Michael Learns To Rock Biography

The story about the Danish band MICHAEL LEARNS TO ROCK is a classic in the world of rock music. It is about four friends meeting in an orchestra, staying together in spite of all their troubles, becoming a success far beyond the Danish frontiers, and who are now, after three albums released and almost three million copies sold, facing the release of their GREATEST HITS album titled 'PAINT MY LOVE'.

In 1987, at a grammar school in the city of Århus, JASCHA RICHTER (b. 1963) formed a small café orchestra which included his sister and the two subsequent Michael musicians, drummer KÅRE WANSCHER (b. 1969) and guitarist MIKKEL LENTZ (b. 1968). Although younger than he, they had both listened to rock music at their mother's knees and had been playing with bands for years. Jascha played some of his demos to Kåre, and the two of them decided to start a band, based on Jascha's songs. Mikkel was an obvious third, but they could not seem to find a bass player. So Kåre asked his old pal, guitarist SØREN MADSEN (b. 1967) to play the bass in the first evening of practice. This temporary job became a permanent one. The chemistry worked from the start - and today the band holds the same four people that met in the practice room back in the spring of 1988.

Under the name MICHAEL LEARNS TO ROCK the quartet made its début at the event "Dansk Rock Grand Prix" that took place in rhus in May 1988. The band won the competition, and a few months later it registered for the then most prestigious musical competition in rhus. Michael Learns To Rock won convincingly at the finals in July 1988 and met on that occasion their future manager and booker JP ANDERSEN, promoter of one of the major festivals of Denmark. Over the next two years, through his efforts, the band gained access to numerous events in Denmark. They played in small and large clubs, at small festivals and in grammar schools. Soon MICHAEL LEARNS TO ROCK stretched their experience from large audiences in a rapture to very small ones. But first and foremost they learnt to play under all possible and impossible conditions - and particularly the latter produced a close friendship and a firmly constructed band.

After recording a comprehensive demo material and four songs for a promotional album for new artists, JENS HOFMAN, A&R and executive producer of the EMI Medley recording company initiated a close co-operation with both the band and JP Andersen. On 20 February 1989, this lead to signing the coveted recording contract. In the autumn of 1989 and the spring of 1990, MICHAEL LEARNS TO ROCK recorded their first album with Jens Hofman and OLI POULSEN as the producers. The American TONY PELUSO was brought over to Denmark to mix the eleven numbers, which on 1 September 1991 were released under the title "Michael Learns To Rock".

The first single "I Still Carry On" (released on 4 July 1991) broke the ice for MICHAEL LEARNS TO ROCK, who quickly became favourites of the air in Denmark. But after release of their second single and video "The Actor", MICHAEL LEARNS TO ROCK suddenly became a household word. On 3 January 1992 the first album topped the Danish charts, where it remained for the next five weeks. Now things got moving. "The Actor" topped the charts in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines, and it was also released in Canada, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Finland, and in several South American countries. At home in Denmark, the band had reached stardom at express speed, and it went on a tour playing to full houses until mid-August 1992. MICHAEL LEARNS TO ROCK became one of the main attractions at the "Green Concerts", Denmark's biggest mobile festival, where more than 200,000 audience heard the band. They performed on television in both Norway and Sweden, and MTV showed the video "The Actor" several times.

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Dragon Force Biography

Prepare yourself for a gripping, exhilarating ride on January 9th, 2006. On that date, DragonForce release their hotly awaited third album, ‘Inhuman Rampage’. The title is an apt summation of a devastating musical journey, an unstoppable force that the six-man group’s forthcoming tour of duty will leave devastated cities in its wake. Combing the primal force of power metal with hard-earned musical proficiency, old-school thrash and generous quantities of muscular melody in a unique style that they call ‘extreme power metal’, DragonForce have established themselves as THE heavy metal band of the past year.



The summer of 2005 saw them sharing festival stages with Iron Maiden, a sell-out headlining tour of the UK generating scenes of pandemonium. Intensive bouts of touring to accompany the band’s two albums to date – ‘Valley Of The Damned’ in January 2003 and the following year’s ‘Sonic Firestorm’ – has seen their fan-base escalate in quite dramatic terms. Meanwhile, the European metal press have swamped the band with almost universal reams of adulation. “DragonForce are getting bigger. Prepare for the onslaught,” Kerrang! warned. "DragonForce are as metal as f**k,” roared the UK’s Metal Hammer, “They’ll be enormous.” Writers and magazines from France, Greece, Finland, Sweden, Holland, Japan and many more wasted little time in falling under the band’s spell. Perhaps the best summation of all these accolades was Rock Hard (Germany)’s prediction that: “DragonForce could become the first British metal band in ages to reap respect from all over the world.”

Against all the odds, DragonForce have single-handedly revitalised power metal in their homeland of the UK, awarding credibility to a genre that till their arrival was regarded was little more than a joke.
Clearly, plenty rides on ‘Inhuman Rampage’. However, instead of resorting to panic and watering down the style of music that secured such a position of prominence, DragonForce have gone further over the top than ever before. The new album is faster, bolder and heavier – yet still as boldly stirring and distinctly hummable – as anything they’ve attempted so far.

“We’ve come up with the ultimate formula,” proudly declares Herman Li, one half of the band’s unstoppable guitar army. “Combining intensity, chaos and melody, with all the DragonForce trademarks, it’s something that’s never been done before. “For us, this is the next evolution in the DragonForce sound,” he continues. “I’ve never heard an album that sounds like ‘Inhuman Rampage’ – the title says it all! It's seriously gonna blow some heads off around the world during the next year.”



The eight-song album was recorded at Thin Ice Studios in Surrey and guitarist Herman Li's own studio in West London, some of its guitar sections recorded in hotel rooms while the band wound up the tour for ‘Sonic Firestorm’.
Track titles like ‘Through The Fire And Flames’, ‘Operation Ground And Pound’, ‘Revolution Deathsquad’ and ‘Storming The Burning Fields’ leave the listener in no doubt of DragonForce’s malicious intent, and more importantly their aversion to climbing the ladder of popularity by selling out. Winner of the Dimebag Darrell Best Young Guitarist award at Metal Hammer UK’s Golden Gods, Li and his six-string partner in crime Sam Totman have never sounded hungrier nor eager to prove their worth. From the start of each song to its exhausted finish, notes fly from all angles.
The album ends with its sole ballad, ‘The Trail Of Broken Hearts’, though as Totman quite rightly points out: “We still managed to squeeze three separate guitar solos in.”However, shredding for shredding’s sake has never been among the band’s intentions.Although keen to squeeze as many notes as possible into certain songs, this time the pair has experimented with various new textures and sounds.

“We wanted to keep things interesting, and there are sections of certain songs that will remind you of video games,” grins Hong Kong-born Li. “Many people will hear them and assume they were made by keyboards. That’s completely wrong. All those parts are done on the guitar.”

Which isn’t intended to under-value the superlative contribution of Vadim Pruzhanov, who co-wrote several of the album’s songs (including ‘Body Breakdown’), is credited along with Li and Totman as a co-producer and whose dazzling keyboard runs are as daring and provocative as anything performed on guitar frets. A Ukrainian by birth, Pruzhanov is fast becoming known for lengthy and insane solo excursions during the band’s live shows and has really come into his own on ‘Inhuman Rampage’. On the other hand, vocalist ZP Theart is already regarded as the glimmering pearl in DragonForce’s crown. Far too many European power metal acts are faced up by singers with the merest grasp of English diction. South African-born, Theart is the real deal – a stomping, roaring, beer-swilling frontman who fronts the band with passion and wit.



Alongside Li and Totman, Theart was a co-founder of DragonForce. The trio met in London in September 1999, using the name DragonHeart for their initial two years of existence. Quick to realise the possibilities of the internet, the band posted a set of demos at their website (www.dragonforce.com) and were rewarded not only by half a million downloads, but the interest of Sanctuary/Noise Records.

Early support UK spots with Halford and Stratovarius, plus the timely recruitment of a superior rhythm section moulded a professionalism to match their commitment, and before too long the group were placed on the launching pad of international success. The sextet toured Europe, South East Asia and the Far East to promote the debut album, and before too long, critics were queuing up to praise DragonForce’s fusion of modern melodic power metal, the energy of speed metal and the confident, in-your-face delivery of bands twice their age.

From day one, the band’s goal was to establish an identifiable style all of their own. To an outsider, the lyrics may seem to tell otherworldly tales of sword-wielding warriors occupying distant battlefield plains, but strip away the fantasy imagery and a message of modern-day positivity is right there beneath your nose. But most of all, DragonForce’s success is attributable to playing ability and perhaps their most under-played asset of all – a skill for composing ultra-memorable, rabble-rousing heavy metal anthems. ‘Inhuman Rampage’ offers indisputable proof.

DragonForce Line-up
ZP Theart – Lead and backing vocals
Herman Li – Lead and rhythm guitars, backing vocals
Sam Totman – Lead and rhythm electric guitars, backing vocals
Vadim Pruzhanov – Keyboards, Piano, backing vocals
Dave Mackintosh – Drums, backing vocals

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Avenged Sevenfold A7X Biography

It’s not always recognized in today’s “I want it all now” world, but patience is a virtue. And Huntington Beach, California rockers Avenged Sevenfold are being rewarded for remembering that golden rule. After releasing two highly successful albums on an indie label (Sounding The Seventh Trumpet and Waking The Fallen), the quintet is set to unleash its major label debut, City Of Evil, on Warner Bros. Records. City Of Evil, co-produced by Avenged Sevenfold, reunites the group with producer Mudrock (Waking The Fall).

“We’re at the point now where we’ve come into our own,” vocalist M. Shadows says of the ambitious City Of Evil, an 11-song collection that gives a middle finger to the idea of categorization, bridging the sonic guitar assault of Iron Maiden with the frenetic pace of Bad Religion and the musicianship of Dream Theater. “In Southern California you’re really brought up in the whole punk world. At the same time, we were growing up listening to Pantera, Megadeath, Metallica and Slayer records,” Shadows recalls. “So then you think, ‘I want to play in that kind of band, but I want to play in this kind of band.’ Then you pass that point and all of a sudden you’re just writing music and it comes out naturally. But that’s what happens cause of all the different influences we have. And we’re definitely not afraid to put anything in our songs if we think it calls for it.”

Yes, Avenged Sevenfold can rock, as the band recently did at a sold-out show at Hollywood’s Music Box Theater, where they turned the intensity of the new tunes up from 11 to about a 20, but these are musicians as well. However, as the group evidenced during the orchestral interlude in “The Wicked End,” a perfect metal moment live complemented by a boys choir and 14-piece string section, Avenged Sevenfold, in the tradition of Zeppelin, Queen, and Guns ‘N’ Roses’ “November Rain,” meld their intensity with a musical daring their hard rock forefathers would be proud of.

Those looking primarily for a cathartic release live, as so many of the kids moshing their brains out at the Music Box were, need only turn to the ferocious energy of “Bat Country,” a song written for Hunter S. Thompson about the band’s own adventures in Vegas, and the Maiden-esque guitar and Shadows’ perfect caterwaul of the line “city of evil” (where the album’s title stems from) in the opening “Beast & The Harlot.”

And while Avenged, whose influences range from Maiden, Pantera, and Guns ‘N’ Roses (Shadows calls Use Your Illusions 1 and 2 his favorite albums of all time) to Billy Joel, Queen, and Elvis Costello, may not be your typical hard rock band musically, they can hang with the best of them. Epic nights of late night fun have followed this band around the country, and it’s something all of the members freely acknowledge. They like to party, and they like to drink: and plenty. Additionally, and fitting with their chosen lifestyle, the members of Avenged could write the A7X equivalent of the Zagut guide to strip clubs in America.

“Strippers and bands have this bond,” Vengeance says. “They totally do. The band walks in and it’s like special treatment,” Shadows adds. So, what makes a good strip club? “I like strip clubs that are out of control,” he says, citing Vegas, New York and New Orleans (“It’s fucking Bourbon Street. It better be crazy,” he says) as home to some of the better establishments they’ve frequented.

Reflecting the complex personalities though that can lead a hard rock band to throw in a beautiful Flamenco guitar solo near the end of the new album’s savage “Sidewinder,” Avenged Sevenfold is far from just a party band, and it shows on City Of Evil. The album is bursting with displays of their virtuoso musicianship, from the intricate tempo changes of “Burn It Down” to the tender acoustic intro into a Spaghetti Western mixed with classical melody that provides the calm before the storm in the savage “Strength Of The World.”

The group has learned a great deal having spent the last three summers as part of the Warped tour. Shadows got some valuable advice from Fat Mike of NOFX, besides how to play Texas Hold ‘Em. “He’s like, ‘You know what, if you do this stuff long enough, you gotta fucking have fun. If you can’t have fun on tour then you’ll never last,’” Shadows recalls. “I think that’s a really important thing.”

Additionally, the quintet, which started on a Warped side stage, graduated to the second stage, and then made the move last year to main stage, a spot they’ll be returning to this year, learned a lot by the gradual progression. “We’ve seen bands that we started out with that got a little bit of a head start or an early break and they’re done. We’ve learned so much more doing it from the ground up. We’ve got so many more stories than other bands will have; so many more good times, bad times. It has made us stronger as a band too,” Vengeance says.

Hard work is what also accounts for the band’s fiercely loyal following, according to Shadows. “It’s rewarding ‘cause you know you have this really solid core fan base that has been through a lot and they believe in the band now as more than a band, it’s like a lifestyle,” he says. “If anything happens we don’t ever fall, it’s like they’re holding us up. We’re not on the radio, but everywhere we go we always have this rabid group of fans. We would’ve never had that if we had some lucky break and just jumped to the point we’re at now. I hope it gradually keeps going up. The slower you go the more I think it builds underneath you and we’re grateful for that. They can’t just get pulled out from underneath us. There’s nothing you can grab to pull; it’s fans that love that band. So, it’s very gratifying to be at this place now.”

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Secondhand Serenade Biography

Over the last few years, the music industry has evolved in a way which allows the common man with extraordinary talents, to rise above the sea of similarity, and stand on his own as the voice of a generation. A generation that is fueled by heart, emotion, passion and determination.

And that man has come to surface as Secondhand Serenade...

Born into a family of musicians, John Vesely has taken the gift he was instilled with, and shaped it into his own. With the help of his father, a professional jazz musician for over 20 years in the Czech Republic, he started getting into music around the age of 12. Playing bass for 8 years, he was a member of numerous Bay area bands ranging in style from ska and hardcore to rock and pop. But it wasn't until he picked up the acoustic guitar that he finally found his true calling. "I switched to guitar when I met my wife. She wanted me to play her a song, but I didn't have a band at the time and serenading her with a bass guitar was out of the question" Vesely said.

Once he began writing his own material, John scraped up the money for 8 days of studio time and went in to record the 10-track album, known as Awake in the summer of 2005. Armed with a superior vocal range, a mind blowing sense of harmony and heart wrenching lyrics, he was able to walk away with an acoustic album that would prove to be the groundwork for the start of his career. When it came time to chose a name, he decided to go with Secondhand Serenade in an attempt to stay away from the typical singer/songwriter image. "It's everything I would want in a band name and more. It basically sums up what I do. I write my songs about events and feelings that occur in my life, and I sing the songs to my wife. Everyone else gets the Secondhand Serenade."

While some artists may fear the rawness of playing with just an acoustic guitar, John welcomes the honesty it comes along with. He claims "In some ways a band is more powerful, but in other ways there are things you can do with one voice and one acoustic guitar that you couldn't do with an army of musicians behind you." It only seems right that an artist with this mentality begins to spread his wings.

With his eyes set on conquering a fan base, John put together a MySpace page and started playing out in his area. As the number of listeners at his shows began to grow, so did his on-line fan base... in a BIG way. In just a few months time, Secondhand Serenade would shoot to the #1 position of all unsigned bands on the widely popular site. Simultaneously, he would become the only unsigned act to have a CD in the top 100 alternative albums on itunes. While that seemed exciting enough, he also released a few demos on Yahoo! Launch, which would soon claim the #1 position as well, on the Adult Alternative station. This time, he was not beating out other unsigned acts, he was competing with the cream of the crop, and winning. Months would go by as Secondhand Serenade claimed the top of the chart over such names as John Mayer, Nickelback and Evanescence. Not used to seeing this kind of reaction, industry insiders began to wonder... was it actually possible for an unsigned, one man act, with nothing more than a self-produced acoustic album, and the help of no one but fans, to post numbers that were superior to artists on major labels? Artists with millions of dollars spent on promotions? For Secondhand Serenade, it was not only possible... it was reality.

As 2006 began to wind down, John's career was in full swing as he stepped to the next level. Having made the rounds to major labels in New York and Los Angeles, a deal was eventually signed with Glassnote Records, a brand new label started by respected industry veteran, Daniel Glass. As Glassnote's first official artist, the team immediately went to work mapping out the next year for Secondhand Serenade, along with the help of Warner/Independent Label Group.

2007 now looks to be an eventful year as well. With 2 new songs added to Awake, Glassnote/ILG released the album to retail on February 6th. In addition, a video was shot with Frank Borin (director for Simple Plan, Good Charlotte, Eminem) for the song "Vulnerable," a fan favorite. This year will also provide Secondhand Serenade an opportunity to see his fans from all over the country. With shows already scheduled for SXSW and numerous other tours taking shape, John anticipates giving his audience from coast to coast, a firsthand experience. He will also see the studio again soon as another release is being planned for later in the year. Stay tuned... Secondhand Serenade is invading the hearts, minds and airwaves of the world.

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