- Starbreaker’s new album “Dysphoria" out January 25th via Frontiers Music srl!
Pre-order the album NOW: http://radi.al/Starbreaker
Tony Harnell, the critically acclaimed singer/songwriter and former
vocalist of multi-platinum hard rock band TNT, and Magnus Karlsson, current
Primal Fear guitarist extraordinaire, have rejoined forces for the release of
the third Starbreaker album!
Entitled “Dysphoria”, this new album showcases everything the project has
become known for: metal sensibilities, melodic songs with killer hooks, thought
provoking lyrics, inventive, intricate guitar playing, occasional prog twists,
and a crisp production. Along with explosive performances from Harnell and
Karlsson, these are the trademarks which the listener will find in “Dysphoria”
and that make this album so very unique and special.
Of calling the album “Dysphoria”, Tony states that the “title is simply a
reflection of a state of mind and I thought it fit the lyrical theme of the
songs. If I tried to summarize the lyrical theme of the album I would say it’s
beautifully sad, but infinitely hopeful. Life is always my biggest inspiration.
It was an easy album to write lyrically for that reason. There was no writer’s
block and the themes are probably pretty obvious. I don’t like to paint too
clear a picture for the listener, it’s best to let the words speak to them
without guidance”. On the first song released from the album, he says, “’Pure
Evil’ is the heaviest the album gets and not indicative of the album as a whole,
although there are some metal overtones throughout.”
Of the music direction on the album, Magnus states “Tony’s voice gives me
inspiration to write my riffs and melodies. I imagine his voice, so in my head,
I visualize the finished songs with great production. The two first albums
didn’t take much more than a year from finish to start. This release was made
over a much longer period because of our other bands and productions. It's the
first time I worked on an album with breaks in the production. In the end, it
came out much better. I’m really happy with the sound on a Starbreaker album.
Thanks to Simone Mularoni (DGM) who did a great job with the mix. And Jonni
Lightfoot and Anders Köllerfors who really made the songs shine! Tony’s voice
sounds better than ever, just amazing! You can have the best songs, best
production or fastest guitar solos, but if the vocals aren’t top notch, you have
nothing!”
STARBREAKER started as Harnell's side project while he was still fronting
TNT. He was initially working on a solo record, with Karlsson, former TNT
drummer John Macaluso, and bassist Fabrizio Grossi, but they morphed into
STARBREAKER, releasing their first self-titled studio album in 2005. In late
2007, Harnell flew to Sweden to write the bulk of the songs for the new album
with Karlsson, and started recording the new songs at the end of that year. The
group's second album, "Love's Dying Wish" was released in August 2008. It
featured new bassist Jonni Lightfoot, who replaced Grossi, and was produced by
Harnell and Karlsson, with Tommy Hansen (TNT, PRETTY MAIDS, HELLOWEEN) serving
as the mixer.
The songwriting for the new STARBREAKER album started back before Harnell
rejoined TNT in 2016, but it was after his ultimate split from that band, in
October 2017, that he and Karlsson put the pedal to the metal and quickly
completed the new record, “Dysphoria.”
BAND MEMBERS:
Tony Harnell - vocals
Magnus Karlsson - guitars, keyboards, backing vocals
Jonni Lightfoot - bass
Anders Köllerfors - drums
Links:
