Examine individual changes

'{{Short description|German thrash metal band}} {{Redirect|Lurking Fear|the short story|The Lurking Fear}} {{Refimprove|date=February 2017}} {{Infobox musical artist | name = Mekong Delta | image = Mekong Delta (band) 2011 02.JPG | caption = "Kilkim žaibu XII" festival, Lithuania, 2011. | image_size = | background = group_or_band | alias = | origin = [[Berlin]], Germany | genre = [[Neo-classical metal]], [[thrash metal]], [[progressive metal]] | years_active = 1985–1997, 2006–present | label = Aaarrg | associated_acts = [[Rage (German band)|Rage]], [[Living Death (band)|Living Death]], [[Axxis]], [[Luca Turilli's Rhapsody]], [[At Vance]] | website = http://www.mekongdelta.eu | current_members = Martin LeMar<br>Ralph Hubert<br>Erik Adam H. Grösch<br>Alex Landenburg<br>Peter Lake | past_members = Wolfgang Borgmann<br>[[Jochen Schroeder (musician)|Jochen Schroeder]]<br>Frank Fricke<br>Reiner Kelch<br>Georg Syrmbos<br>[[Peavy Wagner|Peter "Peavy" Wagner]]<br>Jörg Michael<br>[[Uli Kusch]]<br>Peter Haas<br>Doug Lee<br>Uwe Baltrusch<br>Leo Szpigiel<br>Benedikt Zimniak }} '''Mekong Delta''' is a German [[thrash metal]] band, formed in 1985. ==History== [[Image:Mekong Delta (band) 2011 05.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Ralph Hubert, founder of the band.]] The band was founded by a group of German metal musicians with the goal to 'musically outshine' all then-current, independent releases. The line-up and the history of the group was to be "the best kept secret in the world". The project participants decided to keep everything about the band a secret, assuming German musicians would not be accepted internationally. The initial name "Zardoz" was rejected, followed by the acceptance of the name "Mekong Delta", named after a [[mekong delta|riverbed]] in [[Vietnam]]. The entire project was started by Ralf Hubert, sound-engineer for [[Warlock (band)|Warlock]], [[Steeler (German band)|Steeler]] and [[Living Death (band)|Living Death]], and owner of the record label Aaarrg Music. The first demos are recorded with the following line-up: * Jochen Schroeder (ex-[[Rage (German band)|Rage]]) – guitar * [[Peavy Wagner]] ([[Rage (German band)|Rage]]) – bass * Jörg Michael (ex-[[Rage (German band)|Rage]] and Paganini) – drums * Wolfgang Borgmann – vocals Jochen Schroeder did not fit in and was soon replaced by [[Living Death (band)|Living Death]] guitarists Reiner Kelch and Frank Fricke. When Wagner later left the project, Hubert overtook the bass guitar duties. Since the band was deliberately shrouded in mystery, all participants assumed [[artist name]]s and the line-up of the debut album looked like this: * Björn Eklund (real name Ralf Hubert) on bass and acoustic guitar * Gordon Perkins (real name Jörg Michael) on drums and percussion * Rolf Stein (real name Frank Fricke) on guitar and backing vocals * Vincent St. Johns (real name Reiner Kelch) on guitar and backing vocals * Keil (real name Wolfgang Borgmann) on vocals ===Debut album=== The debut album ''[[Mekong Delta (album)|Mekong Delta]]'' was released in 1987, produced by Ralf Hubert. Due to touring duties with his current band, Jörg Michael was replaced by [[Uli Kusch]] (using the name Patrick Duval) for the shortly thereafter following [[picture disc]] EP ''The Gnome''. Mekong Delta returned to the studio around new year 1987–1988, and recorded the concept album ''[[The Music of Erich Zann (album)|The Music of Erich Zann]]'', with the same line-up, again produced by Hubert. Due to, or because of, the chosen obfuscated identities the band's big breakthrough did not happen. The album's title was taken from the story of the same name, ''[[The Music of Erich Zann]]'' by horror writer [[H. P. Lovecraft]]. Ralf Hubert has always been a big fan of Lovecraft's writings.<ref>Gary Hill. ''The Strange Sounds of Cthulhu: Music Inspired by the Writings of H. P. Lovecraft''. Published by Music Street Journal, 2006, pp. 57-60.</ref> Reiner Kelch was replaced by Uwe Baltrusch, who used the name Mark Kaye, and at the end of 1988 Mekong Delta released the 12-inch EP ''Toccata'', and in the spring of 1989 ''[[The Principle of Doubt]]'' was released. Fricke then left the band to focus on other musical styles, and the group decided not to replace him, as Baltrusch was able to play all guitar parts himself. During this period the band composed "Rondo for Rockgroup", ultimately released as the suite "Dances of Death". While recording the album, Wolfgang Borgmann left the band because he couldn't identify himself with the material of this album. He was replaced by the American Doug Lee, former singer of the band Siren. This line-up finished recording the album ''[[Dances of Death (and Other Walking Shadows)]]''. The album included an arrangement of [[Modest Mussorgsky]]'s [[tone poem]] ''[[Night on Bald Mountain]]''. After recording this album, Jörg Michael left the band and was replaced by Swiss drummer Peter Haas. ===Live performances=== Around this time, the self-imposed mystery surrounding the project was fading and in October 1991 they started touring parts of [[Europe]], including the [[Netherlands]] and [[Germany]]. The CD ''Live at an Exhibition'' was recorded on the 13 October 1991 in Germany. Guitarist Georg Syrmbos was hired to be able to perform the songs live. ''[[Kaleidoscope (Mekong Delta album)|Kaleidoscope]]'', released in 1992, contains a cover version of "Dance on a Volcano" originally by prog-rock band [[Genesis (band)|Genesis]]. The 1993 collection ''Classics'' contains nearly all classical pieces Hubert arranged by the band. The only classical track missing on this album is "Sabre Dance", which can be found on the previous ''Kaleidoscope'' album. In 1994 Mekong Delta released ''Visions Fugitives''. The compositions are somewhat similar to ''The Principle of Doubt'' and ''Dances of Death''. The album also contains a classically oriented six-part track. After a two-year break the band released ''Pictures at an Exhibition'' in 1996. The album contained the title piece by classical composer [[Modest Mussorgsky|Modest Mussorgski]], arranged for the band. The track was included twice; the first 16 tracks are played by the band, while the last 16 tracks include the band and orchestra. Because the album is completely instrumental, Doug is not mentioned on the album. Shortly thereafter a CD-ROM was released including information about Mekong Delta, Modest Mussorgski and various fan-related info. ===Hiatus and regrouping=== [[Image:Mekong Delta (band) 2011 06.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Erik Adam H. Grösch.]] In 1997 and 1998 the first six studio albums were remixed by Erik Adam H. Grösch and Hubert and re-released. Some albums were sonically improved, others were hardly changed. After this the band went on a long hiatus. Rumors started circulating{{Citation needed|date=April 2009}} that Hubert had fled to [[Greece]] or [[Turkey]], or even that he had died. At the end of 2005 Hubert was brought in contact with guitarist Peter Lake from Swedish metal formation [[Theory in Practice]] and the project restarted. At first Peter Haas agreed to return as drummer of the project, but he later resigned. Erstwhile member Uli Kusch stepped in as drummer. A singer was being sought after and enough material seemed to be ready for a new album. Eventually, former Crows and Wolf Spider singer Leo Szpigiel was added to the line-up. This line-up recorded the album ''[[Lurking Fear]]'', which was released on August 31, 2007. (This was the second of the band's albums to be named after a story by [[H. P. Lovecraft]], the first being 1988's "The Music of Erich Zann"). Due to the busy time schedule of the members, planning tour dates became virtually impossible. Halfway through 2008, Ralf decided to look for members who were able to tour with the band. Very soon (thanks to Uli Kusch), Alexander Landenburg was recruited as the new drummer. Martin LeMar followed soon after to take care of the vocals. Benedict Zimniak and Erik Grösch were added as guitarists to complete the band. In 2009 plans were made to record a new studio album with the line-up that came to be and in June 2010 ''[[Wanderer on the Edge of Time]]'' was released. Also a video clip was made of the song "King with Broken Crown". On January 29, 2014 it was announced that Mekong Delta is going the release a new album on April 25 and it will be called ''[[In A Mirror Darkly]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mekongdelta.eu/wis/new-album-coming/|title=New album coming… |publisher=Mekong Delta|date=January 29, 2014|accessdate=January 29, 2014}}</ref> ==Members== ===Line-up=== * Martin LeMar - Vocals (2008–present) * Erik Adam H. Grösch - Guitars (2008–present) *Peter Lake - Guitars (2006–2008, 2018–present) *Ralph Hubert - Bass (1985–present) * Alex Landenburg - Drums (2008–present) ===Past members=== === Vocals === * [[Peter "Peavy" Wagner]] - (1985–1987) * Wolfgang Borgmann - (1987–1990) * Doug Lee - (1990–1994) * Leo Szpigiel - (2006–2008) === Guitars === * Jochen Schroeder - (1985–1987) * Frank Fricke - (1987–1989) * Reiner Kelch - (1987–1989) * Uwe Baltrusch - (1989–1997) * Benedikt Zimniak - (2008–2014) === Drums === * [[Uli Kusch]] - (2006–2008) * [[Jörg Michael]] - (1985–1991) * Peter Haas - (1991–1997) ===Timeline=== {{#tag:timeline| ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:18 PlotArea = left:170 bottom:80 top:0 right:15 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1985 till:{{#time:m/d/Y}} TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1985 ScaleMajor = increment:3 start:1985 Legend = orientation:horizontal position:bottom Colors = id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals id:guitar value:green legend:Guitars id:bass value:blue legend:Bass id:drums value:orange legend:Drums id:studio value:black legend:Studio_Album LineData = layer:back at:07/01/1987 color:black at:04/01/1988 color:black at:07/01/1989 color:black at:09/01/1990 color:black at:06/01/1992 color:black at:09/01/1994 color:black at:01/27/1997 color:black at:08/24/2007 color:black at:06/10/2010 color:black at:04/20/2012 color:black at:09/23/2014 color:black at:05/08/2020 color:black BarData = bar:Peter text:"Peter Wagner" bar:Wolfgang text:"Wolfgang Borgmann" bar:Doug text:"Doug Lee" bar:Leo text:"Leo Szpigiel" bar:Martin text:"Martin LeMar" bar:Jochen text:"Jochen Schroeder" bar:Reiner text:"Reiner Kelch" bar:Frank text:"Frank Fricke" bar:Uwe text:"Uwe Baltrusch" bar:Peter2 text:"Peter Lake" bar:Erik text:"Erik Adam H. Grösch" bar:Benedikt text:"Benedikt Zimniak" bar:Ralph text:"Ralph Hubert" bar:Jorg text:"Jörg Michael" bar:Peter3 text:"Peter Haas" bar:Uli text:"Uli Kusch" bar:Alex text:"Alex Landenburg" PlotData = width:11 bar:Peter from:start till:03/01/1987 color:vocals bar:Wolfgang from:03/01/1987 till:03/01/1990 color:vocals bar:Doug from:03/01/1990 till:06/01/1997 color:vocals bar:Leo from:02/01/2006 till:02/01/2008 color:vocals bar:Martin from:02/01/2008 till:end color:vocals bar:Jochen from:start till:03/01/1987 color:guitar bar:Reiner from:03/01/1987 till:12/31/1988 color:guitar bar:Frank from:03/01/1987 till:12/31/1988 color:guitar bar:Uwe from:01/01/1989 till:06/01/1997 color:guitar bar:Peter2 from:02/01/2006 till:02/01/2008 color:guitar bar:Peter2 from:02/01/2018 till:end color:guitar bar:Benedikt from:02/01/2008 till:02/01/2014 color:guitar bar:Erik from:02/01/2008 till:end color:guitar bar:Ralph from:start till:06/01/1997 color:bass bar:Ralph from:02/01/2006 till:end color:bass bar:Jorg from:start till:04/01/1991 color:drums bar:Peter3 from:04/01/1991 till:06/01/1997 color:drums bar:Uli from:02/01/2006 till:02/01/2008 color:drums bar:Alex from:02/01/2008 till:end color:drums }} ==Discography== ===Studio albums=== * ''Mekong Delta'' (1987) * ''The Music of Erich Zann'' (1988) * ''[[The Principle of Doubt]]'' (1989) *'' [[Dances of Death (and Other Walking Shadows)]]'' (1990) * ''Kaleidoscope'' (1992) * ''Visions Fugitives'' (1994) * ''Pictures at an Exhibition'' (1996) * ''Lurking Fear'' (2007) * ''[[Wanderer on the Edge of Time]]'' (2010) * ''[[Intersections (Mekong Delta album)|Intersections]]'' (2012) * ''In a Mirror Darkly'' (2014) * ''Tales of a Future Past'' (2020) ===EPs and singles=== * ''The Gnom'' (1988) * ''Toccata'' (1989) * ''Dance on a Volcano'' (1993) ===Live albums=== * ''Live at an Exhibition'' (1991) * ''Live in Frankfurt 1991'' (DVD) (2007) ===Compilations=== * ''Classics'' (1993) * ''The Principle of Doubt (Ambitions)'' (2005) == References == {{reflist}} ==External links== {{commons category}} * [http://www.mekongdelta.eu Official website] {{Mekong Delta}} {{Authority control}} [[Category:German progressive metal musical groups]] [[Category:German heavy metal musical groups]] [[Category:German thrash metal musical groups]] [[Category:Musical groups established in 1985]] [[Category:1985 establishments in Germany]]'