Stratovarius was founded in Finland in 1984 from former members of the band Black Water. They went through a number of personnel and musical changes before the band found its own voice. In 1984, the name was changed to Stratovarius (a portmanteau of Stratocaster and Stradivarius), an idea of Stråhlman's. By 1984, Timo Tolkki entered the band, replacing Stråhlman in the guitar. He took up the vocal duties as well. Tolkki became the driving force and mastermind of the band assuming almost complete control of the song writing. He brought along not only strong rock influences but also a neo-classical tinge. The band released a demo to various record companies by 1987, finally being picked up by CBS Finland. In 1989, their debut album Fright Night was released followed by two singles.
After being dropped by CBS the band went through several member changes but they managed to release on another label and they also toured a bit. In 1994 they released their third album, Dreamspace, featuring new bass player Jari Kainulainen, (who joined the band when 70% of the new material was already recorded) which was a great success. Tolkki decided to stop singing for the band and they hired a new full-time singer, Timo Kotipelto. The release of Fourth Dimension in 1995 was a great success, but internal differences in the band particularly about the style the band was going for, prompted the departure of long-time drummer Tuomo Lassila and keyboardist Antti Ikonen. Two new non-Finnish members were recruited: Swedish keyboardist Jens Johansson of Yngwie Malmsteen fame; and German drummer Jörg Michael. With the fifth release Episode, Stratovarius had finally found its sound and had a strong, diverse line-up. Episode was a grand project featuring a large choir and a string orchestra. It spawned some of the all-time greatest Stratovarius hits, such as "Father Time" and "Will The Sun Rise".
This line-up released three hugely successful albums over the years: Visions in 1997, Destiny in 1998, and Infinite in 2000. With every album their fame and fan-base expanded and they started gaining a stronger following outside the Nordic countries particularly in Japan.
In 2003 the band released its most epic project yet, the two album suite named Elements. With these albums they reached a peak in their progressive and symphonic style of power-metal. The first album, Elements pt. 1, was released in early 2003 followed by a world tour. Elements pt. 1 was naturally followed by Elements pt. 2, also released on Nuclear Blast records in the same year with the hit single "I Walk To My Own Song".
In late 2003 the band broke up with Timo Kotipelto and Jörg Michael leaving after a very vaguely explained conflict. Tolkki hired a new singer, Katriina ''Miss K'' Wiiala, and Anders Johansson of Hammerfall (Jens's brother) temporarily on drums. Tolkki's behaviour rapidly began to become extremely strange. He published a long news article on the band's website, detailing how he had converted to Kabbalah after reading Madonna's autobiography and being contacted by Jesus himself. He wrote extensively on the principles of Kabbalah but according to some Jewish forum members, this has nothing to do with any actually practised form of it. The webmaster removed the news article from the site. Then Tolkki even stabbed himself in the shoulder first claiming that a crazy Spanish fan had done it because of band had broken up. Tolkki also phoned Anders Johansson, speaking nonsense about Adolf Hitler – Anders freaked out and left the band. Nobody really understood the situation and fans were worried about Timo's mental condition. In April 2004 he was hospitalised with chronic depression and a nervous breakdown and, after being released from the mental hospital, negotiations and attempts at reconciliation with the rest of the band began. The rest of 2004 was virtually complete silence from the band.
In January 2005 an announcement was released that Stratovarius had reunited with the old line-up. Tolkki seemed to have recovered from his strange illness. In June 2005 Timo Tolkki announced that the band's bassist, Jari Kainulainen, had left the band due to personal reasons. He was later replaced by Lauri Porra.
Stratovarius then released the self-titled album Stratovarius in September 2005 featuring the popular single "Maniac Dance". During this time Stratovarius began a world tour starting in Argentina. It also included a North American leg where they toured the United States and Canada for the first time in the band's history. They played at such events as Atlanta's "Prog Power", and in well-known venues such as "B.B. King's House Of Blues" in New York and Philadelphia's "Trocadero Theatre". The tour also included some European and Japanese cities.
On April 2 2008 Timo Tolkki announced on his official website that the band has officially stopped due to various issues between the band members.
Timo Tolkki has formed a new band, Revolution Renaissance. He released his first album on june 6, 2008 and it featured guest appearences by Michael Kiske (ex-Helloween) and Tobias Sammet (Edguy, Avantasia)
The band has since made an announcement on the Stratovarius website stating that the band will continue without Timo Tolkki.
After the announcement, the band began to search for a new guitar player, making the announcement on the band's official forum and in soundi magazine that Matias Kupiainen would replace Timo Tolkki and that 15 songs had already been demoed for the new album.
On May 13 2009 Stratovarius released their 12th studio album, Polaris, now with the new members Lauri Porra and Matias Kupiainen playing bass and guitar respectively.
Early 2011 saw the release of their new album, Elysium, containing the songs that were written during the Polaris tour. Also during 2012 saw the departure of long-time drummer Jörg Michael for personal reasons and his replacement Rolf Pilve.
2013 saw the release of their newest album "Nemesis".
Studio albums:
- Fright Night (1989)
- Twilight Time (1992)
- Dreamspace (1994)
- Fourth Dimension (1995)
- Episode (1996)
- Visions (1997)
- Destiny (1998)
- Infinite (2000)
- Intermission (2001)
- Elements, Pt. 1 (2003)
- Elements, Pt. 2 (2003)
- Stratovarius (2005)
- Polaris (2009)
- Elysium (2011)
- Nemesis (2013)
Emancipation Suite Part II: Dawn
Stratovarius Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Flames are rising high
Ground is turning red,
All but one is dead
Dying man his hands
Above his head
Thru the ruthless night,
Made his final stand,
Made the last demand
Paid the price,
His dying time's at hand
Nothing left to feel,
Nothing left to hear
Heroes die alone
Then he sees
First light
Dawning
The above lyrics of the Stratovarius song Emancipation Suite Part II: Dawn narrates the story of a heroic man's final moments. The scene is set under a burning sky where flames are rising high and the ground is turning red. All but one man is dead. The dying man raises his hands above his head, perhaps asking for mercy or surrendering to his fate. He faced a ruthless night and fought with all his might, making his final stand and putting forth his last demand before his time came. The price he paid was ultimately his own life. The lyrics suggest that in such situations, heroes die alone with nothing left to feel or hear.
As the song progresses, the dying man then sees the first light dawning as he takes his last breath. The lyrics suggest that perhaps he has found peace in his final moments, or he has managed to survive through the challenges and finally made it to the dawn. The song's theme seems to be centered around sacrifice, resilience, and bravery. It tells the story of a man who fought until his last breath in the face of overwhelming adversity and paid the ultimate price. The lyrics are powerful and emotionally stirring, evoking feelings of courage and sacrifice in the listener.
Line by Line Meaning
Under burning sky
Amid the scorching emptiness of a sky set ablaze,
Flames are rising high
Flames are reaching the sky, symbolizing the intensity of the destruction.
Ground is turning red,
The ground is covered with a thick layer of blood from the casualties and the war.
All but one is dead
Everyone has fallen in battle except for the artist in this story.
Dying man his hands
The man who is experiencing his final moments, with his hands lifted in a gesture of surrender
Above his head
His arms raised to shoulder level, acknowledging his imminent demise
Thru the ruthless night,
The night was merciless with the unforgiving conditions of the battlefield.
Fought with all his might
He fought with all of his efforts throughout the entire war.
Made his final stand,
He stood up for what he believed to be correct, and he went as far as he could before he died.
Made the last demand
Before dying, he made his final request, his ultimate longing.
Paid the price,
He had to give a high cost for his beliefs and standing up for his dedication.
His dying time's at hand
He knows that he will soon meet his Maker.
Nothing left to feel,
He is too numb to feel pain, sorrow or regret.
Nothing left to hear
All he hears is the sound of his own breathing as he braces for the impact of the impending finality.
Heroes die alone
In the end, everyone passes on from this world entirely unaccompanied, even heroes.
Then he sees
He gazes as a sense of awareness gradually comes back to him.
First light
The initial glimmer of hope emerges in the form of the dawning of daylight, which represents a new beginning and the possibility of breaking free from the chains of the past.
Contributed by Jackson R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@user-hx8rt1of7o
Stratovarius should do more suits. This one is very captivating.
@angeltriveno1462
es una sensacion y una fascinacion unica al oir el solo de la guitarra ... pegarte a todo volumen ... y sentir esa magia unica
@MarushDenchev
Oh, wow, I didn't know Porra was the one to create this masterpiece. Seven blessings to him!
@Uzuc
Porra?
@danielsalles5707
07:38 RIP Obi-Wan :D
Fantastic song!!!
@TiNebress_DautomneDragon
huh
@gahmuretvanbegonia994
possibly one of my favourite stratovarius numbers
@WaelYakti
a great song ... hails from Syria
@damonjohnson8337
Miroslav zuberec I couldn't agree with you more on your comment. Definitely some TT sound in this one. I will say I really like the Matias plays. Stratovarius is a blessing to my musical world! I've only discovered strato a couple years ago and I'm hooked! Love this band!!
@joseespinoza849
Es increíble como la creación de una canción te haga volar strato es de esas bandas que esparcen su talento para crear una obra maestra viva strato un deleite a mis oídos