The cool touring announcements are showing no signs of stopping but that’s alright by me since this one is focused on the great Symphony X who are hitting our area for a select batch of dates. Check out the poster, press release, dates and then I’ll return with some thoughts.
The Press Release:
SYMPHONY X RELEASE DETAILS ABOUT THE ONLY U.S./CANADIAN SHOWS OF 2016!
New Jersey’s progressive metal masters, SYMPHONY X, are making a few special stops on their way to Japan’s Loud Park Festival. The 6 show trek will launch on September 29th at The Trocadero, hit 3 Canadian cities and conclude on October 5th at The Gramercy Theatre.
SYMPHONY X commented, “We are looking forward to playing these special intimate shows which will be our last shows for Underworld in the USA and Canada for 2016 and very excited to see our friends and fans on the road.”
The band will be touring in support of their highly acclaimed ninth album, Underworld, which debuted at #36 on the US Current Chart, #6 on the Top Hard Rock, and #89 on the Billboard 200, #89). As well #103 on Canada’s national chat and #14 on the hard chart. Underworld, was crafted at Michael Romeo’s tricked out studio, The Dungeon.
Tickets for the confirmed dates are now on sale! Don’t miss your chance to see SYMPHONY X at their only US and Canadian dates in 2016!
The Tour Dates:
09/29/16 – The Trocadero – Philadelphia, PA – http://ticketf.ly/1OkT33C
10/01/16 – Worcester Palladium – Worcester, MA – http://ticketf.ly/23DbnvT
10/02/16 – Foufounes Electriques – Montreal, QC – http://bit.ly/1NoNxSw
10/03/16 – Virgin Mobile Mod Club – Toronto, ON – http://ticketf.ly/1UQfqED
10/04/16 – Salle Multi de Méduse – Quebec City, QC – http://bit.ly/1OkSXsJ
10/05/16 – The Gramercy Theatre – New York, NY – http://bit.ly/1WkfNIA
Check out the official track videos for “In My Darkest Hour” and “Kiss Of Fire” as well as the lyric videos for “Without You” and “Nevermore” on the Nuclear Blast YouTube channel!
ABOUT SYMPHONY X
A distinct murmur went around the world in 1994 when a certain six-string guitarist from New Jersey named Michael Romeo of the prog band Gemini recorded THE DARK CHAPTER demo and sent it out to record labels. It seemed the new guitar messiah of the coming 21st century had made himself known to the world and he’d soon launch a new band that would stir up the prog genre! With an innovative mixture of heavy metal, progressive rock and (neo) classical hard sounds, Romeo and his men in SYMPHONY X recorded a debut album (released in Japan in ’94; released worldwide in 1995) that began their journey to create a blueprint for the young generation of prog-metallers to follow.
THE DAMNATION GAME (1995) celebrated the debut of the band‘s second asset: the charismatic, deeply emotional and relentlessly aggressive vocals of Russell Allen. THE DIVINE WINGS OF TRAGEDY (1997) placed the emphasis on the band’s progressive approach and is still considered to be SYMPHONY X’s ultimate masterpiece. TWILIGHT IN OLYMPUS (1998) livened up the band’s classical aspects with the instrumental ‘Sonata’ (which is based on the piano Sonata No. 8 “Pathétique” by Ludwig van Beethoven). Via V: THE NEW MYTHOLOGY SUITE (2000), the quintet delivered their first concept album at the turn of the millennium that dealt with the myth of Atlantis. LIVE ON THE EDGE OF FOREVER (2001) was visual proof that the band could easily transpose their complex material onto the stage. Oriented towards the eponymous poem by English poet John Milton, the thrashing harshness of THE ODYSSEY (2002) is said to be the band’s most aggressive album to date. PARADISE LOST (2007) is the darkest and most gothic-like work in the band’s discography. ”
Whether it’s the genius writing and execution of Michael Romeo—his thoughts incubating exactly four years since the band’s slamming last album Iconoclast— or the heroic health battles of drummer Jason Rullo bounding back from heart failure in 2013, or simply the maturity of holding fast a band lineup, essentially rock-solid over 20 years… whatever the factors involved, SYMPHONY X have struck an enriched level of maturity with this their ninth album, entitled Underworld.
Having been through the wars, voluntarily made tougher by insisting on playing intellectually and technically challenging music for fans that demand it—and then made harsh again by the evolving contours of the music industry, most notably the shift to singles and single songs— SYMPHONY X have triumphed, creating a panoramic old school “rock album” experience in an era cursed with shorter and shorter attention spans.
Members of SYMPHONY X are: Michael Romeo – guitar, Russell Allen – Vocals, Jason Rullo – Drums, Michael Lepond – Bass, Michael Pinnella – Keyboards
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PiercingMetal Thoughts: There’s not really much I can add to this except that you should get your tickets quick because Symphony X is a band that regularly sells out venues like Playstation Theater and Terminal 5, especially when paired with another crushing act. Their sound has grown and astounded fans night after night with a rousing performance. Having seen the band about eight or so times over the course of my music scribe life, I cannot think of a single one that didn’t impress me. It’s a band that you must see live and since we are one of the few spaces being treated to the tour I expect it to be loaded with representatives of the Big Metal Apple. Let’s give these Jersey Boys a night of NYC support when it’s our turn on the closing show. I’m excited and hope that this event doesn’t find any local openers that make the show run late and cut some headliner time. We have seen that far too often of late and its unnecessary. So what do you think of this tour announcement? Let me know in the comments below.
Official Website: http://www.symphonyx.com