CD/DVD Releases: Uriah Heep To Release New Album, Tour

Uriah Heep will be on tour in Romania and the Ukraine in October, and then play a handful of dates in Finland supporting Alice Cooper. Meanwhile, the release of the band's first album in ten years, Wake The Sleeper has been postponed from its September release date to late January 2008 -- Sanctuary Records was recently purchased by Universal Music. "We know that fans will be bitterly disappointed as indeed the band are by this news, but it would be commercial suicide to release such an important album for the band during a transitional takeover period between record labels," the band's manager Simon Porter writes at the Uriah Heep website. "Quite simply, it would be a case of the album being released just for the sake of it without any cohesive promotion or marketing campaign in order to give the album the best shot that it richly deserves. Releasing later in the year would additionally mean that we would be fighting for racking space on the shelves with all the major Christmas releases." Wake The Sleeper was recorded at Chapel Studios in Lincolnshire, England where the band worked with Mike Paxman (Status Quo, Judie Tzuke).

Tracklist for Wake The Sleeper:

Wake The Sleeper
Overload
Tears Of The World
Light of a Thousand Stars
Heaven's Rain
Book Of Lies
What Kind of God
Ghost Of The Ocean
Angels Walk With You
Shadow
War Child

Sanctuary Japan recently released virtually the entire catalog from Uriah Heep as limited-edition paper sleeves, remastered with bonus material.

[Sources: Robert/Rocknrollcola via e-Prog and UH website]