. ║ │
│║ The band sound extremely tight in both their ║ │
│║ performance and sound as FerdyÆs keyboards are ║ │
│║ perfectly tuned to the live sound, new drummer ║ │
│║ Bobby Rondinelli shows us what he can do by ║ │
│║ mixing together his experiences with the bands ║ │
│║ he has played in as well as his talent as a ║ │
│║ drummer and singer Johnny Gioeli shows us not ║ │
│║ only his amazing vocal talent as a singer which ║ │
│║ you can clearly hear on the beautifully haunting ║ │
│║ cover of the Neil Young classic ôHey Hey My Myö, ║ │
│║ but also his charisma as a performer as he knows ║ │
│║ how to entertain the crowd in between and during ║ │
│║ songs as well and thatÆs just one of the many ║ │
│║ reasons why he is one of my all-time favourite ║ │
│║ rock and metal singers as yes his live ║ │
│║ performances may not sound exactly like they do ║ │
│║ on the album the song comes from, but then itÆs ║ │
│║ always going to sound different live, and I like ║ │
│║ it when bands add a bit of flair to their songs ║ │
│║ when playing them live, including bits you would ║ │
│║ never otherwise hear before on the originals, ║ │
│║ such as new or extended parts of a song, and all ║ │
│║ of this reminds me of when I last saw them live, ║ │
│║ which was last year in London during the first ║ │
│║ leg of the ôInto the Storm Tourö and already, ║ │
│║ memories of a great show are starting to flood ║ │
│║ back to me as I listen to the amazing ║ │
│║ performances on this second disc. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ The third disc of this live album set is the ARP ║ │
│║ & Friends part of the show which kicks off with ║ │
│║ a Drum Battle featuring Vinny Appice and Bobby ║ │
│║ Rondinelli and listening to the two of them duke ║ │
│║ it out against one another sounds pretty amazing ║ │
│║ as both are giving it their all showing off ║ │
│║ their skill, talent and experiences as drummers ║ │
│║ but IÆd probably have to watch the DVD version ║ │
│║ of the show to see the actual drum battle but ║ │
│║ this audio version is just as good so IÆll make ║ │
│║ do for now. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ The remainder of the third disc compromises of ║ │
│║ Classic Rock covers from acts such as URIAH ║ │
│║ HEEP, RAINBOW, ZZ TOP and DEEP with the ║ │
│║ performances being divided up amongst various ║ │
│║ rock singers including Ronnie Atkins from PRETTY ║ │
│║ MAIDS who belted out a cover of ôBlack Nightö ║ │
│║ from DEEP PURPLE and John Lawton who is the ║ │
│║ former voice of URIAH HEEP and he performed ║ │
│║ "Sympathy" from the URIAH HEEP band followed by ║ │
│║ ôTushö by ZZ TOP. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ From there, the solo performances ended and the ║ │
│║ remaining songs were all duets which included ║ │
│║ ôMistreatedö by DEEP PURPLE featuring Doogie ║ │
│║ White, Johnny Gioeli and Tony Carey, ôSince ║ │
│║ YouÆve Been Goneö by RAINBOW featuring Graham ║ │
│║ Bonnet, Doogie White and Michael Voss and of ║ │
│║ course, Axel couldnÆt leave it there without ║ │
│║ paying a tribute to the late great Ronnie James ║ │
│║ Dio and so the song ôLong Live Rock NÆ Rollö ║ │
│║ from the Dio era of RAINBOW was performed ║ │
│║ featuring Graham Bonnet, Doogie White and Tony ║ │
│║ Carey and it was quite sweet hearing these ║ │
│║ classic rock covers performed live during this ║ │
│║ special show even though I am not a fan of a ║ │
│║ couple of the singers who performed them such as ║ │
│║ Graham Bonnet but the punch from the ║ │
│║ performances was pretty impressive and it ║ │
│║ sounded great so I can give some points for ║ │
│║ that. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Before the show was over, every single musical ║ │
│║ guest who played with Axel during the show came ║ │
│║ out on stage to belt out a great big group cover ║ │
│║ of the DEEP PURPLE classic ôSmoke on the Waterö ║ │
│║ to finish things off and hearing all of those ║ │
│║ rock voices singing to a classic rock song was ║ │
│║ pretty damn amazing and a song like that is ║ │
│║ perfect for closing off a special show like ║ │
│║ AxelÆs 25th Anniversary show. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Overall, I was hugely impressed with this three ║ │
│║ disc live album from Axel Rudi Pell & Friends ║ │
│║ and hearing a good diverse mixture of different ║ │
│║ songs featuring different performers was a real ║ │
│║ treat for the ears as was the sound which was ║ │
│║ very tight even for a live album which impressed ║ │
│║ me even more. Despite a couple of songs I wasnÆt ║ │
│║ all that overly keen on, the majority of the ║ │
│║ performances during Axel Rudi PellÆs 25th ║ │
│║ Anniversary show were pretty amazing to listen ║ │
│║ to and it was those amazing performances which ║ │
│║ helped it to regain any lost points and if ║ │
│║ youÆre looking forward to hearing or watching ║ │
│║ this for yourself then you can pick it up when ║ │
│║ itÆs released around the end of April on CD, DVD ║ │
│║ and Blu-Ray which I recommend you do as this is ║ │
│║ an essential addition to any Axel Rudi Pell fans ║ │
│║ collection. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ------------------------------------------------ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ BIOGRAPHY ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ There arenÆt many artists around whose career ║ │
│║ has already lasted a quarter of a century. But ║ │
│║ then, there are even fewer who have experienced ║ │
│║ no setbacks whatsoever in 25 years. And there ║ │
│║ are only a few guitarists in the world of rock ║ │
│║ music who have created their own brand just with ║ │
│║ their name, causing over 1.5 million people to ║ │
│║ buy their music. ║ │
│║ Axel Rudi Pell is one of those rare exceptions. ║ │
│║ And so it doesnÆt come as a surprise that his ║ │
│║ latest offering ôInto The Stormö is also one of ║ │
│║ his best; after all, anniversaries are always ║ │
│║ special. Although this is the fifteenth studio ║ │
│║ album (featuring his own material) in PellÆs ║ │
│║ career to date, he didnÆt approach it any ║ │
│║ different than its predecessors. ôThere hasnÆt ║ │
│║ been one day in my life when I havenÆt been ║ │
│║ pushed by Ronnie James DioÆs spirit to write ║ │
│║ something mystical,ö the 53-year-old explains ║ │
│║ his motivation. Even though ARP has nothing ║ │
│║ against efficiency and discipline, creativity ║ │
│║ doesnÆt come at the flick of a switch. ôI ║ │
│║ couldnÆt sit down with it and compose from nine ║ │
│║ to five, that doesnÆt work for me.ö ║ │
│║ As inspiration doesnÆt comply with office hours, ║ │
│║ Pell praises the technological achievements of ║ │
│║ recent years. ôMy cell phone is almost like a ║ │
│║ mobile recording studio, itÆs always busy. And ║ │
│║ this time things worked particularly well.ö ║ │
│║ Despite the fact that the omens werenÆt so good: ║ │
│║ in July of 2013 he unfortunately had to part ║ │
│║ ways with drummer Mike Terrana because their ║ │
│║ schedules didnÆt match. After 15 years together, ║ │
│║ this wasnÆt an easy step for either of them, but ║ │
│║ there was no slander or dirty linen washed in ║ │
│║ public û in contrast to most line-up changes, ║ │
│║ there wasnÆt any of the usual background noise ║ │
│║ that seems to have become the rule in this ║ │
│║ industry. A fact Pell has every right to be ║ │
│║ proud of: ôWeÆre all professionals and we behave ║ │
│║ like professionals.ö So what to do? As Bobby ║ │
│║ Rondinelli (Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Blue ╓yster ║ │
│║ Cult etc.) has always been one of his favorite ║ │
│║ drummers, he was on the top of PellÆs list. And ║ │
│║ now Rondinelli has joined the band, as simple as ║ │
│║ that. No miracle, but the result of AxelÆs ║ │
│║ excellent reputation within the hard rock and ║ │
│║ metal community. ôBobby had heard a lot about me ║ │
│║ and immediately joined.ö And this is the point ║ │
│║ where Pell has come full circle, because the ║ │
│║ Brooklyn-born drummer is not only the first of ║ │
│║ his musicians to have played in one of his ║ │
│║ favorite groups (guess who that might be?), but ║ │
│║ Rondinelli has also brought fresh blood into the ║ │
│║ band: ôBobby fell in love with the new songs ║ │
│║ head over heels, I didnÆt have to tell him what ║ │
│║ to do, he did everything right the first time.ö ║ │
│║ The other American in the band, singer Johnny ║ │
│║ Gioeli, is also raving about the new material: ║ │
│║ ôI think æInto The StormÆ is one the best ARP ║ │
│║ albums ever.ö Why? Well, the compositions are ║ │
│║ catchier, more elaborate. Melodic rockers like ║ │
│║ ôLong Way To Goö and ôHigh Aboveö alternate with ║ │
│║ up-tempo songs like ôTower Of Liesö and ôBurning ║ │
│║ Chainsö. Of one AxelÆs most beautiful ballads to ║ │
│║ date, ôWhen Truth Hurtsö, is almost as ║ │
│║ heartrending as the touching Neil Young cover ║ │
│║ ôHey Hey My Myö. Epic masterpieces such as ║ │
│║ ôTouching Heavenö and the ten-minute-plus title ║ │
│║ track still have that 70s touch we all love. ║ │
│║ There are also two extra tracks for the Digipak: ║ │
│║ the glorious instrumental ôWhite Cats (Opus #6 ║ │
│║ Scivolare)ö is likely to see ôguitar heroö ║ │
│║ fanatics go nuts and the BlackmoreÆs Night cover ║ │
│║ ôWay To Mandalayö could easily have been ║ │
│║ borrowed from a Rainbow album now. ║ │
│║ ARP is on the next level now and it wouldnÆt be ║ │
│║ a great surprise if he cracked the German Top 10 ║ │
│║ this time, seeing that his 2012 release ôCircle ║ │
│║ Of The Oathö already went to no. 16! HeÆs ║ │
│║ certainly earned it. If someone has delivered ║ │
│║ the goods for 25 years, thereÆs got to be a ║ │
│║ reward. Note: anniversaries are always special. ║ │
│║ BTW: There will be a special 3-hours-plus show ║ │
│║ at GermanyÆs ôBang Your Head festivalö in 2014, ║ │
│║ including a Steeler reunion and lots of surprise ║ │
│║ guests. The second leg of the äInto The Stormô ║ │
│║ tour will take place from September 19th û ║ │
│║ October 6th, YouÆre more than welcome to join ║ │
│║ !!! ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Tracklist ║ │
│╚═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════ │
│ │
│ - CD1 [ ] │
│ - [ ] │
│ 01 - Call Her Princess (Steeler) [03:36] │
│ 02 - Night After Night (Steeler) [06:44] │
│ 03 - Rockin┤ The City (Steeler) [04:33] │
│ 04 - Undercover Animal (Steeler) [05:25] │
│ 05 - Nasty Reputation [05:45] │
│ 06 - Warrior [06:20] │
│ 07 - Fool Fool [06:34] │
│ - [ ] │
│ - CD2 [ ] │
│ - [ ] │
│ 01 - Burning Chains [07:11] │
│ 02 - Strong As A Rock [09:03] │
│ 03 - Long Way To Go [05:22] │
│ 04 - Hey Hey My My [09:18] │
│ 05 - Mystica [09:47] │
│ 06 - Into The Storm [12:10] │
│ 07 - Too Late/Eternal Prisoner/Too Late [11:19] │
│ 08 - The Masquerade Ball/Casbah [09:46] │
│ 09 - Rock The Nation [05:48] │
│ - [ ] │
│ - CD3 [ ] │
│ - [ ] │
│ 01 - Drum Battle [10:23] │
│ 02 - Black Night [07:34] │
│ 03 - Sympathy [07:36] │
│ 04 - Tush [03:54] │
│ 05 - Mistreated [14:12] │
│ 06 - Since You Been Gone [04:43] │
│ 07 - Long Live Rock┤N┤Roll [08:17] │
│ 08 - Smoke On The Water [08:17] │
│ │
│ Total Length : [183:3] min │
│ │
│ │
│ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│ ╔═════════════════════╗ │
│ ║ Greetings To: ║ │
│ ╚═════════════════════╝ │
│ │
│ Too all people who contributes to make this │
│ archive of good music in a exceptional conditions │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│■ ■│
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘