In their 30. year as recording artists LAVA is celebrating the event with the double live album "Symphonic Journey". Special guests is The Norwegian Radio Orchestra (KORK). The title "Symphonic Journey" indicates that the album has an orchestral and symphonic twist to it. The album also comes with a bonus DVD which is a complete concert where LAVA performs at Oslo Jazz Festival at Rockefeller Music Hall in Oslo. On stage you will se the normal line up extended with trumpet player Marius Haltli.

On the CD LAVA featuring KORK performs a wide range of the band's hits in new versions. Tracks like "You", "Shine a Little Light", "Hard Times", "Journey" and "The Rhythm Of Love", sounds airy and grand. Synths and samples are replaced by live strings, brass and woodwinds, timpani, glockenspiel and harp. Song material is taken from all of the band's 7 studio albums.

30 YEAR ANNIVERSARY – After traveling and touring the world for 30 years, including the tours as a backing band and opening act for soul diva Randy Crawford, it was natural for us to celebrate our 30 years as a band releasing a live CD/DVD, says Rolf Graf, LAVA’s bassplayer.

Working as session- and touring musicians for other artist, LAVA is our playing ground where we can investigate our own ideas, says singer Egil Eldøen. The musicians have separately or together worked with other Norwegian pop profiles as a-ha, Secret Garden, Sissel Kyrkjebø among more.

Both the CD featuring The Norwegian Radio Orchestra, and the concert with only the band line up, is recorded at Rockefeller Music Hall in Oslo. The album is produced by Svein Dag Hauge and Rolf Graf. Orchestral producer is Halldor Krogh. The CD is recorded by NRK, and mixed by Hauge and Graf at Stua Studio (Hauges studio). The DVD is filmed by Medianor by Gunnar Hoaas, and is region free. This means you can watch it in all kinds of DVD-players all around the world. 

LAVA “Symphonic Journey” Live CD/DVD is available HERE!

Iconic musicians Carole King and James Taylor announced that they will embark on a "Troubadour Reunion" world tour. The world tour will kick off in Melbourne, Australia on March 27 and will travel to New Zealand and Japan before coming to North America and Europe. This once-in-a-lifetime event brings together two of the most beloved singer/songwriters for a rare concert experience. The set list will include a breadth of material including songs they performed during their 1970 debut show at the Troubadour in Los Angeles, which helped propel them both to the world stage. Tickets for dates in Australia and New Zealand and The Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles go on public sale Nov. 23. Tickets for dates in Japan go on sale Dec. 12. Additional dates in North America and Europe will be announced soon. 

Carole King and James Taylor will tour together with their original bandmates guitarist Danny "Kootch" Kortchmar, drummer Russ Kunkel and bassist Lee Sklar, famous in their own right as "The Section".

Frontiers Records announces the return of Giant for the release of a brand new album in early 2010. Giant is a band formed by Pop and Rock scene, guitarist/vocalist Dann Huff and his drummer brother David, with experienced keyboards player Alan Pasqua and bass player Mike brignardello. They released 3 records uncluding their debut "Last of the runaways" considered like a classic, melodic hard rock album of all times. 

Soon after the release of "Time To Burn" (the second album), Alan Pasqua decided to quit the band and went back to session work and a solo carreer. The band toured Europe and US without him, and soon after disbanded. Dann Huff then became one of the most respected producers in Nashville, working in the Rock, Pop and Country Music with countless artists including Shania Twain, Megadeth, Faith Hill and several others. His brother David also started to become more and more involved in the production business and in 1999 met Frontiers Records's managers Serafino Perugino and Mario de Riso. The label proposed David to bring back the name and the music of such a great band. The "III" album was released in 2001 with major acclaim in the Classic and Melodic Hard Rock community. However Dann's busy schedule along with the other members' commitments, made the reunion impossible to carry on. 

Original members, David Huff and Mike Brignardello wanted to go back to Rock and started an endless research for the right musicians that could be part of a renewed Giant line-up. And in the end the choice fell on singer extraordinaire Terry Brock (Strangeways, Seventh Key) and on John Roth (Winger) on guitars. The band has completed the songwriting and according to David: "It feels good to be working on Giant again! In early April we had an incredible week with the new Giant line-up, we have some great new songs and we are working also on some ideas that have been taking dust on the shelf for years. Dann was part of our meeting and has co-written several songs which no doubt have his guitar flavors all over them. He was also very excited and he has agreed to appear in the album playing guitar on a song". 

It is now possible to hear a sample from the first single Promised Land, which will also be the title track of the forthcoming album, that will exclusively appear on the Rock the Bones vol. 7 sampler that will be on sale from November 7 at melodicrock.com

Read more at MelodicRock.com...

Christopher Cross is touring in Europe and has also been in the studio recording the new album, tentatively titled "Dr. Faith". Most of the tracks have been recorded, including amazing string parts which Chris Walden masterfully arranged. While Christopher is in Europe, Doug Rider will start mixing. This is the first album of all new Cross/Meurer material since "Walking in Avalon" was released in 1998. 

Don't miss Christopher Cross in concert at La Cigale (PARIS) on december 3rd. 

Get tickets at Fnac, Virgin and La Cigale.

Frontiers Records is pleased to announce the release of LOS ANGELES second album entitled Neverland on December 4 in Europe and January 12, 2010 in the USA. Los Angeles debut album revealed to the unsuspecting international Melodic Rock audience, the talents of the awesome Italian singer Michele Luppi. Los Angeles concept is to tribute the AOR greats that shaped Luppi's singing and songwriting abilities.

Contrary to the first record that relied heavily on external songwriters, this new album sees the songwriting collaboration between Luppi and Fabrizio Grossi blossomed in full, with more contributions from Eric Ragno (China Blue), Joey Sykes (Hugo), Roberto Priori and ex-Dokken axeman George Lynch (on "Nowhere to Run"). There is also a stunning new version of Richard Marx's "Nothing to Hide": another fitting tribute to one of AOR music giants and two songs offered (“Wait for You” and “Tonight Tonight”) by Tom and James Martin (Khymera, Sunstorm, House of Lords). 

Musicians include Tommy Denander, Joey Sykes, Roberto Priori on guitars, Eric Ragno on keyboards, Tony “AJ” Morra on drums and of course Fabrizio Grossi on bass. While Luppi's astounding vocals can be described as Mark Free meets Eric Martin, Los Angeles Neverland is a true AOR beauty which is truly a must-buy for all the Melodic Rock fans.