METALWAVE! The brainchild of JAMES RIVERA, legendary vocalist and front man of HELSTAR and other successful international recording acts; and, also known for his trailblazing tribute bands including the world renown Sabbath Judas Sabbath.
That’s what you read in the press release sent to me by the singer. With “Sabbath Judas Sabbath”, or more accurately, with an acoustic set born out of necessity, I was able to experience the singer live in Hamburg two years ago. The new EP “Clad In Black” by his main band Helstar was only released in February. Now he has a new project at the start – METALWAVE. James Rivera is known for his love of hard rock and heavy metal. But what not many people know (yet), he also has a passion for New Wave, Dark Wave and Goth. This explains the name of the project, New Wave in Metal skin.
So, what could be more obvious than to take songs by bands like Depeche Mode, The Cure or Sisters of Mercy and lift them into the heavy metal universe? This idea is not new, but it still sounds interesting. So, 80s New Wave meets 80s Heavy Metal. And METALWAVE is obviously not only the name of the project, but also for a completely new genre.
The master has already published the first two songs, but only on Facebook. If you like, you can listen to the new versions of “Black Celebration” (Depeche Mode) and “Love Song” (The Cure) there. Or you can go to Youtube and listen to a cross-section of the new songs. In the original, both the bands and the two songs don’t really appeal to me. But the metal versions are still worth listening to.
Depeche Mode – Black Celebration: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=945830739495031
The Cure – Love Song: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=900578707381647
MetalWave Launch: https://youtu.be/xyHiuqcYlAI
Lineup:
James Vampiro Rivera – Vocals
Larry Barragan – Guitars
Jan Kimmel – Hammond Organ, Vocals
Maurice Eggenschwiler – Guitars, Vocals
Garrick Smith – Bass
Britt Harris – Drum
