Styx

Progressive rock band Styx was formed in 1972 in Chicago, Illinois, from the ashes of Tradewinds. At the time, the band consisted of singer and keyboardist Dennis DeYoung, guitarist James Young, and twin brothers Chuck Panozzo, bassist, and John Panozzo, drummer. The band took off with the release of a debut album of the same name, followed by Styx II (1973) and the hit "Lady". After four more albums, The Grand Illusion (1977), at number 6 on the Billboard 200, marked a turning point in Styx's career, as they moved towards a more sanitized rock style. This style reached its commercial peak with the albums Pieces of Eight (1978) (#6 on the US charts), Cornerstone (1979) (#2), Paradise Theater (1981) (only #1) and Kilroy Was Here (1983) (#3). The band's American success then spread relatively quickly to Europe. These conceptual albums led to extensive touring, which left the musicians exhausted and forced them to break up in 1984. After reforming for the album Edge of the Century (1990), releases became more spaced out: Brave New World (1999) preceded Cyclorama (2003) and Big Bang Theory (2005), interspersed with a series of concerts and various releases, compilations and tour archives. In 2012, The Grand Illusion/Pieces of Eight, a concert featuring tracks from the two original albums, was released on CD and DVD. The band took a break until the release of The Mission (2017), which returned to some success, reaching number 45 on the Billboard 200. The album is the first to feature new guitarist, keyboardist and producer Will Evankovich. Four years later, the band released their 17th studio album, Crash of the Crown, promoted by the title track and the single "Reveries". In 2024, following the announcement of Ricky Phillips' departure, his replacement Terry Gowan made his touring debut, before taking part in the recording of the album Circling from Above (2025).