Magnum

For a musician like Tony Clarkin who composes constantly, viewing and selecting the material he has written is always one of the most significant moments during the creation process of a new Magnum album. On the one hand it s a luxury to have the opportunity to separate the wheat from the chaff and to be in a position to use only the strongest numbers. On the other hand it's also a difficult process, because after all the creator of those songs has grown fond of every single one of them. I usually start composing for our next album immediately after the release of the previous one, Clarkin explains. When Escape From The Shadow Garden arrived at the stores in March 2014, my thoughts had already turned to our next recording.

It's been three years since MAGNUM brought out "The Valley Of Tears - The Ballads", a compilation that focused on the British rock act's quiet, more otherworldly and dreamy side. Three years during which the idea matured to follow this successful release (top 100 of the German album charts) with a companion piece. "Dance Of The Black Tattoo" has turned into exactly that: a collection of songs that present MAGNUM exclusively as tough-as-nails rocking and extremely vibrant musicians. What makes this album so special is the fact that MAGNUM have gone through their impressive archive, looking for rare live cuts and outstanding radio versions and have come up with spirited live recordings and edits that concentrate on the essential components of some of their most accomplished rock numbers.

On a Storyteller's Night, Magnum's sixth album originally released in the U.K. in May 1985, wasn't the band's best-selling LP; it peaked at number 24 in seven weeks, not as good a showing as the third album, 1982's Chase the Dragon (number 17), much less the Top Ten hits Wings of Heaven (1988, number five) or Goodnight L.A. (1990, number nine). Whether it is Magnum's best album is a matter of opinion, though, according to Dave Ling of Classic Rock magazine, whose 2004 interview with guitarist Tony Clarkin is reprinted as part of this 25th anniversary deluxe-edition reissue, "fans still rate Storyteller as Magnum's masterwork."

On the 13th Day is the 17th studio album from the rock group Magnum (including Keeping the Nite Light Burning and ignoring Evolution), which was released in September 2012, under the label of Steamhammer Records/SPV. The album entered the charts at number 3 in the UK Rock & Metal Charts, number 5 in the UK Indie Charts, number 28 in the German Album Charts, #36 Swedish Album Charts, #43 UK Album Charts during its first week, making it their most successful album since their reformation in 2002 at the time of its release. Bob Catley has stated that he considers On the 13th Day to be Magnum's rockiest album to date, with the track Dance of the Black Tattoo standing out as particularly heavy for a Magnum album.

Sleepwalking is the ninth studio album by the English rock band Magnum, released in 1992. Following the decision to leave Polydor, Sleepwalking was recorded within six months, and is the first self-produced album by Magnum since The Eleventh Hour. Tony Clarkin was much happier acting as producer, following his working relationship with Keith Olsen on Goodnight L.A.. Learning from Olsen, Clarkin had enough experience to produce Magnum's records on his own, this also being the best option to cut production costs for future albums.

Marauder is a live album by the English rock band Magnum. It was released in 1980 on Jet Records. Magnum recorded Marauder over one night at London's Marquee Club on 15 December 1979. It was an attempt by Jet Records to revive the success of the debut album Kingdom of Madness following the failure of Magnum II. The album was recorded on multi-track by former-Ten Years After bass player Leo Lyons, who had recorded Magnum II, and mixed by Chris Tsangarides.

When Magnum released 2018's Lost on the Road to Eternity, keyboardist Rick Benton replaced Mark Stanway, who'd quit (for the third time) in the middle of a tour. The album's razor-edged, riff-laden hard rock sound contrasted with the plodding bombast and balladry of 2016's Sacred Blood "Divine" Lies that, frankly, sounded tired. Longtime drummer Harry James left in 2017 and was replaced by Lee Morris. The resulting tour was wonderfully documented on 2018's surprising On the Road to Eternity live outing. Finally, in June of 2019, Al Barrow, the band's bassist since 2001, retired from music. American Dennis Ward claimed the spot just before Magnum entered the studio to record The Serpent Rings. Founding members guitarist Tony Clarkin and singer Bob Catley are the only remnants from the 20th century. As evidenced on their 21st studio album, the personnel changes stoked the fire in the bellies of these two mainstays.

It’s a sign of definite quality when a band can look back at a career which started as early as 1972 (!) and are still capable of thoroughly awing their fans with every new album. Magnum deliver this kind of quality on a regular basis and are set to prove their outstanding position once again with their latest studio offering ‘The Monster Roars’. Even after difficult months marked by pandemic-related concert cancellations, contact restrictions and uncertain perspectives for the whole music industry, the English rock act have succeeded in creating a vibrant, homogeneous work that impresses its listeners from the first to the last note and includes a number of surprises…

There are few great bands on our planet that you can infallibly identify within the first few bars of one of their songs. Their unique melodic skill, their tasteful instrumentation, the right balance of depth and catchiness, and then of course that charismatic voice: Magnum are Magnum! The same can be said of their latest studio album ‘Here Comes The Rain’, which will be out on Steamhammer/SPV from 12 January 2024 on CD + DVD, double vinyl LP, as a box set and for digital download, proving once again that classic rock music could hardly sound more atmospheric. The band surrounding frontman Bob Catley and guitarist/songwriter Tony Clarkin are also set to release two lead singles on 22 November 2023 and 3 January 2024 and a tour has been scheduled to kick off in early April 2024 (see tour dates).

It’s been three years since Magnum brought out The Valley Of Tears – The Ballads, a compilation that focused on the British rock act’s quiet, more otherworldly and dreamy side. Three years during which the idea matured to follow this successful release (top 100 of the German album charts) with a companion piece. Dance Of The Black Tattoo has turned into exactly that: a collection of songs that present Magnum exclusively as tough-as-nails rocking and extremely vibrant musicians.