AOR Heaven

Thu
12
Apr

AOR Heaven May Releases - IMPERIUM & FRONTLINE

Artist: 
Friday, May 25, 2018
Categories: 
News Feed
 
AOR HEAVEN have most recently inked a new deal with Finnish Hard Rock prject IMPERIUM and will release their new album “Beyond The Stars” on May 25. On the same day, the former Japanese only release from German Melodic Rock group FRONTLINE, “Heroes”, will be released outside of Japan for the first time. This record will be ltd. to 1000 CD copies only and was remastered by guitarist Robby Böbel.
 

Band: Imperium - Beyond The Stars
Release date: 25.05.2018
Label: AOR Heaven
 
 
Imperium is the solo project of drummer Mika Brushane. Mika has been playing drums and percussion in various bands since 1981 in all genres from jazz to metal and composed songs for different genres - and this legacy of mixed genres can be heard in the IMPERIUM sound! The music is Melodic Rock which has a big dose of 80’s feel and sounds in it.
 
The project started in 2012 when Mika composed a new track for the new STRIKE record “We’re back” and realized that there was more songs in him that needed to be released. In 2016, the debut album by IMPERIUM, “Dreamhunter”, saw the light of day on  AOR Heaven.
In IMPERIUM, Mika is in charge of the song-writing and playing all drums, bass, keyboards and the backing vocals. All lead vocals and guitars are performed by various very talented musicians from the rock/metal scene. 
Also the album’s post production was handled by top professionals, i.e. it was  mixed by Erkka Korhonen (Dark Sarah, Urban Tale, Northern Kings, Ari Koivunen, Raskasta Joulua) and mastered by the legendary Mika Jussila (Nightwish, Children of bodom, Stratovarius, HIM etc.) “Beyond The Stars” was produced and mostly recorded during 2017-2018 by Mika himself at his Groovehouse studio in Vantaa, Finland.
 
IMPERIUM is: Mika Brushane - Music, lyrics, drums, vst-bass, keyboards and backing vocals, Erkka Korhonen - Guitars, Samuli Federley - Guitars, Toni Huovinen - Guitars, Susanna Eronen - Backing vocals, Sini Heinilä - Backing vocals
Guest stars on “Beyond the stars”: Dennis Ward - Lead & backing vocals (Gus G, Khymera, Unisonic, Pink Cream 69, Place Vendome, Sunstrom, etc.); Markku Kuikka - Lead & backing vocals (Crow’s Flight, Agonizer, Kenziner, The Ragged Saints, Status Minor, etc.); Antti Railio - Lead & backing vocals (The Voice of Finland winner, Ex-Celesty, Solo artist, Raskasta Joulua tour etc.), Rob Lundgren - Lead & backing vocals, (solo artist, The Midgard project, Barque of Dante, etc.)
 
Sound clips in advance:
 
 

 

Band: Frontline - Heroes
Release date: 25.05.2018
Label: AOR Heaven
 
 
FRONTLINE from Nürnberg, Germany belong to the pioneers of the German hard rock scene. Founded in 1989 by Robert Böbel (guitars, keyboards; EVIDENCE ONE, PHANTOM V), Stephan Kämmerer (vocals), Thomas Riess (bass) und Stephan Bayerlein (drums), their debut album “The State Of Rock” finally hit the stores in 1994 - a true classic which until today still is regarded as the finest album of the band by many. This record also meant the breakthrough for the guys in Japan where they reached # 10 in the rock sales charts. Straightly after the release, FRONTLINE went on tour in Europe and had the honour to open for various great acts such as GOTTHARD, CRASH TEST DUMMIES, BONFIRE, TYKETTO and CASANOVA.
 
In 1995,  FRONTLINE pulled out the full acoustic album -Two Faced“. However, personal differences within the band followed and ended up in the departure of Stephan Bayerlein and Thomas Riess in 1996. They were replaced by Thomas -Hutch“ Bauer (Bass) und Rami Ali (Drums; EVIDENCE ONE, SHYLOCK). Still in the same year, FRONTLINE signed a record deal with a new label, recorded the single “Man In Motion” and the album “Heroes” which though officially only saw the light of day in Japan since their European label went out of business.
 
One year later, the band decided to start working on another new album which is well known under it’s working title “Heroes II” amongst the fans but never saw a release. Due to a complicated contractual situation many labels feared to contact FRONTLINE during the following years and the band went back to the underground again until Georg Siegl at AOR Heaven finally showed his interest in the band in the year 2000 and signed them for the first time. Just one month later, the album “Right Attitude” was released which can be regarded as a sort of compilation out of both “Heroes” albums -and “Right Attitude” became a huge success for the band again! The recordings for their 2002 output “Against The World” started the same year, and this album finally re-established FRONTLINE on the international hard rock market.
 
Throughout the months after the release of the best of compilation “Almost Unreleased” (2003) which also featured a couple of rare tracks for the fans, FRONTLINE again went into the studio and started to work on a new album called “The Seventh Sign” (2004). In the year 2006, the last studio album the German group called “Circles” was released.
 
On May 25th 2018, AOR Heaven now will re-issue the former Japanese only release “Heroes” as limited edition of 1000 copies. The album was  re-mastered by guitarist Robby Böbel.
 
 
 
 
Sat
30
Sep

AOR Heaven Announces Nov 24 Releases - DANTE FOX & WILDNESS

Artist: 
Categories: 
News Feed
 
German label AOR Heaven will release the new albums by British Melodic Rock band DANTE FOX called “Six String Revolver” and the debut by Swedish Melodic Rock group WILDNESS on November 24. These will be the final releases from this label before the usual Winter break.
 
Dante Fox were formed in September 1989 by lead Vocalist Sue Willetts.  She was quickly joined by guitarist Tim Manford and this created a golden partnership. On the strength of their songs Dante Fox caught the interest of Linda Bruce from Rich Bitch Studio’s and a debut album was now a reality. Following this an appearance on ITV television show ‘Hit The Town’ hosted by Rory McGrath launched the sounds of Lost And Lonely Heart through televisions all around the UK. Dante Fox signed to Now and Then Records in March 1996, and in May they appeared on the Gods line up next to Hugo and Jamie Kyle.
 
In October 1996 the debut Under Suspicion was released. Many shows followed including a support tour with ELO, Enuff Z Nuff and European festivals such as Mindview and Ardshock. Capitalising on this European interest the band returned to Holland for more headline shows. In April 1997 Under Suspicion was released in Japan and received an 87/100 review in BURRN magazine.The second album The Fire Within was released on Frontiers Records in March 1999. The album included more live favourites and in Japan Firing My Heart and Over You were added to the playlist of Masa Itoh’s Heavy Metal syndicate radio show. The band closed the year with an appearance at the Gods and also appeared as the backing band for Stan Bush.
 
The band took a break and returned in 2005, with a slot at Firefest and a UK tour support to Vixen. The third album ‘Under The Seven Skies’ was released worldwide on Frontiers Records in March 2007 featuring the Nine minute epic title track. The album was voted best album of 2007 by the listeners of ARFM Radio and the band continued to support the album by playing shows with Danny Vaughn and Wigwam.
The fourth album Lost Man’s Ground released in October 2012 at the bands appearance at Firefest. This featured a new rhythm section Andy Perfect (Drums) and Alan Mills (Bass), and also Alessandro DelVecchio on backing vocals and Eric Ragno on keyboards.
In June 2012 a magical night was experienced opening for US band Night Ranger in London. This year ended with a much anticipated performance at Firefest and a great slot at Hard Rock Hell. Sue Willetts was voted 20 in the top 50 Female vocalists of all time in  Classic Rock Magazine alongside Ann Wilson and Cher and the band performed at HRH AOR (Tesla,FM ) Hard Rock Hell Ibiza and a very successful tour with Romeo’s Daughter.
 
In September 2016 the album ‘ Breathless ‘ was released through AOR Heaven and received excellent critical acclaim featuring in many journalist’s Top 10 albums of 2016 and propelling Dante Fox as One of the leaders in Modern Melodic Rock for 2017.
The new album ‘Six String Revolver’ sees the band pay homage to their most popular songs from the first two albums from the 90’s. These songs have enabled Dante fox to evolve over time they have been re-recorded from the ground up with love, respect, precision and an excellent state of the art modern production from Sheena Sear at M2 Studio's . The band are looking forward to playing in Germany for the first time at the HEAT Festival in December which will make a very exciting album launch. Dante Fox will also be performing at HRH AOR (Joe Lynn Turner, Eclipse). Joining the band on drums for these shows and more will be the ‘Thunder God’ Scott Higham (Pendragon)
 
Tour Dates:
HEAT Festival Germany - 2nd December 2017
HRH AOR Festival - 8th March, 2018
 
Dante Fox are: Sue Willetts Manford - Lead Vocals; Tim Manford - Lead Guitar & backing Vocals; Alan Mills - Bass Guitar; Eric Ragno - Keyboards
 
 
Sound clips in advance:
 
   
The idea behind WILDNESS began to grow in the summer of 2013 when the first songs were written. With main focus on heavy guitars, wide keyboards, big drums, melodies and hooks the shape of something new and exciting began to emerge. At this point, Wildness was more of a studio project and originally founded by drummer and songwriter Erik Modin while the guitar players Pontus Sköld and Adam Holmström were in to share the lead guitar parts early on.
The search for the right lead singer wasn’t easy as pie, but after a few months their destiny crossed with the unbelivable vocal talent Gabriel Lindmark in early 2014. More songwritings and demos recording came along, and it didn’t take long until it was clear that WILDNESS deserved to be a real band.
 
On September 1st 2015, WILDNESS independently released their self-produced debut single ”Collide” which immediately gained a lot of spins at various digital platforms such as a number of online radio stations focused on AOR and Melodic Rock. Live performances that followed showed that the band was capable to  deliver on stage as well.
The second single ”Turning The Pages” was released on January 14th 2016, and shortly after that WILDNESS was approached by Georg Siegl by German record label AOR Heaven. The contact resulted in a record deal which allowed the band to finally begin the launch of their first full-length album.
 
The choice for the producer fell on the creative and productive mastermind Erik Wigelius (Wigelius, Care Of Night) and the pre-production and recordings took place between during 2016 and 2017. The main part of the record was recorded at Erik Wigelius’ studio, besides additional parts recorded by drummer and co-producer Erik Modin.
The two previous singles ”Collide” and ”Turning The Pages” were re-recorded for the album. The mixing and mastering was handled by Erik Wigelius, who really knows how to take the 80’s-influenced sounds at put them in the 21th century!
 
Despite their short career, WILDNESS have already shared stages with well established acts in the scene like WHITE WIDDOW and DYNAZTY.
 
Releases: Collide - Digital single (September 1th, 2015) ; Turning The Pages - Digital single (January 14th, 2016)
 
facebook.com/wildnessofficial  / instagram: wildnessofficial
 
Sound clips in advance:
 
 
 
Thu
22
Jun

AOR Heaven Announce August 26 Titles: DA VINCI & LIONHEART

Artist: 
Saturday, August 26, 2017
Categories: 
News Feed
 
AOR Heaven are happy to announce two additions to their roster! After a successful performance at Sweden Rock Festival two weeks ago, 80’s UK Melodic Rock/ NWOBHM band LIONHEART will release their second album “Second Nature” in Europe via the German label on August 25. Norwegian 80’s Melodic Rock legends DA VINCI will unleash their comeback release “Ambition Rocks” on the same day world-wide on AOR Heaven except for Norway & Japan.
 

 
 
With the release of “Ambition Rocks", their first album in 25 years, and with a new lineup, AOR & Classic Rock band Da Vinci returns with brand new songs.
The group was formed in Norway back in 1986, and after a short round with demos, the band got a record deal with Polygram Norway and released their debut album the following year.
Looking back on the Norwegian melodic rock of the 80’s, one of the bands to leave a major impression were undoubtedly Oslo’s Da Vinci. Enjoying as much radio play and charting nationally in the same league as Return, Stage Dolls and TNT, Da Vinci released two albums, ”Da Vinci” and ”Back in the Business” and a single in 91 “Ain't No Goodbyes/ Blame it on the radio”.
 
Their greatest hits were “Forever in My Heart” and “Tarquinia” from the first album; and “Call Me a Liar” and “9&10” from “Back in Business”. DaVinci was touring constantly from late 86 to 92 and did over 600 performances in Norway. They also played as support for Status Quo on their Christmas Remedy tour in 1989 in Great Britain together with Ole Evenrude. The last concerts were two gigs at Wembley Arena. They split up in 93, but Selboskar, Westlie and Aass continued to write songs together for a few years. Some of these demo songs were illegally released in Europe.
 
Jarle Måløy moved to the north of Norway. Bjørn Boge started Street Legal together with Bjørn Olav Lauvdal and Selboskar was in the band on keys several years. Gunnar Westlie formed his own band called Tjugods and Lars Aass started working as a songwriter at Waterfall Productions. In 2004 Selboskar and Westlie started to write AOR songs together again and formed Eidsivating with the drummer from Son of Angels, Geir Digernes, and after some years with a lot of songs and different members, this project ended up in today’s Da Vinci.
“Ambition Rocks” was produced by Sverre E Henriksen and DaVinci; drums recorded in Oslo at Klang Studios with Johnny Skalleberg. The album was mixed by Sverre E Henriksen in hangar 7 and mastered by Nick Terry. Artwork & videos by Dag Selboskar.
 
Band: Gunnar Westlie - guitar, Dag Selboskar - keys, Erling Ellingsen en - vocal, Roy Funner - bass, Bjørn Olav Lauvdal - - drums
 
Sound clips in advance:
 

    
 
LIONHEART was formed in late 1980 by Dennis Stratton (lead guitar/backing vocals, ex-Iron Maiden), Jess Cox (lead vocals, ex-Tygers of Pan Tang), Steve Mann (lead guitar/backing vocals, ex-Liar), Rocky Newton (bass guitar/backing vocals, ex-Wildfire) and Frank Noon (drums, ex-Def Leppard). The band began playing gigs including regular shows at London's Marquee Club but had problems maintaining a consistent line-up. The core personnel of Dennis, Steve and Rocky remained but various singers passed through the band including Rueben Archer, John Farlham and Bob Hawthorn. They eventually settled as a 4-piece with Dennis and Rocky sharing lead vocal duties. The drummer's stool was variously occupied by Les Binks (ex Judas Priest), Niko McBrain (ex Trust and subsequently Iron Maiden) and Clive Edwards (ex Wild Horses).
 
Between 1981 and 1984 LIONHEART played regular live shows and filled the support slot for tours by both Def Leppard and Whitesnake. In between gigs they spent many hours writing and recording demos of new songs while searching for a record deal. It wasn't until 1984 that CBS Records in the USA offered them a contract, by which time they had recruited Chad Brown on lead vocals. They flew over to Los Angeles in March 1984 to record their debut album Hot Tonight with Kevin Beamish in the production chair and session man Bob Jenkins, who had previously worked with Leo Sayer and Kiki Dee, on drums. The album was recorded at the legendary Sound City Studios in Van Nuys and mixed at Kendun Recorders.
 
Upon their return to the England LIONHEART recorded a high-budget video for the single Die For Love. The late comic genius Rik Mayall played the part of the mad professor, which in later years achieved cult status on YouTube due in part to the wonderfully wooden acting of the band! Unfortunately, planned UK tours as support to Kansas and Foreigner were cancelled at the last moment. Promotion of the album suffered and LIONHEART found themselves in limbo. Chad Brown left the band in 1985 to be replaced by Keith Murrell, with Toby Sadler coming in on keyboards. More demos were recorded with the new line-up but unfortunately the momentum had been lost and the band eventually broke up. Rocky went on to record backing vocals on 2 Def Leppard albums and join Michael Schenker with Steve, while Dennis spent 15 years with Praying Mantis.
 
In 2016 Dave Herron, promoter of the Rockingham Festival in Nottingham, asked LIONHEART to reunite for one performance and all original members, apart from Chad Brown, did so. The reunion created quite a stir, not least within the band itself, and it was decided to carry on with the subsequent recording of a new album followed by an acclaimed appearance at Sweden Rock.
The new record, Second Nature, was created between November 2016 and May 2017 and was produced, engineered and mastered by Steve Mann in his own studio in Hannover. A mini tour of Japan with Praying Mantis was scheduled for June/July with further UK shows with Airrace in November/December. The album release on AOR Heaven throughout Europe is set for 25th August.
 
Band: Lee Small (lead vocals), Dennis Stratton (lead guitar / backing vocals), Steve Mann (lead guitar / backing vocals), Rocky Newton (bass guitar / backing vocals), Clive Edwards (drums)
 
Live with Praying Mantis:
30/06/2017 Umeda Club Quattro - Osaka - Japan
01/07/2017 Toyosu PIT - Tokyo - Japan
 
Live with Airrace:
30/11/2017 Fuel - Cardiff - Wales
01/12/2017 Slade Rooms - Wolverhampton - England
02/12/2017 The Underworld - London - England
03/12/2017 Hard Rock Hell - Sheffield - England
05/12/2017 The Cluny - Newcastle - England
06/12/2017 Bannermans - Edinburgh - Scotland
 
Soundclips:
 
Tue
03
May

AOR Heaven June Releases Announced: WICKMAN ROAD & FEATHERSTONE

Artist: 
Friday, June 24, 2016
Categories: 
News Feed
 
AOR HEAVEN will release the debut albums by Melodic Rock acts FEATHERSTONE, “Northern Rumble”, and WICKMAN ROAD, “After The Rain”, on June 24. Both bands are from Sweden.
 
    
 
Swedish melodic rock act FEATHERSTONE was founded by songwriter/multi-instrumentalist/producer Rikard Quist in 2012. After writing for and playing with bands including Gypsy Rose, Don Patrol, Last Autumn´s Dream, White Wolf and Bangalore Choir for several years, he decided to focus his efforts on creating a masterpiece he could call his own.
Collaborating with friend and talented singer Lars Boden (Appearance), and with the addition of heavy drummer Niklas Osterlund (Headplate), Rikard found the melody and power needed and FEATHERSTONE quickly found its feet. More importantly it found its sound and, with the addition of British lyricist Jon Wilde (who Rikard had written with previously), the songs found their words.
 
The FEATHERSTONE album was written, recorded and produced by Rikard Quist in his own studio ”Eastern Palette Studio” in Gothenburg. Niklas and his thunderous drums were added thanks to the recording talents of Daniel Granstedt at Don Graniolo Sound Studio. The final mix and incredible mastering work was made by renowned and skilled engineer Martin Kronlund at JM Recording Studio.
The debut album ”Northern Rumble” from FEATHERSTONE contains 10 strong and timeless melodic rock songs filled with epic choruses, soaring melodies and ample overdriven power to keep you coming back again and again. It’s a musical journey from the 1970´s, the 1980´s, through the 1990´s right up until today.
 
 
Sound clips in advance:
 
 
 
Wickman Road is a young Swedish Melodic Rock Band with origins from the small town Rydaholm.
 
Henrik, Carl and Robert had been playing music together for years, but it was not until Eric joined up as a singer in 2011 that they grew an ambition to start a band for real. The two pair of brothers wrote several songs during the early stage and struggled to realize their ambition. The missing piece was added when Simon joined the band in 2014 and Wickman Road was officially born.
 
With Simon as the drummer, the band was provided with the spark needed to start their journey towards the debut album. Inspired by the AOR genre they started to write music in the true spirit of Melodic Rock, with their own touch of modern sound.
In the fall of 2015, eleven songs were recorded with the helpful hand of Producer Ola af Trampe at Studio 165. The recordings were done with great enthusiasm and resulted in Wickman Road’s first album “After the Rain”. 
 
For Wickman Road this album really is about getting past the struggles of doubt and finding your own way. With lyrics inspired by the band members’ own journey, Wickman Road is here to make their mark in the world of music.
The album was mixed and mastered by Ola af Trampe at Studio 165, Växjö, Sweden.
 
 
Sound clips in advance:
 
 
Tue
17
Nov

AOR HEAVEN January 29 Releases Announced: WIGELIUS & GRAND SLAM

Artist: 
Release Year: 
2015
Friday, January 29, 2016
Categories: 
News Feed
German Melodic Rock label AOR HEAVEN will continue to release fine Melodic Rock sounds from Sweden on January 29th, 2016 in the form of the new albums by GRAND SLAM and WIGELIUS.
 
To watch some videos in advance, click here:
 

 
Product: Wigelius - Tabula Rasa
Release date: 29.01.2016
Label: AOR Heaven
 
Wigelius was formed in late 2011 by Anders Wigelius, after doing a Swedish tv show that gained him a record deal with Frontiers Records. The idea at the time was to deliver 80's rock with a modern twist. What it became was a heartfelt brotherhood of people that really love good music. It was all about the love for the music and having fun.
 
When Reinventions was released in 2012, it got immediate attention from the AOR-scene and the expectations on the sophomore release have been very high. To really get the right sound this time around, the band decided to trust the production in the talented hands of their own Erik Wigelius. This also made the process of making the album very creative, with everybody working together on the songs in the studio. Letting all voices be heard, maximizing the potential in each song.
Erik and his brother Anders are also responsible for the production of Care of Night's debut album Connected and has produced many artists and bands all over the world.
 
Tabula Rasa is latin for "Blank slate" and as a title for this album it couldn't be more fitting. The idea is to show the world how Wigelius really sound, by keeping everything that was great about the first album, and the genre, but taking it one step further.
 
With Patrik joining, it gave an extra shot in the arm for the band, and finally it feels like all the pieces are together. It's a very diverse album, ranging between influences collected over many years. There are a lot of flavours to be heard in the songs, making the album hard to place in a single genre.
 
Wigelius is the love child of it's members, and they promise a great future with more releases in the years to come.
 
 
Soundfiles in advance:
 

Product: Grand Slam - A New Dawn
Release date: 29.01.2016
Label: AOR Heaven
 
 
Grand Slam was founded in 2007 in Malmö, Sweden, by drummer Andy Swaniz (ex-Quadruple), with the aim to appeal to a wide audience with their melodic rock style.
Bassist Henrik Hansson (ex-Hollywood) got on board the same year and songwriter Peter Alpenborg was brought in to get the ball rolling. There have been several lineup changes over the years, as well as a number of musicians hired only for specific recordings or gigs.
 
Up until spring of 2010, the focus had been exclusively on studio recordings, but now it was time for the band to do a stage debut. The debut was made in "Grand"-style, with an appearance in the TV-show "Talang", Sweden's equivalent of "Britain's Got Talent", with over one million viewers.
 
Later that year, the band was joined by keyboardist Daniel Grönberg Svensson who also started contributing to the songwriting, and guitarist Thomas Klintberg.
In the summer of 2012, Grand Slam found the perfect lead singer and frontman for the band, Andy Sinner (ex-Trash Queen). With the addition of two female backing singers, Ivana Papak and Lina Vernblom, Grand Slam was now ready to go out and perform for a live audience.
They entered the worldwide contest Emergenza and made it to the regional finals.

The band continued to play live during the summer and autumn of 2013, gathering a strong fan-following.
There was still something missing, and the void was filled by the addition of another guitarist, Andreas Gullstrand. The backup vocalists, Ivana Papak and Lina Vernblom, decided to leave the band that same year.
In 2014, Grand Slam went into the studio to record a three-song EP, "Waiting For Tomorrow", which received considerable attention worldwide. The EP was recorded and produced by Erik Wiss in Peekroom Studios.
Guitarist Thomas Klintberg left the band shortly thereafter, and the remaining band members signed a contract with AOR Heaven to release Grand Slam's debut album, "A New Dawn".
Erik Wiss was once again brought in to record the album, which is best described as a well-balanced mix of the original and new Grand Slam sound.
 
Official website: www.grandslamsweden.com
 
Soundfiles in advance:
 
 
Fri
25
Sep

AOR Heaven Video Launch - CWF, MAJOR INSTINCT, SKINTRADE

Release Year: 
2015
Categories: 
News Feed
CWF (Champlin, Williams, Friestedt)
 
Champlin, Williams, Friestedt (CWF) will release first single and video from the coming CWF album for the song “Aria”! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JkJDZuPDPA
 
The digital single “Aria” will be released on Oct. 5th in advance and is taken from the coming CWF-album which is simply entitled “CWF”. The full CD will be released on 23.10.2015 by AOR Heaven.
 

SKINTRADE
     
 
Swedish Hard Rock act SKINTRADE have released a video clip for the song “Wide Awake”. http://youtu.be/YmbGXGE6ZKs
 
The track can be found on their current AOR Heaven release “Scarred For Life”.
 

MAJOR INSTINCT
After 25 years, seven highly critically acclaimed albums, charting and international touring, M.ILL.ION founder, main songwriter and bass guitarist B.J Laneby decided to put the band to rest. Now he’s back with a super strong, exciting new band called MAJOR INSTINCT from Gothenburg, Sweden! Handpicked musicians of the greatest calibre and a BAND, not a project! We’re talking classic hard rock with inspiration from the 70’s and early 80’s, huge melodies and real instruments used, autotuners not!
 
The first digital single and video "High Five” is released on September 30th  - a positive rock´n roll song about belonging and fighting together...be it the team, the band, the couple or "just" human beings overall. Suitable in these dark times...
The first  MAJOR INSTINCT album "Roots & Wings" will be released on November 27 in Europe by AOR Heaven.
 
But for now: It’s High Five time!  Do you have the instinct? The major one!?"
The video clip for the single “High Five” is found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E7CY79FyUQ&feature=youtu.be
 
 
Wed
11
Feb

AOR Heaven Signs WIGELIUS, ART NATION and GRAND SLAM

Artist: 
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Categories: 
News Feed

German AOR/Melodic Rock label AOR Heaven has added a couple of new bands to its rooster: WIGELIUS, ART NATION and ART NATION. All three bands are currently working on their new albums which all will be released later this year.

#####

The new yet untitled album by Swedish AOR band WIGELIUS is scheduled for a release in Summer 2015. Band leader Erik Wigelius says: “The new album is all about having fun and making the best modern sounding AOR music! And we have achieved that. We can't wait to get the new album out for you guys!“

Here comes a clip in advance:

Wigelius - Time Well Wasted: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAxgKl9vAJI

#####

Alexander Strandell (ex Diamond Dawn) takes ART NATION to a whole new level with new fantastic musicians and killer songs.
The band has plans to tour around Sweden and Europe in the near future. The single "One Is Better Than No One" has become an explosion in the rock n roll world and compares with bands like Europe, Toto and H.e.a.t.

Art Nation is: Alexander Strandell - Vocals, Christoffer Borg - Guitars, Johan Gustavsson - Guitars, Simon Gudmundsson - Bass, Theodor Hedstrom - Keyboards, Carl Tudén - Drums

Please watch the video for their single “One Is Better Than No One” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4U44RMPIVI

####

GRAND SLAM are another new force to reckon with! The melodic rockers from Sweden are about to release their debut album in the fall 2015. It will be a record with powerful songs where heavy riffs will be combined with melodies that will stick in your head the first time you hear the songs. Here's a teaser on what to expect from the new album. We give you "Face":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhW-LLRQjy8
  
 
Tue
03
Feb

AOR Heaven Signs WINDSOR DRIVE For European Debut

Artist: 
Friday, March 27, 2015
Categories: 
News Feed

The March 27th, 2015 release from AOR HEAVEN is US band WINDSOR DRIVE.
 
Formed in the unexpected art community in “The Northwood’s” of Wisconsin, the band has taken influence from arena-friendly Britpop acts as well as paying homage to their rock alma maters from the seventies and eighties.
 
The roots of the band can be traced back to a friendship between singer/songwriter Kipp Wilde and Owen Jones (drummer) at Wilde’s father’s church. After years of performing together on Sunday’s and writing their own material on the side, Jones and Wilde connected with Daniel Sukow (guitar) and Jon Wasleske (bass) through the local Wisconsin scene. Together they began to pen songs for what would become their first release, the self-produced “Meet the Tide” (2008) and Bridges EP (2009). In fact the songs were written in Jones’ basement on a street called “Windsor Drive.”
 
The Bridges EP, produced by Grammy award winning producer, Stephen Short (Phil Collins, Augustana) pushed the band out of the Midwest and out on the road showcasing to industry executives on both coasts at famous venues such as Hollywood’s The Roxy and NYC’s Gramercy Theatre.
After several national tours to support their initial releases and pushing over 15,000 units independently, the band caught the attention of numerous nationally renowned acts and were asked to support dates with artists including American Idol winner Kris Allen (RCA/19 Entertainment), Imagine Dragons (Interscope), Ryan Cabrera, Eisley (Equal Vision), and The Rocket Summer (Island). In 2011 the band was hand selected to support iconic indie rock band Mae on their farewell tour and perform on the popular traveling summer festival Vans Warped Tour. Coinciding with the tours came the limited edition Under the Weather EP (2011). With the release the band claimed the spotlight on E! News with Ryan Seacrest and a feature on Clear Channels iHeartRadio. Most recently the band supported He is We (Universal Republic) on the “Give It All” Tour, select dates with Teddy Geiger, and an international tour in Japan.
 
In 2015 Windsor Drive will release their first self-titled full-length album in Europe on AOR Heaven. The self-titled release will feature hand selected songs from their previous U.S. releases including, 2013’s “Wanderlust” produced, recorded, and mixed in Los Angeles, CA by multi-platinum producer John Fields (Parachute, Switchfoot) and Bleu (Boys Like Girls, Air Traffic Controller).
 
Discography: Meet The Tide - EP (2007), Bridges - EP (2009), Under The Weather - EP (2010), Wanderlust - EP (2013), Windsor Drive (CD, D, 2015)
 
 
Sound files in advance:
 
 
Line-Up: Kipp Wilde - Vocals / Keys, Daniel Sukow - Guitar / Vocals, Jon Wasleske - Bass, Owen Jones - Drums
 
 
Mon
25
Aug

AOR Heaven Announces BULLETRAIN & ANGELS OR KINGS For October

Friday, October 24, 2014
Categories: 
News Feed
AOR Heaven’s October 24 releases from BULLETRAIN and ANGELS OR KINGS have been announced, with the details as follows:
 
 
     
 
If ever there was an eighties group of totally obscure proportions, then A.O.K fitted that bill perfectly. Founded in Manchester, England in 1988, they were made up of ex members of Sam Thunder, Circus and Strutz, to name a few, and tore it up on Oxford Road - Manchester’s answer to Sunset Strip – playing the Banshee and Rockworld and as opener in larger venues for Dare and Danger Danger. Their history is well documented in Tony Bell’s excellent book “Life In The Bus Lane”.
In the late eighties, early nineties they stood shoulder to shoulder with a plethora of unsigned acts, ultimately doomed to a life of obscurity.
 
A slew of promising demos quickly followed. Setting up camp in Shabby Road studios, the journey towards their debut album began in earnest. With the basics intact, and with original Drummer, Andy Chemmey, along for the ride, they moved to Mad Hat studios (Magnum) and under the guidance of Sheena Sear and Mark Stuart, they put the finishing touches to “The Kings Of Nowhere”.
 
They are the people’s band – winning a fan voted appearance at this year’s final Firefest proved that – and they deserve your utmost attention. They were stripped down to a final 10 who were then played on the Steve Price radio show. A final three made it through to a final. A.O.K. won, achieving over 3,500 votes. They have also just been added to Hard Rock Hell festival in March 2015 which is being headlined by Night Ranger.
 
It’s a little over twenty years since they called it a day, but these kings of nowhere are here to stay this time. They’ve loved and lost along the way but that’s just put some grit under their fingernails, enabling them to provide an album that is both honest and real. This is British songwriting at its absolute best!
 
 
Line-up: Rob Naylor – bass, Steve Kenny – guitars, keyboards, Baz Jackson – vocals, Tony Bell – guitars
 
Sound clips in advance:
 
 

 
       
 
Bulletrain was founded back in 2006 by guitarist Mattias Persson and drummer Jonas Tillheden in the suburbs of Helsingborg, Sweden. Led by their dreams they found like-minded people with singer Robert Lindell, bassist Tim Svalö and guitarist Adam Börvall who later was replaced by the guitarist Robin Bengtsson. Bulletrain released their first EP "Johnny Gonebad" on their own in 2007. The record was produced by Klas Ideberg, the guitarist of the Swedish thrash metal band Darkane. "Johnny Gonebad" was well received and the band expanded its fan base by playing along with bands such as Crashdïet, Bullet and Crazy Lixx.
 
Dedicated to achieve their dreams Bulletrain entered the studio again to record their second EP;  this time again with Klas Ideberg behind the mixing board. "Turn It Up!" was the result and the album was released in the early autumn of 2009. "Turn It Up!" gave the group plenty of speed and gigs followed one another. Influential webzine SleazeRoxx.com gave the album a big thumb up. In 2010, having made it through their first real setback due to Tim Svalö’s departure with the replacement by Emil Lundberg Bulletrain, the year began with playing at the Rest In Sleaze festival in Stockholm. A one-day festival in memory of the late singer of CrashDïet, Dave Lepard. This was a great honor for the group since Dave Lepard was a great inspiration to everyone in the band.
 
That show gave many ripples including a tour in Italy in the autumn of the same year and a very encouraging email by the "godfather" of Swedish sleaze, Chris Laney. Chris had heard of the group and as he is a Helsingborg native, he wanted to take the band under his wings and offered to produce their debut single. Of course the band accepted his offer and they recorded the single "Even with my eyes closed" with the b-side "Take me to the sun" in "Polar Studios" in Stockholm, July 2010.
 
Bass player on the recordings was Nalle Påhlsson from the Swedish band Therion since Emil Lundberg sadly chose  to leave the group the day before departure to Stockholm. The single "Even with my eyes closed" caught the interest of Georg Siegl at the record company AOR Heaven who offered to sign the group and release its debut album which also was supposed to be produced by Chris Laney. Several years out of hard work finally started to pay off. Just when the band was about to sign the record contract and have had a dream to come true,  singer Robet Lindell chose to leave the band. There and then they tumbled at the finish line. The record deal was lost and the album recording never happened. A few tough years came for the group and for a short time, they had the talented Mike Palace from Stockholm as frontman. Unfortunately, the distance that they had, had them to end the collaboration.
 
Bulletrain began to work with their debut album which they decided to produce themselves. Meanwhile they recorded they were looking for a singer and finally found him in the Växjö native Sebastian Sundberg.  In June 2013, the band played their first gig in over a year which also was the debut gig with Sebastian. The venue was The Tivoli in Helsingborg which the group sees like home. That night Niklas Månsson did his first show as the new bass player in Bulletrain.
 
In December 2013 the band went to Stockholm to record the voclas for their debut with the producer duo RamPac, who have produced CrashDïets "Generation Wild" and worked with Mötley Crüe's Mick Mars among others. The result was better than what they hoped for and was also a start for a collaboration. The album was ready to be mixed by Buster Odeholm from the extreme metal band "Humanity's Last Breath". In the summer of 2014 Georg Siegl at AOR Heaven decided to give the group a second chance and offered to release their debut album, "Start Talking".
 
 
Line-up: Sebastian Sundberg (vocals), Mattias Persson (lead guitars), Robin Bengtsson (rh. guitars), Jonas Tillheden (drums), Niklas Månsson (bass)
 
Sound clips in advance:
 
 
Fri
08
Aug

ACACIA AVENUE - Cold (Review)

information persons: 
section name: 
SCORE
content: 

 

83%
Produced By: 
Torben Enevoldsen
Running Time: 
48
Release Date: 
2014
Released: 
Europe
Musical Style: 
Melodic Rock
Label: 
AOR Heaven
Artist: 
Score: 
83
Friday, August 8, 2014
Categories: 
Reviews
 
This is a solid melodic rock release indeed. The idea for Acacia Avenue began back in 2008, the brain child of guitarist Torben Enevoldsen (Fate, Fatal Force, Section A).
This is his second album and again sees Torben delivering some melodic rock tunes instead of his normally more metal-themed music. To handle vocals, Torben has gathered a number of guest vocalists to fill frontman duties.
 
These kinds of albums can appear very disjointed, but the quality of the production here is such that it all flows pretty seamlessly.
Torben takes care of all the bass, keyboards and guitars, as well as singing background vocals on a few songs. New drummer, Dennis Hansen (Fatal Force) appears on drums. Good man for hiring an actual drummer, not a machine!
 
Song wise there are many highlights.
Time (feat. Steve Newman) is a first rate hard rocker, with Newman again getting heavier and sounding very comfortable doing it.
Love Will Survive (feat. Rob Moratti) is typically Moratti styled AOR with a very high vocal (of course) and a great chorus.
It's Over (feat. Albin Ljungqvist) is a wonderful little keyboard driven AOR number with a high pitch vocal and a highly memorable chorus.
Out Of The Business (feat. Mikael Roup) is another very catchy track that sounds more like Uriah Heep/Y&T. A little out of place here in the scheme of things, but catchy!
Signs Of Love (feat. Rob Moratti) is a melodic rock style track but doesn’t match the quality of his earlier track.
 
Cold (feat. Torben Lysholm) is about the same – ok, but not a highlight.
Angelina (feat. Steve Newman) is moody, but guitar driven and another great Steve Newman vocal.
You And I (feat. Mikael Roup) and Calling Out (feat. Nicklas Sonne) are skippers I’m afraid. They lack the hooks of previous songs.
How Many Nights (feat. Torben Lysholm) is better, but again is part of a group of songs that don’t match the quality of the first half of the record.
Freedom From Doubt (feat. Peter Sundell) features a strong bluesy vocal from Sundell and finishes the album with a different kind of song than anywhere else on the record.
 
A great first half of the album and an ok second half that requires a bit more attention to draw out the melodies. A solid record overall, which will stand comfortably alongside the debut. The best tracks are really special and worth the price of admission.
Very good production/mix quality lifts the results.
 
Fri
08
Aug

GREGORY LYNN HALL - Heaven To Earth (Review)

information persons: 
section name: 
TRACK LISTING
section name: 
SCORE
content: 

 

65%
Produced By: 
Gregory Lynn Hall
Running Time: 
53
Release Date: 
2014
Released: 
Europe
Musical Style: 
Melodic Rock
Label: 
AOR Heaven
Score: 
65
Friday, August 8, 2014
Categories: 
Reviews
I must admit to being very perplexed. I’ve always made production quality a theme of my reviews over the years. My determination of how good any album is reflects as much on how it sounds cranked to the max as well as the quality of performances and songwriting.
It’s those 3 ingredients that must come together to make a great album.
And on most reviews written for this album that I have seen, the context talks positively of two of those aspects, but complete ignores the elephant in the room – that is, the production here just doesn’t cut it in 2014.
 
This is a very thin sounding record, so much so that it makes the album impossible to crank to any great volume without having to adjust the equalizer in a desperate attempt to pump in some bottom end.
It’s a very sharp sound otherwise, with the rhythm section playing a very poor second to guitars and vocals. If this scene is to survive, then those reviewing material must reflect on this issue if there’s any hope of it improving.
 
I’m a big fan of Gregory Lynn Hall’s vocals. His work with 101 South has been previously praised and he’s a terrific guy to deal with.
On Heaven To Earth, GLH cranks his rock-o-meter into the red for a fired up hard rocking affair over the more laid back AOR strains of 101 South.
And it suits him. The raspy vocals and passionate delivery drive these at times fast and furious rockers in a way not heard before from the American singer.
 
The opening 4 tracks all rock (quality songs too) and it’s not until the ballad I Thought I Saw Heaven at track 5 until things let up.
From here there’s 3 ballads in 4 tracks, with Fly On the big 80s ballad of the collection. I can see old-school fans of that sound lapping this song up.
Cry No More signals the ramp up in tempo once again, but the mix here sounds atrocious and I just can’t play it.
Cryin’ is another ballad to finish the album.
 
A solid album in terms of songs, even if the better ones are stacked into the first half of the record. Things mellow out a little more on the second half.
I like the vocals a lot and I hope Gregory can come back with his next solo album sounding sonically better than on Heaven To Earth, as that aspect does let the whole project down.
 
Fri
08
Aug

NIVA – Incremental IV (Review)

information persons: 
section name: 
SCORE
content: 

 

85%
Produced By: 
Tony Niva
Running Time: 
39
Release Date: 
2014
Released: 
Europe
Musical Style: 
AOR / Melodic Rock
Label: 
AOR Heaven
Artist: 
Score: 
85
Friday, August 8, 2014
Categories: 
Reviews
Tony Niva follows up his very good 2013 release Magnitude with the oddly titled Incremental IV record.
 
Following exactly where the last album left off, Incremental IV is more of the same – high energy, melodic rock-n-pomp, with high pitch vocals and plenty of those fluffy Scandinavian harmonies.
This is a very good sounding record with a great clear mix. Makes things so much easier to enjoy with the rhythm section pounding away with vocals gliding over the top.
I do think that Niva’s vocals are of the style that will appeal to some, but not to all; they are a bit over the top when going for notes on the higher end of the scale.
 
Best tracks here include the opening anthem Don’t You Know; the fast moving AOR of Crush; the slightly darker Better Just Forgotten and the AOR anthems The Reason Why and Play The Game.
The ballad Travel Back In Time is a good change of pace and is accompanied in like by the mid-tempo All By Myself.
 
Fans of Grand Illusion and Final Frontier should definitely add Niva to their list to check out – the bands have a lot in common aside from the vocal style.
A very good sounding record that will appeal to all fans of Niva and most pomp/Scandi AOR fans.
 
Wed
23
Jul

New 220V Album Due on AOR Heaven September 26

Artist: 
Friday, September 26, 2014
Categories: 
News Feed
 
      
 
Swedish hard rock act 220 Volt returns to the scene with a new album called “Walking In Starlight”.  Anders Engberg (ex-Therion ex-Lions Share), who joined this group on late 2012, is the new voice of the band. This is his first full album with 220 Volt. Founding members Thomas Drevin and Mats Karlsson handle the guitars, and drummer Peter Hermansson completes the line-up.
 
220 Volt (founded 1979) was among the top hard rock acts in Scandinavia during the 80's and released their first, self titled album on CBS in June 1983. The band then went on to release five albums between 1983-1988. The last one recorded in the 80's was the album Eye to Eye which is their best selling album internationally, and it was also on heavy rotation on MTV and many radio stations around the world. It was produced by legendary producer Max Norman (Ozzy/Megadeth/Y&T etc..) and who also has mixed 5 tracks for “Walking In Starlight”.
 
The band’s reputation was built on frequent album releases and energetic live shows. Besides performing their own headline shows, the Swedes have also toured as support for AC/DC and Nazareth among others. In 1985, 220 Volt performed in front of 80.000 people in Warsaw, Poland. The show was broadcasted live on Polish TV, among the first ever TV-shows in the eastern block to feature a hard rock band.
 
220 Volt split up in 1992, but released the studio album Lethal Illusion in 1997. The quartet was active for a while between 2002-2008 with members from an earlier line-up and produced two albums, “Volume 1” and the live album “Made in Jamtland”.
 
Songs like “Firefall”, “Love Is All You Need”, “Beat Of  A Heart”, “The Harder They Come”, “Heavy X-mas” and “Power Games” to name a few, still get airplay around the world... Songs you'll be likely to hear live again soon! 
 
Discography: 220 Volt (1983), Power Games (1984), Mind over muscle (1985), Young and wild (1987), Eye To Eye (1988), Lethal Illusion (1997), Volume 1 (2002), Made in Jamtland (2005), Heavy X-mas revisited (2009, EP), Walking In Starlight (2014)
 
 
Line-up: Anders Engberg – vocals, Thomas Drevin – guitars, Mats Karlsson – guitars, Peter Hermansson – drums 
 
Sound clips in advance:
 
 
Thu
03
Jul

MISS BEHAVIOUR TURN DOUBLE AGENTS ON AOR HEAVEN AUGUST 29

Friday, August 29, 2014
Categories: 
News Feed
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The story of Miss Behaviour goes back to 2004. Keyboard player Henrik Sproge and guitarist Erik Heikne were both studying Music Management at the Baltic Business School in Kalmar, Sweden, when the idea of Miss Behaviour first came up. With a great passion for 80's melodic hard rock and AOR, they decided to start the band to express their vision of how a modern rock band, inspired by the great bands of the eighties should sound.
The first Miss Behaviour songs where written in a student apartment in Kalmar in late 2004 and ended up at the 3-song EP Give us the world. Miss Behavior worked and still do with producer/technician Daniel Gese who had a career as drummer/producer with his 80's metal/sleaze band Pole Position in the late 80s/early 90s.

After the debut album Heart of Midwinter was released in 2006, Henrik and Erik decided to recruit the new lead singer Sebastian Roos, a quite well known singer in Sweden, with a lot of touring, TV and radio performances and Eurovision song contest on his CV. The breakthrough came with the Album Last Woman Standing, released in 2011.

In spring 2011 Miss Behaviour competed in Swedish national radio with the song Till we meet again, making the premi're live performance with the current lineup in front of 400000 radio listeners. Joining forces with former Backyard Babies manager Michael Sund'n in 2011 the band hit the roads in the UK. 

Late 2011, after touring the UK with CrashDiet, the album Last Woman Standing won the Melodic.net 'Best AoR album of 2011' readers poll with 23% of the votes, leaving bands like Journey, Robin Beck, Work of Art and more behind. The reviews were fantastic and the album got top scores in important magazines, such as Classic Rock (UK), Sweden Rock Magazine (Sweden) and more.

UK Magazine Classic Rock picked Cynthia as one of the best tracks in 2011, and featured the song on the compilation Classic Rock Buzz. Miss Behaviour returned to the UK on the Smokehead Rocks Tour, playing another 10 dates and finished the tour with a sold out show at O2 Islington Academy in London, Oktober 12, 2011. In the middle of the song writing and recordings of the new album Michael Sund'n tragically passed, in a horrible accident at venue Rock City, Nottingham. This loss took a while to recover from but finally the brand new album Double Agent  is finished and the band are more eager than ever to write the next chapter in their career.

Double Agent is produced by Daniel Gese and co-produced by Erik Heikne, Henrik Sproge and Sebastian Roos. The album was recorded, mixed and mastered in Studio L'rkbacken and Realtime Recording Studios, Norrk'ping, Sweden. String sessions are recorded and arranged by Ronnie Roos.

Discography: Heart Of Midwinter (2006), Last Woman Standing (2011), Double Agent (2014)

Line-up: Sebastian Roos  - Vocals; Erik Heikne ' Guitars, Henrik Sproge 'Keyboards; Nicky Bloom' Bass, Guitar; Magnum Jacobs ' Drums
 
Thu
03
Jul

NIVA NEW OPUS INCREMENTAL IV OUT ON AOR HEAVEN AUGUST 29

Artist: 
Friday, August 29, 2014
Categories: 
News Feed
        
The history of NIVA began in Skövde in the mid 80’s and the place was the TBV Music House – this was an inspiring environment for many youths to discover their creativity in a lot of ways, especially regarding the chance to discover their musical abilities.
It was also here where a young Tony Niva set his path to be able to sing and write music, and also for the first time to sing through a microphone! It didn’t take long before an offer occurred. The band Zanity got Tony as their singer and their first demo ”Time Out Of Mind” got a lot of attention.
 
After appearing in a lot of bands around in Sweden  – for example  Vanessa, Swedish Erotica, Malibu Band and Tracy Goes Crazy, Tony got the opportunity to sing for Axia – a band situated and rehearsing in Skövde.
It was an ideal situation both musically and socially for the band and it didn’t take long before a Swedish tour started – both with Axia and later on with a cover band called ”Under Cover”. After some touring, the band drifted apart, and up from the ashes of Axia, NIVA was formed. The band recorded their debut album ”No Capitulation” and got a record deal with Zero Records in Japan in 1994. After recording an up to this date not released follow up album, NIVA was disbanded (1995). For a brief period in 2001, Tony was a member of the metal-act Lion’s Share and who released the album “Entrance” in the same year.
 
Moving forward to 2011 and a song called ”Janitor Of Love” written for the Swedish Eurovision song contest. This time collaboration partners are Roger Ljunggren and Marcus Persson and even if the song did not make it through, the musical work goes so smoothly, they decide to make another three songs for a demo, just to see if there is any interest for a band in the vein of AOR/Melodic Rock. And it sure is – Marquee Avalon signs with NIVA and after 16 years the band lives up and releasing the album ”Gold From The Future” in Japan, September 2011.
Tony did not settle down because of this, so after some negotiations a British based label released the album in Europe – now under the moniker Oxygen – Final Warning.  The album gets a lot of attention in both Europe and in the United States.
In 2013 NIVA released the CD Magnitude through AOR Heaven for the European market and now 2014 the sophomore album entitled “Incremental IV” is ready.
 
“Incremental IV” was produced and mixed by Marcus Persson at CM Music Skara, Sweden with executive producer Tony Niva and mastered by Börjesson, Ear Hear Studio Stockholm. Artwork design by Matthias Norén.
 
 
Line-Up: Tony Niva – Vocals, Roger Ljunggren – Guitars, Marcus Persson – Keyboards, Jan Stal – Bass, Bengan Andersson – Drums
 
Track list: 1. Don’t You Know, 2. Crush, 3. Better Just Forgotten, 4. Magnitude, 5. The Reason Why, 6. Travel Back In Time, 7. Play The Game, 8. Only You, 9. Lost And Found, 10. All By Myself, 11. Coming Back To You
 
Sound clips in advance:
 
 
 
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