AVANTASIA - In Search Of Finitude with JON OLIVA
May 19, 2010, 14 years ago
In a recent interview AVANTASIA founder / vocalist Tobias Sammet discussed working with JON OLIVA'S PAIN frontman Jon Oliva on the song 'Death Is Just A Feeling', featured on the new Avantasia epic The Wicked Symphony / Angel Of Babylon. The song is essentially a bookend to Alice Cooper’s guest appearance on ‘The Toy Master’ from the previous Avantasia album, The Scarecrow.
“And that’s exactly what it is,” says Sammet. “Jon Oliva is the reincarnation of the Toy Master in the story. The funny thing is, when I initially wrote the song I had Alice Cooper on my mind but I didn’t think it worked to have the same singer play the re-incarnation of a character. I decided to bring a new colour into it but I needed someone that would suit the song just as well as Alice Cooper. The problem was there aren’t many people that sing in that theatrical, big cinematographic way… thank you Luca Turilli for that word (laughs). Jon Oliva has that kind of theatrical, dramatic voice. I was listening to the Streets album thinking about that and Sascha (Paeth / guitars, producer) wondered if Jon sounded too neat and too beautiful. He felt the voice needed to be more broken. I pointed out that Streets was 20 years old, and present day Jon Oliva sounds epic and dramatic. He’s got something tragic in the way he sings, very deep and meaningful.”“The funny thing is he got the song and said ‘I can see this song was tailored for me.’ (laughs). In a way it was, because he and Alice Cooper are the only ones that could have sung it. Jon did a great job and I think he was the best choice.”
Go to this location for comments on the track by Jon Oliva's Pain drummer / producer Chris Kinder, who recorded Oliva's vocals for the song. Check out BW&BK;'s recent interview with Sammet here.
