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DRAGONFORCE's Sales Are Feeling The 'Guitar Hero' Effect

February 15, 2008

Mike Snider of USA Today reports: DRAGONFORCE guitarist Herman Li and his speed metal bandmates used to play the video game Guitar Hero. Now, fans are flocking to the band after finding their song "Through the Fire and Flames" in the latest installment of the game, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.

"Our CD sales have gone up, and we are high up the charts on digital downloads," Li says. "It's great. We don't play commercial music. It took everyone by surprise."

More fans were converted last month when Ellen DeGeneres invited a young Guitar Hero expert onto her talk show to play DRAGONFORCE's song, considered to be the toughest of all songs to play.

"Somehow it seems our music really connects with the younger generation, gamers and non-gamers," says Li, 29. "This is a game that is driving music sales when everybody is complaining about the video game industry taking money from movies and music."

The Guitar Hero effect is real. DRAGONFORCE saw digital sales of "Through the Fire" rise from fewer than 2,000 weekly to a high of 37,825 the week ending Dec. 30, a week when many who got the game as a holiday gift were playing it. (Only one GH III song sold more, GUNS N' ROSES' "Welcome to the Jungle" at 38,330.)

Read the entire article at USA Today.

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