Legendary rock band ANGEL will release a new studio album, “Once Upon A Time”, on April 21 via Cleopatra Records. The LP features 11 brand new songs, plus three bonus tracks on the CD version, all written by Punky Meadows, Frank Dimino and Danny Farrow. The album’s first single, the energetic rocker “It’s Alright”, is available on all digital platforms today, and can be streamed below.
Meadows proclaims: “We are super excited by the release of the new album. We had a blast recording it, and the band is cookin’! It has everything ANGEL fans expect — epic songs, power pop, heavy rock ‘n’ roll, and it’s also deep with lots of surprises! Can’t wait for our fans to lay their ears on it!”
ANGEL has also announced a U.S. tour, with dates kicking off on March 3 at The Cutting Room in New York City.
Dimino says: “We can’t wait to get back on the road and rock with all the fans. And I am really excited for the new album release; can’t wait for you all to hear it!”
Farrow declares: “The new album kicks ass and I hope the fans love it. It is very diverse and has all the elements of the ANGEL sound and more. The band really worked hard to make it great and an album we can all be proud of!”
“Once Upon A Time” Artwork
ANGEL is also working on a new documentary film with DEKO Entertainment.
“Once Upon A Time” Track-listing:
1. The Torch
2. Black Moon Rising
3. It’s Alright
4. Once Upon A Time An Angel And A Devil Fell In Love (And It Did Not End Well)
5. Let It Rain
6. Psyclone
7. Blood Of My Blood, Bone Of My Bone
8. Turn The Record Over
9. Rock Star
10. Without You
11. Liar Liar
Bonus tracks (CD only)
12. Daddy’s Girl
13. C’mon
14. Let The Kid Out
ANGEL Tour Dates:
March 03 – New York, NY – The Cutting Room
March 04 – Teaneck, NJ – Debonair Music Hall (with STARZ)
March 10 – Sellersville, PA – Sellersville Theater
March 11 – Akron, OH – The Empire
March 12 – Westland, MI – The Token Lounge
March 14 – Milwaukee, WI – Shank Hall
March 15 – Madison, WI – High Noon Saloon
March 17 – Edwardsville, IL – The Wildey Theatre
March 19 – St. Charles, IL – Arcada Theatre
April 28 – Hollywood, CA – Whisky A Go Go
April 29 – Las Vegas, NV – Count’s Vamp’d
August 25 – Louisville, KY – Habana Blues Night Life (with SWEET)
August 26 – Columbus, OH – King Of Clubs (with SWEET)
ANGEL was discovered in a nightclub by none other than Gene Simmons of KISS, a man who had (and still has) a knack for finding and nurturing talent. ANGEL was also known for their androgynous look and dressing all in white, a pure yin-yang contrast to KISS‘s own all-black clothing and elaborate stage outfits. In 1975, the glam-rockers were signed to the home label for KISS, Casablanca Records, ultimately releasing six albums (five studio, one live) uninterrupted between 1975-80 that mixed the best elements of glam, hard rock, and pure unadulterated fist-pumping melodic singalongs.
While ANGEL never quite achieved success as their label-mates KISS did, they left their mark on in-the-know rock fans of the era with tracks like the hard-driving “Rock & Rollers”, “Tower”, the perennial holiday favorite “The Winter Song”, and their key contribution to the soundtrack of the Jodie Foster-starring 1980 teen drama “Foxes”, “20th Century Foxes”. The lineup for their self-titled 1975 debut, “Angel”, consisted of guitarist Punky Meadows, bassist Mickie Jones, vocalist Frank DiMino, keyboardist Gregg Giuffria, and drummer Barry Brandt. This lineup recorded two more albums, 1976’s “Helluva Band” and 1977’s “On Earth As It Is In Heaven”, after which Jones would be replaced on bass by Felix Robinson. Two more solid studio efforts, 1978’s “White Hot” and 1979’s “Sinful”, ensued before the release of a stellar live set, 1980’s “Live Without A Net”.
ANGEL started to fall apart in the early 1980s after Casablanca pulled the plug on the group due in part to disappointing album sales. In 1981, Robinson and DiMino left to pursue other projects. Meadows and Giuffria tried to keep ANGEL going and came close to landing a record deal with CBS. But it didn’t pan out, and ANGEL finally disbanded.
In 2018, Caroline/UMe saluted the core output of ANGEL with “Angel: The Casablanca Years”. This ascendant, band-approved seven-CD box set featured the Washington, D.C.-bred glam/rock outfit’s six albums that were released on Neil Bogart‘s legendary Casablanca Records label, in addition to a seventh disc that contains mono mixes, single edits, soundtrack contributions, and other rarities. ANGEL expert Dave Reynolds contributed insightful liner notes to the box set’s included 28-page booklet, which also featured rare photos and other memorabilia.
