Artension is a North American neoclassical progressive metal band, founded in 1993 by keyboardist Vitalij Kuprij.
They soon founded their band "Atlantis Rising", which played several instrumental gigs in Switzerland.
Vitalij had already known stunning drummer Mike Terrana from one of Yngwie Malmsteen's tours.
His friend, bassist Kevin Chown, also joined the band and enriched their sound with solid experience and great musicianship, and Artension was born.
Mike Varney introduced Vitalij and Roger to several musicians, one of them being John West, whose soaring vocals, along with Vitalij's and Roger's lightning-fast solos, became the trademark for Artension's neo-classical and aggressive music.