ARTISTS

JORN LANDE

Jørn Lande has performed with bands such as Vagabond (with Ronni Le Tekrø from TNT), Yngwie Malmsteen, ARK, Beyond Twilight, Mundanus Imperium, Nikolo Kotzev's Nostradamus, Millennium, Ken Hensley and The Snakes as well as his own self-titled solo effort. He also sang lead vocals on the Norwegian national football team's song for the 1994 World Cup, "Alt for Norge" (All for Norway).

More recently, Jørn joined the global metal scene fronting Masterplan, with whom he released two albums. In 2005, Jørn also teamed up with Symphony X vocalist Russell Allen on the album The Battle, and their following album, The Revenge, released May 11, 2007.

On May 11, 2006, Jørn Lande left the band Masterplan because of creative differences. Jørn wanted to take the band towards a more melodic style, while the other members were leaning towards a heavier sound. On July 25, 2009, Masterplan announced that Jorn would return as the band's new vocalist. Jorn is currently recording the vocals for Masterplan's fourth album.

Jørn's first live album, Live In America, was released September 21, 2007, containing 2 discs with tracks taken from his performance on September 16, 2006, at the rock festival ProgPower VII in Atlanta, Georgia.

In 2007, Jørn Lande lent his voice to the Ayreon album 01011001 and the latest Avantasia album The Scarecrow, both being released in January 2008.

Another full-length album was released on June 6 2008. Titled Lonely Are The Brave, and quickly became his fastest selling album of his career, the 9-track album is also available as a limited edition slipcase version with two additional songs, including a cover of the title track to Deep Purple's 1974 album Stormbringer.

Jorn just completed a world tour with Avantasia and is currently working on his 9th solo album as his world popularity continues to grow. On January 21. 2009 the Dutch rock & metal magazine Aardschok confirmed the rumours about Jorn Lande's return to his former band Masterplan.

AFM Records has set an August 28 release date for "Dukebox", a 16-track best-of from Jorn Lande. The CD will contain "many highlights" from Jorn's previous solo albums and "will be an interesting item for all die-hard fans and 'newcomers' as well," according to a press release.

UDO

Udo Dirkschneider (born April 6, 1952, Wuppertal, Germany) is a German heavy metal singer who was formerly the vocalist in German heavy metal band Accept.

After the demise of Accept in 1987, Dirkschneider formed the band U.D.O.. He consequently paused and restarted his band after reverting to Accept on occasion.

In 1999 Hammerfall recorded a version of Helloween's hit song "I Want Out", with Udo and Kai Hansen making guest appearances. Udo contributed back-up vocals, while Kai and Joacim Cans sang lead. Udo also appeared as a guest singer for Hammerfall on a version of Accept's "Head Over Heels".

Recently, Dirkschneider made a guest appearance on (Eurovision Song Contest winners) Lordi's 2006 album, The Arockalypse. Mr Lordi claims both "Don't Look Back" and "Blitz of Lightning" by U.D.O. as songs that changed his life in a Kerrang! magazine article. He also makes a guest appearance in the music video for the song Shtil' by Russian heavy metal band Aria.

Dirkschneider recorded lead vocals with NWOBHM-band Raven on their cover of "Born to Be Wild" on a 1983 single release. The song also appeared as B-side on "Break the Chain" from their album All for One. UDO is also famous for his duet rock ballad with Doro Pesch, "Dancing with an Angel". On Wacken 2008 he performed live with Lordi the song "They Only Come Out at Night".

The character Dark Schneider in the Japanese manga and anime series Bastard!! is named after Dirkschneider. To cut this all short: Udo is well known for his unique voice, short stature, camouflage clad image and short blond hair. Skid Row vocalist Sebastian Bach pronounced him as having "the most metal name of all time.

DAMIAN WILSON

Damian's career has been unusual in its variety. He has been successful in the world of Rock, voted 'best vocalist' seven times at the Classic Rock Society UK Annual Awards; successful for the passion and wonderful voice he brought to Musical Theatre; prolific in his own song-writing.

Damian has fronted bands as Threshold, Landmarq, Jeronimo Road, Ayreon, La Salle, Kenny Jones's band, Rick Wakeman's English Rock Ensemble and Headspace.

In 1998, Damian surprised his fans by going into Musical Theatre. He played the role of Jean Valjean in the Les Miserables UK national tour 1998-2000. His powerful voice, with its amazing range, and the passion he brought to the role, has since earned him many accolades.

After leaving musical theatre, Damian was invited to join Rick Wakeman's English Rock Ensemble, with which he toured the world and recorded albums.

Having recorded on Arjen Lucassen's Ayreon albums, Damian was invited to join the long-awaited stage appearance of Arjen Lucassen in the superb Star One tour of Holland, Germany and Belgium.

Damian also toured with Arjen's Stream of Passion Tour, supporting with playing his own songs acoustically and joining in with the SOPpies, too, which was great stuff.

Damian was fortunately free to step in as vocalist for Threshold when their singer left unexpectedly at the commencement of their Summer and Autumn tour of 2007. Damian is currently on tour with his own projectband and

JOAKIM BRODÉN

Joakim Brodén was raised in a family where sports were preffered to music. He started to play church organ at an early age and performed at weddings, funerals and other boring stuff until he realized his potential to write songs of his own.

Programming the first own songs on simple computerprograms and trying to program guitars where playing ability failed. Some years later on a party he found the founding members of a band called Aeon (who later became Sabaton) and agreed to play keyboards in the band.

Since the band sounded crap and had neither songs or singer, Joakim helped to sort out this problem by introducing some of the early songs he had written in the past aswell as grabbing the microphone.

Initially it sounded like crap since Joakim had no experience in singing whatsoever.

Later the band titled themselves Sabaton and found a keyboardplayer and Joakim could fully focus on the vocals.

Some ten years later Joakim has evolved to a professional singer and songwriter of world-class being the main man behind the music of one of Europes fastests growing metalbands: SABATON

CHARLOTTE WESSELS

Johanna Charlotte Wessels (born May 13, 1987 in Zwolle, Netherlands) is the lead vocalist of the Dutch symphonic metal band Delain. She was previously a member of gothic metal band To Elysium, before the band's split. She joined Delain at the age of 17 when it was formed by ex-Within Temptation pianist Martijn Westerholt. Wessels: "I've always loved music and singing. I started taking clarinet lessons at a young age, which got me in a Big Band from age 12 to 18. When I was thirteen I started doing some singer songwriter stuff with my best friend, which got us into our first band that rocked every high school party for some years ;) I took my first singing lesson at the age of 14. After two years I was recommended classical training. I attended those for two years and then started focusing on some musical projects amongst which To Elysium and Infernorama, where I met Martijn".

Charlotte's characteristic voice gives Delain a distinctive identity. She is responsible for the lyrics and her contribution has increased on the second Delain album, April Rain. "Work on Lucidity was fantastic, but it was a bit of a fill exercise as the majority of the songs were already there. On April Rain my involvement was much bigger. Therefore it really feels as 'my' album. Even more so than our debut". This counts especially when it comes to the song On The Other Side. "A very personal song that means a lot to me", according to author Charlotte Wessels. "This song qualifies as 'my little baby' on the album and reflects on a difficult period that I went through."

Delain's second album "April Rain" was released in March 2009 in Europe, Japan and Australia followed by the US and Canada in June. The album entered the charts in various European territories and peaked at #1 in the Dutch alternative charts. Delain is currently doing some massive touring. This november Delain will leave for Prague to do an extensive European tour. To promote the tour, the new video "Stay Forever" will be launched worldwide. On October 16 the video will be presented through the website of the band and Roadrunner Records.

Not only in Europe, but also in Japan, Australia and the United States the band's fanbase is getting bigger and bigger. Delain will perform their first show in the US in September 2010, and is looking into touring in Australia and Asia. Until then, Delain will please their European fans with the Sonata Arctica tour. The band will finish their Dutch tour in the Broerenkerk in Zwolle on October 31 with a special concert, with amongst others, Marco Hietala from Nightwish as guest vocalist.

www.delain.nl

www.twitter.com/delainmusic

www.myspace.com/charlottewessels

MATS LEVÉN

Born and raised in Mölndal, Gothenburg on the west coast of Sweden.

Family: Parents Nils&Ingrid and brothers Lars&Janne.

Listened to a lot of different music growing up, from Gilbert Becaud to Sparks to Iron Maiden.

Played the violin for 3 years around the age of 10, mostly into sports at that time - especially tennis.

Best friend Ola bought a drum kit, started a band with Ken Sandin on bass/vocals. A couple of months later they asked me if I could sing. That band, Rescue, was my first at the age of 17.

First recording on vinyl was a 7" with Capricorn (first prize in a rock band competition)

The release of Swedish Erotica in 1989, was the first on a major label (Virgin Records)

Joined Treat and moved to Stockholm two years later.

After the break up of Treat in '93, I played with a number of swedish musicians/friends in different cover acts for several years while also doing albums with Leif Edling project Abstrakt Algebra and AB/CD. Started writing material in my home studio.

Had the opportunity to work with my hero Cozy Powell on "Facing The Animal" with Yngwie Malmsteen in 1997. Also recorded with Southpaw that year.

First world tour with Yngwie in 1998.

The next few years involved a lot of session work/albums (Dogface, Krux, Sabbtail, Pontus Norgren), backing vocals on albums, Eurovision Song Contest blah blah...

Played some guitar with Infinite Mass and The Gmeyner in 2003/2004.

Two albums/european tours with german act At Vance in 2003 & 2005.

Toured the globe with Therion in 2004/2005.

Recording their new album in august 2006, wrote some of the material. World tour in 2007.

Found a great friend/writing companion in Snowy Shaw last year, expect great things to come...and looking forward to this years edition of Christmas Metal Symphony...the Second Coming!!

CRISTINA SCABBIA

Cristina Scabbia was born on June 6, 1972 in Milan, Italy. She and her siblings (two brothers and a sister) were raised listening to music from an early age. Her tastes varied from that of her siblings, however, preferring bands the likes of Genesis, AC/DC and Led Zeppelin over the kind of traditional Italian music the rest of her family enjoyed. She's noted that she had no interest in singing as a child, and that it "just kind of happened"; she'd never taken any vocal lessons to improve her voice.

By her twenties Scabbia developed an interest in metal and dance music (a bit of a separation, there), and in 1991 Scabbia began touring with other bands as a backup musician for other bands and various gigs. In that same year she met male vocalist Andrea Ferro and his bass playing friend, Marco Coti Zelati, in a Milan club. It turned out the two men were part of a band called Ethereal, and they hired Scabbia on as a session singer, having been suitably impressed with her performance.

But Scabbia managed to impress them past just providing backup vocals on recording sessions, and the band enjoyed the combination of male and female vocalist. Thus Scabbia was brought on as a full band member. Not long after the band's numbers were cut down to just Scabbia, Ferro and Coti Zelati, and they recorded a demo in 1996. Not long after sending it in they were signed by Century Media, and once that happened they changed the name to the now-familiar Lacuna Coil after discovering that Ethereal was already taken.

Lacuna Coil, though Scabbia's primary role, is not her only one. She's also provided her voice to other artists in duets, including Franco Battiato, Rezophonic and Apocalyptica. Her powerful voice on-stage has Scabbia in high demand as a metal singer. Despite this, however, Scabbia's already said that she a) doesn't plan on leaving Lacuna Coil and b) doesn't plan on setting out on her own solo act any time soon. By the way; she is a columnist for the rockmagazine Revolver as well.....

SIMONE SIMONS

Music has always played an important part in Simone's life. She started playing the flute at the age of 11. After that she joined the school musical and wanted more.

At the age of 14 she started with pop singing lessons and after a year she switched to classical singing.

In 2002 Epica crossed her path. Until now they have released 4 studio albums, a live DVD and CD and travelled around the globe several times.

Simone has also participated with many other talented bands within the metal scene such as Kamelot, Ayreon, Primal Fear, Aina, Sons of Seasons and the Equilibrio Musical.