Robyn
Robin Miriam Carlsson, known as Robyn, is a Swedish singer and record producer. She arrived on the music scene with her 1995 debut album, Robyn Is Here, which produced two Billboard Hot 100 top-10 singles: "Do You Know" and "Show Me Love", her second and third albums, My Don't Stop the Music, were released in Sweden. Robyn returned to international success with her fourth album, which brought critical praise and a Grammy Award nomination; the album spawned the singles "Be Mine!" and the UK number one "With Every Heartbeat". Robyn released a trilogy of mini-albums in 2010, known as the Body Talk series, they received broad critical praise, three Grammy Award nominations, produced three top-10 singles: "Dancing On My Own", "Hang with Me" and "Indestructible". Robyn followed this with two collaborative EPs: Do It Again with Röyksopp, Love Is Free with La Bagatelle Magique, she released her eighth solo album Honey in 2018 to widespread critical acclaim. Robyn voiced the character of Miranda in the 1989 Swedish-Norwegian animated film The Journey to Melonia.
Directed by Per Åhlin, the film is loosely based on William Shakespeare's The Tempest. She recorded "Du kan alltid bli nummer ett", the theme song for the Swedish television show Lilla Sportspegeln, in 1991 at age 12. Robyn performed her first original song at that age on Söndagsöppet, she was discovered by Swedish pop singer Meja in the early 1990s when Meja and her band, Legacy of Sound, visited Robyn's school as part of a musical workshop. Impressed by Robyn's performance, Meja contacted her management and a meeting was arranged with Robyn and her parents. At age 14, after completing middle school education in 1993, Robyn signed with Ricochet Records Sweden. Robyn collaborated with producers Max Denniz Pop, who gave the singer a gritty sound, she began her pop music-career at age 15, signing with RCA Records in 1994 and releasing her debut single in Sweden. That year, Robyn's Swedish breakthrough came with the single "Do You Really Want Me"; the singles became part of the album Robyn Is Here, released in October 1995.
Robyn contributed vocals to Blacknuss' 1996 single, "Roll with Me." She entered Sweden's pre-selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 1997 as co-writer and producer of "Du gör mig hel igen", performed by Cajsalisa Ejemyr. In Melodifestivalen 1997, the song finished fourth. Robyn's US breakthrough came in late 1997, when the dance-pop singles "Show Me Love" and "Do You Know" reached the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, she performed "Show Me Love" on the American children's show All That that year, the songs performed well in the UK. Robyn re-released "Do You Really Want Me" internationally, but it was less successful than the other releases, it was ineligible for the US charts because there was no retail single available, but it reached number 32 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart. "Show Me Love" was featured in the 1998 Lukas Moodysson film, Fucking Åmål, the song's title was used as the title of the film in English-speaking countries. As Robyn's popularity grew internationally, she was diagnosed with exhaustion and returned to Sweden to recover.
Robyn's second album, My Truth, was released in Sweden in May 1999 and subsequently in Europe. The single, "Electric", was a commercial success and propelled My Truth to the number-two position in Sweden; the autobiographical album included the tracks, "Universal Woman" and "Giving You Back". Despite her US success with Robyn Is Here, My Truth was not released in that country. Robyn contributed to Christian Falk's 1999 debut solo album, Quel Bordel, appearing on "Remember" and "Celebration"; the following year, she appeared on "Intro/Fristil" on Petter's self-titled album. In 2001, Robyn performed "Say, she signed a worldwide deal with Jive Records in July 2001, moving from BMG after the singer was "disillusioned with the lack of artistic control had there". Robyn said, "I was back where I started!" In October 2002, she released. The album's singles, "Keep This Fire Burning" and "Don't Stop the Music", received airplay in Scandinavia and elsewhere in Europe; the title track was covered by the Swedish girl group Play, the lead single was covered by the British soul singer Beverley Knight.
In May 2004, Robyn's Best was released in the US. It was a condensed version of her debut album, with no material from her releases. In 2006, after her departure from BMG, Det Bästa Med Robyn was released in Sweden with material from her first three albums; the decade-long relationship between Robyn and her label ended in 2004. When Jive Records reacted negatively to "Who's That Girl?"'s new electropop sound, the singer decided to release music on her own. In early 2005, she announced. Konichiwa Records was created to liberate Robyn artistically, she said on her website that her new album would be released earlier than anticipated, with notable collaborators including Klas Åhlund from Teddybears STHLM, Swedish duo The Knife and former Cheiron Studios producer Alexander Kronlund. Robyn released the single "Be Mine!" in March 2005. Her fourth album, was her first number-one album in Swe
Bolliger & Mabillard
Bolliger & Mabillard Bolliger & Mabillard Consulting Engineers, Inc. and abbreviated B&M, is a roller coaster design consultancy based in Monthey, Switzerland. The company was founded in 1988 by Walter Bolliger and Claude Mabillard, with Bolliger as president and Mabillard as vice-president. B&M has built over a hundred roller coasters around the world and pioneered several new ride technologies, most notably the inverted roller coaster. In North America, B&M coaster designs have been manufactured by Ohio company Clermont Steel Fabricators since 1990. B&M has grown since its founding employing four to as many as 37 in 2012, consisting of engineers and draftsmen. In 2016, the company completed its 100th roller coaster. Walter Bolliger and Claude Mabillard started working for Giovanola, a manufacturing company who supplied rides to Intamin, in the 1970s. During their time at Giovanola, they helped design the company's first stand-up roller coaster, Shockwave at Six Flags Magic Mountain, they worked on other projects, such as Z-Force at Six Flags Great America.
Bolliger & Mabillard left Giovanola, but the company continued to use their track design, so the company's roller coasters, Goliath at Six Flags Magic Mountain and Titan at Six Flags Over Texas, use a track style similar to B&M's. In 1987, Giovanola underwent a change of management. At the time, B&M employed four people; when B&M was created, the pair had agreed not to make any more amusement attractions. However, Robert Mampe, Six Flags Great America's staff engineer, who had worked with both men during the construction of Z-Force, contacted the new company and asked it to reconfigure the cars for its Giovanola-built, Intamin bobsled coaster, to be relocated from Six Flags Great Adventure. Following that project Mampe asked the new company to design and build a stand-up roller coaster for Six Flags Great America, similar to Shockwave at Six Flags Magic Mountain. B&M hired two more draftsmen, but B&M had a problem regarding how and where to manufacture the track pieces for the roller coaster.
With the impression of the work done by Clermont Steel Fabricators on Vortex at Kings Island and Shockwave Six Flags Great America, Walter Bolliger went to the steel plant and asked if they would be interested in manufacturing the track. Clermont Steel Fabricators accepted and manufactures all Bolliger and Mabillard roller coaster track pieces for all of North America. Now with a company to manufacture the track, B&M built its first roller coaster, a stand-up roller coaster, Iron Wolf, which opened in 1990 at Six Flags Great America. Two years Bolliger & Mabillard built another project for Six Flags Great America, Batman: The Ride, the world's first inverted roller coaster, which brought them to prominence in the industry. Bolliger & Mabillard invented the Floorless Coaster and the Dive Coaster; the company built its first launched roller coaster, the Incredible Hulk, at Islands of Adventure. Although The Incredible Hulk uses a launch system, B&M classifies it as a "Sitting Coaster". In 2010, B&M unveiled its new Wing Coaster and premiered the prototype model, named Raptor, at Gardaland in 2011.
It has two seats on each side on the car. There are only eight in operation. In 2015, B&M constructed Thunderbird at Holiday World & Splashin' Safari, its first in-house launched coaster. By 2010, B&M employed twelve draftsmen and two draftswomen; the company has made other contributions to the roller coaster industry. The company built the trains for the Psyclone, a now-demolished wooden roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain; the trains were used on the park's Colossus wooden roller coaster, but were only used during October each year. The trains faced backward and raced against trains on the second track, which ran forward. In 2013, B&M supplied new trains for Steel Dragon 2000, built by D. H. Morgan Manufacturing in 2000; as of 2012, Bolliger & Mabillard has 85 operating roller coasters worldwide, twenty-two of which are listed among the Amusement Today Golden Ticket Awards Top 50 Steel Coasters List for 2012 and five are in the top 10. The company has built more roller coasters than any other manufacturer on the list.
Bolliger & Mabillard manufactures nine different roller coaster styles: Stand-Up Coaster, Inverted Coaster, Floorless Coaster, Flying Coaster, Hyper Coaster, Dive Coaster, Sitting Coaster, Wing Coaster and Family Coaster. Bolliger & Mabillard has been involved in developing new technologies and concepts in roller coasters since its inception, it has worked with engineer Werner Stengel and with designers and management of client theme parks. Many Bolliger & Mabillard coasters feature an element known as a "pre-drop", a short drop after the top of the lift hill and before the start of the first drop, designed to reduce stress on the lift chain; the flat section between the pre-drop and the first drop serves as a shelf to support the weight of the train, reducing related stresses on the chain. On most coasters without a pre-drop, the weight of the train tends to pull on the lift chain as it begins its descent because the latter half of the train is still being lifted by the chain. Pre-drops have not been used on the company's Dive or Flying coasters, or on hyper coasters built after 1999.
OzIris at Parc Astérix was the first B&M inverted roller coaster. Since, no coaster built by B&M has featured a pre-drop because the chain accelerates on newer coasters of B&M after the train passes the crest to acq
Busch Gardens Tampa
Busch Gardens Tampa is a 335-acre African-themed animal theme park located in the city of Tampa, Florida. Busch Gardens Tampa is owned and operated by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment and is their 2nd largest park in terms of attendance behind SeaWorld Orlando; the park features eight roller coasters and two water rides amongst other rides and animal attractions. Its newest roller coaster, Cobra's Curse, opened in June 2016 in the Egypt area of the park. Busch Gardens is building a new roller coaster called Tigris, set to open April 19th, 2019 in the Stanleyville area of the park. Alongside sister waterpark Adventure Island, Busch Gardens is the anchor of Tampa's 365-acre amusement multiplex. Busch Gardens competes with other such parks in Florida and charges comparable fees. Busch Gardens is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. In 2015, the park hosted 4.2 million people, placing 11th as the most-visited theme parks in the United States. Busch Gardens Tampa opened on March 31, 1959 as an admission-free hospitality facility for Tampa Anheuser-Busch.
Busch Gardens continued to grow and, in 1965, opened the 29-acre Serengeti Plains, which allowed the African wildlife to roam freely. It continued to focus on its tropical landscape, exotic animals, amusements to draw visitors. Busch Gardens began charging admission as the entertainment became more complex, with extra fees for the thrill rides, such as the roller coasters for which Busch Gardens is now known; the 3 ft narrow-gauge The Serengeti Express runs along the back end of the park and makes stops at the Nairobi and Stanleyville themed areas. The train track was renovated, its tracks have been changed; the Skyride transports guests between Stanleyville. The park's main entrance. Treats can be purchased at the Zagora Cafe; the Moroccan Palace is located here, as well as the outdoor Marrakesh Theater. Gwazi was the major ride in this area. Gwazi Gliders, a small hang glider flat ride relocated from the Congo section's defunct Pygmy Village kids area. Myombe Reserve, a 3-acre home for six lowland gorillas and nine chimpanzees located in Nairobi, opened in 1992.
Moroccan Palace, A palace themed theater nearby Myombe Reserve chimpanzee entrance. It is home for Busch Gardens's newly award winning ice skating show, Turn It Up! The Hottest Show On Ice; this unnamed roller coaster is under construction. It is being developed by Rocky Mountain Construction and should be opened by around 2020, it will be the world’s tallest and steepest hybrid roller coaster of it‘s kind. Former "Land of the Dragons" children's section of the park. Land of the Dragons, which itself replaced the Dwarf Village in 1995, was replaced by Sesame Street Safari of Fun on March 27, 2010, it contains all the attractions from Land of the Dragons. It contains four new attractions. Telly's Jungle Jam, an interactive play area. Rosita's Djembe Fly-Away, a swing ride. Bert & Ernie's Watering hole, a water play area. Air Grover, a children's roller coaster; the area houses a Komodo dragon exhibit. This section of the park is home to the park's water rides and SheiKra, the first and only Dive Coaster in the United States until the addition of Griffon at the sister park Busch Gardens Williamsburg.
The section opened up in 1973 with the addition of the Stanley Falls Flume. The African Queen Boat Ride opened in 1977 as Busch's version of Disney's Jungle Cruise; the African Queen featured live animals, including alligators, crocodiles and spider monkeys. A colorful South American macaw rode on each boat as a first mate. There was a cast member, dressed in African warrior regalia, who surprised each boat as it passed through a riverside village; the warrior was featured in television ads for the park in the early 1980s. In 1989, the African Queen Boat Ride was transformed into Tanganyika Tidal Wave with the addition of a 55-foot drop that generates a giant splash; the section remained unchanged from until 2005, when SheiKra opened, the surrounding area was renovated. SheiKra, a 200-foot Bolliger & Mabillard floorless dive roller coaster with a 90-degree vertical drop; this is North America's first vertical dive coaster. The ride used to operate with floors, but became floorless in 2006 and was repainted in 2013.
Stanley Falls Flume, a log flume with a 43-foot drop. Tigris, a Premier Rides Sky Rocket II coming in 2019 which will be located on the former location of Tanganyika Tidal Wave; this section, themed to the jungles of Congo, contains two of the park's most popular rides and Congo River Rapids. In November 2006, Congo underwent major renovation, including the removal of the park's classic Python corkscrew roller coaster. Other former Congo attractions include the Swinging Vines, family swing flat ride closing in the early 1990's and the Monstorus Mamba octopus flat ride closing in the late 1990's, and the Pygmy Village kids area featuring three children's rides, a tea cup ride, a kiddie swing ride relocated to Sesame Street Safari of Fun and the Gwazi Gliders moved to Morocco. Kumba, meaning roar in Swahili, is a 143-foot steel sit-down roller coaster with seven inversions. Built in 1993 by Bolliger & Mabillard, it remains a popular ride today; the ride was repainted in 2010. Congo River Rapids, a water ride that simulates raging whitewater rapids.
The ride opened in 1982. Ubanga Banga Bumper Cars, a
Djurgårdslinjen
Djurgårdslinjen is a heritage tram line with the route number 7N, running between Norrmalmstorg and Waldemarsudde in Stockholm, Sweden. The line, along with every other tram line in Stockholm, was withdrawn in conjunction to the switch to right-hand side traffic in 1967, but was restored as a heritage tram line in June 1991 and operated on a non-profit basis by members of the Swedish Tramway Society through its operating company AB Stockholms Spårvägar; the infrastructure for the heritage line was constructed and owned by Stiftelsen Stockholms Museispårvägar, a non-profit foundation created by the city of Stockholm and the Stockholm County Council, but it was handed over to SL in 2005. Since the line was reopened, there have been several proposals to extend the tracks to Sergels torg and Stockholm Central Station, with the intention to replace current bus line 47 with modern light-rail vehicles. In the 1990s, the proposals were met with indifference by local politicians, but since the opening of Tvärbanan and with the introduction of the new Flexity Swift A32 trams, there is now majority support for an extension.
The vintage trams operate from the beginning of April to the end of December, every day between June and August. The trams used on the line are from Stockholm, along with a few Gothenburg trams and some from the Oslo Tramway; the vintage of the tram cars varies from early 20th century to late 1950s. On weekends a modified trailer named "Rolling Café" is coupled to one of the motorcars on the line, where one can have a cup of coffee or tea along with some pastries whilst enjoying the scenery. All SL fares are valid on Djurgårdslinjen, including coupons. In 2008 it was decided that the line would be extended from the current end station at Norrmalmstorg to the new city development in Lindhagen, via Stockholm Central station. In August 2010, under the Spårväg City project, line 7 began regular service with new Flexity Classic trams, the route extended from Norrmalmstorg to Sergels Torg. Plans to extend the line to Hornsberg and northeast Ropsten by 2014 have, not been fulfilled. Trams in Stockholm Public transport in Stockholm List of tram and light rail transit systems Media related to Djurgårdslinjen at Wikimedia Commons Swedish Tramway Society – The Djurgården line no 7 Tram Travels: Djurgårdslinjen 7N
Meshuggah
Meshuggah is a Swedish extreme metal band from Umeå, formed in 1987. Meshuggah's line-up consists of founding members vocalist Jens Kidman and lead guitarist Fredrik Thordendal, drummer Tomas Haake, who joined in 1990, rhythm guitarist Mårten Hagström, who joined in 1993 and bassist Dick Lövgren since 2004. Meshuggah first attracted international attention with the 1995 release Destroy Erase Improve for its fusion of fast-tempo death metal, thrash metal, progressive metal and jazz fusion elements. Since its 2002 album Nothing, Meshuggah has switched from seven-string to downtuned eight-string guitars. Meshuggah has become known for their innovative musical style, polymetered song structures and polyrhythms. Meshuggah was labelled as one of the ten most important hard rock and heavy metal bands by Rolling Stone and as the most important band in metal by Alternative Press. Meshuggah is a significant act in extreme underground music, an influence for modern metal bands and has a cult following.
In the late 2000s, the band was an inspiration for the djent subgenre within progressive metal and in 2018, Meshuggah was nominated for a Grammy Award for their song "Clockworks" under the "Best Metal Performance" category. Since its formation, Meshuggah has released six EPs and eight music videos; the band has performed in various international festivals, including Ozzfest and Download, embarked on the obZen world tour from 2008 to 2010. In 2006 and 2009, the band was nominated for a Swedish Grammis Award. Nothing and the albums that followed have all charted on the Billboard 200. Meshuggah's latest studio album, The Violent Sleep of Reason, was released on 7 October 2016, debuting at number 17 in the US. In 1985, guitarist Fredrik Thordendal formed a band in Umeå, a college town in northern Sweden with a population of 105,000; the band named Metallien, recorded a number of demo tapes, after which it disbanded. Thordendal, continued playing under a different name with new band members. Meshuggah was formed in 1987 by vocalist and guitarist Jens Kidman, took the name Meshuggah from the Yiddish word for "crazy", derived from Hebrew word מְשֻׁגָּע.
The band recorded several demos before Kidman left. Kidman formed a new band, with guitarist Thordendal, bassist Peter Nordin and drummer Niklas Lundgren. Kidman, who played guitar, Thordendal decided to restore the name Meshuggah for the new band. On February 3, 1989, Meshuggah released the self-titled, three-song EP Meshuggah, known as Psykisk Testbild; this 12" vinyl EP had only 1,000 copies released, sold by local record store Garageland. The EP's back cover features the band members with cheese doodles on their faces. After replacing drummer Niklas Lundgren with Tomas Haake in 1990, Meshuggah signed a contract with German heavy metal record label Nuclear Blast and recorded its debut full-length album, Contradictions Collapse; the LP entitled Greed, was released on January 1, 1991. The album was not a commercial success. Soon after, Kidman decided to concentrate on vocals, rhythm guitarist Mårten Hagström, who had played in a band with Haake when they were in sixth grade, was recruited; the new lineup recorded the EP None at Tonteknik Recordings in Umeå in 1994 for release that year.
A Japanese version was released, including lyrics printed in Japanese. During this period, working as a carpenter, severed the tip of his left middle finger, while Haake injured his hand in a router accident; as a result, the band was unable to perform for several months. Thordendal's fingertip was reattached, he went on to make a full recovery; the Selfcaged EP was recorded in April and May 1994, but its release was delayed to in 1995 due to the accidents. In January 1995, Meshuggah undertook a short European tour organized by its record label Nuclear Blast. Afterwards, the band returned to the studio to record the album Destroy Erase Improve at Soundfront Studios in Uppsala, with Daniel Bergstrand as a producer. Shortly thereafter, the band went on a European tour supporting Machine Head for two months. During the tour, Nordin became experienced difficulties with his inner ear balance. Due to the resulting chronic dizziness and vertigo, Nordin was forced to leave the tour and travel to Sweden.
Machine Head's bassist Adam Duce offered to cover his absence. Sometimes Thordendal played bass. In this lineup, Hagström would use a pitch shifter to play his guitar at an octave lower than usual. Destroy Erase Improve was released in May 1995, with positive response from critics for the "heady tempos and abstract approach". Kidman described the album cover: "The title fits the pictures we cut out and stole from reference books in the library."In mid-1995, Meshuggah had a short tour with Swedish band Clawfinger in Scandinavia and Germany. Nordin had to leave the band because of his sickness and was replaced by bassist Gustaf Hielm during the tour. In late 1995, Meshuggah went on a month-long tour with Hypocrisy. During 1996 and 1997, Thordendal worked on his solo album Sol Niger Within, released in March 1997 in Scandinavia and in April in Japan, he hosted Mats/Morgan Band's debut. In 1997, Meshuggah recorded an unreleased demo and played a few concerts in its hometown. In May, Meshuggah moved to Stockholm to be closer to its management and the record industry in general.
The EP The True Human Design was recorded and released in late 1997. It contained one new song entitled "Sane", a
Europe (band)
Europe is a Swedish rock band formed in Upplands Väsby in 1979, by vocalist Joey Tempest, guitarist John Norum, bassist Peter Olsson, drummer Tony Reno. They got a major breakthrough in Sweden in 1982 by winning the televised competition "Rock-SM": it was the first time this competition was held, Europe became a larger success than the competition itself. Since their formation, Europe has released eleven studio albums, three live albums, three compilations and twenty-four music videos. Europe rose to international fame in the 1980s with their third album, 1986's The Final Countdown, which has sold over 3 million copies in the United States and 15 million copies worldwide. Europe have sold over 25 million records worldwide; the band has had two top 20 albums on the Billboard 200 chart and two top 10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Europe went on hiatus in 1992, reunited temporarily for a one-off performance in Stockholm on New Year's Eve 1999 and announced an official reunion in 2003.
Since the band has released six albums, Start from the Dark, Secret Society, Last Look at Eden, Bag of Bones, War of Kings and Walk the Earth. Europe has achieved new attention in the US due to being featured in a GEICO Insurance cable television commercial campaign viewed for many months across the US in 2015-16; the band is influenced by Whitesnake, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Thin Lizzy, UFO and Michael Schenker Group. The first incarnation of the band was named Force and came together in 1979, in Upplands Väsby and was integrated by vocalist Joey Tempest, guitarist John Norum, bass guitarist Peter Olsson, drummer Tony Reno. "I remember when we started the band Force we were playing covers in the rehearsal room, because we just wanted to learn our instruments, like all bands," Tempest said, "Then one day I said maybe we should do our own stuff. Nobody had any ideas, so I brought mine into the rehearsal room, and, when we started writing our own stuff."The band sent several demos to record companies, but were told that in order to be published they had to cut their hair and sing in Swedish.
Two years Olsson left the band and was replaced by John Levén. Just a couple of months Levén joined Yngwie Malmsteen's band Rising Force, Malmsteen's former bassist, Marcel Jacob, joined Force; this only lasted for three months, though. In 1982, Tempest's girlfriend entered Force in the Swedish rock talent contest Rock-SM. Competing against 4000 bands, they won the contest thanks to two songs, "In the Future to Come" and "The King Will Return"; the reward was a record deal with Hot Records. Tempest won the individual award for Best Lead Singer, Norum won the award for Best Guitarist. Just before the contest, Force changed their name to Europe. Tempest came up with the name; the self-titled debut album was released the following year, sold well both in Sweden and Japan. The album charted at number 8 in the band's home country and the single "Seven Doors Hotel" became a Top 10 hit in Japan; the second album Wings of Tomorrow was released one year and the single "Open Your Heart" got interest from CBS Records who offered them an international contract in 1985.
"I think one of the most important albums for the band was Wings of Tomorrow," Tempest said, "We were learning how to write songs and John started playing some cool stuff on the guitar. We became a better band and, a good period for the band." Keyboardist Mic Michaeli was soon recruited to play in live concerts, became an official member of the band shortly after. At the same time, Tony Reno was fired because of his lack of motivation and alleged slacking off on rehearsals. Bassist Peter Olsson claims that Reno was replaced on the albums by a drum machine, his replacement was Ian Haugland. In 1985 Europe recorded the soundtrack for the film On the Loose, which gave them the hit "Rock the Night". Several months Joey Tempest was asked to write a song for the charity project Swedish Metal Aid, he wrote "Give a Helping Hand", which would feature the biggest stars of Swedish metal. The income from the sales of the single, produced by Easy Action guitarist Kee Marcello, was donated to the starving people of Ethiopia.
In September 1985, Europe was approached by an executive from Epic Records. They helped; the result was The Final Countdown. Released on 26 May 1986, the album gave the band its international breakthrough, was certified Triple Platinum in the USA and reached number 8 on the Billboard 200 chart; the title track, based on a keyboard riff composed by Tempest as early as 1981-82, was released as the first single and became a worldwide success, peaking at number 1 in 25 countries, such as the UK, France and Germany. The power ballad "Carrie", which peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, "Cherokee" and a re-recorded "Rock the Night" were other hits from the album. Not satisfied with the album's keyboard-dominated production nor the band's commercialized image, John Norum decided to leave Europe in November 1986 to pursue a solo career. "I didn't like the direction the band was going in," Norum said, "We became this teeny-bopper, bubblegum band and I hated that whole image, the spandex, poodle-rock type of thing.
I was more into the heavier, guitar-oriented stuff and it seemed like the keyboards were taking over more and more, we were becoming more commercial. So I decided to leave. I just wanted to move on and do something else."Kee Marcello was asked to
4th Dimension roller coaster
A 4th Dimension Roller Coaster is a type of steel roller coaster whereby riders are rotated independently of the orientation of the track about a horizontal axis, perpendicular to the track. The cars do not need to be fixed to an angle. John F. Mares, a corporate attorney, invented the 4th Dimension roller coaster concept in 1995 and holds six US patents related to the technology of their spinning seat systems: US Patent #'s 5,791,254, 6,098,549, 6,227,121, 6,386,115, 6,477,961 & 6,606,953; the first 4th Dimension roller coaster to be built, X2, which opened at Six Flags Magic Mountain, United States in 2002, was designed and patented by Alan Schilke. In 2007, Intamin launched a variation of the 4th Dimension roller coaster under the name ZacSpin. Arrow Dynamics was the first company to produce a 4th dimension roller coaster, lending its name to the ride style; the trains feature 360 degrees in a controlled spin. This is achieved by having four rails on the track; the two rails that control the spin of the seats, known as "X Rails", vary in height relative to the track, spin the train using a rack and pinion gear mechanism.
The first installation, X², was a prototype and cost Arrow Dynamics and Six Flags itself a lot of money due to technical difficulties and design flaws. In 2002, the park sued Arrow Dynamics. Since Arrow was bought out by S&S Worldwide and became the company's steel coaster division, S&S Arrow. In 2006, a second installation opened at Fuji-Q Highland in Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi Japan under the name Eejanaika. A third installation opened in 2012 at China Dinosaurs Park in China under the name Dinoconda; the Intamin ZacSpin was developed in response to the Arrow Dynamics 4th dimension roller coaster. Some of the main differences between the Intamin and Arrow Dynamics/S&S Worldwide versions are the uncontrolled rotation of the seats, which produces a different ride each time, no need for an additional rail, single cars with 2 riders back-to-back, but since these single cars don't rotate around the riders but around a common point quite far back behind their backs, this gave rise to complaints of rider discomfort.
Another notable difference is the absence of any lateral movements, causing some enthusiasts to not consider the rides 4th dimension roller coasters due to the fact that all movement is restricted to a 2 dimensional plane. Kirnu at Linnanmäki in Helsinki, opened for the 2007 season and was the first of its kind; that year Inferno opened at Terra Mitica in Spain with an identical compact layout. In 2009, Insane opened at Gröna Lund with a different track layout. In 2011, the first ZacSpin in the United States opened at Six Flags Magic Mountain as Green Lantern: First Flight, is themed to the DC Comics superhero of the same name, it features the same layout as Insane. In late 2012, S&S Worldwide unveiled a new concept called Free Spin which features a similar ride to Intamin ZacSpin; each vehicle features two seating rows, each row rotates independently. Because the axis of rotation is at the center of mass of each guest, rider comfort is improved. Like with ZacSpin, Seats spin but during several track sections a system of magnets forces a controlled inversion.
The first installation of a 4D Free Spin was Batman: The Ride at Six Flags Fiesta Texas in 2015. In 2016, Intamin announced an updated version that like Free Spin features a vehicle with two seating rows rotating independently, an axis of rotation at the center of mass of each guest to improve rider comfort. There is considerable debate within the roller coaster community as to whether or not the spinning of these coasters qualifies as an inversion for the purpose of records. Guinness World Records gave Eejanaika the record with 14 inversions. However, other more coaster-specific record bodies such as the Roller Coaster Database do not recognize this claim and instead count only track inversions, which gives the record of 14 to The Smiler. Wing Coaster - a type of ride by Bolliger & Mabillard which features similar trains to the S&S/Arrow design A list of 4th Dimension roller coasters at the Roller Coaster DataBase
