Morpheus Rising is a British rock band formed in 2008, producing music which is influenced heavily by the

NWOBHM The new wave of British heavy metal (often abbreviated as NWOBHM) was a nationwide musical movement that began in England in the mid-1970s and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. Editor Alan Lewis coined the term for an arti ...

style of rock dominated by bands such as

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

and

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO) is an object or phenomenon seen in the sky but not yet identified or explained. The term was coined when United States Air Force (USAF) investigations into flying saucers found too broad a range of shapes ...

. The band also draw heavily from the style of bands such as

Thin Lizzy Thin Lizzy are an Irish rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. The band initially consisted of bass guitarist, lead vocalist and principal songwriter Phil Lynott, drummer Brian Downey, guitarist Eric Bell and organist Eric Wrixon although Wr ...

, making use of twin guitar harmony parts throughout their compositions. The first album, ''Let The Sleeper Awake'' was released at the end of 2011.

History

Early years

Formed by Pete Harwood (formerly of Vixen) in April 2008 when Grae Tennick answered an online advert. Within weeks the two had written six tracks and were working on more. Additional members of the band were quickly lined up with Andy Smith (of

Mostly Autumn Mostly Autumn are an English rock band. The group formed in 1995 and have built their reputation through constant touring, never signing to a major label. They produce music heavily influenced by 1970s progressive rock. According to the BBC, M ...

) on bass guitar and Paul 'Gibbo' Gibbons (previously of The Bogus Brothers) on drums. A second guitarist, essential for the type of music the band were writing, proved harder to find with Rhys McPherson and Phil O'dea taking part in early rehearsals before Damien James Sweeting was recommended to the band by a mutual friend. Arriving at the studio knowing all five songs from the demo CD, Sweeting's audition quickly became the first rehearsal of what would be the band's first lineup. 2010 saw the band embark on their first UK tour. Mixing a handful of support dates for The Reasoning on their Adverse Camber tour with several headline dates of their own, including a second bill slot on the inaugural Forces Festival in Bulford, England. Additional dates included another support for

Gun A gun is a device that Propulsion, propels a projectile using pressure or explosive force. The projectiles are typically solid, but can also be pressurized liquid (e.g. in water guns or water cannon, cannons), or gas (e.g. light-gas gun). So ...

and more headline performances before the band were forced into hiatus while Grae deployed on operations in Afghanistan from August 2010 until February 2011. After his return from Afghanistan, Grae announced that he would be leaving Morpheus Rising due to both work and family commitments. Two final performances were fulfilled prior to his departure, a return to the Forces Festival (this time supporting blues guitarist Gwyn Ashton) and a farewell gig at Fibbers in

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

. Despite having begun work on their debut album (already postponed for Grae's operational tour) this was delayed further until a replacement vocalist could be found.

New lineup

Morpheus Rising announced Grae's replacement, Si Wright (of Burnwylde), at his farewell gig. The band had already confirmed a slot at the Cambridge Rock Festival, just six weeks away, and began rehearsing in earnest. Following a warm up show in York, Wright was in thrown in at the deep end at the

Classic Rock Society Classic Rock Society, also known as CRS, was founded by Martin Hudson in 1991 in Rotherham, England, at the Florence Nightingale public house, and quickly progressed to become a large and well recognised organisation helping to forward the cause ...

sponsored Stage 2 of the Cambridge Rock Festival, on 5 August 2011. The debut album, ''Let The Sleeper Awake'', was released on 9 December 2011 with a supporting tour in January 2012. Following a relatively quiet year in 2012, 2013 saw the band touring with

Panic Room ''Panic Room'' is a 2002 American thriller film directed by David Fincher. The film stars Jodie Foster and Kristen Stewart as a mother and daughter whose new home is invaded by burglars, played by Forest Whitaker, Jared Leto, and Dwight ...

across the UK, with guitarist Pete Harwood playing with both bands, standing in at Panic Room following the departure of guitarist Paul Davies. By this point, original drummer Paul Gibbons had departed, the band and was temporarily replaced by Henry Rogers of DeeExpus and Touchstone while a full-time replacement was sought.

New record label and drummer

In August 2013, shortly after the tour, Morpheus Rising signed with

Melodic Revolution Records Melodic Revolution Records (MRR) was formed in October 2004 by Nick Katona and his wife Jennifer. It began out as a music store in Clinton, NY selling compact discs, DVDs, Vinyl and memorabilia. In October 2005, an art gallery was added to the ...

in Florida, US, and announced that former

and

Oliver/Dawson Saxon Oliver/Dawson Saxon was an English heavy metal band formed in 1995 by former members of Saxon, guitarist Graham Oliver and bassist Steve Dawson. Following Steve Dawson's decision to retire from performing in October 2021, Graham Oliver, Gav ...

drummer, Nigel Durham was to join the band, completing the line up for the forthcoming second album.

Musical style

Referring to their style as NWoBHM-TNG (New Wave of British Heavy Metal - The Next Generation) Morpheus Rising's musical style incorporates the fast upbeat tempos, power chords, fast guitar solos and melodic, soaring vocals recognised as core elements of the style made famous in the 1980s. In addition, the band have continued the tradition of lyrical themes which draw inspiration from mythology and fantasy fiction themes. Primarily written by Pete Harwood the music also draws on the melodic twin guitar harmonies made famous by

. The pairing of Harwood/Sweeting has been likened to the guitar duo of Adrian Smith and Dave Murray of Iron Maiden on more than one occasion and

BBC Music Introducing BBC Music Introducing is BBC Radio's platform supporting unsigned, undiscovered, and under-the-radar UK music talent. The backbone of that network consists of 32 BBC local radio shows on stations across England and the Channel Islands, various ...

presenter, Matt Seymour, stated the two were the 'tightest guitar duo ever to appear on the show'.In Session, BBC Introducing, BBC Radio York, 17 Oct 2009 Lyrically, both Grae Tennick and Si Wright have used science fiction, horror and fantasy literature and movies as catalysts for their inspiration. ''

30 Days of Night ''30 Days of Night'' is a three-issue vampire comic book miniseries written by Steve Niles, illustrated by Ben Templesmith, and published by American company IDW Publishing in 2002. All three parties co-own the property. The series takes place ...

'', '' Lords of the North'', ''

Night of the Living Dead ''Night of the Living Dead'' is a 1968 American Independent film, independent zombie horror film directed, photographed, and edited by George A. Romero, written by Romero and John A. Russo, John Russo, produced by Russell Streiner and Karl Har ...

'' and ''

Dorian Gray ''The Picture of Dorian Gray'' is an 1890 philosophical fiction and Gothic horror novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde. A shorter novella-length version was published in the July 1890 issue of the American periodical ''Lippincott's Monthly M ...

'' have all played their part in inspiring the lyricists. Despite the heavy lyrical and musical influence of earlier British rock bands Morpheus Rising have managed to incorporate modern elements into their sound ensuring that their material stays relevant in the ever-changing genre of

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

Current members

* Si Wright - Lead and Backing Vocals (2011–present) * Pete Harwood - Lead and Rhythm Guitar (2008–present) * Mikey Walsh - Lead and Rhythm Guitar (2017–present) * Andy Smith - Bass Guitar (2008–present) * Ian Wright - Drums (2017–present)

Former members

* Grae Tennick - Lead and Backing Vocals (2008-2011) * Paul 'Gibbo' Gibbons - Drums, Backing Vocals (2008–2013) * Damien James Sweeting - Lead and Rhythm Guitar (2008–2015) * Nigel Durham - Drums (2013–2016)

History

Early years

New lineup

New record label and drummer

Musical style

Current members

Former members

Discography

Albums

References

External links