Introducing Delain with the rousing track Stay Forever

If you’ve missed our tweets about Delain, here’s a great introduction. The track Stay Forever includes so many great moments – the band at full force, Charlotte’s soaring vocals, gentle symphonic passages, huge and thunderous choruses – whew:

Reminder about Floor Jansen and After Forever

Just in case any of you have missed the thrilling vocals and powerful metal that was such a huge influence a few years ago, here’s the magnificent Energise Me which has been a constant favourite – and on our playlist always:

Floor Jansen to join Delain for a guest appearance

Delain’s special show on October 31st will feature two special guests – Nightwish singer/bass player Marco Hietala and back-in-the-headlines Floor Jansen.

Although the show is sold out you can also find plenty of great information about Delain and their stirring metal music at: www.delain.nl

We have been mentioning Delain on Twitter for a while but the links between Twitter and WordPress are still very basic. You can follow Delain via @DelainInt and we think you should!

Metal Rools!

HUGE news – Floor Jansen returns with new group, ReVamp

There is already a fresh new website for ReVamp and Floor explains the history of the new chapter in her music career.

Floor joined forces with two additional songwriters to first compose, then record an album. A live band is soon to be formed, which will get her back on stage where she belongs!

The first composer to join this new collaboration is Waldemar Sorychta (Grip Inc, Enemy Of The Sun, ao). He contacted her to inquire about current activities and potential future cooperation. “Being a fan of Grip Inc, this idea of working with Waldemar was a big honor and a first step in creating a sound!”

Waldemar’s unique style combined with his experience as songwriter/producer is helping to make Floor’s dream come closer to reality.

The second composer is After Forever colleague Joost van den Broek. “Asking Joost to join seemed logical because of his great keyboards and arrangements, and therefore his potentially valuable contribution. Despite his busy schedule, he wanted to join and get started immediately.”

The website says: “The ReVamp sound will become a unique blend of the personal style we recognize from these musicians. Combining these individual sounds in one album promises to result in heavy and very metal!”

Songs are currently being written and some short samples will be uploaded. Also, Floor made a short video to introduce the band, Welcome to ReVamp:

The ReVamp website is: http://www.revampmusic.com/

For all our stories on Floor Jansen, click here: Floor Jansen

Update on “The Fallen”

To avoid a clash with another group, Carly Smithson and band (which includes some former members of Evanescence) have changed their name to We Are The Fallen.

So while it is not as catchy, the first single – Bury Me Alive – definitely is – especially if you love a style very similar to early Evanescence!

On their website wearethefallen.com the band announced:

Thanks so much for all of the positive feedback we received for “Bury Me Alive”, not to mention the overwhelming response to the free download! There is more great stuff coming soon. If you didn’t register wefor the free download you can still sign up and you’ll be notified of future offers and all of the great things coming soon to wearethefallen.com including the full site launch!

Amy Lee and Evanescence working on new album

Following the announcement about ex-Evanescence members beginning a new band The Fallen, lead singer Amy Lee has released the following statement on the official Evanescence website.

“There’s some pretty weird stuff flying around right now and I’d like to clear up some confusion in the press. As our fans already know, Ben Moody left Evanescence in 2003. Evanescence came out with a follow-up to our first album Fallen in 2006.

“It was called The Open Door and it debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts and reached platinum status in just over a month. The Open Door has sold more than 5 million copies worldwide.

“We’re currently working on new material that I’m extremely excited about. I believe that to make great music you have to give yourself the freedom to evolve. I don’t see the point in making the same record twice, so I always want to challenge myself to make something better, stronger, and more interesting than before.

“That takes time, but it’s worth the wait for me. Hopefully, it will be for the fans too. Look out for new music next year.”

- Amy Lee

[Editorial note: it seems strange to form a new band called The Fallen, apparently after the name of an album you had created years previously with another band.]

Carly Smithson to front new hard-rock band The Fallen

Irish-born Carly finished in sixth place on the 2008 season of American Idol. She has joined forces with some former members of Evanescence to create the band.

The Fallen will include drummer Rocky Gray, guitarists Ben Moody and John LeCompt, alongside bassist Marty O’Brien.

The Fallen are scheduled to formally introduce themselves at a news conference in Los Angeles on Monday, which will also mark their first live performance. Debut single Bury Me Alive will be available for free download from their website following the event.

Girls and Goth do well at MTV Movie Awards 2009

We know there are a lot of people out in the web universe who cast doubt on the talents of the Cyrus family, especially Miley and, more recently, Trace. There seems to be some old-fashioned bias that believes pop music is “bad” because it is popular. The good news is the people who buy music – rather than criticise – make their choices plain.

For us, the fantastic song The Climb by Miley Cyrus (photo 1 with Taylor Lautner) was a welcome winner at the MTV Movie Awards for Best Song From A Movie. It is a soaring track, full of passion and emotion, and easily one of the better inspirational songs of recent years. Some try to dismiss it as “only” pop, but we say it is a perfect 3-minute song in the best traditions of great catchy tunes with its full flavour captured by a talented singer.

Speaking of talent, up-and-coming star Ashley Tisdale (photo 2) won Breakthrough Performance for her work in High School Musical 3: Senior Year. Not everyone who is “good” comes through the Disney training schemes, but so much young talent is just that – talented. We think it’s great if youngsters develop and polish that talent with the help of Disney or American Idol or the thousands of music, dance and drama organisations around the world.  

Every one of those avenues to success provide an environment for hard work – full stop. You may have talent and all sorts of other things in your favour, but the hard work can only be done by the hopeful star. The hours in the gym, or vocal lessons, or dance routines, will only pay off if they are backed up with regular, ongoing discipline. That is why we applaud the impressive young stars.

It was also great to see the Twilight film do so well in the awards, capturing an impressive list of “Bests” – especially the unexpected Best Fight (which Gigandet also won the previous year).

Best Movie – Twilight

Best Female Performance – Kristen Stewart for Twilight

Best Kiss – Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson in Twilight

Best Fight – Robert Pattinson vs. Cam Gigandet in Twilight

Breakthrough Performance – Male – Robert Pattinson in Twilight

Miley Cyrus and Hannah Montana soundtrack hits No.1 slot – Twilight still No.4

in another example of girl power in the music and movie charts, even P. Diddy and the major hype over Day26 could not stop Miley Cyrus and the Hannah Montana soundtrack reaching number one in the album charts.

the lead single from the album, The Climb, is a great power ballad, another strong indication of Miley’s graduation to be considered a serious singer and musician :: she has already stated that her ideal career would be as a respected songwriter :: we reckon the early indications are most favourable.

meanwhile, the public’s love affair with the Twilight saga has kept the soundtrack album near the top of the charts, and it is still at number four :: it seems the themes of the books and the films hit a nerve and resulted in the strong popularity worldwide :: we say yay !!

Gossip Girl – No Doubt – Paramore – mixed media to the max!

No Doubt to reform. Gwen Stefani to rejoin. No Doubt to play on Gossip Girl. Paramore to tour with No Doubt :: the headlines have been ongoing – and confusing …

Paramore’s front-woman Hayley Williams (photo 1) has said No Doubt “have done amazing things” and are one example of the path Paramore would like to take their career :: however, she also says that Paramore is not just a “girl-fronted band” and it makes “music for people to enjoy music, not so people can talk about my sexuality”

also of interest is one reviewer at NME suggested Paramore’s sound is similar to that of No Doubt but “stripped of all the ska bollocks” and then went on to suggest Hayley’s voice is equivalent to “Kelly Clarkson’s wildest dreams” :: whatever the case, Hayley has said her personal influences include Robert Smith of The Cure and Etta James

although I never really got into No Doubt – too soft, too ska, too derivative, too shrill – they were still a good example of a female-fronted band doing good :: and Gwen Stefani (photo 2) certainly has a wide variety of fashion styles at her disposal

the No Doubt/Paramore tour covers 45 cities and begins on May 3rd :: as Paramore have been touring a lot in the 5 years No Doubt have been in limbo, we expect a powerful showing from our metal favourites

the curiosity that is Gossip Girl is perhaps a strange place for No Doubt to do a warm up, but they will perform Stand and Deliver, originally by Adam and the Ants

American Idol returns – with new, improved cleavage

the all new, revised Season 8 of American Idol started with some clever self-marketing :: Katrina Darrell appeared in stylish high heels and … just a bikini :: Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson had no problem with Katrina’s singing, or performance, or anything else

Amanda Overmyer

new judge Kara DioGuardi started a bit of vocal coaching, but did admit Katrina had a great derriere :: meanwhile, our favourites from American Idol 2008 have been busy over the past 6 months, including appearances on the American Idol Live Tour which ran from May to September

Metal Sanaz

Amanda Overmyer has finished work on her first album, Solidify, and has been gigging including a spot at Whisky a Go Go :: Amanda also has a relationship with Metal Sanaz, which we are keen to support as well

Carly Smithson, our other favourite goth-rock-chick from last year, has been on tour and also recording :: Carly’s strong vocals, stage energy and risk-taking were very much appreciated, and apparently she has been a great success on tour, not least because of her support for other artists – including comments that Amanda had been her favorite singer of the competition

Carly Smithson's warm cleavage

and, of course, Amanda and Carly were usually the only on-screen eye-candy for us “goth-rock, girl-power” viewers :: as the photo of Carly shows, female-fronted is still very much an appropriate term to describe her!

don’t forget, American Idol averages 30 million viewers each week :: plus 55 million viewers for the final :: plus 97 million votes were cast for last year’s final :: so anyone getting part way into the finals is always assured of some fantastic exposure :: for music and/or body!

Anti-Hero

Rose Perry’s group, full of licks and messages, provides a Joan Jett style of rock to the Avril messages of female life in the 21st century :: whether Anti-Hero are really Nirvana for this new era (according to their MySpace), all their songs have a strength and craft :: which puts them way above many other pretenders to any of rock’s thrones.

on the evidence so far, 4.5 stars out of 5.

they have a Canada connection, which is strange cos so much other good music i’ve heard lately does as well.

http://www.myspace.com/antiherocanada