| Jens Johansson |
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| swedish heavy metal keyboardists | |
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Jens Johansson (born November 2 , 1963 in Stockholm ) is a world-renowned Swedish Keyboardist and Pianist in the Heavy Metal -genre. He's noted as one of the first and most influential keyboardists, for his high-speed Neoclassical and Fusion style. BIOGRAPHY Johansson is son of the well-known Swedish jazz pianist Jan Johansson and brother of the heavy metal drummer Anders Johansson . Classically trained, In 1982 he got drafted to the Swedish metal band Silver Mountain , which also included his brother Anders. In 1983 he left Sweden for California and joined guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen as a member of his band Rising Force . Numerous records and world tours ensued and he stayed with Yngwie until 1989. Jens also played with the band Dio between 1989 and 1990 . Like Anders, he began an ongoing collaboration with Jonas Hellborg in 1989 which has resulted in several well-received progressive and avant-garde recordings, among many others Dissident, '' Silent Run '' (an acoustic piano trio record with Ginger Baker on Drums ) and the hard core progressive fusion record E. In 1993 , Jens co-founded a progressive blues metal project, The Johansson Brothers , and recorded a self-titled record. In 1996 , with a different line-up, they recorded another one, '' Sonic Winter '', this time under the name Johansson with Yngwie Malmsteen guesting on guitar. The last Johansson record, '' The Last Viking '', now more 'european metal' oriented, was released in 1999 with special guests Michael Romeo and Göran Edman . He has released several instrumental solo records such as '' Fjäderlösa Tvåfotingar '', '' Ten Seasons '' (a piano solo album improvised in the Mark Kostabi gallery New York ), '' Heavy Machinery '' (with Anders and Allan Holdsworth ) and Fission (with Anders, Shawn Lane and Mike Stern ) and lots of collaborations with other artists, metal compilations and Berends Brothers' band Mastermind . He co-founded Heptagon Records to distribute his own recordings, and other musicians like guitarist Benny Jansson and bassist Magnus Rosén . In 1995, he joined to the Power Metal band Stratovarius , of which he is still a member. Jens auditioned for Dream Theater after Kevin Moore left the band in 1994. Despite his technical prowess he wasn't accepted into the band, some sources state that if he had joined he wouldn't have been allowed to participate in the songwriting process until they were sure whether he was suitable for the band. Apparently Jens lost his interest in the keyboardist spot after this. GEAR He has used many types of keyboards and synthesizers throughout his career. Between his favourites are classics such as the Korg Polysix and Yamaha DX7 (from the Rising Force times to present) and a couple of synths including Oberheim Matrix Series and Roland JV 1080. Jens is also fond of the Hammond Organ . He is a Computer fan and long time Steinberg programs user (like Cubase ). An example of his friendship with computers is his record "Fission", with tons of effects and sound experimentations. DISCOGRAPHY
RELATED LINKS ''Some text taken from the 'Heavy Machinery' album booklet and Jens Homepage.'' |
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