Panzerballett rumors

[Raimond]

I do not know anything behind this and wouldn't do any judging or something like that, I just wanna be heard.

So the 2nd guitarist of Panzerballett said that they actually would wanna attend progpower, but they think that the progpower staff wasn't to much keen on booking them.
I don't know of the reason why that is or of it is true at all.

I just wanna say that if you, judging from their studio recordings, think they are too mellow, jazzy or sax oriented for pp, I beg you to not think so. I've seen them live 3 times now and can tell you that they are quite a metal act, heavy as heavy can be, they actually were a great addition to the line up, and almost everybody would love them!
They've been amazed seeing Progressive Lunatic and me headbanging hard inmidst the jazz-oriented audience at their last gig here in Munich!

I put the band on my wishlist because all you guys should see their powerul, fully awesome and, yes, hilarious stage appearance.

Musically you can expect a multi-polyrhythmic crossover of Meshuggah and Cynic with a jazzy attitude in their sound, heavy and groovy as hell.
And the sax is not disturbing in any way.

So far for my two cent. If there are other things that keep the band away, simply remove this post. It's just an appeal.

 

[Kirsty]

Hmm, they have a MySpace page with songs which I would post if I could figure it out. http://www.myspace.com/panzerballett

This is totally my kind of band. A+ sound. The mix of sax, drums and guitar is so interesting. Based on their available songs they do sound more jazzy than metal, so I can see how someone might think they're not suitable for PP. No harm in promoting a band if it means a wider fan base though, right?

 

[Raimond]

I just wanna say that if you, judging from their studio recordings, think they are too mellow, jazzy or sax oriented for pp...

Those aren't the bet words to do promotion, are they?

Actually I have nothing more in mind then having some fun with you all.

But I indeed think that it would be good to expand the range of variety at pp, and that band would be a nice idea for that.

As I said, don't judge by the sund of their studio recordings, that doesn't compare to their actual live sound. It's good for having an idea for their musicianship, but the cds are definately tailored for the jazz szene.

 

[noren]

I didn't like it. Sorry.

 

[cyberfloat]

I think Panzerballet would be a great kick up the arse and stir things up a bit. After all, this is supposed to be a progressive rock and metal festival!!

 

[Aran]

Can't say they managed to stir things up for me. But fun to see their list of influences...

 

[renejanssen]

Haha, always nice to see these discussions about bands. As far as I can see from our selected collection, Panzerballet is not one of the bands. I even don't remember if they send a promo package, so many packages we get. So it really is not an easy job to select the bands, but we always try to book a decent line-up with a lot of variety. And for some people we succeed, for some we don't, but I think that we have had a lot of variety already in all these 10 years.

And believe me, this year won't be any exception, the quality of the bands will be huge and again we offer you some bands you probably never heard of. Soon we will announce an Australian band that you hardly have heard of, but they will not disappoint you, we are already sure about that. So don't worry about the line-up, you gonna like it and we will add some nice surprices.

But keep continue promoting bands, that is why we all started PP in the past, because our favourite genre can't get enough promotion!

Rene

 

[Kirsty]

My big love is accoustic instruments thrown into the mix in creative ways. I get really excited when someone does a Turkish tavern belly dance metal interpretation of Smoke on the Water (no really, it exists and works in a weird way). Jon Oliva's piano solos are also exciting (try not to think of him belly dancing now). If someone could pull off shredding a banjo solo in a prog metal song then I'd be all for it...

Blue-grass metal. Huh. There's a (crazy, Friday night) thought.

 

[wyrm]

If someone could pull off shredding a banjo solo in a prog metal song then I'd be all for it...
Blue-grass metal. Huh.

That is sooooooo 2008 :Smug:

 

[Kirsty]

Oh? You know of a band that fits the description? Please do share!!

 

[wyrm]

Ehm...that was a joke of course....
....but I did hear some excellent banjo solos on cd's from a band called "Raging Slab" and of course the Pride and Glory album by Zakk Wylde....

 

[Kirsty]

*grin* I thought it was a joke, but was hoping for something like this!

I've listened to some bands that performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival and some have had a similarly heavy sound. I'm not sure any are quite PP suitable, but they have a cool, modern jazz sound.

 

[ProgressiveLunatic]

saw Panzerballet 4 times now...
Although they blew me away the first time I saw them live, they seem to get even better and better each time!
They never cease to amaze me and every Panzerballet concert is a real BLAST!
Since they're on a jazz label, they really have difficulties to get booked by metal venues and festivals, they mostly play in jazz clubs...
So here is my vote for Panzerballet, please count it a 100 times

PANZERBALLETT rule supreme!!!! notworthynotworthy

 

[Jeroen Geraedts]

although I like the songs on their myspace a lot, I can totally see how people (including me) think they're not a pp band. And it makes complete sense to me that they usually play jazz clubs, because that is what they play. What I hear on their myspace is that they have some heavier ingredients, but the meal still tastes like jazz to me.
So in my humble opinion I see Panzerballet as a cool band, but unfit for ProgPower.

PS are there songs out there with a triangle solo?

 

[Raimond]

Jeroen,

if you, judging from their studio recordings, think they are too mellow, jazzy or sax oriented for pp, I beg you to not think so.
...
Musically you can expect a multi-polyrhythmic crossover of Meshuggah and Cynic with a jazzy attitude in their sound, heavy and groovy as hell.
And the sax is not disturbing in any way.

Show me a jazz combo that can play a polyrhythmic 3/4 - 4/4 - 5/4 combination at the same time and I've learned something today.

Imo it's a pity that they reside under a jazz label because they can hardly unleash their fury in jazz clubs.

 

[mcblack]

although I like the songs on their myspace a lot, I can totally see how people (including me) think they're not a pp band. And it makes complete sense to me that they usually play jazz clubs, because that is what they play. What I hear on their myspace is that they have some heavier ingredients, but the meal still tastes like jazz to me.
So in my humble opinion I see Panzerballet as a cool band, but unfit for ProgPower.

PS are there songs out there with a triangle solo?

Here's Jan from PB. I cannot state enough how much it pisses me that
most people, especially those who are in control of slots on festivals,
think in categories and stereotypes and judge music by how far
these are fulfilled or not. These folks think everything including a saxophone
is jazz and everything not including any keyboards is not progressive.
Thus, not liking jazz in general (which is ok), thinking saxophone means
jazz, they conclude disliking any music with saxophone. Or the other
way round, digging prog, thus not digging anything without keyboards
and so on. Same applies to the so-called "jazz nazis", it's just the
same principle. Just because they are not used to volume and their
favourite music works at a low volume, they close up their ears when
hearing a loud, distorted guitar. Their conclusion is: "This is so damn
loud, it just can't be good at all."
PLEASE do me a favor, folks, PLEASE stop thinking that way. PLEASE
open your mind.

All that's left for me to say is PB has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with
jazz as you may know it. It's loud as hell, and I know what volume is,
I've been playing metal for 16 years. And you have to check out
the musicians, Sebastian is a drummer with an almost unbelievable
technique, as well as Heiko, the bass player. Check out these two guys.
It may not be Prog, but who the f@$# cares??!! It's good, aggressive
music with a lot of humour in it.

Cheers,
Jan

 

[Cello]

No offense, Jan, but I think the people at Progpower are more open minded than others when it comes to music in general and mean no disrespect. I believe prog is all about thinking outside of the box, and with this thread in mind if I ever get the chance I will come and check you guys out. Just because this discussion has gotten me curious.

Those with the experience of seeing you live all agree that your sound is way beyond anything that's jazz, yet when listening to the songs on myspace I can't escape hearing a heavily jazz influenced sound either. It's natural for people to think in boxes, yet I understand as a band you guys are trying to transcend the box and combine a number of styles. In that regard you'd fit perfectly in a progpower line-up.

I'd suggest taping a live session and sending that as a promo package to the Progpower organizers, so they can consider you guys next year. Appear on stage, turn the amps up to 11, blow everyone away and prove the critics wrong. I'll for one try to be at your next show when you play nearby!