Power metal legend and former Stratovarius guitarist Timo Tolkki has issued the following statement regarding his future activities, which include releasing an acoustic album with acclaimed vocalist Alessandro Conti (Twilight Force, Trick Or Treat), a tour in support of this album, and reissuing his three solo albums.

Tolkki: "I have gone away from all the record companies and music publishers and also bypassed a lot of concert promoters as well. I am not in any connection to any of those anymore, and I am proud to say that today I own all rights to my three solo albums: Classical Variations And Other Themes, Hymn To Life, and Saana - Warrior Of Light pt1. I have taken these out from the streaming services, and in the upcoming months I will release them again as remastered 24 bit versions with some cool bonus stuff.

All this only from my website tolkki.art.

After completing a very successful Latin America tour in October 2022, I really started to think about things very carefully. The friendship and camaraderie with Alessandro Conti, Alex Landenburg (Kamelot, Cyhra) and Jari Kainulainen (ex-Stratovarius) was something very special for me. We became really close and I don’t remember ever having so much fun and laughs than on that tour.

All this positivity gained, I made a plan for the years 2023-2025. I am now heading for an acoustic tour in Latin America with Alessandro Conti starting in Mexico City on 1st of March 2023. I hope to see you all there! We have an amazing musical set of songs for you! 

With this in mind, I am about to release a new acoustic album called Renaissance Acoustica. It is a collection of songs I composed for Stratovarius. The versions are not always following the originals, we have in fact, created something quite new. It will also have some bonus tracks from Hymn To Life and Classical Variations And Other Themes.

I have self-financed this album from the money I made from the last tour. I have worked very hard to make it an enjoyable experience and I do hope you all like it as much as we do. The album is available from my website exclusively and the release date is February 13th. It is available as high quality 24 bit wav files that you can download to your devices (phones, laptops, and computers).

To be able to listen to this album, I am utilizing a system called 'Pay What You Want'. It really is exactly what it says: you decide what you want to pay for this and then you complete your purchase and you will be taken to a special place to download the album including the artwork and bonus material.

I do want to say that all the income from this goes directly to me. There is no record company in between. What you want to pay is entirely up to you. I hope you will able to support me and my music in the years to come in this way. All your help is greatly appreciated.

I am very proud of my independence and I am looking forward to the future very much. Thank you for all your amazing support in the last 30 years and I hope many more years to come."

Photo by Omar Munguia