Episode 011 : To the Zenith of the AtmOsfear

It’s back to Hamburg, Germany, for this installment of Progtopia, where we visit with the prog-metal quintet AtmOsfear. Having recorded three albums to date – their self-titled EP from 1997, Inside the Atmosphere from 2003, and Zenith in 2009 – the band has been favorably compared to the biggest names in the genre and has even performed as the opening act for some of them, including Evergrey, Pain of Salvation, and Vanden Plas. Members (l. to r.) Burkhart Heberle (bass), Boris Stepanow (guitar), Oliver Wulff (vocals), Stephan Kruse (keyboards), and Tim Schnabel (drums) are still rehearsing and writing together, which is when host Mark Ashby spoke to them for this show. You’ll hear them speak about why there have been six years between each album release so far, the reasons for some of their more daring titles (they’re not just for shock value), and how file sharing particularly hurts bands like them. You can visit them on the web at www.atmosfear.net – where you can listen to all their music and download their EP for free.

Featured songs/excerpts:
“Courage of Despair”
“Eleanor Rigby”
“Circumcision”
“Spiral of Pain”
“Loss of Hope”

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(originally posted 23 June 2012)