Brazen Abbot is a Finnishrock band. Originally a studio project of Bulgarian guitarist, producer and song writer Nikolo Kotzev, who is a Finnish resident, the band has since made several live performances.
One of the defining aspects of Brazen Abbot is the employment of multiple singers; every album features three or four singers, with Göran Edman and Joe Lynn Turner having appeared on most Brazen Abbot albums. Nikolo Kotzev originally intended to use only one singer; original singer Göran Edman could only commit to recording two songs for the first album due to contractual obligations. Glenn Hughes was then supposed to record the remaining songs; however contractual obligations hindered him from recording more than three songs, at which point Kotzev brought in Thomas Vikström to record the remaining songs. Kotzev was so pleased with the result that he decided to keep using multiple singers for future albums. When performing live, however, Joe Lynn Turner is typically the only singer.
Several of the band members have also appeared on Nikolo Kotzev's ambitious rock opera Nostradamus (2001); Brazen Abbot was on hiatus during the time Kotzev was working on the rock opera (1998–2001).
John Gunnar Levén is a Swedish bassist in the Swedish rock band Europe. Levén and vocalist Joey Tempest are the only band members who have performed on all of Europe's studio albums.
Jan-Håkan "Ian" Haugland is the drummer in the Swedish rock band Europe. When he was eight months old, he and his family moved to the Stockholm suburb of Märsta, Sweden. He joined Europe in the summer of 1984, replacing Tony Reno. Previously Haugland had played in a number of bands, including Trilogy, where Candlemass bassist Leif Edling sang, and Yngwie J. Malmsteen's band Rising Force.
Gunnar Mathias "Mic" Michaeli is a Swedish keyboardist in the Swedish rock band Europe. Like many of the other Europe members he grew up in Stockholm suburb Upplands Väsby. He joined the band for their Wings of Tomorrow tour in 1984, taking vocalist Joey Tempest's place behind the keyboards.
Start from the Dark is the sixth studio album by the Swedish rock band Europe. It was released on 22 September 2004 by Sanctuary Records. It was the band's first release since reforming in 2003, the first original album of all-new material since 1991's Prisoners in Paradise, and the first album to feature the band's original guitarist John Norum since 1986's The Final Countdown.
Joe Lynn Turner is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and producer. He is known for his work in the hard rock bands Rainbow, Yngwie J. Malmsteen and Deep Purple. During his career, Turner fronted and played guitar with pop rock band Fandango in the late 1970s; and in the early 1980s, he became a member of Rainbow, fronting the band and writing songs with guitarist, Ritchie Blackmore and bassist, and producer, Roger Glover. After Rainbow had disbanded in March 1984, he pursued a solo career, released one album, Rescue You, and then later did session work, singing background vocals for the likes of Billy Joel, Cher, and Michael Bolton. On the advice of Bolton, Turner began recording jingles for radio and television. Other songs he had composed or through collaboration with songwriters like Desmond Child and Jack Ponti were being recorded and released by international recording artists Jimmy Barnes, Lee Aaron, and Bonfire. Turner had a short-lived association with neoclassical metal guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen and then Deep Purple. From the mid-1990s, he resumed his solo career, releasing an additional nine studio and two live recordings. Turner did other session work, appearing as lead vocalist on tribute albums and working on projects involving various musical groups including progressive rock band Mother's Army; Bulgarian hard rock band Brazen Abbot; funk rock duo Hughes Turner Project; and classic rock/ progressive rock band Rated X. In 2006, Frontiers Records approached Turner to become involved with the AOR side project Sunstorm. By 2016, four albums under the Sunstorm name had been released. That same year, Turner released The Sessions via Cleopatra Records featuring a veritable who's who of classic rock royalty as guest musicians, before resuming his seemingly constant touring schedule back in Europe.
Marcus Jacobsson, professionally known as Marcel Jacob, was a Swedish musician, best known as the founder, chief songwriter, and bassist of the hard rock band Talisman. For a brief period, he also played in the band Europe and with Yngwie Malmsteen.
Nikolo Kotzev is a Bulgarian guitarist, violinist, songwriter and producer, perhaps most famous for his 2001 rock opera Nostradamus and his band Brazen Abbot.
Nelko Kolarov is a Bulgarian composer, conductor and musician. Outside Bulgaria, Kolarov is perhaps best known for his collaborations with Nikolo Kotzev and his solo album Day of wrath.
Nikolo Kotzev's Nostradamus is a rock opera in three acts written by Nikolo Kotzev about the life and times of Nostradamus. It was released in a 2-CD set in 2001; it has as of 2020 not been performed live, although it remains an ambition of Kotzev's to have the rock opera performed on stage. Several members of Kotzev's main project, Brazen Abbot, also appear on this album.
Baltimoore is a Swedish rock band, led by Swedish singer Björn Lodin. Lodin was originally approached by Elektra Records in 1987 to record a solo album, but Lodin opted to use the moniker Baltimoore rather than his own name. In 1992, Lodin relocated to Åland, Finland, where he met Bulgarian-born guitarist Nikolo Kotzev. They joined forces for two Baltimoore albums, Double Density and Thought for Food. Due to personal and musical differences, Kotzev left the band in 1994 to start his own project, Brazen Abbot.
"Always the Pretenders" is a 2006 single released by the Swedish rock band Europe. It is the first single from Europe's album Secret Society, and was released on 11 October 2006. The single peaked at number 2 on the Swedish singles chart.
"Seven Doors Hotel", written by Joey Tempest, was the first single released from the Swedish heavy metal band Europe's self-titled debut album. It was a big hit in Japan, reaching the Top 10. It was one of the first songs he ever wrote.
From Now On... is a solo studio album by former Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and Trapeze bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes. It was released in 1994 and had a distinctive AOR sound.
Göran Edman is a Swedish vocalist.
Last Autumn's Dream is a hard rock band formed in 2002 by vocalist and keyboardist Mikael Erlandsson from Sweden and guitarist Andy Malecek from the German hard rock band Fair Warning.
The Final Countdown Tour 1986 is a live album by the Swedish hard rock band Europe. It was released on December 20, 2004.
"Let the Good Times Rock" is a 1989 single released by the Swedish hard rock band Europe. It was the third single from their album Out of This World. The single peaked at number 85 on the UK singles chart.
"Prisoners in Paradise" is a 1991 single released by the Swedish rock band Europe. It was the first single from the album of the same name. The single charted at #9 in Sweden.
Almost Unplugged is a live album by the Swedish hard rock band Europe. It was released on CD on 17 September 2008 and on DVD on 19 August 2009.
"More Than Meets the Eye" is a 1989 single released by the Swedish rock Europe. It was the fourth single released from the band's fourth studio album Out of This World. It was only released in France, Spain and Japan.
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