About Me
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Former member of the Heavy Metal Band Labyrinth and then Vision Divine.
With Labyrinth and their 1st album (piece of Time-1995) he starts moving the scene that now in Europe is also known as new wave of Italian Power Metal,being the 1st Italian band to sign with the well know american label METAL BLADE.
Vision Divine are nowadays one of the top seller bands of the Country, together with Rhapsody and Lacuna Coil.
Since 1995 Olaf recorded 5 albums with Labyrinth (Piece of Time 1995,No Limits-1996,Return to Heaven Denied- 1998,Timeless Crime 1999,Sons of Thunder 2000), and 6 with Vision Divine (Vision Divine-1999 , Send me an Angel 2002 ,Stream of Consciusness 2004,Stage of Consciousness Live DVD 2005,The Perfect Machine 2005,The 25th Hour 2007), reaching the charts more than once (e.g. Sons of Thunder reached pos n. 21 in the Italian official charts in 1999 ) In several Countries like Italy, Japan and South America. Also , he's been writing songs for other bands ( e.g Cydonia Metal Blade 2001) and working as sessionist and/or Artist Producer for many other bands.
Every year both bands have always been touring around the World (Europe,South America),and playing the biggest European open air, like Wacken (Ger),Dynamo (Hol),Gods of Metal (Ita).
He's also been often requested from the famous Eurobeat producer Dave Rodgers (for Avex Records Japan).For him he recorded many songs for the Eurobeat Japanese market (e.g. Trauma,with the famous singer Ayumi Hamasaki in Ayu-ro Mix Avex 2000, Dancing in my Dreams with J.Storm Avex 2001).
In 2004 he released the new Vision Divine album Stream of Conscoiusness,for Metal Blade (Europe/Usa) and King Records (Japan).The album was distributed worldwide ,and it received the best votes in every review from magazines.
2005 is the year of another couple of succesful albums,as " The perfect machine" ( with Timo Tolkki as producer at the console), and "Stage of Consciousness".
His latest release is "The 25th hour",another long awaited concept album which ends the story started with SOC in 2004. The long tour started immediately after the release of the album and so far brought the band in Asia, South America,and now Europe.
2008 will see the release of his first solo album, and a new new Vision Divine studio album.Olaf is well known and respected in the metal business for his personal songwriting and his incredible speed-shredding, well recognized even between other fast shredders for the personal touch and style, and his original sweeping-style that became also a trademark for the bands in which he played.
At the moment he's also been chosen as an exclusive studio guitarist from Dave Rodgers,one of the most important producers of Eurobeat for Japan, where he already sold more than 30 Million copies in his career.
When not recording or touring, hes teaching guitar techniques or playing in some clinic for Brunetti Amplifiers (Italy) and Brazen Guitars ( Usa).
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Albums recorded:
(Band/Album/Year)
Labyrinth - Midnight Resistance (1994)
Labyrinth - Piece Of Time (1995)
Labyrinth - No Limits (1996)
Labyrinth - Return to Heaven Denied (1998)
Shadows of Steel - Shadows of Steel (1998)
Eddy Antonini - When Water became Ice (1998)
Symmetry (Vision Divine)- Symmetry (2008)
Vision Divine - Vision Divine (1999)
Labyrinth - Timeless Crime (1999)
Sky Lark - Belzebu' (1999)
Labyrinth - Sons Of Thunder (2000)
Sky Lark - Divine Gates of Heaven (2000)
Cydonia - Cydonia (2001)
Labyrinth - Tribute to Helloween (2001) (* Single: Future World)
Vision Divine - Tribute to Helloween (2001) (* Single: Eagle fly free)
Vision Divine - Send Me an Angel (2002)
Vision Divine - Stream of Consciousness (2004)
Vision Divine - Stage of Consciousness (2005)
Vision Divine - The Perfect Machine (2005)
Vision Divine - The 25th Hour (2007)
Thorsen - Solo album ( 2008) to be released
Collaborations - Eurobeat Productions
(Song-Artist-Label)
Dancing in My Dreams - J. Storm ( Avex)
We are the children of Rock - J Stomr ( Avex)
Trauma - Ayumi Hamasaki [Ayu-ro Mix] (Avex)
Dangerous Love - Hi Nrg ( Avex )
Into the daylight - Powerful T ( Avex)
Back to the rising sun - Powerful T (Avex)
Glorious - Powerful T (Avex)
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Main Events: Albums:
- 1996: No Limits First Italian album to enter the Burrn! Charts in Japan. It stayed in the charts for 6 Months, from 17th to 3rd place. In 2003, the re-edition entered the 16th place again.
- 1998: Return to Heaven Denied Metal 'Blades Best Seller album of the year.
- 2001 : Sons of Thunder It reached position 21 in the Official italian Charts.
- 2002 : Send me an Angel It Reached 17th Place in Japanese Charts and 51st in Germany.
- 2004 : Stream of Consciousness: Album of the year in Italy ( METAL HAMMER). Vision Divine Italian Band of the year
- 2005: The Perfect Machine : It reached position 13 in the Burrn! Charts ( Japan). Album of the Year in Italy ( Metal Hammer),and Vision Divine Italian Band of the Year.
- 2007: The 25th Hour: Album of the Year, Vision Divine Italian band of the year.
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Main Events:Concerts
Note: the following are just the MAIN events to be remembered.Of course,due to the high number, it is impossible to mention here minor events,festivals or single concerts.
European Tours:
1998-2001
(Italy,Switzerland,Austria,France,Spain,Belgium,Holland,Germ
any,
Sweden, Hungary)
South American Tours:
2000
(Argentina,Brasil,Chile,Panama,Messico)
2006
(Costa Rica,Honduras,Nicaragua,Panama,Peru,Argentina,Chile,Brasil)
Usa Tour: 2006 ( Atlanta,Georgia) Prog power Fest VII
2007
(Brazil,Paraguay,Chile,Peru,Argentina)
Japanese Tour: 2005
Asian Tour ( 2007)
China and Taiwan
Festivals:
Italian Gods of Metal (Ita)1998
Gods of Metal (ITA)1998
Gods of Metal (ITA) 1999
Wacken (Ger) 1999
Dynamo Open Air (Hol) 1999
Eurometal (Spa) 1999
Rock Tiger (Aus) 1999
Wacken (Ger) 2000
Rock Machina (Spa) 2000
Agglutination (Ita) 2000
Wacken (Ger) 2002
Italian Attack (Ita) 2002
Metal Dayz (CH) 2002
Gods of Metal (Ita) 2003
Heineken Jammin Festival ( Ita) 2003
Summer Day in Hell ( Ita) 2004
Evolution Festival ( Ita) 2005
Gods of Metal (Ita) 2006
Prog Power VII (Usa) 2006
