Rhapsody of Fire
| Rhapsody of Fire | |
|---|---|
 Performance of the band in Buenos Aires (2010) |
|
| General information | |
| origin | Trieste ( Italy ) |
| Genre (s) | Power metal , symphonic metal |
| founding | 1993 |
| Website | www.rhapsodyoffire.com |
| Founding members | |
| Luca Turilli | |
| Daniele Carbonera | |
| Alex Staropoli | |
| Current occupation | |
Keyboard |
Alex Staropoli |
guitar |
Roby De Micheli (since 2011) |
| Alessandro Sala (since 2015) | |
| Giacomo Voli (since 2016) | |
| Manu Lotter (since 2016) | |
| former members | |
guitar |
Luca Turilli (1993-2011) |
singing |
Cristiano Adacher (1994-1995) |
Drums |
Daniele Carbonera (1993-2000) |
bass |
Andrea Furlan (1994-1997) |
bass |
Alessandro Lotta (1997-2001) |
bass |
Patrice Guers (2001, since 2006 - 2011) |
guitar |
Tom Hess (2011-2013) |
Live guitar |
Dominique Leurquin (2000-2011) |
bass |
Oliver Holzwarth (2011-2014) |
singing |
Fabio Lione (1997-2016) |
Drums |
Alex Holzwarth (2000-2016) |
Rhapsody of Fire (formerly Rhapsody ) is an Italian power metal - tape , the elements of classical music as well as film music combines their music. The band itself has called their music "Film Score Metal" (formerly "Symphonic Epic Hollywood Metal") due to the numerous influences of well-known soundtrack composers since The Dark Secret EP. Her lyrics are about fantasy stories that were written by Luca Turilli before the band split up . After a number of line-up changes, Alex Staropoli is the only remaining founding member of the group.
Band history
founding
The band was founded in 1993 under the name Thundercross in Trieste , Italy . The two band leaders Luca Turilli and Alex Staropoli brought the bass player Andrea Furlan and the singer Christiano Adacher on board in 1994, thus making the band complete. With their first demo Land of Immortals , Thundercross received a record deal with LMP ( Limb Music Products ) and renamed themselves Rhapsody . Even before the first album, Furlan and Adacher were replaced by the new singer Fabio Lione and bassist Alessandro Lotta.
The Emerald Sword saga
In 1997 Legendary Tales was released , which is the first part of a five-part series of concept albums. The so-called Emerald Sword Saga , a fantasy story written by Luca Turilli, is told here . With the album, Rhapsody also created what they call Symphonic Epic Hollywood Metal. For the pompous sound, choirs and later orchestras were used (including the Don Kosaken Chor ).
In 2000 Carbonera left the band, Alex Holzwarth ( Sieges Even ) from Germany was chosen as the (initially temporary) drummer and the French Dominique Leurquin on the electric guitar as a live musician. Soon after, the band performed live for the first time, although today they still have to use samples in order to be able to transfer the orchestral parts of the music onto the stage. In the same year, Dawn of Victory was released, a somewhat more aggressive album, on which Holzwarth was not yet heard. In 2001 the Frenchman Patrice Guers took over bass as a guest musician and then became a permanent member of the band. Holzwarth has been part of the band since 2002. That year the album Power of the Dragonflame was released , which closes the Emerald Sword saga and for which a world tour of the same name took place. In 2003 the label contract with LMP expired, the decision was made for a larger label and switched to MCM .
The dark secret saga
In 2004 Symphony of Enchanted Lands II was released , the first album to be arranged with a full orchestra, including lavishly produced music videos. The then 82-year-old actor Christopher Lee ( The Lord of the Rings , Star Wars , ...) acted as the narrator . Since he liked this work very much and he used to be an opera singer himself, he later sang the song The Magic of the Wizard's Dream in a duet with Fabio Lione on the single of the same name and has been a speaker on all later albums since Symphony of Enchanted Lands II . The album is the prelude to the Dark Secret saga , which continues the Emerald Sword saga .
In 2006, a complaint was made by the owner of the brand name Rhapsody . After the band had gotten bigger and bigger, they now had to rename themselves and chose the new name Rhapsody of Fire . In addition, bassist Patrice Guers has now been firmly integrated into the band. From 2005 to 2007 Rhapsody toured (with intermittent interruption) as a supporter for Manowar on their joint Demons, Dragons & Warriors tour . The live DVD, released in 2007, provides an insight into this tour and also into the production of the albums.
Since the end of 2007 the band has been in a legal dispute with their management. In this context, the tour through South America planned for 2007 was also canceled. The dispute also affected Turilli's solo projects. On October 4th, 2008, the band announced on their official website that they would have to cease all activities for an indefinite period. It was not until November 2009 that she announced her return to the music label Nuclear Blast and the new studio album The Frozen Tears of Angels , which was released on April 30, 2010. The EP The Cold Embrace of Fear followed in October . Since November 8th the band has been on a world tour. On December 6, 2010 the album From Chaos to Eternity was announced, which was released on June 17, 2011.
Reorganization 2011
On April 15, 2011, the American Tom Hess joined the band as the second guitarist. With the end of their ten-album fantasy story, the band announced their friendly split on August 16, 2011 due to different musical plans. One of the two subsidiary bands will now be continued under the old name of Rhapsody founder Alex Staropoli with members Fabio Lione and Tom Hess. The other band is continued by Rhapsody founder and songwriter Luca Turilli under the name Luca Turilli's Rhapsody . It includes Patrice Guers and the former guest musician Dominique Leurquin. Alex Holzwarth agreed to remain loyal to both bands. On September 1st, the German Oliver Holzwarth (Alex Holzwarth's brother) was announced as the new bass player (in place of Patrice Guers), and on September 27th as the new guitarist (in place of Luca Turilli), Roberto de from Trieste Micheli. Alex Holzwarth realized after he had recorded an album with Luca Turilli's Rhapsody that he could only dedicate himself to one band and stayed with Rhapsody of Fire.
New label and new albums from 2013
On December 11, 2012, the band announced that they had switched to the AFM Records label and were already working on various projects. On May 3, 2013, the live album Live - From Chaos to Eternity was released , which includes "old classics and newer tracks" that were recorded during the European tour in spring 2012. Due to "philosophical differences" Tom Hess left the band on June 25, 2013; a little later the band announced the start of production of their new studio album. It is titled Dark Wings of Steel and was released in Europe on November 22, 2013.
At the end of August 2014, bassist Oliver Holzwarth left the band. In November 2014, the band announced that they would start recording a new studio album in March 2015. It was released under the title Into the Legend on January 15, 2016. On September 29 of that year, singer Fabio Lione announced his departure, which meant that several planned concerts had to be canceled. Only a little later, drummer Alex Holzwarth announced that he was leaving the band. In November Giacomo Voli , best known for his participation in The Voice of Italy and as the singer of the band Teodasia , joined the band as the new singer. On December 23rd, the band's line-up was completed with the introduction of the German Manu Lotter as the new drummer.
Partial reunion and albums with Giacomo Voli
After Lione and Holzwarth left, Luca Turilli announced a brief reunion for 2017 on the occasion of the band's 20th anniversary. The line-up for this 20th Anniversary Farewell Tour includes Turilli, Lione and Holzwarth as well as Patrice Guers and Dominique Leurquin and thus refers to the band's line-up between 2004 and 2011. Founding member Alex Staropoli stayed away from the reunion and instead worked with Rhapsody of Fire on new music: At the end of May 2017, the band released the album Legendary Years in the new line-up . It contains 14 songs from their previous albums ( Emerald Sword Saga ) in a new arrangement and sung by Giacomo Voli. In the same year Rhapsody of Fire finally went on a European tour as the opening act for Orden Ogan .
With The Eighth Mountain , the band released their new studio album in 2019, the first with Giacomo Voli as singer.
occupation
style
Rhapsody's style combines power metal with baroque music and progressive metal , Allmusic also speaks of " neoclassical rock ". Laut.de describes the band's early style as “a decent guitar board with playful melodies and fantasy lyrics that fight with Hammerfall and Manowar for the kitsch crown”. Live musicians and large choirs are characteristic of their music. There are also a variety of effects and soundtrack elements. The orchestral style was particularly pronounced at the beginning. On later albums (and especially the EP The Cold Embrace of Fear ) the music partly takes on the character of a radio play . Typical are "fast [] guitars, epic [] keyboards and [a] driving double bass", and Luca Turilli's guitar solos were "wild and ax-swinging".
Discography
Studio albums
| year | title |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 DE
|
 AT
|
 CH
|
 IT
|
 FR
|
|||
| 1997 | Legendary tales | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 1998 | Symphony of Enchanted Lands |
DE54 (2 weeks) DE |
- | - |
IT22 (2 weeks) IT |
- | |
| 2000 | Dawn of Victory |
DE32 (3 weeks) DE |
- | - |
IT49 (3 weeks) IT |
FR56 (1 week) FR |
|
| 2001 | Rain of a Thousand Flames | - | - | - | - |
FR117 (1 week) FR |
originally EP, later considered an album
|
| 2002 | Power of the Dragonflame |
DE30 (4 weeks) DE |
- | - |
IT15 (4 weeks) IT |
FR34 (4 weeks) FR |
|
| 2004 | Symphony of Enchanted Lands II - The Dark Secret |
DE33 (2 weeks) DE |
- |
CH62 (2 weeks) CH |
- |
FR27 (5 weeks) FR |
|
| 2006 | Triumph or Agony |
DE64 (1 week) DE |
- |
CH74 (1 week) CH |
IT18 (3 weeks) IT |
FR59 (3 weeks) FR |
|
| 2010 | The Frozen Tears of Angels |
DE33 (1 week) DE |
AT58 (1 week) AT |
CH39 (1 week) CH |
IT31 (4 weeks) IT |
FR51 (3 weeks) FR |
|
| 2011 | From Chaos to Eternity |
DE56 (1 week) DE |
- |
CH48 (1 week) CH |
IT58 (2 weeks) IT |
FR81 (1 week) FR |
|
| 2013 | Dark Wings of Steel | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2016 | Into the legend |
DE47 (1 week) DE |
- |
CH34 (1 week) CH |
IT76 (2 weeks) IT |
FR101 (1 week) FR |
|
| 2019 | The Eighth Mountain |
DE22 (1 week) DE |
- |
CH25 (1 week) CH |
IT88 (1 week) IT |
- | |
Live albums
| year | title |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
DE
|
AT
|
CH
|
IT
|
FR
|
|||
| 2006 | Live in Canada 2005 - The Dark Secret |
DE99 (1 week) DE |
- | - |
IT71 (1 week) IT |
FR128 (1 week) FR |
|
| 2013 | Live - From Chaos to Eternity | - | - | - | - | - | |
Compilations
- Tales from the Emerald Sword Saga (2004)
- Legendary Years (2017)
EPs
| year | title |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
DE
|
AT
|
CH
|
IT
|
FR
|
|||
| 2004 | The Dark Secret | - | - | - |
IT57 (1 week) IT |
- | |
| 2010 | The Cold Embrace of Fear | - | - | - |
IT60 (1 week) IT |
FR105 (1 week) FR |
|
For Rain of a Thousand Flames (2001) see under albums!
Singles
| year | Title album |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
DE
|
AT
|
CH
|
IT
|
FR
|
|||
| 2000 | Holy Thunderforce Dawn of Victory |
- | - | - | - |
FR95 (1 week) FR |
|
| 2005 | The Magic of the Wizard's Dream Symphony of Enchanted Lands II - The Dark Secret |
DE79 (5 weeks) DE |
- |
CH96 (2 weeks) CH |
IT27 (8 weeks) IT |
- |
feat. Christopher Lee
|
- Emerald Sword (1998)
- Unholy Warcry (2004)
- A New Saga Begins (2006)
- Silent Dream (2007)
- Reign of Terror (2010)
- Sea of Fate (2010)
- Aeons of Raging Darkness (2011)
- Shining Star (2016)
Demos
- Land of Immortals (1994)
- Eternal Glory (1995)
Video albums
- 2007: Visions from the Enchanted Lands (Live-Clips + Documentation)
Web links
- Official website
- Rhapsody of Fire on AFM Records
swell
- ↑ release of From Chaos to Eternity . Rhapsodyoffire.com. June 17, 2011. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
- ^ Announcement of Tom Hess as the new guitarist . Rhapsodyoffire.com. April 15, 2011. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
- ↑ Announcement of the split . Rhapsodyoffire.com. August 16, 2011. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
- ^ Announcement of Oliver Holzwarth as the new bass player . Rhapsodyoffire.com. September 1, 2011. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
- ^ Announcement of Roberto De Micheli as the new guitarist . Rhapsodyoffire.com. September 27, 2011. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
- ^ Rhapsody Announce the New Drummer: Alex Landenburg. In: LTRhapsody.com. April 21, 2012, archived from the original on August 18, 2014 ; Retrieved July 2, 2012 .
- ↑ Announcement of the change to AFM Records . Rhapsodyoffire.com. December 11, 2012. Retrieved December 12, 2012.
- ↑ Announcement of the live album . Rhapsodyoffire.com. March 26, 2013. Retrieved April 23, 2013.
- ↑ Announcement of the separation from Tom Hess . Official Facebook page of the band. June 25, 2013. Retrieved July 12, 2013.
- ^ Announcement of the start of production of the new album . Rhapsodyoffire.com. July 2, 2013. Retrieved July 12, 2013.
- ↑ Announcement of the new album . Rhapsodyoffire.com. September 12, 2013. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
- ↑ Rhapsody of Fire - bassist Oliver Holzwarth quit! In: Stormbringer.at. March 3, 2014, accessed December 3, 2015 .
- ^ Rhapsody of Fire: NEW STUDIO ALBUM. Facebook, November 11, 2014, accessed November 12, 2014 .
- ↑ Rhapsody of Fire unveiled “Into the Legend” cover artwork & tracklisting! In: Rhapsodyoffire.com. November 17, 2015, accessed November 19, 2015 .
- ↑ Alexandra Michels: Rhapsody of Fire: Fabio Lione gets out, November concerts canceled. In: RockHard.de . September 29, 2016. Retrieved September 29, 2016 .
- ↑ Drummer Alex Holzwarth Splits with Rhapsody of Fire. In: MetalUnderground.com. October 9, 2016, accessed October 10, 2016 .
- ↑ Rhapsody of Fire Recruits Singer Giacomo Voli. In: Blabbermouth.net. November 11, 2016, accessed November 13, 2016 .
- ^ Rhapsody of Fire Presents New Drummer Manu lotter. Rhapsody of Fire, December 23, 2016, accessed December 28, 2016 .
- ↑ Rhapsody Reunion - Official Website. Retrieved May 31, 2017 .
- ↑ Eduardo Rivadavia: Rhapsody of Fire, biography. In: Allmusic . Retrieved November 29, 2015 .
- ^ A b Jon O'Brien: Review From Chaos to Eternity. In: Allmusic . Retrieved November 29, 2015 .
- ↑ a b Portrait of the Rhapsody of Fire. In: Laut.de . Retrieved November 29, 2015 .
- ↑ Michael Edele: Review From Chaos to Eternity. In: Laut.de. Retrieved November 29, 2015 .
-
↑ a b c Chart sources (albums and EPs):
- Rhapsody. In: Official German charts. GfK Entertainment , accessed on May 26, 2019 (DE).
- Rhapsody (of Fire) albums. In: Austriancharts.at. Hung Medien, accessed May 6, 2015 (AT).
- Rhapsody (of Fire) albums. In: Hitparade.ch. Hung Medien, accessed on May 6, 2015 (CH).
- Guido Racca & Chartitalia: Top 100 FIMI album . Lulu , 2013, p. 161 (IT until 2012).
- Rhapsody (of Fire) albums. In: Italiancharts.com. Hung Medien, accessed on May 26, 2019 (IT from 2000).
- Rhapsody (of Fire) albums. In: LesCharts.com. Hung Medien, accessed on May 6, 2015 (FR).
- ↑ http://www.snepmusique.com/tops-mois/top-albums-fusionnes/?ye=2016&we=3
-
↑ Chart sources (singles):
- Rhapsody. In: Official German charts. GfK Entertainment, accessed on May 26, 2019 (DE).
- Rhapsody feat. Christopher Lee - The Magic of the Wizard's Dream. In: Hitparade.ch. Hung Medien, accessed on May 6, 2015 (CH).
- Guido Racca & Chartitalia: Top 100 FIMI Singoli . Lulu , 2013, p. 139 (IT).
- Rhapsody - Holy Thunderforce. In: LesCharts.com. Hung Medien, accessed on May 6, 2015 (FR).