Arnel Fans

Well, This is heated post and is well commented. Here it from Entertainment Weekly

You’ve probably heard of Filipino singer/songwriter/master manipulator of voice Arnel Pineda, discovered by the non-Steve Perry members of Journey via YouTube, and officially hired as the band’s lead singer back in December. This week, the remodeled Journey announced a tour with Heart and Cheap Trick, starting in July. While you’re rummaging around your most neglected junk drawer for your most beloved and long-lasting lighter, play the above video and try to tell Perry’s vocals from those of Pineda. Ha! This is hardly a challenge. Anyway, do you approve of Perry’s replacement, or think it’s a joke? There’s also always the write-in option: “Who cares about Journey?”

What cha think?

Ok, I’m a little late on this one, but here’s GQ article about Arnel.

When the legendary rock band Journey needed to replace their lead singer, they turned to the Internet, where they found clips of an unknown 40-year-old singer from the Philippines. Arnel Pineda was just a small-town boy, living in a lonely world, covering Journey songs in no-name bar bands, but he had the voice—and the hair—of a natural-born rock star. Now he’s living a dream that goes on, and on, and on, and on…

Great article! Read on….

Here’s Media Spec review of Cheap Trick, Heart and Journey

Since Journey recruited Arnel Pineda to the group and showed off their rejuvenated sound with their latest album, Revelation, it’s the best they’ve been since Steve Perry parted ways with the group in 1998. Previous lead singers felt more like poor imitations rather than the next evolution of Journey, and now Arnel Pineda brings a classic feel with some new energy.

Another well received review! Go Arnel!

Andrew of Lens Flare talks about Journey’s concert in Dallas

All I can say is WOW.  I have seen Journey 3 times now and this new lineup with singer Arnel Pineda is most definitely something special.  The band (in particular Pineda) had the most energy that I have seen in years.  Being a former musician myself, I am pretty tough on live performance critiques…But wowza these guys tore it up.   Not a wrong note from anyone and so much energy throughout the band.  They looked like they were back in their hayday.  Strong performance that definitely connected with the audience.  We got a great view of the whole show from the 7th row center at Superpages.com Ampitheater.   If you get a chance to see them, don’t miss it.

Take the advice. See Journey if you can this summer.

Esto es el blog de Lonesomegilrocksm en espanol.

El esperado nuevo disco de Journey con su flamante nuevo vocalista Arnel Pineda. ya está disponible en la red. Será lanzado a la venta el próximo 3 de Junio en EE UU en un paquete de dos CD y un DVD a través de la tiendas Wal-Mart. El primer disco contendrá 11 clásicos regrabados con la voz de Arnel Pineda, el segundo 11 nuevas canciones (que es lo que aquí está) y el tercero será un DVD en vivo en Las Vegas.

i always enjoyed Vagabond’s blogs. I didn’t know she went to the concert this weekend. She wrote her review in two parts, check out Part 1 and Part 2. Just like Journey, she didn’t disappoint. Excerpt of what she said:

Chat took this picture of AP because I have to admit, I was busy trying to get Arnel to read my sign–ARNEL PAKISS. I was determined to make a fool of myself - then some reader of my blog emailed me this morning telling me that he recognized me - the blogger vagabond. Oh well. (I already said in my previous blogs that I have no shame when it comes to Arnel.)

Dallaslao.wordpress.com talks about Journey’s concert in Dallas.

Journey was one of the bank I like back then (still do). It was bummed that Steve Perry didn’t continue as the frontman for the group. The group had 2 other singers to replace Steve Perry and last year they found a new singer…get this…on Youtube. Yep. The new singer is a Filipino name Arnel Pineda. When I saw the video of him singing on Youtube I didn’t believe it was him singing Journey music. I thought it was some sort of hoax. But the true is, Arnel Pineda is the real thing. Last night about dozen co-workers went to see Journey concert here in town. They said it was awsome and Arnel Pineda was great and the new lead vocal.

Media Spec reviews Journey’s concert with Heart and Cheap Trick.

But hearing “Separate Ways” live is an experience like no other. It had to be one of the more powerful performances that they put on. With the largeness of the drums, the ambiance of the keyboard, and the background of the guitars, it was all topped off by Arnel’s masterful vocal work. The whole song just felt large and hearing live recordings just don’t do it justice.

I never thought Arnel looked like Steve Perry. The only similarity are the voice and the long black hair, but David Polanco thinks Arnel looks like Steve:

This past Friday July 25th 2008 was the Journey, Cheap Trick, and Heart Concert at the Verizon Amphitheater. The show started at 7pm with Cheap Trick opening up, then Heart and finally Journey. Journey’s new singer Arnel Pineda mimics Steve Perry so well. The voice, the mannerisms, and even the look. The show ended around 11:45 with Journey singing Don’t Stop Beliving. Wow, we really had a great time. Aside from Nikki and I, Temperance was there along with her boyfriend Paul. Wow, awesome night.

Stephen Centanni previews Journey’s concert in Mobile:

Of these three bands, Journey’s appearance has to be one of the most anticipated, as they are standards of classic rock radio across the U.S., and not many people fail to recognize former frontman Steve Perry’s alto vocals. When Perry departed the band, it left the rest of Journey’s members wondering how to replace that distinctive voice.

Fast-forward to 2007 as Journey guitarist Neil Schon caught wind of a Filipino band called The Zoo whose lead singer’s voice bore a striking resemblance to Perry’s.

I’m trying to relive the moment Neal Schon discovered Arnel Pineda. After two frustrating days searching for a lead singer on the internet, Neal was about to give up, but it’s a good thing he didn’t. He continued on with the search, he stumbled on a video of Arnel Pineda singing a Survivor song. This is based on Journey’s interview with Rockline.

Which Survivor song was it? Now, there are only three videos uploaded by Noel Gomez with Arnel singing Survivor songs. Two of the videos are different takes of “The Search is Over,” while the other video is “Ever Since The World Began.”

I have reason to believe that “The Search is Over” is THE song! It’s the popular one of the two songs, plus there are two different videos of the same song. Just numbers, baby! So, I think it is safe to say, Neal saw “The Search Is Over.” How fitting that is! Neal’s search is literally over after he found Arnel! So, here’s now the famous video:

[kml_flashembed movie="http://youtube.com/v/S_s92u1OKRA" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

Based on numerous interviews, Neal saw several videos that night, but he especially mentioned seeing Faithfully. So, here’s Arnel Pineda and the Zoo’s version of Faithfully. This particular video has over 2 million downloads. And one more note, Happy Birthday, Wency! That girl is famous now. lol.

[kml_flashembed movie="http://youtube.com/v/6HjcCzgCCX0" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

CNN’s report is slightly different. Hmmm. It has a video of Arnel singing “Don’t Stop Believin.”

[kml_flashembed movie="http://youtube.com/v/5nnNji6s3ck" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

Well, like they all say, the rest is history!

BC Music reviews Journey’s latest Revelation:

Journey has returned with a new singer, Arnel Pineda, and a spectacular new three disc album release. Revelation covers all the bases introducing Pineda to Journey’s legions of fans. There is one disc of new songs, a live disc from a Las Vegas concert and a disc of eleven of their classic songs re-recorded with Pineda as the vocalist.

Mario Tarradell of the Dallas Morning News reviews Journey’s concert Sunday night.

The idea of a Filipino singer becoming the main voice of American pop-rock band Journey might initially sound like a joke. This is the group from San Francisco, the one that made its name cranking out soaring rockers and ballads for mainstream U.S. radio in the ’70s and ’80s.

But there’s no punch line here. Arnel Pineda took the stage Sunday night at Superpages.com Center with a fierce vengeance. The diminutive vocalist with the jet-black hair tore into Journey classics as well as new material from the gold-selling Revelation like his future depended on it.

Steve Spears of TampaBay.com previews the upcoming Journey concert:

These days, the band has been re-energized by a new album — Revelation — and the addition of Arnel Pineda, a Philippines-born singer whose pipes are eerily similar to legendary Journey frontman Steve Perry, who left the band in the late ’90s.

Justin Jimenez of Asia Pacific Arts writes about Arnel.

Following a successful tour in Europe, Journey kicked off their first North American tour with their new Filipino frontman, Arnel Pineda, at a sold-out show in Denver, Colorado. Pineda joined the band in late 2007 after Journey guitarist Neal Schon discovered videos of the Filipino rocker belting out rock classics on YouTube. With the strong reputation Filipinos have for being great entertainers, it is no surprise that Pineda is well able to hold up to the legacy set by Journey’s original lead singer, Steve Perry. Many comparisons are made between Pineda and Perry, from the tenors’ powerful pipes to their energetic stage presence to their long, black tresses. Pineda is a particular hit among Filipino fans, who comprised a significant portion of the audience during their sold-out show at the Mandalay Bay Arena in Las Vegas. Check out Pineda’s vocal chops during the rest of the 2008 Journey Tour, which runs from June 8 to October 5.– Justin Jimenez

Introducing the ZVUE 1GB Pre-Loaded Journey MP3 Player available at Walmart.com for $39.88.

In the interview of Jonathan Cain by Live Daily, Cain speaks about Arnel and the life on the road.

“He’s becoming looser on stage, becoming more of an entertainer, and finding what he can do up there,” Cain replied when asked of Pineda’s early gigs. “He’s found a good balance between movement and singing, working the crowd, interaction with the band, that sort of thing. And then also adjusting to up in the air, off the bus, on the bus, in the hotel room, getting sleep, eating healthy, the meet-and-greets–there’s a lot to get used to. So he’s finding his balance between all those things, and I think he’s becoming more comfortable with the whole process. His voice is stretched out to where it’s very comfortable up in that [high] register all the time. He was never singing in that register for a whole night. We knew he had that register, he knew he had it, but keeping it there for a whole show is not easy.

“He’s got really good road habits already,” Cain continued. “He doesn’t drink, he eats really well, watches the spicy foods, he’s into the whole regimen. No one has to teach it to him, he already knows it. He knows what he needs to get the job done, which is great for us. That’s the kind of guy you want.”

“We were feeding [Arnel] a song a day,” Cain said of the brisk rehearsal/recording process of the new material. “‘Go home and learn this and come back and sing it tomorrow.’ That’s basically what he did. He didn’t get a lot of time to rehearse these new songs, and he’s killing them now. What he’s doing on stage is so much better than the album.”

Omaha World Herald reviews Journey concert in Iowa. Excerpts of the review:

That’s the short answer to the question that every Journey fan wants to know: Does new lead singer Arnel Pineda really sound just like the band’s former frontman, Steve Perry?

Ever since Perry made his final exit from the group a decade ago, the other members have tried and failed to find a suitable replacement. Judging by Pineda’s spirited performance Tuesday night at a packed Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, they may have finally found their guy.

As soon as Pineda let loose with his first Perry-esque wail, it was obvious that his voice has both the power and nuance to deliver faithful versions of all those Journey anthems that dominated rock radio in the late 1970s and 1980s.

What remains to be seen is how well fans take to his hyper stage style, filled with leaps, spins and tosses of the mike. His bio says he’s 40, but he looks and moves much younger.

NewsOK.com reviews Journey’s concert at the Zoo:

As Journey started its set at dusk, local fans got the chance to see if new front man Arnel Pineda could match the vocal prowess former vocalist Steve Perry. From the opening lines of “Only the Young,” the Filipino singer, whom the band discovered on YouTube, proved not only a worthy successor but a virtual vocal doppelganger.

ABS-CBN News Online reviews Journey concert at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

Thousands flocked to catch the sold-out Journey concert at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas on July 18.

Many, who came from all over North America and Canada to see Journey perform, said the show belonged to the group’s Filipino lead singer, Arnel Pineda.

“We are big fans of Journey I know he was in the Zoo, and watched him on CBC, the CBC special,” said Journey fan Patrick Drake from Halifax, Canada.