THE PASSING
PARADE
News from Think Tank Media
The official newsletter of Erik Norlander, Lana Lane and Rocket
Scientists
Welcome to THE PASSING PARADE
Issue #10: March 14, 2009
Caps are for emphasis only.
No table of contents which means you have to
read the entire issue to find out everything that's happening.
:-)
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A NOTE FROM ERIK
Welcome once again to the latest issue of The Passing Parade, our aperiodical newsletter covering the activities of our Think Tank Media artists. We have all been quite busy over the last few months working on various projects. The first one to mention is the new Roswell Six project which is a collaboration between myself, Lana and bestselling science fiction author Kevin J. Anderson along with a team of world class artists. You can find out more and even hear a couple of tracks at http://www.myspace.com/roswellsix. We've also just delivered three videos from the Rocket Scientists performance at the 3 Rivers Progfest for the festival's compilation DVD will be released in the coming months. A DVD and CD of our complete set at 3RP will be released later this year. I am also happy to report that the Best of Lana Lane 2000 - 2008 2CD release is also now available at CD Baby for more extensive international distribution. If you live outside of the US, Canada, Japan or Western Europe, you can now get this title from CD Baby at the same price as in the Think Tank Media web store shipped to anywhere in the world. I have also been recording with ASIA featuring John Payne throughout 2008 and into 2009, and some titles will finally be released in the coming months. I will be playing a long run of US concerts with the band over the summer, so please visit the ASIA Featuring John Payne web site to find a concert near you. And speaking of concerts, we have a very special event coming up very soon at The Winchester in Cleveland, Ohio on March 28, 2009. Rocket Scientists will perform along with special guest vocalists Lana Lane and John Payne. The event is also in celebration of the NASA 40th Anniversary of the Apollo Moon Landing. What better way for rocket scientists to celebrate than with Rocket Scientists? Lastly, please note that our Think Tank Media web store will be closed from March 18 to April 17, 2009. If you would like to purchase anything from the store, please do it in the next few days -- otherwise you will have to wait until next month. Of course you can always order from CD Baby, ProgRock Records, Empire Music in Germany, and many other fine purveyors of progressive music.
Best wishes,
Erik Norlander
El Dorado Hills, California, March 2009
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THINK TANK MEDIA WEB STORE NEWS
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!
THE THINK TANK MEDIA WEB STORE WILL BE CLOSED FROM MARCH 18 TO APRIL 17, 2009.
During this time, please order your Think Tank Media titles from CD Baby and ProgRock Records. Our European friends can also order from these places and also from Empire Music in Germany. Thank you for your continued patronage -- we appreciate it!
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ROSWELL SIX
Not a Think Tank Media project, but a project containing Think Tank Media artists, Roswell Six is a collaboration between Erik Norlander, Lana Lane and bestselling science fiction author, Kevin J. Anderson along with a team of world class artists.
From Erik's official press release:
(February 7, 2009) El Dorado Hills, CA - Symphonic rock's Erik Norlander and Lana Lane have joined forces with internationally bestselling author Kevin J. Anderson (Dune novels with Brian Herbert, Star Wars and X-Files novels) for a groundbreaking crossover novel and progressive rock recording project titled Terra Incognita. Anderson has created an incredible fantasy universe with sailing ships, sea monsters, and the crusades. Erik Norlander, an accomplished keyboardist/composer and a founding member of progressive rock band Rocket Scientists, joined the project upon its inception to pen the music and produce the recording after a meeting with Anderson and Shawn Gordon of ProgRock Records. Norlander's wife, Queen of Symphonic Rock Lana Lane, was recruited as the lead female vocalist.
"The 'Terra Incognita' project is really the perfect convergence of spirits," affirms Norlander. "I have been a fan of Kevin's novels for some time, and Kevin enjoys many of the CDs I've produced. Normally we would have a hard time collaborating as we really work in different media. But we found a common link in ProgRock Records chief, Shawn Gordon, with whom I have worked for several years as both my label distributor and general comrade-in-arms. Shawn brought us all together for a lunch meeting last year, and that was the catharsis for this excellent project. This is surely a unique exercise in mixed media, and I'm thrilled to be involved."
John Payne (ASIA Featuring John Payne) is featured as a vocalist on the project. Norlander became an official member of ASIA Featuring John Payne at the end of 2007, and has been touring and recording with Payne since that time. A special live performance featuring John Payne and Lana Lane as special guests with Norlander's Rocket Scientists band is scheduled for Saturday, March 28th at The Winchester in Cleveland, Ohio. http://www.thewinchester.net
Other Terra Incognita vocalists include James LaBrie (Dream Theater) and Michael Sadler (ex-Saga). Additional musicians include David Ragsdale (Kansas), Gary Wehrkamp (Shadow Gallery), Chris Quirarte (Prymary), Kurt Barabas (Under the Sun), Mike Alvarez (Erik Norlander CDs), and Chris Brown (Ghost Circus) with Shawn Gordon (ProgRock Records) as executive producer. Collectively, this creative team has sold over 40 million units worldwide.
Terra Incognita is a synergistic project unlike anything ever seen in the publishing and music business - an original novel and original CD from the same author. Anderson developed and expanded one of the novel's storylines to form the basis of an epic rock CD under the band name Roswell Six. He and his wife, bestselling author Rebecca Moesta, wrote all of the lyrics to the songs.
Terra Incognita is available now for pre-sales through ProgRock Records. The CD will ship in late April and the novel titled Terra Incognita: The Edge of the World by June. Street date for brick and mortar retailers is June 2, 2009. Special bundling and discounted offers will also be available on the ProgRock site along with a limited amount of autographed copies.
More information at:
http://www.myspace.com/roswellsix
http://www.progrockrecords.com/artists/view.php?id=116
You can copy this banner into your own MySpace profile or web site with this code:
<a href="http://www.msplinks.com/MDFodHRwOi8vd3d3LnByb2dyb2NrcmVjb3Jkcy5jb20vc2hvcC92aWV3LnBocD9pZD0xOTA="><img src="http://i43.tinypic.com/307vryc.gif" alt="TI" /></a>
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LANA LANE NEWS
We are pleased to announce the 2CD Japanese release of Best
of Lana Lane 2000 - 2008 is also now available at CD
Baby for more extensive international distribution. Audio
previews are available. If you live outside of the US, Canada, Japan
or Western Europe, you can now get this title from CD
Baby at the same price as in the Think Tank Media web store
shipped to anywhere in the world.
• MYSPACE: Be sure to add Lana Lane as a friend on her MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/eriknorlanderandlanalane.
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ROCKET SCIENTISTS NEWS
• THE BIG SHOW, THE WINCHESTER IN CLEVELAND, OHIO, MARCH 28,
2009
Okay, it's technically "Lakewood, Ohio", but close enough! This will be a very special event at The Winchester, the same venue where Rocket Scientists played last March (photos here: http://www.thetank.com/photo-winchester-mar08.htm). Rocket Scientists will perform along with special guest vocalists Lana Lane and John Payne. The event is also in celebration of the NASA 40th Anniversary of the Apollo Moon Landing. Our friend Michelle Moog - Koussa, Executive Director of The Bob Moog Foundation will again be the evening's master of ceremonies. Event details:
Saturday March 28, 2009
Rocket Scientists
with special guests Lana Lane and John Payne
The Winchester
12112 Madison Ave
Lakewood (Cleveland) Ohio 44107
(216) 226-5681
http://www.thewinchester.net/
• MYSPACE: Rocket Scientists have a MySpace page located at http://www.myspace.com/rocketscientistsband so please be sure to add them as a friend and check out the full-length songs posted there.
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ERIK NORLANDER NEWS
Erik continues his work with ASIA featuring John Payne. The band has an extensive US tour planned for the summer of 2009. Please visit the band's web site at http://www.theasiaband.com for tour dates along with news and updates on forthcoming CD releases.
Disclaimer: Asia Featuring John Payne is not affiliated with Think Tank Media
• MYSPACE: Be sure to add Erik as a friend on your myspace page at http://www.myspace.com/eriknorlanderandlanalane
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ON THE WEB
Below is a list of just some of the places to find Erik Norlander, Lana Lane and Rocket Scientists info on the Internet.
http://www.lanalane.com
http://www.myspace.com/eriknorlanderandlanalane
http://www.myspace.com/rocketscientistsband
http://www.youtube.com/ThinkTankMediaMusic
Mark McCrite's MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/markmccrite
Don Schiff''s MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/donschiff
The Asia featuring John Payne MySpace page is located at http://www.myspace.com/asiafeaturingjohnpayne
The Asia featuring John Payne web site is located at http://www.theasiaband.com
The Roswell Six MySpace page is located at http://www.myspace.com/roswellsix
Roswell Six writer, Kevin J. Anderson's web sites are located at: http://www.wordfire.com and http://www.dunenovels.com
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REVIEWS
Visit the Rocket Scientists - Looking Backward press page here - http://www.thetank.com/rslb.htm
Visit the Lana Lane - Red Planet Boulevard press page here - http://www.thetank.com/llrpb.htm
Visit the Lana Lane - Gemini press page here - http://www.thetank.com/llgem.htm
Visit the Erik Norlander - Hommage Symphonique press page here - http://www.thetank.com/enhs.htm
Visit the Rocket Scientists - Revolution Road press page here - http://www.thetank.com/rsrr.htm
Visit the Erik Norlander - Live in St. Petersburg press page here - http://www.thetank.com/ensp.htm
Special thanks to the journalists and editors who provide CD coverage for Erik Norlander, Lana Lane and Rocket Scientists.
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RADIO
Below is a sampling of the many radio shows and stations worldwide that are spinning Erik's, Lana's and Rocket Scientists' CDs.
INTERNET
Silent Planet Radio
Prog Positivity
Independent Nation
Neverending Wonder Radio
WRPS (WebRadioPugetSound)
Soundscape/Dividing Line
Epic Prog with The Lurker
Audities of Perelandra
Progressive Soundscapes Radio
Gagliarchives
Point of No Return
TERRESTRIAL
Afterglow
High Octane Radio
Canvas Prog Hour
The Soupy Gato Show
The Trip/WRFL
Progrockradio
Prog-Rock Diner
Aural Moon
Floydscape
Netteradio
Eleventh Hour
WCSB
WJCU
WRUW
WBWC
WRKC
WRAS
KEIF
InterstellarOverdrive
Soupy Gato Hour
WomensRadio.com
Distant Early Warning (Canada)
ProgDog (Canada)
ProgDependent (Germany)
PROTON (Germany)
Radio Rock Art (Germany)
Radio Jade (Germany)
Radio Powerplant (Germany)
Radio Emsland (Germany)
Radio afk max Nürnberg (Germany)
Radio Basile (Italy)
MasMusicFM (Mexico)
ProgWereld (The Netherlands)
Symfomania Rockshow (The Netherlands)
Symfozone (The Netherlands)
Spectrum (The Netherlands)
Los recuerdos del unicorno (Madrid, Spain)
Overloaded 89.9 FM (UK)
The Noise Hour at LA MEGA 99.5 FM Radio (Venezuela)
And many more ...
Special thanks to all the DJs who provided and continue to provide airplay for the Think Tank Music projects.
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DISCUSSION GROUP
The musicians and fans of Lana Lane, Erik Norlander and Rocket Scientists would love for you to join their web discussion group on Yahoo Groups. It is a nice summit of fans, friends and musicians (including Erik Norlander, Mark McCrite, Don Schiff and Lana Lane) from all over the world. The posts cover all things Lana Lane, Erik Norlander and Rocket Scientists, and the messages are posted in English. The musicians participate in the group and posts often. The list is moderated by Mike Alvarez (USA) and Marcel Haster (Europe), creator of the Escher's Staircase fan site. The group is called "Lana Lane and Erik Norlander", but it is also the official Rocket Scientists group as well.
The Yahoo Group is located at http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/LanaLane_ErikNorlander/
To join the group, go to the link above and enter your Yahoo ID (or sign up for one -- it's free). Or you can simply send an email to LanaLane_ErikNorlander-subscribe@yahoogroups.com and you will start receiving the group posts at the address you emailed from.
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CD / DVD AVAILABILITY
You can order Lana's Red Planet Boulevard CD, Gemini CD and 10th Anniversary Concert DVD, Erik Norlander's Hommage Symphonique CD and Live in St. Petersburg DVD, the Rocket Scientists Revolution Road CD and Looking Backward box set and all of their available back catalog at http://www.thetank.com. Select titles are also available at progrockrecords.com and at CDBaby.com. International secure ordering and shipping.
In Europe, Think Tank Media titles are distributed by Bertus (Benelux) and Musea (France) and sold through Empire Music and Just For Kicks Music in Germany along with many other fine companies throughout Europe. Select Lana Lane titles are released on the Frontiers and Diversity Media labels in Italy and Germany respectively.
In Japan, Think Tank Media titles are nationally released by Marquee, Inc. on their Avalon and Belle Antique labels. http://www.marquee.co.jp
All CDs are also available for sale at shows so be sure to support independent music and purchase CDs for yourself and all your friends and family! Music is the gift that keeps on giving.
For our friends in the USA, please ask your local retailers to stock the CDs which are now distributed by ProgRock Records and Ryko Distribution.
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WHERE TO DOWNLOAD
Think Tank Media recommends http://www.mindawn.com for your primary digital download source. Many bonus tracks are available on Erik's, Lana's and Rocket Scientists' Mindawn pages:
Erik Norlander on Mindawn: http://www.mindawn.com/artists/ErikNorlander
Lana Lane on Mindawn: http://www. mindawn.com/artists/LanaLane
Rocket Scientists on Mindawn: http://www.mindawn.com/albums/281
Mark McCrite on Mindawn: http://www.mindawn.com/albums/1926
Here are some recent additions to Mindawn from Erik, Lana and
Rocket Scientists:
Rocket Scientists - Looking Backward: http://www.mindawn.com/albums/3882
Rocket Scientists - Revolution Road: http://www.mindawn.com/albums/2082
Lana Lane - Red Planet Boulevard http://www.mindawn.com/albums/3856
Lana Lane - Gemini http://www.mindawn.com/albums/2276
Lana Lane - 10th Anniversary Concert: http://www.mindawn.com/albums/1213
Erik Norlander - Hommage Symphonique: http://www.mindawn.com/albums/2274
Erik Norlander - Live in St. Petersburg: http://www.mindawn.com/albums/2460
You can also legally download the songs and albums of Lana, Erik and Rocket Scientists on the Apple iTunes, Yahoo Music, Rhapsody and Music Match services. Please avoid peer-to-peer file sharing services that violate international copyright law.
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OFFICIAL WEB SITE
For all things Erik Norlander, Lana Lane and Rocket Scientists, please check out the official Think Tank Media web site at http://www.thetank.com. You will also find info there about other projects released by the Think Tank Media group.
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Thanks so much for reading The Passing Parade. We appreciate your continued support. If you have any feedback, please email us at SergeEnt@aol.com. We always enjoy hearing from you. Remember to tell all your friends about the Erik Norlander/Lana Lane/Rocket Scientists newsletter and their music! Please invite them to join this mailing list.