Biographies

Wednesdy 13 (USA)


The genre of music is a mix of glam and punk with lyrics heavily inspried by horror movies. All music and lyrics are written by the vocalist Wednesday 13. All guitars, bass, keyboards and vocals on the recordings are by Wednesday 13. Coner played drums on their debut album, whilst Kid Kid and Piggy D provided back up vocals.
After Wednesday 13's primary band the Murderdolls went on hiatus, he went on a solo tour of the United Kingdom in March 2004, called the "Graveyard A Go-Go" tour. For his live performances he was joined by members of Florida horror punk band Death Becomes You, though this was not meant to be permanent.

Permanent line-up
When Wednesday 13 returned to North Carolina in June 2004 he began to put together a more permanent band, with whom he would perform with under the Wednesday 13 name. He brought in a former Frankenstein Drag Queens member Ikky on guitar. The band took heavily influenced by the likes of KISS and Alice Cooper, while at the same time not straying far from the band members previous horror punk related projects. In September 2004 Ikky was replaced with Matt Montgomery also known as Piggy D.Together the Wednesday 13 band toured Europe in November 2004 on the "Look What The Bats Dragged In" tour, some of dated were supported by English rockers Viking Skull.


Transylvania 90210
In 2005 after touring, they released their debut album "Transylvania 90210", and made a promotional video for the track "I Walked With A Zombie", the video depicted the band members in footage from the original Night of the Living Dead horror movie. Following the albums release the group embarked on a tour of the United Kingdom; "Tour from the Crypt".

Also in 2005 they played on the main-stage of Download Festival at Donington, but perhaps the crowning moment for the group so far was when they opened some shows for their idol, Alice Cooper around Halloween.

Wednesday 13 parted ways with Roadrunner Records, before signing a new deal with Rykodisc, which then released a new album on named Fang Bang on September 12th, 2006.

 Member changes in 2006 / 2007
During March and April of 2006 all of the members of the band parted ways with Wednesday 13, first the bassist Kid Kid, to concentrate fully on his solo project. It was announced that Argyle Goolsby of Blitzkid would be filling in at three live shows, before the band found a permanent replacement. Then Wednesday 13 announced that guitarist Piggy D and Ghastly had also left the band, Wednesday 13 stated that he maintains an amicable relationship with all the former members and wished them luck.

On the band's official website, Wednesday 13 wrote that there would be a special Wednesday 13 line-up for a Cancer research benefit concert, and the following gig. This line-up brought Wednesday 13 and his Murderdolls band mate Eric Griffin back together for the first time since 2003. Griffin took on guitar playing duties, also joining him was drummer Racci Shay and bassist Brix from the band Dope . It was later announced that this line-up, aside from Brix would be permanent.

The band toured in early 2007 with Vains of Jenna, and recently announced a summer US tour with The 69 eyes, Fair to Midland & Night Kills the Day

As of Friday August 3rd, 2007 Wednesday 13's Tour page, MySpace, and Eric Griffin's website stated that Eric has reportedly left the Wednesday 13 tour band. No information was stated on why Eric is no longer a member of the band other than the fact that he will not be the guitarist on the Fall 2007 tour. Also it was stated that no replacement has been found and anyone interested should contact mule@horrorhigh.com

The notification was as seen...

"Wednesday 13 announces the departure of guitarist Eric Griffin
As Wednesday 13 gears up for his fall tour, it will be without guitarist Eric Griffin. At this time no replacement has been found. Interested parties can send their info to mule@horrorhigh.com
“Eric is a great guy and has been a huge asset to the touring band for the past year. He is an amazing player and will add new life to whatever band he joins! It will be extremely difficult to find a replacement.”
Wednesday 13 will be heading out on his U.S. “Ghouls On Parade” tour for the month of October and then heading overseas for his “Fan Bang” Fan Appreciation tour."


Members

 Current
Wednesday 13 - vocals and guitar (2004-)
J-Sin Trioxin - guitar (2007-)
Staci Grim - guitar (2007-) (only Ghouls on Parade Tour)
Racci Shay - drums (2006-)
Nate Manor - bass (2006-)

Former
Eric Griffin - guitar (2006-2007)
Ikky - guitar (2004)
Piggy D - guitar (2004-2006)
Kid Kid - bass (2004-2006)
Ghastly - drums (2004-2006)

Live members
Nicodemous - bass (2004)
Christopher Lee - drums (2004)
Gory - guitar (2004)
Brix Milner - bass (2006)
Argyle Goolsby - bass (2006)

 Discography
Transylvania 90210: Songs of Death, Dying, and the Dead (2005)
Fang Bang (August 29, 2006)
Skeletons (Late 2007/Early 2008)

Music Videos
I Walked With A Zombie (2005)
Bad Things (2005)
My Home Sweet Homicide (2006)


Official website: http://www.wednesday13.com

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Within Temptation (NED)


Within Temptation is a Symphonic Metal band from the Netherlands. The band was founded in 1996 by vocalist Sharon den Adel and guitarist Robert Westerholt. Their music is variously described as symphonic metal, although in an interview, Sharon Den Adel said they fell into a symphonic rock genre.

Directly after the release of their first album Enter, the band became prominent in the underground scene. It would however take until 2001, when they became known by the general public, with the single Ice Queen from the album Mother Earth, which reached position 2 in the charts. Since then, the band won the Conamus export prijs four years in a row. Their next album The Silent Force immediately reached first position in the charts. Their latest album, the The Heart of Everything also reached this position immediately.

Formation
Long-term partners Robert Westerholt (on guitar) and Sharon den Adel (vocals) began the band in 1996 , quickly adding Jeroen van Veen on bass guitar, Michiel Papenhove on guitar, Martijn Westerholt at the keyboard and (following a succession of short-lived drummers), Ivar de Graaf. They were quickly offered a recording contract and signed to DSFA Records later that year, beginning work on their first release.


Enter (1997)
Enter, the debut album, was released in 1997 . The album was well received and the band embarked on a four gig tour across the country, after which they were asked to perform at the Dynamo Open Air festival in Eindhoven, one of the Netherlands' largest heavy metal festivals. The band rounded out 1997 by embarking on their first international tour, of Germany and Austria. Also subsequently Ivar de Graaf left the band and was replaced by Ciro Palma.

The sound of Enter was very melodic and heavily relied on fast keyboards and drums and heavy guitar riffs. Also prominent on this album are death grunts by Robert Westerholt and members of Orphanage.

The Dance (1998-1999)
In 1998 the band continued to tour actively - their profile had elevated them to the main stage at Dynamo for the 1998 event. However, Within Temptation had released no new material (and did not have plans for a second album at this point), to which end they elected to release an EP, The Dance.
Finally taking a break from touring, 1999 was largely a sabbatical year for the band. They took the opportunity to construct their own studio, as well as returning to personal pursuits, with plans to return to the fold the next year.

 Mother Earth (2000-2003)
2000 was an eventful year for the band as they returned to touring, playing three Dutch festivals; Waterpop, Bospop and Lowlands. In addition they went to work on their second album, releasing Mother Earth in the Low Countries on December 1st. The album was a hit, receiving positive reviews across the board and rooted itself in the Dutch charts.

The band first released the single Our Farewell, which never entered the charts. The second single from Mother Earth, Ice Queen, was regarded as the breakthrough release for the band; in 2001 it climbed to number 4 in the Netherlands but was their first number one single when it climbed to the top in Belgium. The success rebounded to Mother Earth, which continued to climb in the Dutch album chart, ending the year at number 3.

2001 also saw a number of changes in personnel; Ruud Adrianus Jolie was added as a second guitarist, drummer de Graaf was replaced by Stephen van Haestregt, and Martijn Westerholt (suffering from infectious mononucleosis) was replaced by Martijn Spierenburg. Westerholt later started the band Delain.

The band achieved still wider appeal in 2002 with their first concert in France and even a headline gig in Mexico City. They attained their first major award, the Dutch Silver Harp. They bolstered this by embarking on a major international tour supporting Paradise Lost in 2003 and re-releasing Mother Earth on the GUN Records label across more European countries; it was a particularly large success in Germany, where it went platinum and reached number 7 in the charts; the re-release of Ice Queen also charted well in the top 30. In turn the Benelux regions got a different release, a cover of Kate Bush's Running Up That Hill. The band highlighted music festivals across the Netherlands and their Mother Earth tour DVD claimed the prestigious Edison Award.

The Silent Force (2004-2006)
Plans for the band's third album came to fruition in 2004 , with the release of The Silent Force on November 15th, 2004 across Europe. Daniel Gibson's production was an instant number 1 in the band's heartland and charted well in many European countries. In support of the release they embarked on another large international tour in 2005, with dates across the continent (including their first major UK concert in London) and a one-off show in Dubai. Stand My Ground and Memories, the first singles from the new album, continued the band's run of chart success, culminating in a second Edison Award. Stand My Ground was promoted on the trailer for the film Blood and Chocolate.

In January 2006 , Within Temptation won the Dutch Pop Prize (best Dutch pop contribution) and Dutch Export Prize (best-selling Dutch artist outside The Netherlands), the latter given to them for the third time in a row. The band also reported that they were busy working on their next album, due to be released during the fall, and that they would start playing at festivals starting in April, in addition to going on an international tour at the end of the year.

The Heart of Everything (2007-present)
The new album The Heart of Everything from Within Temptation was released on the 9th of March in the Netherlands, and was released on the 24th of July in the United States. The release dates for multiple countries are found on their official Myspace page. Two more tracks, "The Howling" and "Sounds of Freedom", were recorded as promotion material for the video game "The Chronicles of Spellborn", and the first of these opens the album. The full track listing was revealed on the 10th of January.The band embarked on their first North American tour with Lacuna Coil in May to promote the North American release of the album. Roadrunner Records also released a limited edition EP called The Howling (EP), which was available only at Hot Topic stores.

The album debuted at #1 in the Dutch Album 100, making it their second number-one album. It's also the first time a Dutch act ever charted within the United World Chart. It peaked at #38 selling 50,000 copies in their first week. It reached top 10 in eight countries and top 100 in eleven countries. As of March 30, 2007 the album has sold 150,000 copies.

The song "What Have You Done" was the first single released from the album. Its music video was recorded on the 12th, 13th, and 14th of December in 2006 at the Koko club in London, and a CGI studio in Windsor. It features Keith Caputo of Life of Agony fame on guest vocals. Fans were allowed to participate in the making of the video, although this first version left the band feeling disappointed (comments made by the band at their March show in Lyon). Shortly after, a completely new video for the song was made. The song peaked at #7 in the Netherlands and #4 in Finland.

The second single, released across Europe in June, was "Frozen". The video, filmed in Romania, deals with child abuse, and sales of the single will raise money for a children's charity, Child Helpline International. "The Howling" was chosen as a digital single release for the UK, and another video was also shot. The extended version of the "Frozen" single features an unreleased b-side, "Sounds Of Freedom", a second song written for computer game "The Chronicles Of Spellborn".

Current line-up
 
Den Adel, Westerholt and van Veen perform in the music video for Memories.Sharon den Adel – vocals (1996-)
Robert Westerholt – guitar (1996-)
Ruud Adrianus Jolie – guitar (2001-)
Jeroen van Veen – bass (1996-)
Martijn Spierenburg – keyboards (2001-)
Stephen van Haestregt – drums (2002-)

Former members
Ivar de Graaf – drums (1996-1998, 1999-2001)
Martijn Westerholt – keyboards (1996-2001)
Michiel Papenhove – guitar (1996-2001)
Jelle Bakker – guitar (2001)
Ciro Palma – drums (1998-1999)
Dennis Leeflang – drums (1996)
Richard Willemse – drums (1996)

Discography
Enter
Released: 1997
Chart Positions: -
Sales: 100,000 (only in Europe)
Label(s): DSFA Records
Singles: Restless
 
Mother Earth
Released: August 21, 2001
Chart Positions:  -
Sales: 350,000 (only in Europe)
Label(s): DSFA Records
Singles: Our Farewell, Ice Queen, Mother Earth
 
The Silent Force
Released: November 15, 2004
Chart Positions: #1 NET, #5 GER, #26 SPA, #12 AUS, #37 NOR, #22 SWIT, #3 GREE, #28 SWE, #4 BEL
Sales: 500,000 (only in Europe)
Label(s): GUN Records
Singles: Stand My Ground, Memories, Angels
 
The Heart of Everything
Released: March 12, 2007
Chart Positions: #38 UK, #26 FRA, #23 SPA, #5 POR, #5 GER, #8 SWI, #12 AUS, #48 ITA, #22 POL, #12 CZE, #4 SWE, #2 FIN, #24 NOR, #32 DEN, #1 NET, #2 BEL, #106 US.
Sales: 307.450 (worldwide)[9]
Label(s): Roadrunner Records, GUN Records (Europe)
Singles: What Have You Done, The Howling, Frozen
 

Official website: http://www.within-temptation.com/

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