RIOT V Releases 'Heart Of A Lion' Music Video
The official video for "Heart Of A Lion", a new song from RIOT V, the band featuring members of legendary metal pioneers RIOT, can be seen below. The track is taken from RIOT V's upcoming album, "Armor Of Light", which will be released on April 27 via Nuclear Blast. The disc was produced by Chris "The Wizard" Collier (METAL CHURCH, FLOTSAM & JETSAM, SLIPKNOT, KORN), while the cover artwork was created by Mariusz Gandzel (CRYSTAL VIPER).
The "Heart Of A Lion" video was filmed in New York and was produced by director Kyle Monroe of Ryk3r Productions.
Bassist Don Van Stavern states: "One of my traditional-sounding DVS RIOT tunes! Beautifully intricate with a great vocal delivery, bombastic drums, string patterns from hell and a great hooky singalong chorus! The video captures the lyrical story line and the awesome playmenship of the band. I'm really jazzed about this one!"
Vocalist Todd Michael Hall adds: "My idea and lyrical content for 'Heart Of A Lion' is about Richard The Lionheart. He was known as an incredible warrior and military leader, but he also gave into his weaknesses, much like our leaders of today. Ultimately, his hubris lead to his untimely death."
The new songs promise to please fans of the "Thundersteel" era of RIOT, as longtime Mark Reale music collaborator Donnie Van Stavern undertakes a lot of the writing as he did on "Thundersteel", "The Privilege Of Power" and the latest offering, "Unleash The Fire".
Hardly any other metal act has such a long and absorbing history behind it. Since the quintet formed in 1975, they have been hit by several severe strokes of fate during their long career. Three deceased members — Rhett Forester (R.I.P. 1994), Guy Speranza (R.I.P. 2003) and Mark Reale (R.I.P. 2012) — have left their mark on the four decades of RIOT's band history.
Since their legendary debut album, "Rock City" (1977), RIOT has released numerous heavy metal classics, including "Fire Down Under" (with classics like "Swords And Tequila"), their masterpiece "Thundersteel" (1988) and the unforgotten "The Privilege Of Power" (1990).
After the death of Mark Reale and the departure of Tony Moore, Todd Michael Hall (from Michigan), completed the lineup of RIOT, which changed its name to RIOT V and moved forward under the auspices of the two long-term members and main songwriters Donnie Van Stavern (bass) and Mike Flyntz (guitar). With the critically acclaimed "Unleash The Fire"(2014), a pure power metal jewel once again underlined the musical importance and influence of the quintet.
Many artists name-check RIOT as an important influence of their musical career and have paid tribute to the power metal godfathers on multiple occasions. The list is long and includes several well-known acts such as HAMMERFALL ("Flight Of The Warrior"), Luca Turilli's RHAPSODY("Thundersteel"), AXEL RUDI PELL ("Warrior") and newcomers such as NIGHT DEMON ("Road Racin'"), ALPHA TIGER ("Flight Of The Warrior"), SAVAGE MASTER ("Swords And Tequila") and STALLION ("Rock City").
"Armor Of Light" track listing:
01. Victory 02. End Of The World 03. Messiah 04. Angel's Thunder, Devil's Reign
05. Burn The Daylight 06. Heart Of A Lion 07. Armor Of Light 08. Set The World Alight 09. San Antonio 10. Caught In the Witches Eye 11. Ready to Shine 12. Raining Fire
