|
|
|
|
ANTHENORA BAND PAGE
 ANTHENORA
|
||
|
CURRENT NAME
|
Anthenora | |
|
FORMER NAMES
|
- | |
|
ORIGIN
|
Italy | |
|
STATUS
|
Active | |
|
FORMED IN
|
- | |
|
LABEL
|
Locomotive Music | |
|
GENRE
|
Heavy metal | |
|
STYLE
|
- | |
|
LYRICAL THEME
|
- | |
| BAND ADDED | 2004-03-20, 00:00 | |
| LAST UPDATE | 2004-03-20, 00:00 | |
Biography | Band members | Discography | Shows | Forum
| Band biography |
Tha’s the image tha came to my mind the first time I saw the band from Cuneo on the stage. That night I was deeply struck by the weackedness and the aggressiveness they put when playing. The band was oozing pure HEAVY METAL, they were able to tranform small provincial club into an arena for gladiators. Certainly, the good old Lemmy would approve of an attitude like that and, believe me, in an era were cold sampled drums and synthetized fiddles play the lord and master, this is really a rare thing! But the ANTHENORA’s transformation over the years from an ordinary band into a killing war-machine required hard work and sacrifices but what comes out of all this is the cohesion of the band’s members, ANTHENORA is a real clan!! The story begins in the far-off 1989, in the small town of Saluzzo (Cuneo), where three school-fellows who were shocked to see IRON MAIDEN’s performance at the Monsters of Rock in Modena the autumn before, decide to form a heavy metal band. For the band’s monicker they take Dante Aligheri as starting point, ANTHENORA is, in facts, circle in Dante’s Inferno (Chant XXXII). The three founders are still in the band: LUIGI BONONSEA (vocals), STEFANO POMERO (guitars) and FABIO SMARO (drums) represent the clan’s hard socle then SAMMY PERASSI (bass) and FABRIZIO GIACOSA (guitars) join the “historic trio” and with this line-up the band make their first live experiences. In 1991 the five-pieces from Saluzzo realize his first demo tape: “BRING ME TO HELL”, recorded at Dracma studios it contains very good songs like “PAPE’ SATAN ALEPPE” and “THE GREATEST MAN” it’s an energetic assembly of youthful enthusiasm!!
There’s no point in my telling you that, unfortunately, at present, this record is nowhere to be found. In summer 1991 the band made a first real tour including many dates througout the province. The live shows’ tracklist included the song taken from “BRING ME TO HELL” and many covers by Judas Priest, Saxon, Deep Purple and especially Iron Maiden.
In december 1993 ANTHENORA strikes again with “HERETICAL SYMPHONIES” recorded at the Dracma studios in Turin as the previous demo. This second work is maybe more mature than the previous one and shows the dark side of ANTHENORA’s sonund. The tracks are relly beautiful, especially the opener “KING OF SCOTLAND”, “HERESY” and the instrumental song “REQUIEM”. The artwork is very detailed and the front cover was so successfull that the famous HERETICAL SYMPHONIE’s sword is still printed on the back of the band’s T-shirts and even painted on GIGI’s motorcycle (…when the faith is faith!!!). To support HERETICAL SYMPHONIES the band play throughout Piedmont and Liguria taking part in different summer festivals. Time goes by and because of the alternative-pop explosion our defenders of the metallian faith fall in a difficult position as the whole metal movement is in deep crisis. Between ’93 and ’96 the bigs fail ( Bruce Dickinson leave Iron Maiden and that’s the prelude of the darkest period of the british band, Metallica turn the page with the “trendy” Load and all the other historical bands like Judas Priest, Saxon, Helloween etc. seem to be at the end), so there is a lack of points of reference and credibility.
This situation is reflected even in the ANTHENORA’s microcosm and the band starts closing in itself, the live acts begin to be very few and at the end of 1995 FABRIZIO and SAMMY leave the clan. Anyway the hard socle doesen’t give-up and shortly afterwards ERMANNO MANCARDI (guitar) and STEVE BALOCCO (bass) join the band. With this line-up ANTHENORA find steadiness and in autumn ’96 the band is chosen to take part in the HEINEKEN TOUR, a competition sponsored by the famous beer trademark. ANTHENORA reaches the final and is awarded as the second best band by the well-known TV speacker Nick “ the night fly”. In the following period the piedmontese five-pieces performs lot of giggs but at the end of 1998, they decide to shake this crystallized situation, and turn in a IRON MAIDEN TRIBUTE BAND. This idea represents for ANTHENORA a real challenge, because to embody the best metal band ever, is very difficult from all points of view, but the love for the STEVE HARRIS’ band won and, after months of hard rehearsals, the IRON MAIDEN TRIBUTE make his debut into a small club near Cuneo (16/04/1999) and the performance has a big success. Few days later the guys come back in studio and realize their third work: DEMO’NS. the CD contains 4 tracks: three new songs: “ECLIPSE”, “SOGNI DI GLORIA”, “SPEED” and a IRON MAIDEN’s cover “DEJA VU” (taken from the album “Somewhere in time”). The tracks are really cool and the band demonstrate a new awareness doing original songs.
In february 2000 the famous club “4 Assi” in Turin, a real metal-temple, gives a chance to ANTHENORA, the guys go on stage with an incredible fury and the odiens is shocked. The concert is a success and the following dates has been such a triumph that the club’s owner gives them a special prize as the only band able to assemble over 1000 fans in only three live-shows. After the “4 Assi” gigs, the IRON MAIDEN TRIBUTE cross Italy from west to east and the reputation of the band goes over the italian borders: in the summer 2000 they perform at the well-known “SEMANA NEGRA” in GIJON (E). In autumn ANTHENORA play as special guest of DOMINE, in their turinese concert, and in the early 2001 GIGI, the frontman of the band, perform some IRON MAIDEN’s classics with the famous ANGRA’s axeman KIKO LOUREIRO. In the meantime, STEVE, the band’s bass-player, is taking part in NICK SAVIO’s side project BLACK SAILER. The WHITE SKULL guitarist should bring out his studio album for PICK UP/ METAL BLADE in autumn 2001.
There’s no point in my telling you that because of the many engagements of our guys they will have to work hard, in a similar situation ERMANNO leave the band cause of this on the road life. The new guitarist is GABRIELE BRUNI and his debut at INDIAN’S SALOON in Milan has been really great!! With the new -comer the band will be in Switzerland at the end of june and then they will begin the studio session for their first official LP. Certainly, they’ ll still have to go a long way before definitive consent, but our five metallians are not children anymore, they are men united by a deep friendship, a friendship that is born on the battlefields, a friendship that melt our guys in one fist…a fist of fucking heavy metal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
| Discuss this band at our forum |
| Current members Add - Fetch | |||
| |||
| |||
| |||
| |||
| |||
| Former members Add - Fetch | |||
| |||
| |||
| |||
| Session musicians Add - Fetch | |||
| Unknown / none |
| Buy Anthenora albums |
| Official releases Add | ||
8 / 10 Read our review here | ||
| Tour dates / gigs |
