Scorpions : Tesla Tour

Scorpions will return to U.S. shores to headline an arena tour in support of the new Sanctuary Records album Unbreakable. Special guests on this tour are hard-rock favorites Tesla and the Keith Emerson Band featuring keyboard legend Keith Emerson. The tour kicks off October 21 in Everett, WA.

Scorpions Unbreakable Deadly Sting

The long-awaited Unbreakable has been hailed as a return to form for Scorpions. The Associated Press review of Unbreakable says Scorpions clearly still pack a deadly sting. Scorpions are the most globally successful band to ever come out of Germany. In fact, Scorpions are one of the few heavy-metal bands to achieve worldwide stardom.

Vocalist Klaus Meine, rhythm guitarist Rudolf Schenker, lead guitarist Matthias Jabs, drummer James Kottak and new bass guitarist Pawel Maciwoda have given Unbreakable a shot of the classic Scorpions sound.

For more than 35 years Scorpions have stood out in the world of heavy metal with a unique style. Meine and Schenker have been the core of the band since the 1972 debut Lonesome Crow ; the former’s distinctive voice and the latter’s meaty guitar complement each other perfectly. Lead guitarists in the early days included Rudolf’s brother Michael Schenker and Uli Jon Roth and they definitely provided individual styles; when Jabs joined for 1979’s Lovedrive he provided a sleek, rich style and tone that pushed Scorpions to even greater creative heights.

Scorpions earned their die-hard fans the way every band with long-term careers does: nonstop touring and progressively stronger albums. Breakthrough success in the United States occurred with 1982’s Top 10 album Blackout and its hit single No One Like You. Upon the release of the 1984 smash Love At First Sting, Scorpions became a genuine phenomenon; Rock You Like a Hurricane earned a prime spot in the pantheon of Rock N Roll anthems. 1990’s emotional ballad Wind of Change from the Crazy World album was recognized worldwide as a symbol of the fall of the Berlin Wall that split Germany in two; the song became a worldwide hit, reaching # 4 in the United States and earning gold sales certification.

More than anything, Scorpions are primarily a live band. And crisscrossing Earth many times over like Scorpions is something that no other rock group has matched. In addition to monster classics like the previously mentioned No One Like You, Rock You Like a Hurricane and Wind of Change, fans will enjoy hearing favorites like The Zoo, Blackout, Big City Nights, Coast to Coast and many others on this U.S. trek.

The band has toured throughout North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia. In fact, you’d be hard pressed to name a country or region on this planet that Scorpions have not performed in. 2002 even saw Scorpions become the first Western rock group to perform a full-fledged tour of Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (the countries that made up the former Soviet Union).

Some of the biggest concert events in history — literally — have featured Scorpions. Here is a partial list of these appearances:

* The first Rock In Rio show in Brazil in 1985

* Headlining Europe’s Monsters Of Rock shows

* Michael Jackson & Friends benefit concert at Olympic Stadium in Munich in 1999

* Headlining a show for 750,000 people in Krakow, Poland, in 2000

* Moscow Music Peace Festival in 1989

* Roger Waters presentation of Pink Floyd’s The Wall in 1990 at Potsdamer Platz in the reunified Berlin

On a related note, Scorpions are one of the few bands ever to consistently sell out performances at New York City’s legendary arena, Madison Square Garden.

The global appeal of Scorpions is even felt by the world’s most important political and cultural officials. Mikhail Gorbachev, the last communist head of state of the former Soviet Union, invited Scorpions to take part in a rock music summit at the Kremlin on December 14, 1991.

Scorpions joined the revered Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra to perform at the EXPO world fair on June 22, 2000, in the band’s hometown of Hanover; the result was the Moment Of Glory album, for which Meine wrote the title song.

So far, the Scorpions story includes the release of more than 20 studio, live and compilation albums.

Tesla Celebrating Sucess of Into The Now

The fans have proven their hunger for new music from Tesla. The Sacramento-based quintet launched Into the Now, its first album of new material in 10 years, in spring 2004 and this Sanctuary Records release has already sold more than 120,000 copies. It debuted in the Top 30 of the Billboard album chart.

Tesla started its successful Into the Now promotional campaign with a handful of sold-out acoustic performances at select Hard Rock Cafe locations and then hit the ground running with a regular, full-blown U.S. tour; the band played in front of capacity crowds all along the way.

The next phase of Tesla’s hard work in promoting Into the Now will be a fall 2004 arena tour with German metal innovators Scorpions and the Keith Emerson Band featuring keyboard legend Keith Emerson.

With Into the Now, vocalist Jeff Keith, guitarist Frank Hannon, guitarist Tommy Skeoch, bass guitarist Brian Wheat and drummer Troy Luccketta were determined to make the strongest, most deeply personal album of their career and they succeeded. The first single, Caught In A Dream, was a big crossover hit at both active rock and heritage rock radio; it was a Top 30 single on BDS and reached # 5 on the Radio & Records chart, spent a total of 20 weeks in the Top 20 and was retired after being on the chart the maximum number of weeks.

Few, if any, of Tesla’s alleged peers from the 1980s could release an all-new album today that could match or exceed the performance of Into the Now. Although Tesla is quite happy about the reception of Into the Now, the band is not about to sit back and rest in a state of complacent satisfaction. Extensive touring is Tesla’s plan of attack for the foreseeable future. It took two years of intensive writing and recording to complete Into the Now and half of its songs are featured in Tesla’s current set — much to the delight of the fans. Classics such as Modern Day Cowboy, Little Suzi, Heaven’s Trail (No Way Out), Signs and Love Song are still integral parts of Tesla concerts but the new songs fit perfectly alongside them.

Scorpions : Tesla : Keith Emerson 2004 Tour Dates

DATE… .. CITY… .. VENUE

Thursday, October 21… .. Everett, WA… .. Everett Events Center

Saturday, October 23… .. Portland, OR… .. Portland Memorial Coliseum

Sunday, October 24… .. Boise, ID… .. Bank of America Center

Tuesday, October 26… .. West Valley, UT… .. E-Center

Wednesday, October 27… .. Denver, CO… .. Magness Arena

Friday, October 29… .. Rosemont, IL… .. Allstate Arena

Saturday, October 30… .. Detroit, MI… .. Cobo Hall

Sunday, October 31… .. Grand Rapids, MI… .. Van Andel Arena

Wednesday, November 3… .. Cedar Rapids, IA… .. Five Seasons Center

Thursday, November 4… .. St. Paul, MN… .. Xcel Energy Center