Dirk Schlächter (born 15 February 1965, in Bad Nauheim, West Germany) is the

bassist A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), keyboard bass (synth bass) or a low br ...

of the

power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within a symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in co ...

band

Gamma Ray A gamma ray, also known as gamma radiation (symbol ), is a penetrating form of electromagnetic radiation arising from high energy interactions like the radioactive decay of atomic nuclei or astronomical events like solar flares. It consists o ...

History

Dirk got in touch with music for the first time joining a music school at the age of 8. At the age of 11 he got his first acoustic guitar followed by an electric guitar at the age of 15. At the age of 19 he turned to bass guitar. During this time he played in bands called Blue Life, Sold Out, Louis Glover House Band and Drivin' Force. Dirk appeared as a guest musician on

's first album,

Heading For Tomorrow ''Heading for Tomorrow'' is the first studio album released by German metal band Gamma Ray on 26 February 1990 by Noise Records. In 2002 it was re-released with a different cover as part of the Ultimate Collection box-set. This re-released versi ...

, playing bass on the track "Money" and parts of the track "The Silence". The rest of the bass-parts on the album were recorded by Uwe Wessel. Schlächter was hired to play bass with

for their first tour, but as Uwe Wessel's former band split up at this point Schlächter replaced him. Schlächter was then offered the job of second guitarist. From this point on Schlächter became

's permanent second guitarist. He played guitar on the albums Sigh No More,

Insanity and Genius ''Insanity and Genius'' is the third studio album by German power metal band Gamma Ray and their final album with Ralf Scheepers on vocals. Additionally, Kai Hansen sings on the song "Heal Me" and Dirk Schlächter on "Your Tørn Is Over". Conti ...

and Land of the Free. After the Land of the Free album Schlächter was supposed to swap positions with bassist Jan Rubach, but instead Rubach quit the band. Schlächter took over the position of bassist and

Henjo Richter Henjo Oliver Richter (born 24 November 1963) is a German guitarist and keyboardist best known as a member of the power metal band Gamma Ray. Biography Richter is a self-taught musician and started playing at the age of 13. He is a veteran of th ...

became the band's new guitarist. The release of the album

Somewhere Out In Space ''Somewhere Out in Space'' is an album by German power metal band, Gamma Ray. It was released on 25 August 1997 and is the band's fifth studio album. Continuing in the tradition of the previous four albums, it contained yet another different lin ...

marked Schlächter's return to playing bass, a job he has had ever since. Schlächter is also the producer of Gamma Ray albums since

, along with the band's mainman

Kai Hansen Kai Michael Hansen (born 17 January 1963) is a German musician who is the founder, lead guitarist and vocalist of power metal band Gamma Ray (band), Gamma Ray. He is also one of the co-founders of another power metal band Helloween, which he was ...

. In 2013, he joined German symphonic metal band Neopera. From 2018 to 2022 he was the bassist of the Spanish band

Avalanch Avalanch is a Spanish heavy metal band formed in Asturias in 1993. Led by composer, producer and guitar player Alberto Rionda, the band has released nine studio albums, plus a handful of compilations, DVDs and English versions of their works ...

Discography

Gamma Ray

Studio albums

* ''

Heading for Tomorrow ''Heading for Tomorrow'' is the first studio album released by German metal band Gamma Ray on 26 February 1990 by Noise Records. In 2002 it was re-released with a different cover as part of the Ultimate Collection box-set. This re-released versi ...

'' (1990) (as a guest musician, playing bass on two tracks) * '' Sigh No More'' (1991) * ''

'' (1993) * '' Land of the Free'' (1995) * ''

Somewhere Out in Space ''Somewhere Out in Space'' is an album by German power metal band, Gamma Ray. It was released on 25 August 1997 and is the band's fifth studio album. Continuing in the tradition of the previous four albums, it contained yet another different lin ...

'' (1997) * ''

Power Plant A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the electricity generation, generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electr ...

'' (1999) * '' No World Order'' (2001) * '' Majestic'' (2005) * ''

Land of the Free II ''Land of the Free II'' is the ninth full-length studio album by Gamma Ray (band), Gamma Ray. It was released 19 November in Europe, 21 November in Japan and January 15, 2008 for North America. To promote ''Land of the Free II'', Gamma Ray joined ...

'' (2007) * '' To The Metal'' (2010) * '' Empire Of The Undead'' (2014)

Live albums

* '' Alive '95'' (1996) * '' Skeletons in the Closet'' (2003) * '' Hell Yeah! The Awesome Foursome'' (2008) * '' Skeletons & Majesties Live'' (2012)

Extended plays (EPs)

* '' Heaven Can Wait'' (1990) * '' Who Do You Think You Are?'' (1990) * '' Future Madhouse'' (1993) * '' Rebellion In Dreamland'' (1995) * '' Silent Miracles'' (1996) * ''

Valley of the Kings The Valley of the Kings, also known as the Valley of the Gates of the Kings, is an area in Egypt where, for a period of nearly 500 years from the Eighteenth Dynasty to the Twentieth Dynasty, rock-cut tombs were excavated for pharaohs and power ...

'' (1997) * '' Heaven Or Hell'' (2001) * ''

Master of Confusion ''Master of Confusion'' is Gamma Ray's third EP, released on 15 March 2013. The EP contains 10 songs split into 3 sides, with the A Side containing two new studio tracks, the B Side containing 2 studio covers and the C Side containing six live son ...

'' (2013)

Compilation albums

* '' The Karaoke Album'' (1997) * '' Hansen Worx'' (1998) * '' Blast from the Past'' (2000) * ''

Alright! 20 Years Of Universe Alright, All Right or Allwright may refer to: Music Albums * Alright! (album), ''Alright!'' (album), a 2007 album by Bogdan Raczynski * ''Alright'', a 2011 album by Jerry Williams (singer), Jerry Williams * ''All Right'', a 1982 album by Himiko Ki ...

'' (2010) * '' The Best (Of)'' (2015)

Videos and DVDs

* ''Heading for the East'' (1990) * ''Lust for Live'' (1993) * '' Hell Yeah! The Awesome Foursome'' (2008) * '' Skeletons & Majesties Live'' (2012)

Neopera

Studio albums

* ''Destined Ways'' (2014)

Singles

* ''The Marvel of Chimera'' (2013)

Avalanch

- ''The Secret'' (2019) *

- ''El Secreto'' (2019)

As a guest

* Heavens Gate - ''Hell for Sale!'' (1992) * Angra - '' Angels Cry'' (1993) * Lanzer - ''Under a Different Sun'' (1995) *

Iron Savior Iron Savior is a German power metal band that was formed in Hamburg in 1996. Following a period of several years working behind the scenes in music production, multi-instrumentalist and producer/engineer Piet Sielck joined with former Helloween ...

- ''

'' (1997) *

Freedom Call Freedom Call is a German power metal band formed in 1998. The band tours regularly and the current line-up includes one original member, lead vocalist and songwriter, Chris Bay. Freedom Call has released 14 albums in total, eleven of these ...

- ''Taragon (EP)'' (1999) * Brainstorm - ''

Ambiguity Ambiguity is the type of meaning (linguistics), meaning in which a phrase, statement, or resolution is not explicitly defined, making for several interpretations; others describe it as a concept or statement that has no real reference. A com ...

'' (2000) * Stormwarrior - ''Stormwarrior'' (2002) * Stormwarrior - ''Heavy Metal Fire (EP)'' (2003) * Bassinvaders - ''

Hellbassbeaters Bassinvaders (also known as Markus Grosskopf's Bassinvaders) is the bass guitar-focused side project of Helloween bassist Markus Grosskopf. The project is a unique heavy metal experiment which features only the bass guitar and does not include ...

'' (2008) * Flashback of Anger - ''Splinters of Life'' (2009) * Black Hawk - ''Straight to Hell'' (2010) * In Arkadia - ''Wasteland Chronicles'' (2010)

External links

Official Gamma Ray homepage

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schlachter, Dirk 1965 births Living people German heavy metal bass guitarists German male bass guitarists Gamma Ray (band) members