Releases by bonfire

Bonfire is a German hard rock and heavy metal band founded in 1972 in Ingolstadt, Upper Bavaria by guitarist Hans Ziller. The band was originally formed under the name Cacumen and adopted the name Bonfire in 1986. Ziller has remained associated with the group for most of its history and owns the rights to the name Bonfire. The band originated in 1972 when teenage guitarist Hans Ziller formed Cacumen together with his brother Karl Ziller and several local musicians. The name was taken from a Latin term meaning “the top of a mountain”, which Hans Ziller had encountered in a school test. During the 1970s the group performed regularly in local venues around Ingolstadt and gradually built a regional following. By 1978 the line-up consisted of Hans Ziller and Karl Ziller on guitars, Horst Maier on guitar, Hans Hauptmann on bass, and Hans Forstner on drums. When the band began searching for a new vocalist, Claus Lessmann, a fellow student of Hans Ziller who had previously performed with the bands Ginger and Sunset, joined the group. With this line-up the band began expanding its live activities beyond its home town. In 1979 Cacumen recorded the single “Riding Away”, backed with “Wintertale”, and toured clubs, schools and other venues. The group subsequently signed with an independent label and released the album “Cacumen” in 1981, which included a new version of “Riding Away”. Around this period Karl Ziller left the band. Cacumen later worked with Hanns Schmidt-Theissen, owner of a small studio in Rodgau, Germany. Schmidt-Theissen had previously contributed keyboards to the “Riding Away” single and supported the band during live performances. In 1982 the group recorded the album “Bad Widow” at his studio. During the early 1980s the band’s concert activity increased and its audience continued to grow. In 1983 Robert Prskalowicz replaced Hans Hauptmann on bass. Following a recording contract with BMG, further personnel changes occurred. In March 1985 Prskalowicz and Hans Forstner left the group because they were unable to commit to the band full time. They were replaced by bassist Joerg Deisinger, formerly of Rascal and Dynasty, and drummer Dominik Hülshorst from Darxon. Around the same time the band adopted a more contemporary hard rock image. At the request of their record company the group also changed its name, as Cacumen was considered difficult to pronounce and commercially unsuitable. After a brainstorming session the name Bonfire was chosen and introduced in May 1986. Bonfire released its debut album under the new name, “Don’t Touch the Light”, in June 1986. During the recording of the follow-up album in May 1987 drummer Dominik Hülshorst left the band due to musical differences. The album “Fireworks” was recorded with session drummer Ken Mary of Fifth Angel and released later that year. Two versions of the album were issued, including a North American edition with a different cover and track selection that featured the song “You Make Me Feel” from the previous album. Further line-up changes followed. In December 1987 Edgar Patrik, who had previously played with Sinner, Samson and Tyran Pace, joined as drummer. During the “Fireworks” tour in 1988 guitarist Horst Maier left the band due to health problems related to rheumatism. He was replaced by Angel Schleifer, who had previously played with bands including Doc Savage, Sinner and Pretty Maids. In June 1989 founder Hans Ziller left the group following disagreements with management and the record company. Claus Lessmann remained with Bonfire during the early 1990s, but the band encountered difficulties achieving a breakthrough in North America. After the release of the album “Point Blank” and continuing changes within the music industry, Lessmann left the band on 25 September 1992. Bonfire recruited singer Michael Bormann in March 1993. Bormann had previously performed with Letter X and maintained his involvement with his band Jaded Heart. Despite the new line-up, the band experienced difficulties with its record company, which declined to release new material without Lessmann on vocals. A live album featuring recordings from the “Point Blank” tour was released, but the studio recordings made with Bormann were not issued at the time. Bonfire performed its final concert of this period on 29 July 1994. Meanwhile, Claus Lessmann and Hans Ziller reunited in 1992 for a project called Lessmann/Ziller after Ziller had ended his previous band EZ Livin’. In 1993 they released the German-language EP “Glaub dran”. Additional singles followed, but the project achieved limited commercial success. In 1995 Lessmann/Ziller developed into a band called Ex, which included former Bonfire members Joerg Deisinger on bass and Dominik Hülshorst on drums. Lessmann and Ziller later decided that reviving the Bonfire name would allow them to reconnect more effectively with their earlier audience. In 1996 Lessmann and Ziller began legal proceedings to obtain the rights to the Bonfire name and its earlier recordings. On 3 July 1996 an agreement was reached with the former members of the 1994 line-up, allowing the Ex project to be renamed Bonfire. The reformed band released a revised version of “Glaub dran” later that year, featuring additional English-language material. In 1997 the line-up was expanded with Chris Lausmann on guitar and keyboards, Uwe Köhler on bass, and Jürgen Wiehler on drums. Around the same time Michael Bormann and Angel Schleifer attempted to release the previously shelved Bonfire recordings from 1993. As the Bonfire name was now controlled by Lessmann and Ziller, the material was issued under the band name Charade. The album was released in Japan in 1998 and later gained attention among collectors. Bormann and Schleifer continued the project and released two albums together before ending their collaboration in 2011. From the late 1990s onward Bonfire remained active with frequent releases and touring. In 2002 Chris Lausmann left the band. In 2004 the group released the compilation series “The Early Days”, consisting of five CDs that reissued earlier recordings by Cacumen, EZ Livin’, and Lessmann/Ziller, each with additional bonus material. Bonfire marked its twentieth anniversary in 2006 and added guitarist Chris Limburg to the line-up. In 2008 the band released the rock opera album “The Räuber”. A DVD of the stage performance was issued shortly afterwards and included music videos for several songs from the album, including a new version of “You Make Me Feel”. This version later appeared in the video game “SingStar”. In 2009 drummer Jürgen Wiehler left the band and Dominik Hülshorst returned to the line-up. The same year Bonfire performed at the Rocklahoma festival in Pryor, Oklahoma, marking a return to the North American stage. In 2010 the band briefly signed with Universal Music and released the single “Deutsche National Hymne” in connection with the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. The single remained on the German Top 50 singles chart for seven weeks. The album “Branded” was released in 2011 and entered the German album charts. The band also issued the live release “Fireworks Still Alive”, which documented a full performance of the 1987 album “Fireworks”. Dominik Hülshorst left the band again in March 2012 and was replaced by drummer Harry Reischmann. In January 2015 Hans Ziller announced major changes to the line-up. Long-time singer Claus Lessmann, guitarist Chris Limburg and bassist Uwe Köhler left the group. Ziller continued the band with drummer Harry Reischmann and recruited singer David Reece, formerly of Accept and Bangalore Choir, along with bassist Ronnie Parkes of Seven Witches. Guitarist Frank Pané, previously associated with Solemnity, joined as the second guitarist. Bonfire celebrated its thirtieth anniversary in 2016 with the release of the double album “Pearls”, which featured re-recorded versions of earlier songs. Later that year David Reece left the band by mutual agreement. Michael Bormann was initially announced as his replacement, but scheduling conflicts delayed his participation. During this period Alexx Stahl, known for his work with Purple Rising and Roxxcalibur, joined the band as a temporary vocalist for touring commitments. After performing several concerts with the group, Stahl was confirmed as the band’s full-time lead singer. Studio albums Don't Touch the Light (1986) Fireworks (1987) Point Blank (1989) Knock Out (1991) Feels Like Comin' Home (1996) Rebel Soul (1997) Fuel to the Flames (1999) Strike Ten (2001) Free (2003) Double X (2006) The Räuber (2008) Branded (2011) Glorious (2015) Byte the Bullet (2017) Temple of Lies (2018) Legends (2018) Fistful of Fire (2020) Higher Ground (2025) Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.