Former KISS Guitarist BRUCE KULICK To Guest On New AVANTASIA Album

Former KISS guitarist Bruce Kulick (pictured below) was in the studio earlier this month recording lead guitar tracks for the forthcoming album from EDGUY frontman Tobias Sammet's AVANTASIA project, due in March 2013. Bruce previously appeared on AVANTASIA's "The Wicked Symphony" and "Angel Of Babylon" CDs and Tobias contributed guest vocals to Bruce's last solo release, "BK3".

Commented Tobias: "Bruce and I have been friends for some years now. He is a lovely person and an amazing guitarist. It was really obvious I would ask him to come on board for AVANTASIA once again. Two of the tracks he plays on are more than 10 minutes long, and they include screaming and whammy-bar-driven stuff as well as anthemic MEAT LOAF-ish-type melodies. I love it, because it's got such an old-school quality, and Bruce just has it! Class act!"

The new AVANTASIA album is being recorded in part at VOX Klangstudio in Bendestorf, Germany with producer Sascha Paeth (KAMELOT, EDGUY, EPICA, RHAPSODY). The CD will once again be a rock opera based on a conceptual story very similar to the early AVANTASIA albums and will feature "a legion of guest instrumentalists and vocalists," according to a press release. The drum tracks on the effort were laid down by Russell Gilbrook of URIAH HEEP.

Tobias originally wanted to put AVANTASIA to rest after the release of the "The Flying Opera - Around The World In 20 Days" concert DVD in April 2011, but he has since had a change of heart. He explains, "Even though I love to record and tour with EDGUY, I didn't foresee how much I need AVANTASIA when I decided to finish this chapter of my life in 2011. I didn't know if there would be another AVANTASIA album one day, but I didn‘t feel like doing it. After the worldwide success of the latest studio releases, an arena world tour that was sold out pretty much everywhere, collaborations with childhood heroes like Alice Cooper, Klaus Meine, Rudolf Schenker, Eric Singer of KISS, etc. I 'knew' that I had said everything I could possibly say in the name of AVANTASIA. But that's not what AVANTASIA is all about. I wanna create more great music, I wanna create more fantasy worlds, the bigger and the more epic, the better. And listening to the material that I have created for this forthcoming chapter in the history of AVANTASIA, I know there is no way I am not going to do it! I have got the feeling and the certainty that this is absolutely meant to happen and to be!"

AVANTASIA is planning to embark on a headlining tour for in April 2013. Also in the works are several summer festival appearances, as well as South American and Asian tours at the end of the summer.