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| '''Letzte Instanz''', founded in |
'''Letzte Instanz''', founded in back in the days, is a dresderian band particularly noted for consisting mainly of Hollies. There's the Holyday (though he never shows up much), the singing Holly (not to be confused with any kind of plant), the Ho(l)ly Violini and a couple of other, yet to be identified, Hollies. | ||
| == Biography == | == Biography == | ||
| Having produced a couple of CDs in the rockish folkish genre, the band decided they needed to stick out with something else than band members leaving (the previous trademark of the band, before they started collecting Hollies) and thus took the only step that seemed natural; developing the less heard of and not very widely recognised musical sub-genre of cellometalfolkrockraphiphop. This would also be about the time when they, craving attention and not knowing how to go about getting it (again, before the Hollyfication of the band), sought the help of Marta ] Jandová, though the gloss of her unendingly long legs pretty much destroyed that, as stated clearly in "Kalter Hans", a lesser known song, published on the "80 kg Hackfleisch" single, clearly showing the bitterer side of the band. But more on collaborations later. | |||
| When the band's first album, "Brachialromantik" (Brute Romance), they earned swift comparisons to the giants of the popular German ] (Mittelalter-Rock) genre like ] and ], despite objections from the band that this was not an accurate expression of their sound or style. Shortly before the album's release, the singer Hörbi left the band to pursue other projects, and the band was left unsure of themselves and faltering with the public taking little interest in their record. | |||
| The band has, as indicated above, changed band members way more often than others change underwear. In fact, only three of the current Hollies have been in from the start, but with an amazing record of 69 members so far, and we're still counting. Something that hasn't changed, however, is their ongoing love and affection for the ] language: in fact they rely entirely upon it for communication purposes, something that only enhances their attraction to listeners abroad. God knows it doesn't help them much at home. As recently pointed out by the singing Holly, the band's lyrics follow some age-old ] rhyming scheme, meaning that nobody under the age of 140 years will understand them anyway - and they get away with ]. | |||
| Enter Robin Sohn and a new era for the band. With sharp, complex German lyrics, the new singer arrived and helped shape a new sound. The result was the critically acclaimed "Das Spiel" (The Game), a stark departure from the sound of their previous effort. The strings were drawn more into the background and the focuse shifted to the conventional band instruments, making room also for electronics. Also, two of the new songs ("Das Ist Der Tag"/"That is the Day", "Das Spiel") let Robin take a break from the microphone and introduced background vocalist Holly D's rap stylings. It became clear that the band had never really fulfilled the Medieval Metal label and they began to become more widely understood as a member of the ] genre, though that term may have been equally inadequate. This album also demonstrates Robin's linguistic versatility, featuring a remake of ] "Love is a Shield." Shortly after the release, Kaspar departed the band, and the introduction of Rasta F. marked the first in a series of changes in the bass player position. | |||
| Not lingering more on the controversies and debacles of the past: Letzte Instanz have finally scrambled together a new album, called "In Slicht" (clearly demonstrating the rhyming scheme at work; "schlicht" has been reduced to "slicht" for slurring purposes, finally arriving at a translation: "into unostentatious"). | |||
| With their third album, ]'s "Kalter Glanz," Letzte Instanz showed their fans and critics that trying to classify their music was a fruitless endeavor, yet again introducing a record with a sound different from either of its predecessors. | |||
| The strings were pulled slightly more into the background, and the sound had begun to mature as a kind of string-assisted form of modern ] in songs like "Ganz oder garnicht" and the title track, and with a continued dedication to their ] roots in songs like "Oh Fortuna" and "Mein Todestag"/"My dying day." The result is a powerful combination of musical genres, ocurring both integrated and drawn into sections, but never completely pulled from one another. Also appearing on the album were two well-known German singers: Marta Jandová from ] and Sven Friedrich from ] accompanied the septet on 3 songs. | |||
| With the introduction of an additional guitarist (Das O), another bass change (FX), and a new drummer (Specki T.D.), the band followed up in September of ] with "Götter Auf Abruf" ("Gods on Call") and it became abundantly clear that the band was simply incapable of releasing two CDs that sound the same. Though the new sound was not quite as significant a departure from "Kalter Glanz" as that album had been from its predecessor, the progression toward a heavier, complex blend of modern rock and ]/folk instruments and themes was audible. While the Letzte Instanz of "Das Spiel" had sounded like a folky Goth-themed group with rock instruments thrown in, the band of the latest album has shifted much further to the metal end of the spectrum, with the strings nevertheless always present and keeping the previous albums' collective promise of a unique and incomparable sound. The resurgance of Holly D's rap vocals also appears on two tracks. With a more radio-friendly sound, the band was even able to climb into the German album charts, a place rarely frequented by rock bands with German lyrics. | |||
| Their latest releases have included a live CD and DVD, featuring tracks from the three most recent albums plus the track "Kopf oder Zahl"/"Heads or Tails," which first appeared on the German Goth mix "Nachtschwärmer Vol.7" in July ] after having served well as a closing song for their previous tour. | |||
| The band did, however, hit a snag in March 2004 when three integral members (vocalist Robin Sohn, founding guitarist Tin Whistle, and bassist FX) decided to leave the band simultaneously for personal reasons. Many of the band's fans feared that they had heard the last of Letzte Instanz. The remaining members decided not to abandon their eight-year project and actively sought to rebuild their lineup. In the meantime, the two strings players M. Stolz and Benni Cellini took advantage of the break to cooperate with the new band Angelzoom on four songs for their self-titled debut, including the single "Fairyland," and joined them briefly for their Tiefenrausch Tour 2005. | |||
| December 2004 saw the introduction of new bass player Michael Ende and, three months later, the band became complete once more, finding a new lead singer in Holly. In June 2005, the band debuted live for the first time with their new lineup, playing new songs for a new era. With a new album in production and a dedicated fanbase, Letzte Instanz refuses to give up and continues to share their unique blend of music with Germany and the world. | |||
| == Lineup == | == Lineup == | ||
| * '''Vocals''' Holly | |||
| Current band members in '''bold''': | |||
| * '''Acoustic guitar''' Holly | |||
| * '''Rap vocals''' Holly | |||
| ===Vocals=== | |||
| * '''Cello''' Holly | |||
| * Hörbi (1996 - 1997) | |||
| * '''Violin''' Holly | |||
| * '''Holly D.''' -background, rap- (1996 - present) | |||
| * '''Drums''' Holly | |||
| * Robin Sohn (1997 - 2004) | |||
| * ''' |
* '''Bass guitar''' Holly | ||
| * '''El guitar''' Holly | |||
| * '''Drums''' Holly | |||
| ===Electric Guitar=== | |||
| * '''Waldhorn''' Bob (a non-conformist who also happens to be the only non-vegetarian of the band) | |||
| * Tin Whistle (1996 - 2004) | |||
| * '''Das O''' (2001 - present) | |||
| ===Strings=== | |||
| * '''M. Stolz''' -violin- (1996 - present) | |||
| * '''Benni Cellini''' -cello- (1997 - present) | |||
| ===Bass=== | |||
| * Kaspar Wichman (1996 - 1999) | |||
| * Rasta F. (1999 - 2001) | |||
| * FX (2001 - 2004) | |||
| * '''Michael Ende''' (2004 - present) | |||
| ===Drums=== | |||
| * Markus G-Punkt (1996 - 2001) | |||
| * '''Specki T.D.''' (2001 - present) | |||
| == Discography== | == Discography== | ||
| === Albums === | === Albums === | ||
| * ] - |
* ] - Rachialbromantik (Rute Bromance) | ||
| * ] - |
* ] - Datt Spiel (De Game) | ||
| * ] - Kalter |
* ] - Kalter Hans (Cold Hans) <i>Since deleted from the official discography</i> | ||
| * ] - |
* ] - Götterspeise auf Abruf (Jelly on offcall) | ||
| * ] - Live | * ] - Live | ||
| * ] - |
* ] - In Slicht (Into ostentatious) | ||
| === Singles === | |||
| * ] - Kopfkino (Head Cinema) | |||
| * ] - Sonne (Sun) | |||
| === DVDs === | |||
| * ] - Live | |||
| === Projects & Individual Songs === | |||
| * ] - ''Vision Thing'' on the sampler ''Thank you ]'' | |||
| * ] - The strings players (M. Stolz und Benni Cellini) collaborate on the single "Fairyland" and three other songs from Angelzoom's self-titled album. | |||
| * ] - Oli's second Band FROGSTAR BATTLE MACHINE releases their third album ''Lez Go Cropcircling'' | |||
| == External links == | |||
| * http://www.letzte-instanz.de/ - The official site of Letzten Instanz | |||
| * http://www.folkmetal.de/letzte_instanz/index.html - Further information and material on Letzten Instanz | |||
| * http://www.frogstarbattlemachine.de/ - The offical site of FROGSTAR BATTLE MACHINE, guitarist Oli's second band. | |||
| ] | |||
| ⚫ | ] | ||
| ⚫ | ] | ||
| ] | |||
Revision as of 15:04, 23 February 2006
Letzte Instanz, founded in back in the days, is a dresderian band particularly noted for consisting mainly of Hollies. There's the Holyday (though he never shows up much), the singing Holly (not to be confused with any kind of plant), the Ho(l)ly Violini and a couple of other, yet to be identified, Hollies.
Biography
Having produced a couple of CDs in the rockish folkish genre, the band decided they needed to stick out with something else than band members leaving (the previous trademark of the band, before they started collecting Hollies) and thus took the only step that seemed natural; developing the less heard of and not very widely recognised musical sub-genre of cellometalfolkrockraphiphop. This would also be about the time when they, craving attention and not knowing how to go about getting it (again, before the Hollyfication of the band), sought the help of Marta "happytodie" Jandová, though the gloss of her unendingly long legs pretty much destroyed that, as stated clearly in "Kalter Hans", a lesser known song, published on the "80 kg Hackfleisch" single, clearly showing the bitterer side of the band. But more on collaborations later.
The band has, as indicated above, changed band members way more often than others change underwear. In fact, only three of the current Hollies have been in from the start, but with an amazing record of 69 members so far, and we're still counting. Something that hasn't changed, however, is their ongoing love and affection for the German language: in fact they rely entirely upon it for communication purposes, something that only enhances their attraction to listeners abroad. God knows it doesn't help them much at home. As recently pointed out by the singing Holly, the band's lyrics follow some age-old German rhyming scheme, meaning that nobody under the age of 140 years will understand them anyway - and they get away with grammatical errors.
Not lingering more on the controversies and debacles of the past: Letzte Instanz have finally scrambled together a new album, called "In Slicht" (clearly demonstrating the rhyming scheme at work; "schlicht" has been reduced to "slicht" for slurring purposes, finally arriving at a translation: "into unostentatious").
Lineup
- Vocals Holly
- Acoustic guitar Holly
- Rap vocals Holly
- Cello Holly
- Violin Holly
- Drums Holly
- Bass guitar Holly
- El guitar Holly
- Drums Holly
- Waldhorn Bob (a non-conformist who also happens to be the only non-vegetarian of the band)
Discography
Albums
- 1998 - Rachialbromantik (Rute Bromance)
- 1999 - Datt Spiel (De Game)
- 2001 - Kalter Hans (Cold Hans) Since deleted from the official discography
- 2003 - Götterspeise auf Abruf (Jelly on offcall)
- 2004 - Live
- 2006 - In Slicht (Into ostentatious)