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Viper | |
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| Origin | Brazil |
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| Website | viperbrazil |
Viper is a Brazilian heavy metal band formed in 1985, initially influenced by Iron Maiden and the new wave of British heavy metal, later developing a very particular sound.
Viper recorded their first demo tape in 1985, The Killera Sword , and in 1987, they released their first album, Soldiers of Sunrise — which, despite the simple production and the somewhat flawed English in the lyrics, showcased the degree of talent and skill of the band's members, all of them teenagers at the time.
In 1989, they released Theatre of Fate, notable for the metal and classical music mix, with a song based on Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata; another noteworthy song is Living for the Night – possibly the favorite one of most Viper fans. This album was released in several countries and granted them international fame – especially in Japan, where it outsold renowned groups like Nirvana and Van Halen.[ citation needed ]
Not long after that, however, singer Andre Matos left Viper to go to complete his education in music [1] at a University in Germany. Upon returning to Brazil he joined the band Angra.
Rather than look for another singer, bassist (and main composer) Pit Passarel took over the microphone. This led to the first major change in the band's style, noticeable in their next album, Evolution, released in 1992 – heavier, more direct, with a more thrash metal sounding. Again, it is a commercial success with good reviews.
On 18 April 1993, Viper played in Club Cittá, Tokyo; this concert's record was later released as Maniacs in Japan.
In 1995, they released their next album, Coma Rage, in which a punk influence is quite strong – as the presence of a cover version of "I Fought the Law" makes very clear. Despite mixed reviews, it is again a fine seller. However, the band has stated later that, in hindsight, they are far from satisfied with the album's mixing.
1996 was possibly the band's darkest moment: soon after the release of Tem Pra Todo Mundo – their first album with lyrics in Portuguese, and a lighter, pop-like sound – their record label at the time (the Brazilian arm of Castle Communications) went bankrupt; legal disputes and the disappearance of the album's masters prevented the re-release of the album by some other label, or the recording of another album by Viper. The band's activities came to a halt, despite never officially breaking up.
In 1999, the compilation Everybody Everybody – The Best of Viper was released to celebrate fifteen years of Viper.
In 2001, the band officially returned to their activities, doing some concerts around the Brazil. Soon after, guitarist Yves Passarel left Viper to keep his focus on his new band, Capital Inicial, a renowned Brazilian pop-rock band; his brother Pit also works with this band as a composer.
In 2004, with a new singer, Ricardo Bocci, Viper resumed touring in Brazil, and in 2005 they released a DVD documentary, 20 Years Living for the Night.
In December 2005, the band released a "20 years of Viper" DVD, detailing the history of the band. They also started working in the pre-production of a new album, and recorded a demo; in February 2006 they started recording the album. All My Life was finally released in June 2007. After a tour in Brazil, Viper went into hiatus again; in February 2010, Bocci announced that, given the band's inactive status, he had left it to work in his solo career. [2]
Andre Matos joined the band again in 2012 for a new Brazilian tour. Commenting on this reunion, he said: [1]
"I was friends with everybody again, and we started seeing each other again. [...] When the idea came now last year [2012] that we should do an anniversary tour and celebrate the first album, everybody was very, very positive about it. So we just needed to figure out when it would be the best time to do it, when everyone would have some free spots in their agendas to match together and to actually make it work, and it did work."
Angra is a Brazilian power metal band formed in 1991. They have released ten regular studio albums, five EPs, and three live CD/DVDs to date. Led by Rafael Bittencourt, the band has gained a degree of popularity in Japan and Europe.
Angels Cry is the debut album of Brazilian metal band Angra. It was released in 1993 and recorded in Germany at Kai Hansen's studios in Hamburg.
Shaman was a Brazilian progressive and power metal band assembled in 2000 by three musicians who left the band Angra – Andre Matos, Luis Mariutti and Ricardo Confessori. The band was completed with guitar player Hugo Mariutti.
André Coelho Matos was a Brazilian singer and musician. He was involved in the heavy metal bands Viper, Angra, Shaman and Symfonia. Since 2006, Matos had been dedicating his time to his solo career. In 2012, he was ranked No. 77 at the list of 100 Greatest Voices of Brazilian Music by Rolling Stone Brasil.
Eduardo Teixeira da Fonseca Vasconcellos, known as Eduardo "Edu" Falaschi, is a Brazilian musician. He is best known as the former lead singer and songwriter of São Paulo-based heavy metal band Angra. With Angra, Falaschi recorded four albums.
Nepal was an Argentine thrash metal band from Buenos Aires, originally assembled in 1984. The name is derived from the Asian country of Nepal.
Reaching Horizons is a demo-tape by the Brazilian power metal band Angra released in 1993 through Limb Music. The original cassette contained six songs, with some re-recorded for their debut album Angels Cry. In 1997, the record-company re-released the album, adding three bonus tracks. It is the only release by the band that features Antunes on drums before he was replaced during the sessions for their debut album.
Soldiers of Sunrise is the first album by Brazilian heavy metal band Viper released by Rock Brigade Records in 1987. It was re-released by Massacre Records in 1992 and re-released again in 1997 by Paradoxx Music in a 2-in-1 edition with the Theatre of Fate album. In 2013 through WikiMetal a new edition was released, including the six songs of "The Killera Sword" Demo Tape as bonus tracks.
Theatre of Fate is the second album by Brazilian heavy metal band Viper. It was re-released in 1997 by Paradoxx Music in a 2-in-1 edition with the Soldiers of Sunrise album.
Evolution is the third album by Brazilian heavy metal band Viper, release in 1992.
Vipera Sapiens is an EP by Brazilian heavy metal band Viper. It was released under the name Viper Brazil.
Coma Rage is the fourth album by Brazilian heavy metal band Viper, released in 1995.
Tem Pra Todo Mundo is the fifth album and first Portuguese album by Brazilian heavy metal band Viper, release in 1996. Its pop-oriented alternative rock style was not very well received by many of the band fans.
Maniacs in Japan is a live album by Brazilian heavy metal band Viper. It is a recording of a concert in Club Cittá, Tokyo on 18 April 1993. Most, but not all, of this concert can be watched in the documentary 20 Years Living for the Night.
Everybody Everybody is a compilation album by Brazilian heavy metal band Viper to celebrate the band's 15th anniversary.
All My Life is the sixth album by Brazilian heavy metal band Viper, released in June 2007. It was their first studio album in more than a decade and was Ricardo Bocci's first album with the band. The original tentative title for this album was Do It All Again. All My Life was remixed and remastered in 2021 by Andre Cortada and Val Santos and featured bonus tracks, including a cover of "Prowler" by Iron Maiden, 2005 demos, and 2006 demos.
Pedro "Pit" Passarell is an Argentinian-born Brazilian musician who is the bassist, main composer and occasional lead vocalist of heavy metal band Viper. He also writes for the rock band Capital Inicial, that his brother Yves Passarell joined after leaving Viper.
Time to Be Free is the debut solo album by Brazilian singer/pianist Andre Matos. He is joined by Hugo Mariutti and his brother Luís Mariutti, with whom he played in the band Shaman. The title of the album refers to both Matos getting his chance to have full creative control, as well as the concept of having free time.
Toxic Holocaust is an American thrash metal band from Portland, Oregon.
Best Reached Horizons is the first 'Best-Of' album by the Brazilian power metal band Angra, released on October 24, 2012, via SPV/Steamhammer. This compilation marks the 20th Anniversary of the band and the idea behind the name's choice is based on the first demo released by Angra in 1992, entitled Reaching Horizons.
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