成军：1970年，芝加哥风格：硬摇滚，艺术摇滚，竞技摇滚，专辑摇滚虽然Styx早期是支前卫摇滚乐队，但因为对夸张的摇滚人及激烈有力的歌谣的偏爱，Styx最终在70年代晚期和80年代早期转变成为典型的竞技摇滚乐队。Styx的出现在60年代后期另一支芝加哥乐队the Tradewinds就已经埋下了伏笔，这支乐队的成员有Chuck和John Panozzo兄弟（他们分别是贝司手和鼓手），还有朋友Dennis DeYoung（主音，键盘手）。70年代末期，the Tradewinds更名为TW4，同时吸纳了两位吉他手/主唱James "JY" Young和John Curulewski。他们在1972年与Wooden Nickel唱片(属RCA旗下)牵了唱片合约。不久后，乐队决定再次改名，这次改为了Styx，取自希腊神话中穿过冥间“死亡之地”的河流名，即冥河。早期，Styx的音乐受当时颇为流行的前卫摇滚人如Emerson, Lake & Palmer和the Moody Blues影响，这种影响在1972年同名处女专辑，1973的Styx II, 1974的The Serpent Is Rising,和1975的Man of Miracles中有所表现。他们的专辑（及马不停蹄的巡演）帮助他们在本土建立了坚固的歌迷基础，但Styx没有能够冲进主流，直到74年末原本是第二张专辑中的歌“Lady”被芝加哥WLS-FM电台频繁播放。这首歌很快成为全国知晓的单曲，并迅速冲上单曲榜第六名，专辑Styx II成为金唱片。这是，乐队对他们的唱片厂牌失去兴趣，决定牵约A&M旗下发行第五张专辑，1975年的Equinox（他们先前的厂牌可以从早期发行的歌曲中精选出无数张合辑发行）。在为专辑作宣传的巡演中，Curulewski突然离队，由Tommy Shaw接替（令人悲伤的是，Curulewski于1988年患动脉瘤去世）。Shaw似乎正好是Styx拼图中缺的那块，乐队在70年代后期随后发行的主要专辑至少是白金唱片（1976的Crystal Ball, 1977的The Grand Illusion, 1978的Pieces of Eight,和1979的Cornerstone），缔造出"Come Sail Away"，"Renegade"，"Blue Collar Man"，"Fooling Yourself"等热门单曲和力量情歌"Babe"。"Babe"取得了巨大成功，也造成了成员间关系紧张——尤其是Shaw与DeYoung的关系（后者是这首歌的作者），因为吉他手想让Styx继续走硬摇滚的路线，而DeYoung试图写出更旋律化更戏剧化的作品。乐队决定开除DeYoung（虽然这在当时没有走漏风声），直到达成和解。乐队决定在80年代的发行第一张专辑，一张概念专辑，1981年的Paradise Theatre，这张专辑主要叙述了一座曾经美丽的剧院的兴衰（人们认为这座剧院暗喻着当时的美国——伊拉克敌对形势，冷战，里根的政策，等等）。Paradise Theatre成为了Styx事业的顶峰（三年内拥有三百万销量），因为"Too Much Time on My Hands"，"The Best of Times"等热门单曲，Styx也成为美国顶尖摇滚团体。然而，在专辑成功之势初现端倪时，乐队内部的争吵更加激烈了，因为DeYoung现在认为乐队未来应该走更加戏剧化的道路。Shaw及乐队其他成员极不情愿的相处，此种状况下发行的专辑再次获得了成功，1983年的Kilroy Was Here（这张专辑具有科幻色彩，讲述了未来摇滚被定为不合法的故事，这简直就是Rush《2112》故事的完全抄袭）。这张专辑最终导致了乐队的解散——因为随后的巡演似乎更加看重照本宣读和冗长的拍摄而不是好的摇滚音乐。 Caught in the Act，一张令人难忘的现场专辑在1984年发行，这之后Styx分崩离析，大部分成员在80年代中后期都忙于个人事业的发展。DeYoung1984年发行了Desert Moon（深沉名字的单曲取得了相对成功），1986年的 Back to the World, 和1988的Boomchild, Young1986年发行了City Slicker,而Shaw发行了几张个人作品— 1984的Girls With Guns, 1985的What If?, 1986的Live in Japan, 和1987的Ambition. Shaw 后来组建了Damn Yankees，前Night Ranger的贝司手/主唱Jack Blades, 吉他手Ted Nugent, 和鼓手Michael Cartellone加盟。Damn Yankees1990年的首张专辑取得了商业上的成功（这归功于有力的情歌单曲“High Enough”），两年后，乐队的第二张专辑Don't Tread是个败笔。在Shaw在乐队Damn Yankees期间，Styx重组，由Glen Burtnik代替Shaw——重组后的Styx在1990年发行了一张录音室专辑Edge of the Century，推出了又一支力量情歌"Show Me the Way"。但是Styx的重组转瞬即逝，之后乐队成员各奔东西——DeYoung出演Jesus Christ复活中的彼拉多(钉死耶稣的古代罗马的犹太总督)并发行了一张百老汇演出音乐专辑，1994年的10 on Broadway),Young 发行了两张个人唱片 (1994的Out on a Day Pass和1995的Raised by Wolves), Shaw与Jack Blades组成了短命的Shaw Blades (只在95年发行过一张唱片, Hallucination). 为合辑Greatest Hits重新录制"Lady" (95年名为"Lady"的单曲)，Shaw和以前的队友重新聚在了一起，顺水推舟，1996年Styx全体上阵举行巡演。但那时鼓手John Panozzo健康极差（由于长期沉迷于酒精中），同年七月离开人世，未能参加后来的巡演。虽然大家都沉浸在极度悲痛中，但Styx找来新鼓手Todd Sucherman代替了Panozzo。Styx再次复合的巡演取得了令人出乎预料的成功，门票销售一空。后来乐队在1997年发行了现场专辑/录影带，“Return to Paradise”。一则幽默的汽车广告歌曲"Mr. Roboto"以及在电视演出South Park和Freaks & Geeks中出现的歌曲使新一代的摇滚歌迷接触到了Styx宏伟的声音。在乐队成员出现摩擦之前，乐队坚持了足够长的时间在1999年发行了新的一张录音室专辑Brave New World。乐队其他成员想要继续制作专辑举行巡演，但DeYoung感染了一种罕见的病毒性疾病，对光极度敏感，不得不休整一段时间。DeYoung最终战胜了疾病，但在这之前，Shaw和Young吸收了歌手Lawrence Gowan，并在21世纪初发行了两张现场专辑2000的Arch Allies: Live at Riverport (Styx与REO Speedwagon五五分成)和2001的Styx World: Live 2001。同时DeYoung开始以一个人的姿态开展巡演，后来因为乐队名字的使用权控告Shaw和Young（案子在2001年底结了）。Chuck Panozzo承认自己感染上了爱滋的谣言属实（他成功的与病毒进行搏斗着）。与此同时，Styx动荡的音乐生涯见诸VH1的Behind the Music的娱乐轶事栏目。2003年春天, 有Gowan参与的新录音室专辑上市. Cyclorama凝结了Shaw, Young, Burtnik, Sucherman和Gowan的心血.专辑里也有John Waite, Brian Wilson,及演员Billy Bob Thornton的合作. 2005年5月10日“Big Bang Theory”发行。by Greg PratoAlthough they began as an artsy prog-rock band, Styx would eventually transform into the virtual arena rock prototype by the late 70s and early 80s, due to a fondness for bombastic rockers and soaring power ballads. The seeds for the band were planted in another Chicago band during the late 60s, the Tradewinds, which featured brothers Chuck and John Panozzo (who played bass and drums, respectively), as well as acquaintance Dennis DeYoung (vocals, keyboards). By the dawn of the 70s, the group had changed their name to TW4, and welcomed aboard a pair of guitarists/vocalists, James JY Young and John Curulewski — securing a recording contract in 1972 with Wooden Nickel Records (a subsidiary of RCA). Soon after, the group opted to change their name once more, this time to Styx, named after a river from Greek mythology that ran through the land of the dead in the underworld. Early on, Styxs music reflected such then-current prog rockers as Emerson, Lake & Palmer and the Moody Blues, as evidenced by such releases as 1972s self-titled debut, 1973s Styx II, 1974s The Serpent Is Rising, and 1975s Man of Miracles. While the albums (as well as non-stop touring) helped the group build a substantial following locally, Styx failed to break through to the mainstream, until a track originally from their second album, Lady started to get substantial airplay in late 74 on the Chicago radio station WLS-FM. The song was soon issued as a single nationwide, and quickly shot to number six on the singles chart, as Styx II was certified gold. By this time, however, the group had grown disenchanted with their record label, and opted to sign on with A&M for their fifth release overall, 1975s Equinox (their former label would issue countless compilations over the years, culled from tracks off their early releases). On the eve of the tour in support of the album, Curulewski abruptly left the band, and was replaced by Tommy Shaw (sadly, Curulewski would pass away from an aneurysm in 1988). Shaw proved to be the missing piece of the puzzle for Styx, as most of their subsequent releases throughout the late 70s earned at least platinum certification (1976s Crystal Ball, 1977s The Grand Illusion, 1978s Pieces of Eight, and 1979s Cornerstone), and spawned such hit singles and classic rock radio standards as Come Sail Away, Renegade, Blue Collar Man, Fooling Yourself, and the power ballad Babe. Despite the enormous success of Babe, it caused tension within the group — specifically between Shaw and DeYoung (the latter of which was the songs author), as the guitarist wanted Styx to continue in a more hard rock-based direction, while DeYoung sought to pursue more melodic and theatrically-based works. This led to DeYoung being briefly ousted from the group (although it was kept completely hush-hush at the time), before a reconciliation was met. The band decided that their first release of the 80s would be a concept album, 1981s Paradise Theater, which was loosely based on the rise and fall of a once-beautiful theater (which was supposedly used as a metaphor for the state of the U.S. at the time — the Iranian hostage situation, the Cold War, Reagan, etc.). Paradise Theater became Styxs biggest hit of their career (selling over three million copies in a three-year period), as they became one of the U.S. top rock acts due to such big hit singles as Too Much Time on My Hands and The Best of Times. But the behind-the-scenes bickering only intensified in the wake of the albums success, as DeYoung was now convinced that a more theatrical approach was the future direction for Styx. Shaw and the rest of the group begrudgingly went along, and while the resulting follow-up was another hit, 1983s sci-fi based Kilroy Was Here (which told the story of a future where rock & roll was outlawed, almost a carbon copy of the story line of Rushs 2112), the album would eventually lead to the groups breakup — as the ensuing prop-heavy tour seemed to focus more on scripted dialogue and lengthy films than good old rock & roll. A forgettable live album, Caught in the Act, was issued in 1984, before Styx went on hiatus, and the majority of its members pursued solo projects throughout the remainder of the decade. DeYoung issued 1984s Desert Moon (which spawned a moderate hit single with its reflective title track), 1986s Back to the World, and 1988s Boomchild, Young released 1986s City Slicker, while Shaw put forth several solo sets — 1984s Girls With Guns, 1985s What If?, 1986s Live in Japan, and 1987s Ambition. Shaw then formed Damn Yankees along with former Night Ranger bassist/singer Jack Blades, guitarist Ted Nugent, and drummer Michael Cartellone, a group who enjoyed commercial success right off the bat with their self-titled debut in 1990 (due to the hit power ballad High Enough), before issuing an unsuccessful sophomore effort two years later, Dont Tread. During Shaws tenure with Damn Yankees, Styx had re-formed with newcomer Glen Burtnik taking the place of Shaw — issuing a new studio album in 1990, Edge of the Century, which spawned yet another hit power ballad, Show Me the Way. But the Styx reunion was a fleeting one, as its members went their separate ways shortly thereafter — with DeYoung going on to play Pontius Pilate in a revival of Jesus Christ Superstar (and issuing an album of Broadway show tunes, 1994s 10 on Broadway), while Young issued a pair of solo discs (1994s Out on a Day Pass and 1995s Raised by Wolves), and Shaw teamed up with Jack Blades for the short-lived outfit, Shaw Blades (issuing a lone recording in 95, Hallucination). A re-recording of their early hit, Lady (titled Lady 95), for a Greatest Hits compilation, finally united Shaw with his former Styx bandmates, which led to a full-on reunion tour in 1996. But drummer John Panozzo fell seriously ill at the time (due to a long struggle with alcoholism), which prevented him from joining the proceedings — as he passed away in July of the same year. Although grief-stricken, Styx persevered with new drummer Todd Sucherman taking the place of Panozzo, as the Styx reunion tour became a surprise sold-out success, resulting in the release of a live album/video, 1997s Return to Paradise, while a whole new generation of rock fans were introduced to the grandiose sounds of Styx via a humorous car ad which used the track Mr. Roboto, as well as songs used in such TV shows as South Park and Freaks & Geeks. The group even stuck around long enough to issue a new studio album, 1999s Brave New World, before friction between bandmembers set in once again. With the other Styx members wanting to soldier on with further albums and tours, DeYoung was forced to take a break when he developed an uncommon viral ailment, which made the singer extremely sensitive to light. DeYoung was able to eventually overcome his disorder, but not before Shaw and Young opted to enlist new singer Lawrence Gowan and issuing a pair of live releases in the early 21st century — 2000s Arch Allies: Live at Riverport (split 50-50 between Styx and REO Speedwagon) and 2001s Styx World: Live 2001. DeYoung began touring as a solo artist at the same time, and eventually attempted to sue Shaw and Young over the use of the name Styx (the lawsuit was eventually settled in late 2001). Around the same time, Chuck Panozzo confirmed rumors that he had contracted AIDS (but was battling the virus successfully), while the turbulent career of Styx was told in an entertaining episode of VH1s Behind the Music. In the spring of 2003, a new studio album featuring Gowan arrived in stores. For Cyclorama, Styx consisted of Shaw, Young, Burtnik, Sucherman and Gowan. It also featured guest appearances from John Waite, Brian Wilson, and actor Billy Bob Thornton. By the end of the year, Burtnik was out of the band and replaced by former Bad English and Babys member Ricky Phillips, although Panozzo did play with the group on select live dates. Come Sail Away: The Styx Anthology from 2004 did an excellent job of representing the bands career in two CDs while 2005s double disc The Complete Wooden Nickel Recordings collected the bands first four albums. That same year, the band recorded their picks from the Great Rock Songbook and released the cover version filled Big Bang Theory.