Artension

Artension was an American Neoclassical Progressive metal band from Cortland, New York, founded in 1992/1993 by keyboardist Vitalij Kuprij under the name Atlantis Rising, and disbanded in 2005. The band split up after recording seven albums from 1996 to 2004, but reformed in 2016 with the intention of releasing an eighth album.

In 1992/1993, the Ukrainian - American keyboardist Vitalij Kuprij, who was studying Classical music in Switzerland at the time, where he met guitarist Roger Staffelbach, who was studying at the jazz school in Lucerne. Shortly afterwards they founded the band Atlantis Rising, which held several instrumental performances in Switzerland. After several demos, they came into contact with Mike Varney from Shrapnel Records, who showed interest in the band and also suggested adding a singer to the band. Vitalij Kuprij already knew drummer Mike Terrana from one of Yngwie Malmsteen's tours. His friend, bassist Kevin Chown, also joined the band.

Chown had known Terrana since May 1996, when they had started working together in Tony MacAlpine's band. Varney had introduced the two, to Atlantis Rising through a demo and Terrana organized the members move to the USA. With the addition of members, it was decided to rename the band Artension. The name is composed of the English words "art" and "tension". In August 1996, the recording of the debut album began at Prarie Sun Studios in Cotati , California.

Still without a singer, the band rehearsed for three days and began recording on the fourth day, when John West joined the band as singer after Mike Varney had introduced various musicians to the band. After a photo session, the group began writing the lyrics, which was mostly done within two to three days. After recording, which lasted a day and a half, Mike Terrana and Kevin Chown returned to Los Angeles. Within two weeks, the remaining recordings were completed by the remaining members. The album consists of demo songs that had been re-recorded. The album was released in 1996 under the name "Into the Eye of the Storm".

A year later, the second album was recorded, although Kevin Chown had moved to Detroit by then , while Mike Terrana was still living in Los Angeles. The recording consists, in contrast to its predecessor, of completely new material. Rehearsals lasted three to four days and again took place in Prarie Sun Studios. Kevin Chown was present for about five to six days during recording. The album was released in 1997 under the name "Phoenix Rising". In 1998 the group toured Japan. Because Vitalij Kuprij had problems getting a visa , the band only toured Japan with four members. The band spent three days in Osaka and four days in Tokyo.

On the third album, Shane Gaalaas can be heard as the new drummer and bassist Kevin Chown had also left the band. The album was released in 1999 under the name "Forces of Nature" , with John Onder as the new bassist. As with the two previous albums, James Murphy appears as a guest guitarist. The next album, "Machine", followed in 2000 with the same line-up.

For the 2001 album "Sacred Pathways" the band switched to the Italian label Frontiers Records. In the meantime, Mike Terrana and Kevin Chown had returned to the band as drummer and bassist. In 2003 and 2005, two more albums were released, "New Discovery" and "Future World". On the latter album,  Steve DiGiorgio can be heard as bassist. In 2005, the band disbanded.

According to Martin Popoff in The Collector's Guide of Heavy Metal Volume 3: The Nineties, "Into the Eye of the Storm" offers the glamour and drama of Yngwie Malmsteen, Deep Purple and Graham Bonnet. John West's vocals in particular are reminiscent of Graham Bonnet.

On "Phoenix Rising" he sounds like a mix of Joe Lynn Turner, Jørn Lande and Doogie White. The music sounds like a mix of Rainbow, Hair metal and Progressive metal. The group also sounds like 1980s Deep Purple with Joe Lynn Turner on the vocals. On "Forces of Nature" the band slowly develops into a Power and Speed metal institution. There are also improvisations in the style of Yngwie Malmsteen's band.

David Perri wrote in The Collector's Guide of Heavy Metal Volume 4: The '00s about "New Discovery" that Artension is an important band in progressive metal and can be seen as an extension of Alan Parsons, Dream Theater and Stratovarius. The music sounds influenced by the 1970s and now a bit old-fashioned. The music is also comparable to Dream Theater in the days of Charlie Dominici.

Both Matthias Breusch from Rock Hard and Renald Mienert from Eclipsed attest to the musicians, and especially Vitalij Kuprij, a technical brilliance that has not been seen in composition since the debut album Into the Eye of the Storm. Matthias Mineur of Metal Hammer described the music on "Into the Eye of the Storm" as Progressive metal, which can be classified between Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force and Dream Theater.

In a later issue, Detlef Dengler reviewed the album "Machine" and described the music as technically demanding "with more remarkable melodies". He also described the songs as "melodic, progressive and intelligently structured power metal with a seventies flair". In another issue, Vitalij Kuprij stated that he first writes the songs on the piano and then records it before working together on the arrangement. He was encouraged by his father from an early age, who sent him to various schools and academies to improve his piano playing.

He also learned a lot by working with James Murphy, Mark Boals, Greg Howe, Tony MacAlpine and Steve DiGiorgio. In the same issue, Dengler reviewed the album "Sacred Pathways" and described the music as technically sophisticated metal, which also incorporates Classical music. The songs are melodic and catchy, with the vocals and the dominant and sophisticated keyboard playing being particularly characteristic.

A year later, Andreas Schöwe ​​reviewed the album "New Discovery" and noted that, in contrast to its predecessor, it is less melodic and more oriented towards Hard rock. The use of the keyboard creates a "mid-80s/Rainbow/Purple ambience". The drums are driving, while Roger Staffelbach plays the electric guitar with "Yngwie Malmsteen-esque virtuosity".

The song material is catchy and quickly accessible and sounds like a mix of Yngwie Malmsteen, Ritchie Blackmore, Pretty Maids, Royal Hunt and Axel Rudi Pell. In 2005, Marc Halupczok reviewed the album "Future World" in the same magazine . One weakness of the album is the songwriting. In addition, the music is ordinary Progressive metal. The vocals are overshadowed by the instruments, especially the keyboard.

The band reformed in 2016 with the intention of releasing an eighth album, but that never happened.

From 2009 Vitalij Kuprij was also a member of the Trans Siberian Orchestra.

On February 22, 2024, the Trans Siberian Orchestra confirmed that Vitalij Kuprij had died on February 20. The cause of death was cardiac arrest as confirmed by Vitalij's wife via Facebook post on the same day. Savatage and Trans Siberian Orchestra vocalist Zak Stevens paid tribute, saying "There is no such thing as replacing a spirit like him".

Into the Eye of the Storm (1996)

Phoenix Rising (1997)

Forces of Nature (1999)

Machine (2000)

Sacred Pathways (2001)

New Discovery (2002)

Future World (2004)

Roger Staffelbach – guitar (1993–2005, 2016–2024)

John West – vocals (1996–2005, 2016–2024)

Chris Caffery – guitar (2016–2024)

Vitalij Kuprij – keyboard (1993–2005, 2016–2024; † 2024)

Mike Terrana – drums (1996–1998, 2001–2005)

Kevin Chown – bass (1996–1998, 2001–2004)

John Onder – bass (1999–2000)

Shane Gaalaas – drums (1999–2000)

Steve Di Giorgio – bass (2004–2005)