Over 20 years, 11 albums and hundreds of performances around the globe, Savatage’s dynamic music – which mixes elements of thrash, progressive, power metal and classic hard rock– earned the band a passionate cult following.
Founded in Tampa, Florida by brothers Jon and Criss Oliva, Savatage saw their many musical triumphs overshadowed by personal tragedy. Albums such as 1987’s “Hall of the Mountain King” – their first of eight collaborations with producer and mentor Paul O’Neill – and 1991’s riveting “Streets: A Rock Opera” continue to be celebrated to this day. The death of Criss Oliva on the heels of the breakthrough success of 1993’s “Edge of Thorns” altered the group’s trajectory considerably.
The band experienced a renaissance with their 1995 album “Dead Winter Dead” and continued to display a flair for theatricality of their own on their final two albums. An epic reunion performance at 2015’s Wacken Festival before 80,000 fans showed proof that the crowds will never be gone.