Jag Panzer is an American

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 from

Colorado Springs, Colorado Colorado Springs is the most populous city in El Paso County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, a 15.02% increase since 2010 United States Census, 2 ...

, formed in 1981.

History

Jag Panzer came together in late 1981, being inspired by the onslaught of the

new wave of British heavy metal The new wave of British heavy metal (often abbreviated as NWOBHM) was a nationwide musical movement that began in England in the mid-1970s and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. Editor Alan Lewis (music journalist), Alan Lew ...

. The original lineup consisted of Harry Conklin on vocals (later nicknamed "Tyrant"), Mark Briody, the sole guitarist of the group in its first incarnation, John Tetley (bassist) and Rick Hilyard (drummer). The band was known as Tyrant in its first incarnation, but they soon had to change the name, because another band already existed in California with that name. They saw a poster featuring a German World War II tank destroyer named which they decided to name their band after. They were, however, unable to pronounce the name correctly and as a result, dropped the letter "D" from the name and simply called it Jag Panzer. The band, who were all in their late teens at the time, played at local venues in the Denver club circuit, and recorded an EP in 1983, later known as ''Tyrants''. In early 1984, the band recruited guitarist Joey Tafolla, a native of California, and promptly recorded their first album, ''

Ample Destruction ''Ample Destruction'' is the first studio album released by American power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within a symphonic context. Generall ...

''. After the release of the album, the band relocated to Southern California. Tafolla quit the band in 1986, releasing a solo album, ''Out of the Sun'', in 1987, while Conklin played with

Riot A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...

for a brief period in the late 1980s, before forming his own band, Titan Force. Without the two key members of the ''Ample Destruction'' lineup, Jag Panzer, or more accurately Briody and Tetley, as Hilyard had also been replaced by Reynold 'Butch' Carlson (who also left in 1986 along with Tafolla), revamped the band by recruiting vocalist Bob Parduba, and guitarist Christian Lasegue. Swedish drummer Rikard Stjernquist was added to the lineup and the band proceeded to record the follow-up to their debut LP. The album was recorded in late 1987, but never got an official release. By 1994, the band had reunited, this time with vocalist Daniel J. Conca, with Tetley and Briody on bass and guitar. Guitarist Chris Hostka and drummer Rikard Stjernquist were employed on their first official album in almost 10 years, '' Dissident Alliance''. It was released by the German indie label Rising Sun and was a stark departure from their usual power metal sound. The next album was on

Century Media A century is a period of 100 years or 10 decades. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c. A ...

, '' The Fourth Judgement'', which came out in late 1997, followed by '' Age of Mastery'' (1998). They again featured original vocalist Harry Conklin, who had rejoined the band. Around that time, guitarist

Chris Broderick Christopher Alan Broderick (born March 6, 1970) is an American musician, best known as a former guitarist of the thrash metal band Megadeth. He is also formerly the lead guitarist for Jag Panzer, appearing on four albums between 1998 and 2004. ...

also joined the group. Jag Panzer sought to tackle more ambitious territory for their next album, 2000's '' Thane to the Throne'', a

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

about

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

''. ''

Mechanized Warfare Armoured warfare or armored warfare (American English; see spelling differences), is the use of armoured fighting vehicles in modern warfare. It is a major component of modern methods of war. The premise of armored warfare rests on the abil ...

'' was released in 2001, before the band released a

double album A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording ...

in 2003 that featured previously unreleased tracks as well as songs from their first LP. '' Decade of the Nail Spiked Bat'' came out in 2003, and featured re-recorded and

remix A remix, also sometimes called reorchestration or rework, is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, poem, or photograph ca ...

ed old material. In 2004, the band released '' Casting the Stones''. The previously unreleased ''

Chain of Command A command hierarchy is a group of people who carry out orders based on others' authority within the group. Military chain of command In a military context, the chain of command is the line of authority and responsibility along which orders ...

'' album was remixed and was issued in 2004 as a

limited edition The terms special edition, limited edition, and variants such as deluxe edition, collector's edition or expanded edition are used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as b ...

. In 2008, Chris Broderick left the band to join

Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist and guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal—alo ...

, and was replaced by Christian Lasegue, who handled lead guitar duties on ''

''. By 2014, Jag Panzer had commenced working on their tenth album for a near future release, also featuring lead guitarist Joey Tafolla for the first time since 1997's '' The Fourth Judgement''. Jag Panzer announced in August 2014 that it was looking for a new vocalist. However, it now appears that Harry Conklin has rejoined the group as of March 2015. In October 2015 the band announced their new album title would be '' The Deviant Chord'' and would be released sometime in 2017. The album, which was released by

SPV/Steamhammer SPV GmbH (short for ''Schallplatten Produktion und Vertrieb GmbH'', "Vinyl Production and Distribution Company") is a German independent record label. Founded on 1 January 1984, it has slowly grown to be one of the largest independent distributors ...

on September 29, 2017, included a cover version of the Irish folk song "Foggy Dew". Jag Panzer's eleventh studio album, '' The Hallowed'', was released on June 23, 2023.

Members

Current

*Harry "The Tyrant" Conklin – lead vocals (1981–1985, 1996–2011, 2013–present) *Mark Briody – rhythm guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1988, 1994–2011, 2013–present) *John Tetley – bass, backing vocals (1981–1988, 1994–2011, 2013–present) *Rikard Stjernquist – drums (1986–1988, 1994–2011, 2013–present) *Ken Rodarte – lead guitar, backing vocals (touring 2018-2022, 2022-present) Jag Panzer 24 (27639618433).jpg, Harry "The Tyrant" Conklin Jag Panzer 11 (28177015481).jpg, Rikard Stjernquist Jag Panzer 19 (28255085675).jpg, John Tetley Jag Panzer 16 (27639633343).jpg, Joey Tafolla Jag Panzer 01 (28220969296).jpg, Mark Briody

Former

*Rick Hilyard – drums (1981–1984) *Reynold 'Butch' Carlson – drums (1984–1986) *Bob Parduba – lead vocals (1987–1988) *Daniel J. Conca – lead vocals (1994; died 2004) *Chris Kostka (Hostka) – lead guitar (1994) *

– lead guitar, keyboards (1997–2008) *Christian Lasegue – lead guitar (1986–1990, 2008–2011) * Joey Tafolla – lead guitar (1984–1986, 1994–1997, 2013–2017) * Jake Dreyer – lead guitar (2011)

Touring

*Aric Avina – bass (2015–present) *Jacob Coleman – drums (2024)

Discography

Studio albums

*''

'' (1984) *'' Dissident Alliance'' (1994) *'' The Fourth Judgement'' (1997) *'' The Age of Mastery'' (1998) *'' Thane to the Throne'' (2000) *''

'' (2001) *'' Decade of the Nail Spiked Bat'' (2003) *''

'' (2004, recorded in 1987) *'' Casting the Stones'' (2004) *'' The Scourge of the Light'' (2011) *'' The Deviant Chord'' (2017) *'' The Hallowed'' (2023)

Other releases

*''Tyrants'' (EP, 1983) *''Death Row'' (single, 1983) *''Demo 85'' (1985) *''Demo 86'' (1986) *''Shadow Thief'' (demo, 1986) *''Jeffrey Behind the Gate'' (single, 1994) *''The Return'' (demo, 1996) *''The Era of Kings and Conflict'' (DVD, 2002) *''The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald'' (single, 2005) *''Historical Battles – The Early Years'' (LP box set, 2013)

References

External links

* * * * {{Authority control American power metal musical groups Heavy metal musical groups from Colorado Century Media Records artists Musical groups established in 1981 Musical groups disestablished in 1988 Musical groups reestablished in 1994 Musical groups disestablished in 2011 Musical groups reestablished in 2013 American musical quintets