History
Age of Aquarius
In March 2009, the band released their second album Age of Aquarius with a permanent lineup when Gus Monsanto joined the band as the new lead singer. The band said that it was "by far the darkest, heaviest and most symphonic album that Tolkki has ever been involved in.". [1] In October 2009 Timo Tokki announced that both Justin Biggs and Mike Khalilov have left the band due to musical differences.
On 1 November 2009 Blabbermouth.net reported that Magnus Rosén (former bass player for HammerFall) joined Revolution Renaissance. [2]
Trinity and breakup
In an interview with the Finnish news website kp24 published on 10 May, Timo Tolkki announced that Greek Firewind and Outloud keyboarder Bob Katsionis was the new keyboard player of the band and that they were currently mixing their third and final album, Trinity , which was released in fall. [3]
On 28 July Tolkki announced the break-up of Revolution Renaissance. He commented by saying:
"Due to my private problems, the lack of interest in Revolution Renaissance, shown by the promoters, and the current situation in the music industry that affects to everything including the production budgets, it has become impossible to continue the band. We have tried to book shows in these last three years, but we haven't been able to do so. A rock band cannot exist without direct contact to its fans. Therefore I have no other choice but to make the decision to stop the band and its activities due to the above-mentioned reasons. The third and final album of the band will be released at the end of September. From the bottom of my heart I would like to thank all the fans of my music throughout the years. It's been a great journey."
The third Revolution Renaissance album, titled Trinity, was released later in the year through Napalm Records. [4]
Avantasia is a German supergroup metal opera project created by Tobias Sammet, vocalist of the band Edguy. It has been characterized as a rock opera, as it features the contributions of various vocalists and musicians and it consists of concept albums. The name is a blend of the words Avalon and fantasia ('fantasy') and describes "a world beyond human imagination".
The Metal Opera is the first full-length album by Tobias Sammet's German supergroup project, Avantasia. It is a concept album and a metal opera. The album is followed by the sequel The Metal Opera Part II. Both were written over the course of a year, starting in the last quarter of 1998, and both were produced from October 1999 to June 2000, with the works being interrupted for some weeks so Sammet could produce The Savage Poetry with his other band Edguy.
Kalmah is a Finnish melodic death metal band from Pudasjärvi that formed in 1998. In less than a year after its formation, Kalmah was signed by Spinefarm Records. The word "kalmah" is Karelian and could be translated as "to the grave" or "to the death".
Vain Glory Opera is the third studio album by the German power metal band Edguy, released in 1998. It was mixed by Stratovarius' Timo Tolkki, who also played additional lead guitar on "Out Of Control", and featured additional lead and backing vocals by Hansi Kürsch of Blind Guardian on "Out of Control" and the title track "Vain Glory Opera." Further choir vocals were supplied by Ralf Zdiarstek and Norman Meiritz. At the time of recording the album, Edguy had not yet chosen a permanent drummer to succeed Dominik Storch. So session musician Frank Lindenthal, a good friend of the band, was asked to play drums on the album.
Timo Tapio Tolkki is a Finnish musician best known as the former guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer of the power metal band Stratovarius. With his tenure lasting for more than twenty years, he was the longest standing member of the band before his departure in 2008. After leaving Stratovarius he formed two supergroups named Revolution Renaissance and Symfonia, both of which have since disbanded. In a 2011 article by Guitar World magazine, Tolkki was included in the all-time top 50 list of the world's fastest guitarists.
Warmen is a Finnish heavy metal band assembled by keyboardist Janne "Warman" Wirman. Wirman has played with Children of Bodom from 1997 until their disbandment in 2019, and in 2000 created a musical project focused on instrumental work, which would only have guest singers on a few selected songs.
Thunderstone is a power metal band from Helsinki, Finland. The band was formed in 2000 by guitarist, Nino Laurenne, and the line-up became complete in the following year. After the release of the band's self-titled debut album, Thunderstone, the band toured Europe supporting Stratovarius and Symphony X. Thunderstone released its first four albums through Nuclear Blast; however, their album Dirt Metal was released in October 2009 under Sony Music label.
Michael Kiske is a German singer who is the co-lead vocalist for the power metal band Helloween. Kiske has also released four solo albums, two albums with the hard rock band Unisonic, has participated on various metal and rock related projects such as Avantasia, Place Vendome and Kiske/Somerville, and has performed with numerous bands as a guest vocalist.
Stratovarius is the eleventh studio album by power metal band Stratovarius, released on 5 September 2005 through Sanctuary Records. The album reached No. 4 on the Finnish albums chart as well as the top 100 in six other countries. "Maniac Dance" was released as a single, reaching No. 4 on the Finnish singles chart and the top 100 in three other countries.
Dreamtale is a Finnish power/symphonic metal band from Tampere, formed in 1999.
The Metal Opera Pt. II is the second full-length album by Tobias Sammet's German supergroup project, Avantasia. It is a concept album and a metal opera. The songs carry on the story begun in The Metal Opera, with the same characters. Both albums were written over the course of a year, starting in the last quarter of 1998, and both were produced from October 1999 to June 2000, with the works being interrupted for some weeks so Sammet could produce The Savage Poetry with his other band Edguy.
New Era is the debut album of Finnish power metal pioneer Timo Tolkki's band, Revolution Renaissance. After Tolkki's split from Stratovarius in 2008, he used what fans knew the album to be titled R... R.... as the namesake for his new project. Using material he had written for Stratovarius's upcoming album, Tolkki's New Era features the talents of German power metal vocalist Tobias Sammet and German singer Michael Kiske, among others.
The Metal Opera: Pt 1 & 2 – Gold Edition is a box set by German band Avantasia, released through the band's former label AFM Records on March 6, 2008. The set contains Avantasia's first two albums on two gold CDs, a 44-page booklet with the storyline, rare photos, liner notes, and an interview with project mastermind Tobias Sammet; all inside a luxury leather box.
Fuel for the Fire is the first album by Ari Koivunen, the winner of the 2007 Finnish Idols competition. Among the metal artists who have contributed material to the album are Timo Tolkki, Marko Hietala, Janne Joutsenniemi, Tony Kakko and Jarkko Ahola.
Serenity is the third album by power metal band Kotipelto, released in 2007 while Stratovarius was in hiatus.
Age of Aquarius is the second studio album by the Finnish power metal band Revolution Renaissance. It is the first album featuring singer Gus Monsanto, drummer Bruno Agra, bassist Justin Biggs and keyboardist Mike Khalilov. It was released on 25 March 2009 in South-East Asia by JVC/Victor Entertainment and on 23 March 2009 in the rest of the world by Scarlet Records. A promotional video clip for the title track was recorded and produced in late 2008. The band released the song"Age of Aquarius" and "Ghost of Fallen Grace" as a free, high-quality mp3 download on their website.
Polaris is the twelfth studio album by power metal band Stratovarius, released on 15 May 2009. It is the first Stratovarius album to feature bassist Lauri Porra and guitarist Matias Kupiainen, following former bassist Jari Kainulainen's departure from the band in 2005 and former guitarist Timo Tolkki's departure in 2008.
Trinity is the third and final album by Revolution Renaissance, released on 24 September 2010.
Timo Tolkki's Avalon was a Finnish metal opera project created by Timo Tolkki in 2013.
The Land of New Hope is the first full-length album by Timo Tolkki's Finnish metal opera project Avalon. The album was released on May 17, 2013 in Europe and May 21, 2013 in the US.
