Artension is a
North American
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Ca ...
neoclassical progressive metal
Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified guitar-driven sound of the former with the more experimental, cerebral ...
band, founded in 1993 by keyboardist
Vitalij Kuprij. The band split up after recording seven albums from 1996 to 2004, but reformed in 2016 with the intention of releasing an eighth album.
History
It was sometime in '92/'93, when Vitalij Kuprij, who was studying classical music in Switzerland at that time, met Roger Staffelbach, a Swiss guitarist who was also studying at the Jazz School in Lucerne.
They soon founded their band "Atlantis Rising", which played several instrumental gigs in Switzerland. After having recorded some demos, they got in touch with Mike Varney of Shrapnel Records, who showed great interest in the band but suggested to add some vocal lines to their songs.
Vitalij had already known stunning drummer Mike Terrana from one of Yngwie Malmsteen's tours. His friend, bassist Kevin Chown, also joined the band and enriched their sound with solid experience and great musicianship, and Artension was born.
Mike Varney introduced Vitalij and Roger to several musicians, one of them being John West, whose soaring vocals, along with Vitalij's and Roger's lightning-fast solos, became the trademark for Artension's neo-classical and aggressive music.
Line-up
Current members
*
John West - Vocals (1996–2005, 2016-present)
*
Roger Staffelbach - Guitar (1993–2005, 2016-present)
*
Vitalij Kuprij - Keyboard (1993–2005, 2016-present)
*
Chris Caffery
Christopher Caffery (born September 9, 1967) is an American musician, best known for his work as a member of Savatage and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Recently, Chris has been pursuing a solo career, releasing four albums since 2004.
Biography ...
- Guitar (2016-present)
Former members
*
Steve DiGiorgio - Bass (2004–2005)
*
Mike Terrana
Mike Terrana (born January 21, 1960) is an American hard rock and heavy metal drummer. His first professional work was in 1984 with the MCA band Hanover Fist from Toronto, Canada, after which he recorded and toured with other bands, playing m ...
- Drums (1996–1998, 2001–2005)
*
Kevin Chown
Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ).
The variant ''Kevan'' is anglicized from , an ...
- Bass (1996–1998, 2001–2004)
* John Onder - Bass (1999–2000)
*
Shane Gaalaas
Shane Gaalaas (born August 8, 1967) is a Canadian-born drummer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter best known for his long running affiliation with Japanese rock superstars B'z, whom he joined in 2002, and his extensive work with guitar virtuos ...
- Drums (1999–2000)
Discography
* ''
Into the Eye of the Storm '' (1996)
* ''
Phoenix Rising '' (1997)
* ''
Forces of Nature '' (1999)
* ''
Machine '' (2000)
* ''
Sacred Pathways '' (2001)
* ''
New Discovery '' (2002)
* ''
Future World '' (2004)
References
External links
*
John West's official home page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Artension
American progressive metal musical groups
Musical groups established in 1993
Musical groups disestablished in 2004
1993 establishments in the United States