Master's Hammer Explained

Background:group_or_band
Master's Hammer
Landscape:yes
Origin:Prague, Czechia
Genre:Black metal, experimental metal
Years Active:1983–1995, 2009–present
Current Members:
Past Members:
  • Karel Zástěra
  • František Fečo
  • Milan Fibiger
  • Oldřich Liška
  • Tomáš Vendl
  • Míla Křovina
  • Mirek Valenta
  • Vlastimil Voral

Master's Hammer is a Czech black metal band formed in Prague in 1983.[1] They were active, with several lineup changes, until 1995, and again from 2009 onward. As of, they have released eight studio albums, five demos, one EP, two split albums, one live album, and several compilations.

History

Master's Hammer was founded in 1983 and produced five demos, before releasing their debut album, Ritual., in 1991. The Polish extreme metal band Behemoth covered the song "Jáma pekel" on their 2008 EP, Ezkaton. A year later, Master's Hammer issued their sophomore record, Jilemnický okultista.[2]

Their third album, Šlágry, which came out in 1995, was a shift away from their previous work and incorporated a variety of styles outside the metal genre. At the time, the band announced that Šlágry II and a forthcoming CD-ROM would rely more on professional opera singers and orchestra musicians,[3] although neither materialized, and the band broke up the same year. Ukrainian black metal band Drudkh covered the track "Indiánská píseň hrůzy" on their 2010 EP, Slavonic Chronicles,[4] and included it on their 2014 compilation album, Eastern Frontier in Flames.[5]

In 2009, Master's Hammer reformed and released Mantras, their first record in 14 years.[6] In late 2012, a fifth album, called Vracejte konve na místo., was released. It was awarded Best Hard and Heavy Album at that year's Anděl Awards[7] and Best Album at the Břitva Awards.[8]

In July 2013, Master's Hammer formed their own record label, called Jihosound Records, under which they released their sixth studio album in 2014, titled Vagus Vetus.[9] On 30 May 2016, they published their seventh studio album, Formulæ,[10] which again won the Best Hard and Heavy Album prize at the Anděl Awards.[11] [12]

On 8 December 2016, the band announced on their Facebook page that they were scheduled to play at the Brutal Assault festival in August 2017, their first live performance in 25 years.[13]

In February 2018, Master's Hammer released their eighth studio album, Fascinator.[14]

Former bassist Tomáš "Monster" Vendl died on 26 July 2024, at the age of 52.[15]

Musical style

Kerrang! magazine described the band's style as "fusing thrash with classical themes", and Jilemnický okultista was called "an operetta in three acts".[16]

When asked about Ritual, Fenriz, the drummer of Norwegian black metal band Darkthrone, joked that the album "is actually the first Norwegian black metal album, even though they are from Czechoslovakia".[17]

On 1995's Šlágry, the band "virtually abandoned the operatic black metal of previous releases in favor of modernist electronic music" and "shares publishing credits with Carl Czerny, Otto Katz, and Giuseppe Verdi, mixing bits of metal, folk, and musique concrète into a style based on the classical avant-garde".[3] 14 years later, Master's Hammer returned to their previous black metal style on Mantras.

Band members

Current

Past

Timeline

Discography

Demos

EPs

Studio albums

YearAlbum
1991Ritual.
1992Jilemnický okultista
1995Šlágry
2009Mantras
2012Vracejte konve na místo.
2014Vagus Vetus
2016Formulæ
2018Fascinator

Split albums

Compilations

Live albums

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Christe, Ian. Sound of the Beast: The Complete Headbanging History of Heavy Meta. 2004. It Books. 0380811278. 253–254, 353.
  2. News: Bohemia's forests are lovely, black and deep: Master's Hammer – The Jilemnice Occultist (Osmose Prod., 1992) . pervertedplaylist.wordpress.com . 31 October 2023.
  3. News: Riffs. 10 September 2012. CMJ New Music Monthly. May 1996.
  4. News: "Indiánská píseň hrůzy" (Master's Hammer cover) . pitchfork.com . 17 January 2014 . 29 October 2023.
  5. News: Eastern Frontiers in Flames . metal-archives.com . 29 October 2023.
  6. News: Master's Hammer . deafsparrow.com . https://web.archive.org/web/20110709005302/http://www.deafsparrow.com/masters-hammer-interview.htm . 28 October 2023. 9 July 2011 .
  7. News: Výsledky ročníků cen Anděl . andelceny.cz . 28 October 2023 . cs . Anděl Awards yearly results.
  8. News: Výsledky 2012 . cenybritva.cz . 28 October 2023 . cs . 2012 results.
  9. Web site: Interview: Master's Hammer (November 2014) . 15 June 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150614124721/http://www.rottinghill.eu/interviews/interview_ov/318 . 14 June 2015 . dead .
  10. Web site: Master's Hammer – Formulae – Metal Storm. Metalstorm.net. 7 October 2020.
  11. News: Výsledky ročníků cen Anděl . andelceny.cz . 29 October 2023 . cs . Anděl Awards yearly results.
  12. News: V žánrových Andělech uspěla Lenny, projekt dné nebo kapela Pio Squad . idnes.cz . 17 May 2017 . 29 October 2023 . cs . Lenny, the project dné, and the band Pio Squad win Anděl genre awards.
  13. Web site: Master's Hammer. Facebook.com. 7 October 2020.
  14. Web site: Master's Hammer. Facebook.com. 7 October 2020.
  15. Web site: Zemřel bývalý basista Master's Hammer. Kapely, která změnila svět tvrdé hudby . minutovezpravy.cz . 26 July 2024 . 27 July 2024 . cs . The former bassist of Master's Hammer, which changed the world of heavy music, has died..
  16. Lee Barrett: The Black Metal Directory. In: Kerrang!, no. 436, 27. March 1993, p. 46.
  17. Web site: Darkthrone Biography and Video Clips von Darkthrone bei Myspace . 11 May 2013 . 7 July 2012 . https://archive.today/20120707170540/http://www.myspace.com/officialdarkthrone/blog/519327311 . dead .

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