Album Of The Month - April 2016
Morpheus Rising - 'Let The Sleeper Awake'
Morpheus Rising are a classic twin guitar hard rock band that formed in York in 2008. They have a very distinctive melodic sound with influences such as Thin Lizzy, Iron Maiden and various NWOBHM outfits.
Under the guiding influence of Pete Harwood the band steadily developed and honed their craft over several years whilst building a loyal following and a strong core of songs.
A change of personnel in 2011 saw Simon Wright replacing Graeme Tennick as vocalist giving the band a new line up of:
Simon Wright's arrival gave an added momentum to the band's development. His dynamic and powerful vocals gave established songs a new dimension in the live arena.
Keen to capture the energy of the new line up's live performances, the band went into the studio to record tracks for their debut album. After several months of hard graft 'Let The Sleeper Awake' was released on 9th December 2011.
The album is a hard rock masterpiece with great guitar harmonies, tight arrangements and a classic rock sound recalling a bygone era but importantly never sounding dated or derivative.
Very strong songwriting skills are evident throughout the album with an explosive mix of tracks reflecting the band's early days ('Lord Of The North', 'Those Who Watch', 'Fighting Man') with newer ones jointly penned by Pete Harwood and Simon Wright ('Daylight', 'Let The Sleeper Awake'). The standout track on the album is the anthemic 'Shades Of Grey'.
The album received critical acclaim and was regularly played on Kerrang Radio, ARfm and Firebrand Radio. Features in magazines such as Classic Rock Prog and Classic Rock Society also helped gain attention and sales across Europe, Asia and North America.
'Let The Sleeper Awake' is an immense album packed full of killer tunes and is a prime example of top quality hard rock music. This collection of songs is therefore highly recommended listening!
Under the guiding influence of Pete Harwood the band steadily developed and honed their craft over several years whilst building a loyal following and a strong core of songs.
A change of personnel in 2011 saw Simon Wright replacing Graeme Tennick as vocalist giving the band a new line up of:
- Simon Wright - Vocals
- Pete Harwood - Guitars
- Daymo Sweeting - Guitars
- Andy Smith - Bass
- Paul Gibbons - Drums & Backing Vocals
Simon Wright's arrival gave an added momentum to the band's development. His dynamic and powerful vocals gave established songs a new dimension in the live arena.
Keen to capture the energy of the new line up's live performances, the band went into the studio to record tracks for their debut album. After several months of hard graft 'Let The Sleeper Awake' was released on 9th December 2011.
The album is a hard rock masterpiece with great guitar harmonies, tight arrangements and a classic rock sound recalling a bygone era but importantly never sounding dated or derivative.
Very strong songwriting skills are evident throughout the album with an explosive mix of tracks reflecting the band's early days ('Lord Of The North', 'Those Who Watch', 'Fighting Man') with newer ones jointly penned by Pete Harwood and Simon Wright ('Daylight', 'Let The Sleeper Awake'). The standout track on the album is the anthemic 'Shades Of Grey'.
The album received critical acclaim and was regularly played on Kerrang Radio, ARfm and Firebrand Radio. Features in magazines such as Classic Rock Prog and Classic Rock Society also helped gain attention and sales across Europe, Asia and North America.
'Let The Sleeper Awake' is an immense album packed full of killer tunes and is a prime example of top quality hard rock music. This collection of songs is therefore highly recommended listening!