Rock and metal flagship AVANTASIA will release their thrilling 10th studio album and Napalm Records debut, Here Be Dragons, on February 28, 2025, and today the band unleashes the energizing first new single “Creepshow”! The new track is one of the catchiest songs of AVANTASIA’s career so far, and it arrives with an exciting, cinematic music video. The guaranteed future hit rings in a new era of AVANTASIA and will be an integral part of AVANTASIA’s spectacular live shows.

In their 25 years of existence, AVANTASIA has become one of the biggest leading forces in metal, boasting nine successful previous albums (such as the #1 charting Moonglow), worldwide sold-out arena tours and headline shows at all of the most important metal festivals. Here Be Dragons is sure to exceed all expectations as the most powerful AVANTASIA album so far.

Tobias Sammet on the single and video:

“Creepshow is a perfect single. It’s short and catchy, and it emphasizes a facet of my work that has taken a backseat in my music in recent years. It’s light-hearted and the opposite of melancholic. And it’s fresh, boisterous and unabashed – a straightforward kick-ass anthem. Also, even though it may seem like a reminiscence of my earlier writing, I think we managed to turn the whole thing into a trademark AVANTASIA tune, as we accentuated with the music video. We rented a haunted castle in North England and celebrated a night in the world of spectres and undead creatures. This is the most vibrant and eccentric music video I’ve ever shot in my entire career, not dead-serious, but certainly of serious quality! I can’t wait to play Creepshow live on our tour next year, I can already see the whole venue jumping up and down and screaming along!”

Leading rock and metal force AVANTASIA is set to unleash their bombastic 10th studio album and Napalm Records debut, Here Be Dragons, on February 28, 2025! Featuring absolute AVANTASIA essentials such as spellbinding choirs and theatrical symphonic metal elements, multitalented mastermind and frontman Tobias Sammet also surprises fans old and new with plenty of intriguing fresh soundscapes. Here Be Dragons gives the celebrated AVANTASIA sound that has been carefully crafted over a quarter of a century an exciting and powerful spin. The new album is the most consistent and concise piece of art that the band has ever crafted.

The band’s impressive success story has seen nine previous studio albums (including the 2019 offering Moonglow that charted at #1 in Germany), gold awards, hundreds of millions of streams as well as headline shows at all important metal festivals and worldwide sold-out arena tours with tens of thousands of devoted fans. AVANTASIA is not showing any signs of slowing down – soon after the release of Here Be Dragons, the band will head out on an extensive arena tour across Europe, promising to deliver fans an immersive experience with their biggest and most epic production ever.

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Tobias Sammet comments:

“This new album carries the most adventurous and bold spirit my music has had in decades. And it’s rather reckless, fearless, powerful, and uplifting and not introverted at all. While my previous albums allowed me to get a lot off my chest, this time I dove headfirst into the creative flood, crafting ten discrete, musical pictures, that miraculously merged into what I believe is the tightest chapter in AVANTASIA’s history. I did everything exactly how I wanted it, approaching the album with unrelenting determination and a carefree attitude, that was reminiscent of my early days way before the Metal Opera thing, when I felt unstoppable and let instinct just write songs. Right now I’m bursting with energy and can’t wait to unleash Here Be Dragons and then kick off the big tour with our new stage. We’ll present the new material alongside our classics and some rarities in the most spectacular stage show AVANTASIA has ever delivered. An early Merry Christmas, everyone!”

In grand AVANTASIA tradition, the new full-length is rich in vivid storytelling and cinematic atmospheres, not to mention the highest level of musicianship. Opening track “Creepshow” is without a doubt one of the catchiest songs in their career. The energizing future hit truly welcomes the listener into the new era of AVANTASIA and will be an integral part of the band’s spectacular live shows. In contrast, the incredible title track “Here Be Dragons” is a classic AVANTASIA song, and at almost nine minutes, is by far the longest on the album. The cinematic dark soundscapes of “The Witch” captivate and support the song’s storyline perfectly. Emotional, multifaceted vocal performances mesmerize on “Avalon”, while the heavy metal number “Against The Wind” serves as further proof of the versatility of AVANTASIA’s sound. Remaining well-balanced and cohesive, Here Be Dragons is undeniably AVANTASIA’s most powerful album so far.

The 10-track offering was written and composed in its entirety by Tobias Sammet himself, produced and recorded by Tobias Sammet together with Sascha Paeth, mixed by Sascha Paeth and mastered by Michael Rodenberg. The stunning cover art was once again created by acclaimed British fantasy artist Rodney Matthews. Here Be Dragons marks another masterpiece in the AVANTASIA catalog, leaving both fans and critics speechless and proving the band’s standing as a main force in the world of rock and metal!

Here Be Dragons is now available for pre-order in several exciting physical editions, with bonus albums included in select limited formats, like a 3CD hardcover artbook with 96 pages, over 160 pictures, drawings of Rodney Matthews and extensive stories to accompany the music and pictures.

Make sure to secure yours and stay tuned for the first single that will be released very soon!

Here Be Dragons Tracklisting:
1 Creepshow
2 Here Be Dragons
3 The Moorland At Twilight
4 The Witch
5 Phantasmagoria
6 Bring On The Night
7 Unleash The Kraken
8 Avalon
9 Against The Wind
10 Everybody’s Here Until The End

Here Be Dragons will be available in the following formats: 

-3CD-Artbook – large format, hardcover book incl. 96 pages, over 160 pictures and extensive
stories and liner notes
-3-LP Vinyl Box incl 72 Pages 12″ Booklet – strictly limited to 500 copies
-1-LP Glow in the Dark Vinyl incl 12” Booklet – strictly limited to 300 copies – Napalm Records
Mailorder exclusive
-1-LP Yellow/Orange Marbled Vinyl incl 12” Booklet – strictly limited to 300 copies – Napalm
Records Mailorder exclusive
-1-LP Blue/White Splattered Vinyl incl 12″ Booklet + Poster + Slipmat – strictly limited to 500
copies – Napalm Records Mailorder exclusive ROW
-1-LP Orange/Black Splatter Vinyl incl 12” Booklet – strictly limited to 300 copies – Avantasia
Mailorder exclusive
-1-LP Marbled White Viola Red Royal Blue Vinyl incl 12” Booklet – strictly limited to 500 copies
– Avantasia Mailorder exclusive
-1-LP Orange incl 12” Booklet
-1-LP Black incl 12” Booklet
-Tape – strictly limited to 100 copies – Napalm Records Mailorder exclusive
-2CD Mediabook
-1CD Digipak
-Digital Album

Rock and Metal Flagship Avantasia Inks Record Deal with Napalm Records

Tobias Sammet comments:

“AVANTASIA is back, and with the biggest show we’ve ever put on during this year’s festival season, we’ve already given you a taste of what’s to come. Fueled by the incredible spirit and energy of our tour, we headed back to the studio to channel that momentum into creating our most powerful album yet: Here Be Dragons.

We’re also thrilled to announce our new partnership with Napalm Records. Their passion, commitment, and deep love for the world of AVANTASIA have been truly inspiring and they’re just as enthusiastic as we are to bring this new chapter to life.

I couldn’t be more excited about the future. AVANTASIA is back, bigger and stronger than ever!”

Thomas Caser, Napalm Records Managing Director adds:

“Tobias Sammet is one of the most influential and prolific artists this genre has ever produced. With his boundless creativity and unwavering dedication, he has created one of the most spectacular bands in the world with AVANTASIA. We are thrilled to set another milestone in the band’s history together and are ready to push the upcoming AVANTASIA album worldwide at full throttle! Welcome, Tobi!”

Catch AVANTASIA live on tour!

14.03.25 DE – Hamburg / Sporthalle
15.03.25 BE – Brussels / AB Box
16.03.25 FR – Paris / Olympia
18.03.25 LU – Esch-sur-Alzette / Rockhal
20.03.25 DE – Berlin / Columbiahalle
21.03.25 DE – Bamberg / Brose Arena
22.03.25 DE – Bochum / RuhrCongress
24.03.25 UK – London / The Roundhouse
26.03.25 NL – Tilburg / O13
28.03.25 DE – Stuttgart / Schleyerhalle
29.03.25 CZ – Prague / Forum Karlin
01.04.25 HU – Budapest / Barba Negra
02.04.25 AT – Vienna / Gasometer
04.04.25 DE – Munich / Zenith
05.04.25 DE – Frankfurt am Main / Jahrhunderthalle
06.04.25 DE – Cologne / Palladium
08.04.25 IT – Milan / Alcatraz
09.04.25 CH – Zurich / The Hall
11.04.25 ES – Barcelona / Razzmatazz
12.04.25 ES – Madrid / Vistalegre

AVANTASIA have come to be known as the trailblazing genre flagship around the globe for their one-of-a-kind Symphonic Rock and Metal extravaganza.

Looking back on 9 albums, number-one-chart positions, gold awards and sold out concerts all over the world – from Europe to Asia, from Australia to North- and Latin America – main man Tobias Sammet is probably Germany’s most successful Rock export of his generation, and with his band AVANTASIA he has been so for 25 years now.

In March 2025 AVANTASIA are going to ring in a new age in the spooky and enchanting lands of Avantasia, embarking on an arena world tour in support of their 10th studio album »Here Be Dragons«, which is currently in the works and will be released early next year.

Tobias Sammet states:

»This year’s summer festival season has been only the beginning of a new era of AVANTASIA, an appetizer so to speak. The shows of our own Here Be Dragons tour are going to be the real deal, a trip to a world of wonder where people can forget about everything else in their real lives and join me on the other side. It’s an immersive experience with special effects and a huge production, bigger and better than anything we’ve ever done. And: there is amazing new music in the works; anthemic and epic songs that will fit in seamlessly with our classics and some almost forgotten songs that may make it into the live setlist as well. I can’t wait to finish and unleash our brand new album Here Be Dragons to the world and take this new stage spectacle to the road. Yes indeed, AVANTASIA is back!«

Exclusive Eventim presale starts tomorrow at 10:00AM / General presale from Thursday, August 1st at 10 AM.