Tankard (band)
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}
{{Short description|German thrash metal band}}
{{More citations needed|date=December 2010}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Tankard
| image = Tankard With Full Force 2018 14.jpg
| caption = Tankard performing at With Full Force 2018
| landscape = yes
| alias =
| origin = Frankfurt, Germany
| years_active = 1982–present
| genre = Thrash metal
| label = {{flatlist|
| website = {{URL|tankard.info}}
| current_members = Andreas Geremia
Andreas Gutjahr
Frank Thorwarth
Gerd Lücking
| past_members = Bernhard Rapprich
Axel Katzmann
Oliver Werner
Andy Bulgaropulos
Arnulf Tunn
Olaf Zissel
}}
Tankard is a German thrash metal band from Frankfurt, founded in 1982.{{cite magazine |magazine=Rock Hard |issue=361 |year=2017 |volume=35 |page=95 |title=Tankard – One Foot In The Grave |first=Ronny |last=Rittner}} Alongside Kreator, Destruction and Sodom, Tankard is often considered one of the "Big Four" of Teutonic thrash metal. Stylistically, Tankard have consistently played thrash metal that thematically centres primarily on alcohol reverence, unlike the remaining "Big Teutonic Four" (Kreator, Destruction and Sodom), who are all known for covering such topics related to death, politics, violence and anti-fascism.
History
= Formation and early years (1982–1985) =
Tankard was formed in 1982 by three classmates, bassist Andreas "Gerre" Geremia, guitarist Axel Katzmann and vocalist Frank Thorwarth. Thorwarth and Gerre soon switched roles; at the same time the trio added drummer Oliver Werner and second guitarist Bernhard Rapprich. They chose their name from a dictionary upon seeing its definition as "beer mug".{{citation needed|date=August 2016}} Their earliest written song was called "Ray Death", a song about nuclear war and their first gig was played in a local classroom in 1983. As drinking alcohol in the school was banned, they smuggled their beer in with milk cartons. Soon after, Bernhard Rapprich left the band as his conservative father did not want him "hanging around with a bunch of drunks" and he was replaced by Andy Bulgaropoulos.{{cite web|title=Tankard Band Bio 1|url=http://www.tankard.info/bandbio-1.html|website=Tankard.info|access-date=6 August 2016}}
With the lineup now stabilised, the band released their first demo, titled Heavy Metal Vanguard, in 1984. After this, the band toured with fellow German thrashers Sodom. SPV were interested in signing both bands, but allegedly SPV retracted a deal after seeing the band perform live.{{cite web|title=Tankard Band Bio 2|url=http://www.tankard.info/bandbio-2.html|website=Tankard.info|access-date=6 August 2016}} In 1985, they released a second demo, Alcoholic Metal, which cemented their thrash metal style and lyrical themes. Both of these demos were very popular in the underground, and on the strength of this demo they signed with Noise Records. The eight-track demo also features rough versions of four songs that would later appear on their debut album, Zombie Attack.
= The Noise years (1986–1995) =
Zombie Attack was released in July 1986. In October 1987 their sophomore album, Chemical Invasion, was released, with the album art being the first of eight done for the band by artist Sebastian Krüger,{{cite web|title=Tankard Band Bio 3|url=http://www.tankard.info/bandbio-3.html|website=Tankard.info|access-date=6 August 2016}} followed a year later by The Morning After. Both of these albums were produced by Harris Johns, who would go on to produce all of the band's albums up to 2000. However, shortly after the release of compilation Hair of the Dog, original drummer Oliver Werner quit the band to be replaced by Arnulf Tunn, and the band released three albums with this lineup: The Meaning of Life, Stone Cold Sober and Two-Faced. They also recorded the live album Fat, Ugly and Live during this time. This lineup then folded when Tunn was replaced by Olaf Zissel, who remains in the band to this day, in May 1994 and the next year founding member Axel Katzmann was forced to leave due to osteoarthritis in the wrist.{{cite web|title=Tankard Band Bio 3|url=http://www.tankard.info/bandbio-3.html|website=Tankard.info|access-date=6 August 2016}} That year the band released The Tankard, which is widely viewed as a very good album by fans and critics alike,{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-tankard-mw0001480569/credits|title= AllMusic |others= tankard |access-date=25 June 2014 |website=AllMusic}} and is their final album with Noise.{{cite web |url=http://www.discogs.com/Tankard-The-Tankard/master/353285 |title= Discogs |others= tankard |date= 1995 |access-date=25 June 2014 |publisher=Discogs}}{{cbignore}}
= Later career (1995–present) =
The band decided not to replace Katzmann and remain a one guitar band.{{citation needed|date=August 2016}} Also, after the release of The Tankard, the band signed with Century Media Records. After the release of Disco Destroyer, longtime guitarist Andy Bulgaropoulos left the band to spend more time with his family.{{cite web|title=Tankard Band Bio 1|url=http://www.tankard.info/bandbio-1.html|website=Tankard.info|access-date=6 August 2016}} He was replaced by Andreas Gutjahr, forming the current lineup of the band. The first album released with Gutjahr was Kings of Beer, which was their second and final studio album with Century Media. The band signed with AFM Records and release five studio albums in a decade with the label, starting with B-Day and ending with Vol(l)ume 14. On 27 July 2012, the band announced their signing with Nuclear Blast and released their first album with the label, A Girl Called Cerveza, that day. Also that year, they released a four-way split with Sodom, Kreator and Destruction called The Big Teutonic 4. This release cemented them as a major force in German metal. They released another studio album, R.I.B. on 20 June 2014.
In 2015, Olaf Zissel was hospitalised with what was suspected to be a stroke. He was replaced temporarily by Gerd Lücking of Holy Moses. Their latest album achieved no. 41 on the German charts. While they have built a fan base, they continue to have day jobs.
Tankard's 17th studio album One Foot in the Grave, was released on 2 June 2017.{{cite web |url=http://www.musicline.de/de/product/727361394820/Tankard/One+Foot+In+The+Grave/1000075725/CD.html |title=Tankard – One Foot In The Grave |work=Musicline.de |language=de |publisher=Phononet |access-date=6 June 2017}} The band released its 18th studio album, Pavlov's Dawgs, on 30 September 2022.{{cite web|url=https://metaladdicts.com/tankard-announce-new-album-pavlovs-dawgs-to-be-released-in-september/|title=TANKARD Announce New Album 'Pavlov's Dawgs' To Be Released In September|website=Metal Addicts|access-date=May 19, 2022|date=May 19, 2022}} A music video was made for the song Lockdown Forever directed by Renatus Töpke.{{cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNJQ4Hnjp0I&ab_channel=ReaperEntertainment | title=TANKARD - Lockdown Forever (Official Video) | website=YouTube | date=September 2022 }}
On 20 June 2024, drummer Olaf Zissel had departed the band and was replaced by Gerd Lücking.{{cite web|url=https://chaoszine.net/tankard-announce-change-on-drums/|title=Tankard announce change on drums|publisher=Chaoszine|access-date=October 23, 2024|date=June 20, 2024}} As part of the "Big Teutonic" four series, Tankard performed together with Kreator, Sodom and Destruction for the first time on July 20, 2024 at the Klash of the Ruhrpott festival, which took place at Amphitheater Gelsenkirchen in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.{{Cite web |date=2023-07-31 |title='Big Four' Of German Thrash Metal, KREATOR, SODOM, DESTRUCTION And TANKARD, Announce 2024 Festival |url=https://blabbermouth.net/news/big-four-of-german-thrash-metal-kreator-sodom-destruction-and-tankard-announce-2024-festival |access-date=2023-08-01 |website=Blabbermouth.net |language=en}}
Band members
Tankard With Full Force 2018 10.jpg|Andreas Geremia
Tankard With Full Force 2018 15.jpg|Frank Thorwarth
Tankard With Full Force 2018 07.jpg|Olaf Zissel
Tankard With Full Force 2018 03.jpg|Andreas Gutjahr
= Current members =
- Andreas "Gerre" Geremia – vocals {{small|(1982–present)}}
- Frank Thorwarth – bass {{small|(1982–present)}}
- Andreas Gutjahr – guitars {{small|(1999–present)}}
- Gerd Lücking – drums {{small|(2024–present)}}
= Former members =
- Oliver Werner – drums {{small|(1982–1989)}}
- Axel Katzmann – guitars {{small|(1982–1995)}}
- Andy Bulgaropulos – guitars {{small|(1983–1999)}}
- Bernhard Rapprich – guitars {{small|(1982–1983)}}
- Arnulf Tunn – drums {{small|(1989–1994)}}
- Olaf Zissel – drums {{small|(1994–2024)}}
= Timeline =
{{#tag:timeline|
ImageSize = width:800 height:250
PlotArea = left:100 bottom:60 top:0 right:50
Alignbars = justify
DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy
Period = from:01/01/1982 till:{{#time: m/d/Y }}
TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy
Colors =
id:Vocals value:red legend:Vocals
id:Guitar value:green legend:Guitars
id:Bass value:blue legend:Bass
id:Drums value:orange legend:Drums
id:Lines1 value:black legend:Studio_albums
Legend = orientation:horizontal position:bottom
ScaleMajor = increment:4 start:1982
ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1983
LineData=
at:07/13/1986 color:black layer:back
at:09/26/1987 color:black layer:back
at:05/06/1988 color:black layer:back
at:08/31/1990 color:black layer:back
at:10/13/1992 color:black layer:back
at:02/22/1994 color:black layer:back
at:07/23/1995 color:black layer:back
at:03/12/1998 color:black layer:back
at:09/24/2000 color:black layer:back
at:10/03/2002 color:black layer:back
at:04/12/2004 color:black layer:back
at:05/29/2006 color:black layer:back
at:12/19/2008 color:black layer:back
at:12/17/2010 color:black layer:back
at:07/27/2012 color:black layer:back
at:06/20/2014 color:black layer:back
at:06/02/2017 color:black layer:back
at:09/30/2022 color:black layer:back
BarData =
bar:Gerre text:Andreas Geremia
bar:Axel text:Axel Katzmann
bar:Bernhard text:Bernhard Rapprich
bar:Andy text:Andy Bulgaropulos
bar:Andreas text:Andreas Gutjahr
bar:Frank text:Frank Thorwarth
bar:Oliver text:Oliver Werner
bar:Arnulf text:Arnulf Tunn
bar:Olaf text:Olaf Zissel
bar:Gerd text:Gerd Lücking
PlotData=
width:10 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10.-4)
bar:Gerre from:01/01/1982 till:end color:Vocals
bar:Frank from:01/01/1982 till:end color:Bass
bar:Bernhard from:01/01/1982 till:05/28/1983 color:Guitar
bar:Axel from:01/01/1982 till:05/12/1994 color:Guitar
bar:Andy from:05/28/1983 till:04/13/1999 color:Guitar
bar:Andreas from:04/13/1999 till:end color:Guitar
bar:Oliver from:01/01/1982 till:06/21/1989 color:Drums
bar:Arnulf from:06/21/1989 till:05/25/1994 color:Drums
bar:Olaf from:05/25/1994 till:06/20/2024 color:Drums
bar:Gerd from:06/20/2024 till:end color:Drums
}}
Discography
= Studio albums =
| class="wikitable" |
| Release date
|Title |Label |
| 1986 |
| 1987
|Noise Records |
| 1988
|The Morning After |Noise Records |
| 1990
|The Meaning of Life |Noise Records |
| 1992
|Noise Records |
| 1994
|Two-Faced |Noise Records |
| 1995
|The Tankard |Noise Records |
| 1998 |
| 2000
|Century Media |
| 2002
|B-Day |
| 2004
|AFM Records |
| 2006
|AFM Records |
| 2008
|AFM Records |
| 2010
|AFM Records |
| 2012 |
| 2014
|R.I.B. |Nuclear Blast |
| 2017
| Nuclear Blast |
| 2022
| Pavlov's Dawgs |
= Other releases =
- Heavy Metal Vanguard (1984) – demo
- Alcoholic Metal (1985) – demo
- Alien (1989) – EP
- Hair of the Dog (1989) – compilation
- Open All Night (1990) – video
- Fat, Ugly and Live (1991) – live album
- Fat, Ugly and Still (A) Live (2005) – DVD
- Best Case Scenario: 25 Years in Beers (2007) – re-recorded compilation album
- Schwarz-weiß wie Schnee (2017) – EP
- Hymns for the Drunk (2018) compilation
- For a Thousand Beers (2022) Boxed set
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{Commons}}
- [http://www.tankard.info/ Official website]
- {{allmusic}}
- {{Discogs artist}}
{{Tankard}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tankard}}
Category:1982 establishments in West Germany
Category:Century Media Records artists
Category:German musical quartets
Category:German thrash metal musical groups
Category:Musical groups established in 1982