Mind’s Eye - A Gentleman’s Hurricane

Mind’s Eye is a progressive band with a strong sense of melody. Although making their own blend of heavy metal and progressive rock you can still hear influences from bands like: Rush, Yes, Queensrÿche, E.L.O, Winger,, Toto and Genesis.

The band started in 1992 when Johan Niemann (bass) and Daniel Flores (drums & keyboards)met Fredrik Grünberger (guitar) Before creating this new band they first called Afterglow, the three of them had played in different local bands in Stockholm while studying music in high school. When not writing music and rehearsing, Fredrik took lessons with Jan Granwick (Glory) while Daniel and Johan studied with local teachers. After playing together for about a year the band met singer German Pascual and made a self-produced, self-financed promotion CD named “Afterglow”.

The CD contained four of the eight songs recorded, and was very well received by the Swedish press, especially by Swedish journalist Janne Stark. The CD was also voted Demo of the Year by the Swedish magazine Backstage. Janne Stark worked with the band in trying to get labels interested. Even though some labels showed interest in signing them, the band was still without a contract in 1996. When German Pascual left the band they started to try out new singers. Afterglow recorded a demo with two different singers. The singers where Robert Forse(Head’s or Tale’s) and Thomas Vikström (Candlemass), But things didn’t work out the way it should and Afterglow was forced to search for a new singer.

They auditioned over 30 singers, and Johan Persson was selected as a new band member. The band also changed their name to Mind’s Eye since “Afterglow” already was taken by a German death metal band.

In 1997 Mind’s Eye finally got a deal with a record company and recorded their first CD Into the Unknown for the American label, Sensory (a label of the Lasers Edge group). The album was well received in both American and German press. The CD was distributed in the States by Century Media. Meanwhile, Johan Niemann and Daniel Flores studied music production and engineering at the Stockholm Music Conservatory with teachers like Roger Krieg (Ulf Lundell, Stefan Andersson) Olle Olsson (Meja, Snoop doggy dogg, Backstreet boys) Due to musical differences the band had to change singers again. The new singer, Andreas Novak, also studied at the Stockholm Music Conservatory with teachers such as Daniel Zanger-Borsch (Alien, Crosstalk) and Johanna Nyström (The real group). Though Johan Niemann, Daniel and Andreas studied hard it never got in the way of writing music with Mind’s Eye. With a singer that fitted their music, they continued to write and rehearse in the studio outside Stockholm where Yngwie Malmsteen used to rehearse when he started his career.

Their second album Waiting for the tide was recorded in 1999. In order to be in more control of their music, the band decided to release their second album on their own label Round Records with the assistance of project manager Håkan Kaneberg. The album got rave reviews, and opened several doors for Mind’s Eye, who now owned great reputation and respect in many magazines as one of Sweden’s best new progressive rock acts. Songs like Calling (father to son)got great radio air in both Swedish and American stations. In May 2000 Johan Niemann decided to quit Mind’s Eye in order to pursue his career with band Therion. The rest of the members wished him luck with that. In September 2000 Mind’s Eye decided to compete in the European Progpower competition. Mind’s Eye came in third place of ten bands. Most of the bands were big European names so off course that was an honour for the guys. The same month MNW records and Record Heaven had heard the album and decided to release the album in Europe.

January 2001 Johan Niemann was asked to join Mind’s Eye again, he accepted and the band continued to fulfil their third album. During February until May Daniel Flores and some friends started to build the Sheep Valley Studio… The studio was completed in late May introducing Mind’s Eye into hard disk recording, a new experience for the band. With a new found studio Mind’s Eye now felt the urge to record a new full-length album again, their third album titled A work of artwas a total new area for Mind’s Eye. Daniel Flores and Fredrik Grünberger produced, arranged and mixed the 12-song album through June until August 2001.

In July 2001 Mind’s Eye singed with German label Rising Sun (Angra, Dreamscape, Black Symphony). The reviews were amazing and everything was going in the right direction again for the band until the inevitable happened: the label went bankrupt and Mind’s Eye left Rising sun records. Mind’s Eye took a big blow and they decided to take a long break to gather their troops again. This was a good period for both Johan Niemann and Daniel Flores who recorded 10 albums (with different artists) together during the time off, the guys of Mind’s Eye got the urge to come back and make a new album but Fredrik Grünberger, who worked as a stock broker during his time off with Mind’s Eye, couldn’t make it and now they where three. Time went by and suddenly the band received great news, they found a new label which would make a re-release of their last 2 albums + the release of a new studio album. The label was LION MUSIC, a great label for the band.

Still with Andreas Novak on vocals and with the new label Lion Music, Mind’s Eye feels confident and stronger than ever before, to explore the boundaries of new musical territories and to confront a larger audience. The next Mind’s eye album. Walking on H2O the story continues with an even better album A gentleman’s hurricane

Daniel Flores talks about the story behind every murder in his new concept story A Gentleman’s Hurricane, the critically acclaimed new album and world first CD/DVD/Comic triple pack from Mind’s Eye – out now on Lion Music.

A GENTLEMAN’S HURRICANE

As you all may know the story is about a top assassin called Adam Evangelista. His is really having second thoughts about his profession and wants to take a step outside this world. He can’t do that before his last job. When trying to dig inside his own mind he takes refuge in a local church where he then meets Father Cavallero Dimori who is a retired head priest from the Vatican. Adam poor his heart out for him and confesses all his former crimes to the shocked priest, as you all know the priests take a vow of secrecy so he can’t tell anyone about these confessions.

01. PRAYING FOR CONFESSION

We meet our hero or assassin if you will, after he has shot three shots in the woods… why? At this point we just don’t know. He goes out of the woods and washes his hands in an empty public toilet. He starts to speak about his past when looking into the dirty mirror. He goes back in time to where he is going to speak with the priest (as you hear the children sing) Adam is walking trough the church’s hallway, he suddenly sees his own reflection and can’t stand his face, he crushes the mirror. By doing that he goes even further back to history where he was an orphan where he was badly molested and hurt by the headmaster. He learnt what pain was and it was then when he knew what we wanted to do when he would become old, a man who hurt other people, let other know the pain he went through. At the end of the song we go back to when Adam talks to the Priest Cavallero in the confession booth.

02. SEVEN DAYS

This is the first murder he chose to talk about. The murder of Olof Palme; prime minister of Sweden and leader of the social democratic party (whose logo is a red rose). Adam has much regret of this particular assassination as he felt Palme was a great man… but orders are orders. Adam take orders from the Illuminati who is the counterpart of the church and he gets all his orders form his contact person, an ice cold Englishman who’s name will never be revealed. During the confession of this murder Adam tries to give the priest a picture of what he goes trough as a professional assassin. He has seven days to pour his heart out before his last job.

03. ASSASSINATION

This is where he tells the priest about a job done in the late sixties. A man named Robert Kennedy. Adam has a huge headache when he speaks about this; ironically he shot Robert in the head three times… maybe he is feeling the pain of his victims… The priest orders him to take a pill.

04. CHAOS UNLEASHED

Adam does not feel much regret when he speaks about next man to feel his anger. Martin Luther King. What strikes Adam is that most people feel that the whole thing is just a show to be seen on TV. He tells the priest about the people who watched the story on TV in a fast restaurant next day after the job was done, how can people just sit there and eat while watching this? Adam explains how he used the media coverage to hide himself being dressed as a homeless that day. Maybe that’s why this country is collapsing, people just don’t give a damn anymore…

05. HELL’S INVITATION

The priest tries now to get Adam into seeing the light of a religious life. He tries to make Adam think he is a just the hand of god. Adam does not believe in the afterlife and god means nothing to him, he knows that if he would exist he would never let Adam in heaven anyway, not after what he has done anyway. He compares Jesus to Malcolm X, another victim of Adam’s gun. Like Jesus, Malcolm also carried a cross, a cross which he carried for his people and just like Jesus he was betrayed by his own apostles.

06. FEED MY REVOLVER

Adam now recalls another murder and this is where he gets to hear the voice of Illuminati. He feels proud to hear this voice and follows the directions over the phone. As he recalls this victim is none other than John f. Kennedy, Robert’s brother… Adam feels guilt coming over him as he has always wished for a brother… He killed them both…how could he? Adams explains exactly how things happen to father Cavallero telling him that he had huge help from his friends in the CIA. This is actually Adam’s first big job and he recalls having no regrets what so ever back then, not bad for a 20 year old kid.

07. ASHES TO ASHES

Adam quickly goes to a more recent job. The assassination of Georges Besse the director of Renault (the car manufacture) who has just released a large sum of workers, a perfect change for Adam and the Illuminate to get rid of him as he has lost credibility and can no longer be part of the Illuminati anymore. Adam also explains that during that night a woman has come to seek him, apparently it’s his daughter Pandoraand she hands him a gift…

08. THE HOUR OF NEED

Adam recalls this story very well and it was the first time he had to kill a woman. This woman was apparently a huge movie star who also made money as a high society call girl, her name? Yes, it’s was Norma Jean… Adam disguised as an American, multi million dollar man explains to the priest how he felt before poisoning this woman to death, right after having sex with her… He had to shut her up; apparently the president of USA had an affair with her and said too much. Poor girl…

09. RED WINTER SIRENS

For a long time Adam wanted to go to Russia. He went there by train from a nearby country. Unfortunately for Adam vacation was over when he received the message to kill national democratic leader Giorgi Chanturia, in a cold December night. Giorgias first president had to be eliminated by four Assassins, Adam recalls meeting a lot of friends from the times in IRA in Ireland and the man responsible for introducing Adam to the Illuminati. He recalls former USSR as a cold and forgotten world…

10. SKIN CRAWL

Now to Italy, says Adam to Father Cavallero. It’s was the late 70’s Adam was ordered to frame and kill a man named Giuseppe Impastato, a political activist from Palermo. Adam explains that he made it look like a suicide but in reality it was an assassination by the Illuminati. This poor man had become a problem for them and they needed to get rid of him before he become too strong.

11. GRAVEYARD HANDS

As he told the priest earlier, Adam had joined the IRA in his 30’s and this is where he tells about the story of Christopher Ewart-Biggs a British selected governor in Ireland he assassinated, a man hated by the Irish people. He recalls the people of Ireland being a happy people with many scars to carry from the long bad treatment of the British authorities. As Adam is half Italian half Irish (according to his papers) he has a special place in his heart fro the Irish people.

12. SAY GOODNIGHT

This is where Adam starts to recognize the Priest Cavallero, he has heard his voice somewhere before, where can it be? While telling him the story of a job which to him was scary and yet very fulfilling of a man named Juan Jesus Posadas Ocampo from Mexico a head priest and respected by many. Adam chooses to tell the story to Father Cavallero in a poetic way as he doesn’t want to scare away him. Father Cavallero is shocked to stand before the killer of one of his peers. Adam suddenly recognizes the voice of Father Cavallero… Could it be? No!?

13. PANDORA’S MUSICAL BOX

Adam examines the voice of Father Cavallero in a much different way now he knows that it’s him, he is so sure. He has to make a decision… Adam starts to tell father Cavallero about his past as an orphan. Father Cavallero recognizes allot of what Adam talks about. Could he be? Wonders the old priest… No, it’s impossible he comforts himself. Adam on the other side of the confession booth is sure, absolutely sure that Father Cavallero is the dreaded headmaster from back in orphanage school. Adams saviour is also his worst demon, what can he do? Should he kill him or forgive him? Turn the other cheek? Is the ending a happy or a sad ending? That’s completely up to you the listener to decide.

If you buy the album you’ll figure out why the story starts out in the woods, as the story starts with the ending just like in a Quentin Tarantino movie.

Hope you will like the story and may this shed a light on you the listener.

Daniel Flores 2007

Web Links

www.roundrec.com

www.myspace.com/eyeofthemind