SORTILEGE - Live Bootleg DLP HRR 989LP, one-time pressing, 100 x black, 100 x blue, 100 x red, 100 x white + 100 x drapeau tricolore vinyl (HRR mailorder exclusive), handnumbered, 425gsm heavy cardboard cover with 5mm spine, insert Christian Augustin - lead and backing vocals Stephane Dumont - lead guitar Didier Demajean - guitars Daniel Lapp - bass Bob Snake - drums Side A 01 La montagne qui saigne 02 Amazone 03 Gladiateur 04 Messager 05 Delire d'un fou Side B 06 La hargne des tordus 07 Nuit des limbes 08 Progeniture + guitar solo 09 Chasse le dragon - drum solo Side C 10 Le cyclope de l'etang 11 Quand un aveugle reve 12 Le dernier des travaux d'Hercule 13 Metamorphose Side D 14 Majeste 15 Marchand d'hommes 16 Mourir pour une princesse 17 Sortilege January 31st

Audio restored from a live audience recording by Patrick W. Engel at TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY in July 2024. Source material provided by the original artists. These old recordings were not recorded in a professional way. SORTILEGE never did a real live album, but these rare audience recordings capture the energy of a typical 80s show and so they are from very high historical value. If you expect a high-quality live recording, this one is not for you. If you are a SORTILEGE maniac and want to listen to a fantastic concert, recorded straight from the audience, you must have it. This is the spirit of the old bootleg recordings we all love. Starting out as a cover band (playing songs by Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Rainbow, AC/DC, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Van Halen, Kiss, and of course Trust), guitarist and founding member Didier Demajean decided to change the name of his group from Blood Wave to Sortilège in 1981. Together with Christian Augustin, aka “Zouille” (vocals), Daniel Lapp (bass), Jean-Philippe Dumont, aka Bob Snake (drums), and Stéphane Dumont (guitar) the first, self-titled EP for Dutch label Rave-On Records was recorded in 1983. The five original compositions: “Amazone”, “Progéniture Destructrice”, “Gladiateur”, “Sortilège” and “Bourreau” were received extremely well by press and fans alike. High-profile support slots for Samson and Def Leppard in the French capital followed, before it was time to record the successor to »Sortilège«. Sortilège’s first full-length album »Métamorphose« was released in 1984 on French label Devil’s Records. Following the release of the album, the band played a French tour as well as appearing live in Germany and The Netherlands. An international edition called »Metamorphosis«, featuring English vocals, was issued by German label Steamhammer Records the same year. Two years later, the follow-up to »Métamorphose«/»Metamorphosis« hit the shelves. »Larmes De Héros« is widely considered to be the best of the band’s three studio albums (some people in France have even described Sortilège as “absolute pioneers in Epic and Progressive Metal”). »Larmes De Héros« (»Hero’s Tears« in the English version) was the last Sortilège studio album to see the light of day, before the members of the band’s original incarnation went their different ways in 1986. As a special treat for their fans, Sortilège have now decided to make their very last concert available to the public via High Roller Records. The source for »Live At Eldorado 1986« is an audience tape that one of the band’s fans gave them some time after the concert (on this night Sortilège were supported by French band Highland Queen). Their was a video recording of the show as well, but this has unfortunately been lost in the mists of time. The Eldorado itself was a former cinema converted into a theatre in the early 1980s, located in the 10th district of Paris and holding around 1,500 spectators. The band looks back with fond memories to this very special day: “We remember the packed house and the amazing atmosphere throughout the show. As well as the fans, our families and friends were there. Certainly one of our best concerts ever, perhaps the most accomplished!” Just a few days before the show, singer Christian Augustin, aka “Zouille”, had announced his departure – so the band didn't really have time to realize that this was in fact their very last concert together. On stage, the band members felt a mixture of emotions: “Excitement, concentration, incredible energy, and a mad desire to deliver the best possible show for our fans! We knew we were at the top of our game. The songs went together perfectly, each musician gave his best, and the sound was very compact. We've probably never played together so well on stage! By hard work and practice we had reached our maximum level.” As you can hear on the recording, the audience is signing along very loud, and it seems as if they knew all of the lyrics by heart. The band was used to that at this point in their career: “That's exactly what happened at every Sortilège concert, a sort of giant karaoke where the fans knew all the lyrics by heart and even sang along to the melodies of the solos. But on this particular night, the audience really became one with the band. We had chosen the most representative tracks from each album. The favourites probably were ‘Majesté’, ‘Délire d’un Fou’ and ‘Sortilège’. But every fan has his own preferences.” After the gig at the Eldorado, Sortilège started to look for a new singer: “Eventually we found a Swiss guy, Mark B. Lay (ex-Killer), who sang in English. Stéphane's compositions had evolved further and this singer brought us more rock melodies and groove, and we were pleased with at the time. In fact, we renamed the group The Team, but despite a few contacts with major producers and the arrival of Barbara Schenker on keyboards (ex-Viva), Michael’s and Rudolf's sister, the project didn't come to fruition, and after about two years each of the remaining members went in a different direction.” MATTHIAS MADER