Die Apokalyptischen Reiter (German for " The Apocalyptic Riders") is a German heavy metal band formed in

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), German state of Thuringia, in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt to the west and Jena to the east, southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together w ...

in 1995.

Musical style

The band's original style, featured on their releases up to and including ''Allegro Barbaro'' and on a few songs on ''

All You Need Is Love "All You Need Is Love" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a non-album single in July 1967, with "Baby, You're a Rich Man" as its A-side and B-side, B-side. It was written by John Lennon and credited to the Lenn ...

'', consists of

death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an Extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, ...

blended with melodic compositions. In later albums, the death metal influence declined, resulting in less chaotic composition (often centered around a verse and chorus with a

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

and

solo Solo or SOLO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Characters * Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character * Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ''Star Wars Legends'' continuity * Kylo Ren (Ben Solo), a ''Star Wars'' character * Napoleon Solo, fr ...

), more constant tempo, longer songs and clean vocals (although not exclusively). This resulted in a more polished and accessible sound. The band uses lyrics in both English and German with a shift from mainly English songs to more German ones on recent albums (''

Licht 275px, Karlheinz Stockhausens grave with the score to LICHT . ''Licht'' (Light), subtitled "Die sieben Tage der Woche" (The Seven Days of the Week), is a cycle of seven operas composed by Karlheinz Stockhausen between 1977 and 2003. The compose ...

'' is entirely in German). The release of '' Have a Nice Trip'' marked somewhat of a turning point for the band; although they retained the essence of heavy metal, they began experimenting with many other styles of music such as

ambient Ambient or ambiance or ambience may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Ambiancé'', an unreleased experimental film * ''Ambient'' (novel), a novel by Jack Womack Music and sound * Ambience (sound recording), also known as atmospheres or backgr ...

and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

Members

Current line-up * Fuchs (Daniel Täumel) – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (1995–present) * Volk-Man (Volkmar Weber) – bass, screamed vocals (1995–present) * Titus Maximus – lead guitar (2023–present) * Rohgarr (Euch Rohgarr) – Drums (2023–present) File:Die Apokalyptischen Reiter Rockharz 2018 15.jpg, Daniel "Fuchs" Täumel File:Die Apokalyptischen Reiter Rockharz 2018 18.jpg, Volkmar "Volk-Man" Weber File:Die Apokalyptischen Reiter Rockharz 2018 12.jpg, Mark "Dr. Pest" Szakul File:Die Apokalyptischen Reiter Rockharz 2018 13.jpg, Georg "Sir G." Lenhardt File:Die Apokalyptischen Reiter Rockharz 2018 19.jpg, Adrian "Ady" Vogel Former members * Skelleton – drums, screamed vocals (1995–2000) * Pitrone (Peter Pfau) – lead guitar (2002–2008) * Lady Cat-Man (Cathleen Gliemann) – lead guitar (2008–2009) * Dr. Pest (Mark Szakul) – keyboards (1995–2021) * Sir G. (Georg Lenhardt) – drums (2000–2023) * Ady (Adrian Vogel) – lead guitar (2009–2023) Timeline

Discography

Albums: * 1997 – ''Soft & Stronger'' * 1999 – ''Allegro Barbaro'' * 2000 – ''

'' * 2003 – '' Have a Nice Trip'' (#95 in Germany) * 2004 – ''

Samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

'' * 2006 – ''

Riders on the Storm "Riders on the Storm" is a song by American rock band the Doors, released in June 1971 by Elektra Records as the second single from the band's sixth studio album, '' L.A. Woman.'' It is known for being the last song that Jim Morrison recorded p ...

'' (#31 in Germany, #74 in Austria) * 2008 – ''

'' (#29 in Germany, #49 in Austria, #88 in Switzerland) * 2011 – ''Moral & Wahnsinn'' (#18 in Germany, # 41 in Austria, #61 in Switzerland) * 2014 – ''Tief.Tiefer'' (#22 in Germany, #72 in Switzerland) * 2017 – ''Der Rote Reiter'' (#10 in Germany, # 29 in Austria) * 2021 – ''The Divine Horsemen'' * 2022 – ''Wilde Kinder'' Demos: * 1996 – ''Firestorm'' EPs: * 1998 – ''Dschinghis Khan'' * 2006 – ''Friede sei mit dir'' * 2008 – ''Der Weg'' * 2024 – ''Die Mutter des Teufels'' DVDs: * 2006 – ''Friede sei mit dir'' (live-DVD) * 2008 – ''Tobsucht'' (DVD and two live-CDs) * 2009 – ''Adrenalin''

References

External links

Official website
* *
Official German fanclub
{{DEFAULTSORT:Apokalyptischen Reiter German melodic death metal musical groups German musical quintets German power metal musical groups German folk metal musical groups German thrash metal musical groups German symphonic metal musical groups Musical groups established in 1995 Nuclear Blast artists Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse in popular culture