Trans Sibiria

Upon The Winter Solstice is a compilation album that was released exclusively at Kohl’s Department Stores during the 2013 holiday season. 100% of the proceeds go to the Kohl’s Cares charity to support kids’ health and education. This is not to be confused with the recently released Tales of Winter: Selections from the TSO Rock Operas compilation which covers all five TSO albums and one EP. So far, that’s an album that’s only been released in Europe anyway. Upon The Winter Solstice focuses solely on the group’s first three Christmas releases (known as the Christmas Trilogy): Christmas Eve and Other Stories, The Christmas Attic and The Lost Christmas.

The Christmas Attic is the second album by the American rock band Trans-Siberian Orchestra, released in 1998. The cover art is by Edgar Jerins. On November 18, 2004, The Christmas Attic was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Trans-Siberian Orchestra's second album, Christmas Attic, may not be as focused or serious as Christmas Eve, but it is just as enjoyable and maybe even more consistent, thanks to Paul O'Neill's increasingly impressive compositions and an improved musicality.

What would happen if members of Savatage decided to write some Christmas songs? Easy: Trans-Siberian Orchestra. This "supergroup" is the brainchild of Jon Oliva and Paul O'Neill (respectively the leader-keyboardist and the producer of Savatage). They hired Al Pitrelli (Asia, Savatage) to play guitars, Robert Kinkel to help with keyboards, John Middleton (also a member of Savatage) on bass, and Jeff Plate on drums. Lead vocals are shared by six vocalists, while some of the backing vocals are handled by Savatage lead singer Zachary Stevens. Christmas Eve and Other Stories is a concept album: all the songs are built as chapters of a book, each telling part of a larger story. The plot here is of a young angel sent down to Earth to find and bring back to the Lord "the one thing that best represents everything good that has been done in the name of this day."

The history of underground electronic music is littered with inspired releases that, for one reason or other, slipped through the cracks. It would be fair to say that Trans-4M’s 1992 debut album, Sublunar Oracles, is one such release. The full-length originally appeared on Belgian dance music megalith Buzz, an imprint whose output tended towards the more commercial end of the dance music market. Initially, Sublunar Oracles failed to make much impact and was championed only by a small group chill-out DJs; these days, it’s rightly considered a lost classic and one of the most overlooked albums of the ambient house era…

Living on Video (also known as Message on the Radio) is the first studio album by the Canadian synth-pop group Trans-X. Recorded and released in 1983 by Mantra Records, Message on the Radio was a seven-track album. Produced by Daniel Bernier, the record featured all instruments played by Pascal Languirand with Anne Brosseau on supporting vocals…