Shannon (FRA)

[Horex]

Shannon - Shannon (2003)













Year : 2003
Style : Melodic Hard Rock
Country : France
Audio : 320 kbps + all scans
Size : 148 mb

Bio:

Formed in the beginning of 1998 by Patrice LOUIS (Guitar) and Thierry DAGNICOURT (Keyboards), SHANNON plays a melodic hard rock that sticks to the skin. During the spring of 1998, the band enroles ex-JANNYLEE's singer Olivier DEL VALLE behind the mike, then Claude THILL (ex-DER KAISER) playing bass and Maxence PILO (ex-HEAVENLY) at the drum kit join the band to finally complete the line-up. Their debut and eponymous album released in November 2003 on the Anvilcorp. label and distributed by Wagram has been unanimously praised and regarded by the international press as one of the most impressive and brilliant record of the year in the Classic 80's US melodic rock style. With catchy hooklines, infectious choruses and a groovy and powerful rhythm section, SHANNON is the perfect alchimy between classic US melodic hard rock and typical european influenced NWOBHM sound, delivering a music as powerful as melodic. After the release of the album, the band takes the road and shares the stage with re-knowned artists such as AXXIS, PINK CREAM 69 and Jeff Scott SOTO in Paris. In the middle of 2005, SHANNON sees its first line-up changes with the departure of Claude and Maxence, immediately replaced by, respectively, Nicolas FIXY (Bass) and Benjamin BERGEROLLE (Drums), both formerly in French epic-progressive TAÏ PHONG. Strongly encouraged with the success of their self-titled album, not only in France, but widely abroad, the band has taken the way to the studio to record, more motivated than ever. WORLD OF DESIRE, a 5-track demo EP, was released in 2007. SHANNON played several shows to present the new songs and was selected to play before GOTTHARD at the RAISMES FESTIVAL. Some special guests are invited and did some backing vocals (Gianni PONTILLO, Ben SOTTO, Ben VENET, Bruno LEVESQUE, Jens WALKENHORST) and a duet with Renaud HANTSON was recorded. The band signed with ArtistService at the end of 2007 and ANGEL IN DISGUISE, the brand new album, even more powerful than their debut, is world wide distributed by MusicBuyMail. Never missing an opportunity to play live, the band played eventually at the PARIS METAL FRANCE FESTIVAL. After been part of the september nights open air festival with Axxis and Krokus, the band has released his third album "circus of lost souls" and will promote it on stage around europe in 2013...

Album:

The music Shannon plays definitely has its origins in the eighties, and sounds like a cross between hard rock and European heavy metal. As a matter of fact this album is already their third full release, but I had never before heard of this band.Olivier Del Valle may not have the most powerful voice there is in the business, but he acquits himself quite well of the job.Musically all fits perfectly, which is not surprising, since most of the actual line-up at one time or another busied himself in other French bands.Shannon take control of the listener from the outset with the pure melodic rock of 'Heartbreaker'. The song has plenty of punchy keyboards, a huge chorus and melodic soloing.Another stellar track is the sublime 'She's A Liar'. A fantastic example of arena melodic rock.There's also a heavier side to Shannon. 'Scared Of War' has a Lion's Share inspired riff, while the speedy 'Reach For The Sky' reminds me of little known German band Ghandi. If you found China's first release a bit of a blast then 'One In A Million' is going to be right up your alley. Same can be said for 'Goin' Crazy' if you are a Terra Nova fan.In regards to the song-writing there is very little to fault, except for a few grammatical errors. Bringing the songs to life are the extremely capable Olivier Del Valle on vocals, outstanding guitarist Patrice Louis (does he actually know the 80's are over?) and keyboardist Thierry Dagnicourt.Shannon offer so much to the melodic rock fan that it is such a shame their exposure has been so limited. One of the few true melodic rock releases I can heartily endorse these days.

Line-Up:

Olivier Del Valle (Vocals)
Patrice Louis (Guitars)
Thierry Dagnicourt (Keyboards)

Producer – Shannon and Stephane Brulez

Tracklist:

01. Heartbreaker 05:31
02. Love in Hollywood 03:54
03. Billion Dollars Rain 04:25
04. She's a Liar 04:35
05. Young 'n' Tough 04:25
06. Wild, Wild, Wild 04:08
07. Scared of War 06:29
08. Alone in the Dark 01:26
09. Reach for the Sky 03:44
10. Goin' Crazy 04:55
11. Father 05:43
12. Lovehunter 04:40
13. One in a Million 05:08



Download links for all albums only on our blog here: http://goodmetalandhar.do.am/

[Horex]

Shannon - Angel In Disguise (2008)













Year : 2008
Style : Melodic Hard Rock
Country : France
Audio : 320 kbps + all scans
Size : 148 mb

Bio:

Formed in the beginning of 1998 by Patrice LOUIS (Guitar) and Thierry DAGNICOURT (Keyboards), SHANNON plays a melodic hard rock that sticks to the skin. During the spring of 1998, the band enroles ex-JANNYLEE's singer Olivier DEL VALLE behind the mike, then Claude THILL (ex-DER KAISER) playing bass and Maxence PILO (ex-HEAVENLY) at the drum kit join the band to finally complete the line-up. Their debut and eponymous album released in November 2003 on the Anvilcorp. label and distributed by Wagram has been unanimously praised and regarded by the international press as one of the most impressive and brilliant record of the year in the Classic 80's US melodic rock style. With catchy hooklines, infectious choruses and a groovy and powerful rhythm section, SHANNON is the perfect alchimy between classic US melodic hard rock and typical european influenced NWOBHM sound, delivering a music as powerful as melodic. After the release of the album, the band takes the road and shares the stage with re-knowned artists such as AXXIS, PINK CREAM 69 and Jeff Scott SOTO in Paris. In the middle of 2005, SHANNON sees its first line-up changes with the departure of Claude and Maxence, immediately replaced by, respectively, Nicolas FIXY (Bass) and Benjamin BERGEROLLE (Drums), both formerly in French epic-progressive TAÏ PHONG. Strongly encouraged with the success of their self-titled album, not only in France, but widely abroad, the band has taken the way to the studio to record, more motivated than ever. WORLD OF DESIRE, a 5-track demo EP, was released in 2007. SHANNON played several shows to present the new songs and was selected to play before GOTTHARD at the RAISMES FESTIVAL. Some special guests are invited and did some backing vocals (Gianni PONTILLO, Ben SOTTO, Ben VENET, Bruno LEVESQUE, Jens WALKENHORST) and a duet with Renaud HANTSON was recorded. The band signed with ArtistService at the end of 2007 and ANGEL IN DISGUISE, the brand new album, even more powerful than their debut, is world wide distributed by MusicBuyMail. Never missing an opportunity to play live, the band played eventually at the PARIS METAL FRANCE FESTIVAL. After been part of the september nights open air festival with Axxis and Krokus, the band has released his third album "circus of lost souls" and will promote it on stage around europe in 2013...

Album:

Is Europe paving the guiding path for melodic Rock/AOR music in the post-80s era? Yes, of course. With Scandinavian countries being a kinda 'leader' the last 15 years, we were happy to see 'melodic' bands pumping outta every corner of the European continent: Italy, Holland, Greece, Spain, France. Yes, France with SHANNON being the finest export to date. A quintet whose second full-length release may top your personal 2008 list, even if it's still half the way of this year.2003's Shannon debut CD was a nice surprise to the melodic hardrockin' world. Stepping on the stones set by late 80s/early 90s American/German/Swedish bands, that album featured notable compositions in the vein of DOKKEN, HARDLINE, HEAVEN'S EDGE, HURRICANE, 220 VOLT, TREAT, ZENO, PINK CREAM 69, McAuley-era MSG, FAIR WARNING and the rest you can imagine. Melodic guitar work, fitting keys, a 'fat' rhythm section and some wonderful vocals from Olivier Del Valle (NIGHTFALL, TWILIGHT, LOLLYPOP, JANNYLEE).Nearly five years have now passed, with Angel In Disguise storming out to - I assume - impress you even more, if you did dig the 2003 debut album. The songwriting of the band has been finely developed ever since; some positive criteria was already known due to 2007's World Of Desire 5-track demo (most or all songs are included in this 2008 new release) and - to my ears, after half a dozen of spins - SHANNON has succeeded also in upgrading their 'identity' status. Not only the songs are penned now in a more dynamic way, with certain ambition in the role of each instrument in each song part, but also the 'not a copycat' creativity has reached a higher climax. The atmosphere is half American - in the guitars work, mainly - and half European - keys and vocal harmonies - resulting in a balanced album with much of energy and less (if any) of repetitive/boring formulas.As for the songs' value in particular? The 'sting' bears the same taste as in 2003. Hence, there's melody allover with Hungry For Love, Keep On Rolling, more American rockers will put you down (Do You Know, No Better Times, Coming Back To You, Hang On), the European effect is imminent in tracks like No More Lies, Love In Your Eyes, Long Gone, Winter Night, Change Your Heart and Road OF Desire (weird leads), while more slow-tempo chills may rise up with On An On.All these, with an indeed powerful voice (a Frenchman singing English ain't an easy task, I guess) plus some dominating guitars/keys hard work and a solid rhythm section underneath so as to establish a proper 'heavy' base that even melodic Metal warriors may find attractive. Angel In Disguise; an album destined to haunt your 'melodic' dreams anno 2008. Can't wait to see the market feedback. Else, you/we'll get what you/we deserve. And, to the band: please, don't release your next album in 2013.P.S.: A limited edition of the CD includes also Do You Feel My Love and an impressive cover version of Michael Jackson's Thriller.

Line-Up:

Olivier Del Valle - Vocals
Patrice Louis - Guitars, Backing Vocals
Thierry Dagnicourt - Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Nicolas Fixy - Bass, Backing Vocals
Benjamin Bergerolle - Drums

production:

Artwork, Design – Marc Leroy
Composed By, Arranged By, Producer – ShannoN
Mixed By – Thierry Dagnicourt
Mastered By – Brett Caldas-Lima

Tracklist:

01. Do You Know
02. Hungry for love
03. No More Lies
04. Keep on Rolling
05. No Better Time
06. On & on
07. Love in Your Eyes
08. Long Gone
09. Winter Night
10. Coming Back to You
11. Hang on
12. Change Your Heart
13. Road of Desire



Download links for all albums only on our blog here: http://goodmetalandhar.do.am/

[Horex]

Shannon - Circus Of Lost Souls (2013)













Year : 2013
Style : Melodic Hard Rock
Country : France
Audio : 320 kbps + all scans
Size : 148 mb

Bio:

Formed in the beginning of 1998 by Patrice LOUIS (Guitar) and Thierry DAGNICOURT (Keyboards), SHANNON plays a melodic hard rock that sticks to the skin. During the spring of 1998, the band enroles ex-JANNYLEE's singer Olivier DEL VALLE behind the mike, then Claude THILL (ex-DER KAISER) playing bass and Maxence PILO (ex-HEAVENLY) at the drum kit join the band to finally complete the line-up. Their debut and eponymous album released in November 2003 on the Anvilcorp. label and distributed by Wagram has been unanimously praised and regarded by the international press as one of the most impressive and brilliant record of the year in the Classic 80's US melodic rock style. With catchy hooklines, infectious choruses and a groovy and powerful rhythm section, SHANNON is the perfect alchimy between classic US melodic hard rock and typical european influenced NWOBHM sound, delivering a music as powerful as melodic. After the release of the album, the band takes the road and shares the stage with re-knowned artists such as AXXIS, PINK CREAM 69 and Jeff Scott SOTO in Paris. In the middle of 2005, SHANNON sees its first line-up changes with the departure of Claude and Maxence, immediately replaced by, respectively, Nicolas FIXY (Bass) and Benjamin BERGEROLLE (Drums), both formerly in French epic-progressive TAÏ PHONG. Strongly encouraged with the success of their self-titled album, not only in France, but widely abroad, the band has taken the way to the studio to record, more motivated than ever. WORLD OF DESIRE, a 5-track demo EP, was released in 2007. SHANNON played several shows to present the new songs and was selected to play before GOTTHARD at the RAISMES FESTIVAL. Some special guests are invited and did some backing vocals (Gianni PONTILLO, Ben SOTTO, Ben VENET, Bruno LEVESQUE, Jens WALKENHORST) and a duet with Renaud HANTSON was recorded. The band signed with ArtistService at the end of 2007 and ANGEL IN DISGUISE, the brand new album, even more powerful than their debut, is world wide distributed by MusicBuyMail. Never missing an opportunity to play live, the band played eventually at the PARIS METAL FRANCE FESTIVAL. After been part of the september nights open air festival with Axxis and Krokus, the band has released his third album "circus of lost souls" and will promote it on stage around europe in 2013...

Album:

Originally formed in 1998 and originating from France, SHANNON play melodic Hard Rock with a twinge of Power Metal. Their sound is rooted in the 80s and they would fit alongside legendary bands PRETTY MAIDS, PINK CREAM 69 and GOTTHARD perfectly. At times, the band struggles with song direction and their song writing suffers for it.On the power ballad “Can’t Stop the Rain” the band catches some momentum and provides us with their best song. This is the catchiest song by far and the melodies of vocalist Olivier Del Valle are his most creative. Guitarist Patrice Louis plays a heartfelt solo that fits perfectly with the music. The other power ballad “In Your Eyes” while not quite as strong is also one of the more accessible tunes on “Circus of Lost Souls.” Nice backing vocals accentuate the captivating melody and we are once again treated to some tasteful guitar playing. I am at a loss why the band doesn’t stick to the power ballad genre more often. They are more suited for this type of material.Opening track “Ride to Live” incorporates more of their Power Metal influences and it fits SHANNON’s sound brilliantly. The melodies are infectious and the driving tempo urges the listener to pump his fist and bang their head. The same can be said for the dynamic “Forever Now” which has the feel of latter day PRETTY MAIDS, another bright spot.When the band plays straightforward and with more of an 80s vibe they lose their way. Songs like “Drive Me Crazy” and “Let’s Make Rock” are cliché filled and drag the momentum down. Their strength is clearly when they incorporate more Power Metal influences and the excellent power ballads. The main issue is the record is too long. With 13 songs there is a lot of filler material. They could have cut fours songs and had a solid release on their hands.If SHANNON can realize their strengths as a band they have a ton of upside. The musicianship is in place and they have some tremendous songs but on the next album they have to realize that sometimes quality is more important than quantity.

Line-Up:

Olivier Del Valle (Vocals)
Patrice Louis (Guitars)
Nicolas Fixy (Bass)
Thierry Dagnicourt (Keyboards)
Benjamin Bergerolle (Drums)

Special Guests:

Harry HESS (Harem Scarem) - duet on "Can't Stop The Rain"
Lionel BLANC & Roland PIERREHUMBERT (Sideburn) - Guest on "Let's Make Rock"
Paul SABU (AOR Artist, Rock Producer) - Guest on "I don't Need You Anymore", "Ride To Live", "Half Way To Heaven"
Tony MILLS (Shy, TNT) - Guest on "Dust To Dust", "Forever Now"
Mike FREELAND, Chris & Tino TROY (Praying Mantis) - Guest on "In Your Eyes"

Tracklist:

01. Ride To Live (3:20)
02. Forever Now (4:08)
03. Halfway To Heaven (3:37)
04. Can't Stop The Rain (4:44)
05. Don't Get Me Wrong (3:27)
06. Dust To Dust (2:54)
07. Death On The Run (5:33)
08. Let's Make Rock (3:23)
09. Kick It Down (3:47)
10. I Don't Need You Anymore (4:07)
11. In Your Eyes (5:34)
12. Drive Me Crazy (4:25)
13. Smalltown Boy (4:06)



Download links for all albums only on our blog here: http://goodmetalandhar.do.am/