It’s probably been a while since you’ve heard anything about Winger, an underrated favorite from the past. Namesake Kip Winger has been working on solo projects, while guitarist Reb Beach has lived up to his reputation as one of the busiest musicians in the biz by working on various studio projects all while touring with three bands (Winger, Whitesnake, and Night Ranger) within a period of one year. The guys (Winger, Beach, Cenk Eroglu, John Roth, and Rod Morgenstein) are together once again for the release of a new album called Karma.
Frontiers Records will be handling its release in Europe on October 16, and in the USA on October 27. How will it sound? Just ask singer Kip: “When the chance came up to do a new Winger record, I envisioned an upbeat totally rocking record that was a cross between the first Winger album and Pull. So Reb and I sat down and wrote all the music in a month or so. I worked for six months to finish it in the classic Winger style.”
As for the title, “we were discussing the very interesting path the band has had and we have all been through so much together. So we went for Karma, as this is a word that truly sums up the experience of being in the band.”
Excerpts from today’s press release are below:
Winger’s debut album in 1988 on Atlantic achieved platinum status in the United States, and gold in Japan and Canada, sporting such hits as “Madalaine,” “Seventeen,” and “Headed For A Heartbreak.” In 1990, the band was nominated for an American Music Award for “Best New Heavy Metal Band.” Shortly after, Winger released its second album “In the Heart of the Young,” which went platinum in the U.S. and gold in Japan. The album included Winger’s biggest hit, “Miles Away,” who topped at #12 on Billboard charts in the USA. Their third and last studio album, “Pull,” was recorded in 1992-93 as a three-piece band, following the original keyboard/guitar player Paul Taylor’s departure. Produced by Mike Shipley, on the following tour John Roth was called in to replace Paul Taylor.
“Usually Winger fans don’t ‘expect’ anything because they know we do what we feel like doing artistically,” explained Kip. “It is not a commercially driven band. I can say that the songs are very upbeat.” Reb Beach added: “It’s a very up-tempo, riff-driven, rocking record. It has the elements of vintage Winger from ’89 but has the blood, sweat, and tears of years 20 years of writing, recording, and touring!”
“Karma” will be released with the first pressing in limited digipak edition and includes the following songs: “Deal With the Devil,” “Stone Cold Killer,” “Big World Away,” “Come A Little Closer,” “Pull Me Under,” “Supernova,” “Always Within Me,” “Feeding Frenzy,” “After All This Time,” “Witness,” and “First Ending” (Bonus Track). Also included will be an Electronic Press Kit, with footage filmed in the studio during the recording sessions, which is playable on all computers, as an interactive bonus.
Winger has also announced their forthcoming European tour in support to the new album’s release. You can obtain those dates here.
