Stratovarius Community

Hey, I figured this might be a fun topic. List the most obscure albums in your collection, i.e. albums by bands or artists no one or very few has ever heard of. Preferably artists with record contracts, but demos and such is alright too, I guess.

Baltimoore
Okay, I have four albums by these guys, "There's No Danger on The Roof", "Freak", "Double Density" and "Thought For Food", all released in the late 80s/early 90s. The former two are AOR/Pop Rock albums, whereas the latter two are more straight-forward metal (they also feature guitarist Nikolo Kotzev, who would later go on to have more success with Brazen Abbot and his Nostradamus rock opera). Their biggest claim to fame is having their video for their single "My Kind of Woman" being played on MTV's Headbanger's Ball...once.
Obviously this is a severe case of micropatriotism, as they were based in the city I'm from. Nevertheless, fairly solid albums. The band is still around and have released a few more albums (though without Kotzev).

Giuffria
Absolutely excellent, though short-lived, AOR band that released two albums in the 80s, "Giuffria" and "Silk + Steel". The band is named after keyboarder Gregg Giuffria, who also was in Angel and House of Lords. One of the most underrated bands of the 80s, they deserved much more success than they had. I especially recommend "Silk + Steel", it's a fantastic album.

Bo Hansson - Sagan om Ringen
Perhaps not that obscure, but Bo Hansson had a cult following at best. He's a Swedish organ player, who released this album in the early 70s (the title is Swedish for "Lord of the Rings". Indeed, the album is a concept album based on Tolkien's stories). It's all instrumental progressive rock...well, I'd hesitate to call it rock, but for lack of a better term, it'll have to do. Anyway, it's pretty good album, if you're into the genre.

Lucyfire - This Dollar Saved My Life on Whitehorse
Don't ask me why, but for some reason I have an SPV promo version of this album. Also, don't ask me how it sounded, because I've listened to it once (which should be a good indication of how much I liked it). I vaguely recall it being some strange form of synth pop.
Apparently it's a side project of the singer from Tiamat.

Afterworld - Dark Side of Mind
Dunno how well known these guys are, but I haven't heard much about them anyway. Afterworld is a Finnish power metal band, and "Dark Side of Mind" was their debut album released in 1999. They released one more album after that, but haven't been heard from since. Not that bad an album, but not terribly original.

Joe Perry Project - I've Got The Rock 'n' Rolls Again
Well, if you're an Aerosmith fan, you've heard of Joe Perry. Anyway, Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry left the band in 1979 to start his own band, called - you guessed it - Joe Perry Project. This album was their second album. And it's a pretty good album, there are several nice tunes on this one.
Perry released one more album before rejoining Aerosmith in 1985.

Stratovarius
Just kidding.

Looking back at my list, I realise my record collection isn't perhaps as obscure as I thought Anyway, your turn.

I have 2 CDs released by local industrial band Vultures. Those guys were great, made some of the most insane music I've ever heard but they broke up ... Needless to say, very few know them outside of Israeli metal scene ...

My god Nordic, where did you get all those albums ?

I confirm what you told me few times in the Strato chatroom : you have really strange taste

Excellent topic idea.

A couple cds from a local gothic-industrial band called the ScruDevice

Two cds by Heavenly, whom i don't believe to be especially obscure, but no one seems to know them

'Subrabae' by the super-popular R&B band Phat Sidy Smokehouse

I also have quite a bit of highly obscure Christian metal/alternative, such as Klank (who the fuck listens to klank??) and the highly influential punk rockers Squad Five-O

And of course a ton of old stuff that isn't really obscure at all, just weird.

HvyMtlClickWitch wrote: Two cds by Heavenly, whom i don't believe to be especially obscure, but no one seems to know them.

You mean the power-metal band from France who took everything from Rhapsody/Angra/Stratovarius/Gamma Ray, or the pop-dance band ?

The former, certainly, although now that i know there's a pop band called Heavenly, I must investigate!

NordicStorm wrote:Baltimoore
Okay, I have four albums by these guys, "There's No Danger on The Roof", "Freak", "Double Density" and "Thought For Food", all released in the late 80s/early 90s. The former two are AOR/Pop Rock albums, whereas the latter two are more straight-forward metal (they also feature guitarist Nikolo Kotzev, who would later go on to have more success with Brazen Abbot and his Nostradamus rock opera). Their biggest claim to fame is having their video for their single "My Kind of Woman" being played on MTV's Headbanger's Ball...once.
Obviously this is a severe case of micropatriotism, as they were based in the city I'm from. Nevertheless, fairly solid albums. The band is still around and have released a few more albums (though without Kotzev).

Baltimoore rocks, my bro is really into that kind of stuff, from 80s, they don't belong to me, but anyway I was the one to buy them in the net.

cliff wrote:My god Nordic, where did you get all those albums ?

I confirm what you told me few times in the Strato chatroom : you have really strange taste

Aah, my usual outlets...eBay (the German version), online record stores, record fairs, occasionally a regular CD store carries them...

And yes, I'm proud to say I have a rather eclectic taste in music! I must be the only person in the world to own albums by both Chris Rea and Opeth

Obscure albums... my forte!

Anyone heard Naer Mataron? underground Greek black metal, excellent stuff. Also got some Demoncy cds.

Also (no idea how I ended up with this one) i've got an EVIL ambient-mood CD by a project called En Nihil (called Death Keeps). Really creepy stuff on there.

What else... anyone heard of Anakreon? Jazz inspired by old folk tunes, their album 'Music of the Wings' is a really amazing cd. 'Frozen Shadows' has to be the best track on it.


I've got a lot more, but yeah this is a good cross-section.

NordicStorm wrote:
And yes, I'm proud to say I have a rather eclectic taste in music! I must be the only person in the world to own albums by both Chris Rea and Opeth

Aha, but do you own albums by both Origin and the next thing on your playlist is Miles Davis followed by U2?

I'm in the same boat as you, man

Naer Mataron is good...

...I have much more obscure stuff though

For exemple, I have 26 releases by Moonblood on mp3... or if you meant retail stuff then I have some split tapes with underground black metal bands from here that are very limited, like this one limited to 50 copies, or all those limited copies of cd's, tapes, vinyls by underground black metal bands like Satanic Warmaster, Malveillance, Akitsa, Evil, Maléfice, Arnstadt, etc.. I also have a 2LP gatefold of the first Rainbow album that my dad gave me

Power Quest - Wings of Forever

hmm lefay - the seventh seal

and I had whispering forest- of shadows and pale light

Some people would say my entire CD collection is obscure!

Hmm, here are a couple by bands that have likely not been heard of here...

Demolition Pit---13 Lessons in Aggression
Many moons ago on Stratoforum, there was a topic made to name 5 albums that changed your music life forever. I listed this album as one of them. Named after a Pantera bootleg, this was the only album released by the speed-metal band from Orange County, California. At the time of its release, grunge was at its height and bands such as these were not very much in favor in American music. Not to mention in this album, their Pantera and Sepultura influences were more than clear, making it a brush-off from most people as just another rip-off of these bands. To me, it was an indication of all they might have become. To this day, songs like "Control", "Walk With the Dead", "Fight", and "Crashing Down" are just what I need to get my blood pumping in just the right way, or something to listen to when you're in a pissed off mood.

Phantom Blue---Built to Perform
This is another CD that I listed in the topic on Stratoforum I mentioned in the previous paragraph. Phantom Blue was another band from the Los Angeles area, and they were an all-female metal band. They were really ahead of their time, which would probably explain why they never acheived mainstream success. While they may not have been outward groundbreakers, they made it possible for all the female-fronted metal bands of today to exist a little easier, as they tread ground seldom ever walked upon before. They wrote brutally honest songs about the feminine point of view, which wasn't always as rosy and pretty as it's sometimes made out to be. They wrote about wanting to get laid while being on your period, they wrote about sleeping with guys who weren't exactly blessed in the anatomy department, they wrote about women who fought back in abusive relationships. They made other albums and are still around to this day, but this is the only album I have ever been able to find of theirs in all the years I've been a fan (this album was released in '94 under the Geffen label). Supposedly they had a moderate amount of success in Europe during their heyday, but I suppose only people who around my age (mid/late-20s) and older might remember them.

Ed Marrow & Mike Willis---From the Heart
Another act from Southern California (I can't help it, this is my hometown!), they are a progressive jazz duo that takes you from one sound to the next in every song. Brilliant harmonies, and a singer who sings! Their sound is really hard to put a label on, because they run the gamut from progressive jazz to more rock-oriented sounds, and are currently working on a classical epic of over 20 minutes (this, Ed Marrow says, he knew a listener like me could appreciate, as we are always discussing our mutual love for epic music)! Maybe it's not the thing for most of the metalheads here but I love all kinds of music, so this album is perfect for me.

Here are a couple others that I have more extensive collections of, so I will just list them by name and not album titles.

Dalbello
You look at the name and say you've never heard of her, but I can bet bottom dollar that whoever is reading this, at some point in your life you have heard the music of this Canadian songstress somewhere. Her music has been covered by two different bands, she has helped write music for countless artists and bands, and has done many side projects with even more musicians. Yet in the near-three decades she has been in the music business, she has released a total of five of her own albums, two of which were released under her real name, Lisa DalBello. If you're a Queensryche fan, you have likely heard their cover of her song "Gonna Get Close to You". If you're a fan of Heart, they covered two of her songs---"Black on Black" and "Wait for an Answer". If you're a fan of Rush, then most likely you picked up guitarist Alex Lifeson's solo project that he released in the mid-'90s, and heard her unique voice on the song "Start Today". Not a fan of any of these bands? Then you still may have heard her voice, singing backup vocals on the early '90s hit song "Black Velvet" by Alannah Myles. If you live in Canada, maybe you heard her song advertised in Ford commercials several years back? Or maybe when she wrote music for the 2001 Winter Olympics? She is one of those musicians that is everywhere, yet no one would know who she is if you stood next to her in a grocery store. Her own music is few and far between---it has been nearly 10 years since her last album---but she is always writing music for someone, somewhere in the world. The name is obscure, but in many ways, the music is not.

Psychotic Waltz
In their own words, they are described as "progressive hippie metal", and I can really not disagree with this description. This band from San Diego had a distinction of not only a unique sound, but being the first (and likely, only band, to this day) to have a member of the band in a wheelchair. They also experienced much success in Europe during the '90s when they were making music, but never seemed to find that same success in their homeland. They opened for Dream Theater in the mid-'90s and their name can be found in the thank-you section of the Awake album. The band broke up in '96, but the shattered parts still live on in different ways and different places. Singer Buddy Lackey returned to his real name, Devon Graves, to front the band Deadsoul Tribe. Guitarist Dan Rock releases solo projects to this day, which can be found in the metal music store owned by drummer Norm Leggio (which I might add, is one of the most kick-ass stores not only in San Diego, but possibly the world!). If you are lucky enough to find any of their albums, hold on and don't let go! All of them are masterpieces, but Into the Everflow and Mosquito are the fan favorites.

Sudra Kaye
You may have seen this name mentioned before in the "now playing" thread, as I am always listening to the music of this talented dear friend of mine. The quintessential musician, Sudra does not need record contracts or music videos to prove his talent. While his music is mostly based in rock, he can surprise you with a folk number or a Middle-Eastern style song at the drop of a hat. He is known to take well-beloved songs of his, tear them apart and make them completely new, yet leave enough of it there to be the endearing song it always was. Some time ago Sudra hoped to work with the band Evanescence to do some songwriting. I don't know if anything ever became of that, but let me say that Evanescence is committing career suicide by not grabbing up this diamond in the rough! (Let me also say that if they committed career suicide, I would not cry at the funeral in the least!) He has had many bands over the years, his voice has been compared to Maynard James Keenan of Tool, but he always remains true to his vision. Unlike many musicians, he does not let mainstream music tell him what to write---but rather, he lets mainstream music find a place within his own music. Sudra has nicknamed me "the president of my fan club", and I am deeply touched by that; but in all honesty, even if Sudra was not my friend, if I had known only his music, I would still feel the same way. I have so much respect for musicians who "walk to their own song" (to paraphrase Strato), and he is definitely one of those. I am always looking forward to what he will do next.

Ive heard of Psychotic Waltz, my friend loves them. I've only heard some stuff of theirs though. Wierd stuff.

Psycotic Waltz are kool i have a bunch of stuff downloaded.

Not sure i have much unusual stuff myself..just got a bunch of promo copies of albums..anyone else heard of Custard? They're a good underground German band should check them out.

Blood Stain Child - Mystic Your Heart

Forgot about that one.

Psycotic Waltz are kool i have a bunch of stuff downloaded.

Yeah, that seems to be the only way you can find their stuff anymore. Even the members of the band do not know where to find copies of their own albums. I was lucky enough to get "real" copies of Into the Everflow, Bleeding, and Live and Archive, but I had to download my copies of A Social Grace and Mosquito.

Bal Sagoth
I have every album theyv'e made, many might know them, but hardly anyone mentions them anywhere.