Sofa King Cool recently caught up with former Guns N' Roses guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, who talked about his new band Sons Of Apollo, his career, how the band gets along and manages to stay focused, the new album, and what's next for the band.

Sons Of Apollo - also featuring former Dream Theater members Mike Portnoy and Derek Sherinian, Billy Sheehan (The Winery Dogs, Mr. Big, David Lee Roth) and Jeff Scott Soto (ex-Journey, ex-Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force) - released the Vicente Cordero-directed video today for “Alive” from their #1 debut album, Psychotic Symphony.

In touring news, Sons Of Apollo launched their first-ever world tour in Tampa, FL last week as part of the “Cruise To The Edge.” The band recently added a new leg of U.S. dates starting April 19th in Montreal, Quebec at the Corona Theatre.

As Mike Portnoy declares, "Ever since this lineup assembled to make Psychotic Symphony, the thing I’ve been most excited about is anticipating how insane I know this band is going to be on stage. Well, the wait is almost over! Here are the first U.S. dates that will get to witness this ‘five-headed musical spectacle’ live on stage in February. We plan on being on tour all year long, all over the globe, with plenty of dates now being announced for summer festivals throughout Europe, but these are the very first shows that will get to witness this amazing lineup in person for the first time. We can’t wait!”

Released October 20 via InsideOutMusic / Sony, Psychotic Symphony is available as a 2CD Mediabook (featuring a second disc of instrumental mixes and extended booklet with an exclusive Studio Diary), Gatefold 2LP vinyl + CD (which comes with an etching on side D and the entire album on the CD), Standard Jewelcase CD & digital download. It was produced by the dynamic production duo of Portnoy and Sherinian, also affectionately known as “The Del Fuvio Brothers,” which is the nickname given to them over 20 years ago during their time together in Dream Theater.

Sons Of Apollo live:

April
5 – Monterrey, Mexico – Escena
8 – Santiago, Chile – Teatro Teleton
10 – Buenos Aires, Argentina – Groove
12 – Porto Alegre, Brazil – Opiniao Bar
14 – Sao Paulo, Brazil – Tropical Butanta
15 – Belo Horizonte, Brazil – Music Hall
19 – Montreal, QC – Corona Theatre
20 – Toronto, ON – The Opera House
21 – Grand Rapids, MI – The Intersection
22 – St. Louis, MO – Delmar Hall
24 – Lawrence, KS – Granada Theater
25 – Denver, CO – Summit Music Hall
27 – Las Vegas, NV – Brooklyn Bowl
28 – Sacramento, CA – Ace Of Spades
29 – Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theatre
30 – Seattle, WA – The Showbox

May
2 – San Francisco, CA – The Regency Ballroom
3 – Los Angeles, CA – The Belasco Theatre
4 – Anaheim, CA – House Of Blues
5 – Tempe, AZ – Marquee Theatre
7 – San Antonio, TX – Alamo City Music Hall
8 – Dallas, TX – Canton Hall
9 – Houston, TX – Scout Bar
11 – Nashville, TN – 3rd & Lindsley
12 – St. Charles, IL – Arcada Theatre
13 – Minneapolis, MN – Varsity Theater
15 – Cleveland, OH – House Of Blues
16 – Philadelphia, PA – Theatre Of Living Arts
17 – Washington, DC – The Howard Theatre
18 – New York, NY – Playstation Theater
19 – Worcester, MA – The Palladium

June
22 – Clisson, France – Hellfest
23 – Dessel, Belgium – Graspop
24 – Milan, Italy – Teatro Degli Arcimbodi
27 – Leipzig, Germany – Hellraiser
30 – Barcelona, Spain – Be Prog My Friend

July
1 – Maidstone, UK – Rambling Man Festival
2 – Motherwell, UK – Motherwell Concert Hall
3 – Belfast, UK – Limelight
4 – Dublin, UK – Tivoli Variety Theatre
14 – Eindhoven, Netherlands – Dynamo MetalFest

August
3 – Wacken, Germany – Wacken Open Air
18 – Warsaw, Poland – Prog In Park
19 – Budapest, Hungary – Barba Negra Track

September
19 – Moscow, Russia – Glavclub
22 – Plovdiv, Bulgaria – Roman Amphitheater (with Plovdiv Psychotic Symphony)
24 – Athens, Greece – Fuzz Club