Drakkar Entertainment
Encyclopedia
Drakkar Entertainment GmbH, also called Drakkar Records or Drakkar Publishing, is a German
record label
with its headquarters in Witten
. It is a joint venture with Bertelsmann Music Group
.
by Bogdan Kopec. It initially only handled publishing, but in 1986, when Kopec changed the name to "Drakkar Promotion", he also expanded its services to include management, booking, and merchandising. The company later signed German metal bands such as Coroner
, Raven
, Running Wild
, and Sodom
.
In 1992, the company joined forces with Bertelsmann Music Group to become Drakkar Promotion Musikverlag GmbH. At the same time, another company, G.U.N. Records GmbH
was created. This second company became so successful that Kopec, who felt overworked, decided to sell his shares to BMG. He then closed the merchandising, booking, and trading departments of Drakkar Promotion, and founded "Drakkar Records". His original company became "Drakkar Entertainment GmbH".
Drakkar Entertainment now has four divisions:
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
with its headquarters in Witten
Witten
Witten is a university city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the home of the Witten/Herdecke University, the first private university in Germany.-Bordering municipalities:* Bochum* Dortmund* Herdecke* Wetter * Sprockhoevel* Hattingen...
. It is a joint venture with Bertelsmann Music Group
BMG
Bertelsmann Music Group, , was a division of Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Japan's Sony Corporation of America on October 1, 2008. It was established in 1987 to combine the music label activities of Bertelsmann...
.
History
Originally Kopec Music Publishing, Drakkar Entertainment was founded in 19861986 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1986.-January-June:*January 23 – The first induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame takes place...
by Bogdan Kopec. It initially only handled publishing, but in 1986, when Kopec changed the name to "Drakkar Promotion", he also expanded its services to include management, booking, and merchandising. The company later signed German metal bands such as Coroner
Coroner (band)
Coroner is a Swiss thrash metal/progressive metal band from Zurich. They garnered relatively little attention outside of Europe. Formed in 1983, the band broke up in 1996, but decided to reform 14 years later. The band will perform at multiple live venues and festivals around the world in 2011,...
, Raven
Raven (band)
Raven are an English heavy metal band associated with the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. They had a hit with the single "On and On", and refer to their music as "athletic rock".-Formation:...
, Running Wild
Running Wild (band)
Running Wild is a German heavy metal band, formed in 1976 in Hamburg. They were part of the German heavy/speed/power metal scene to emerge in the early to mid 1980s. The band has carved its niche in the metal world as the first "pirate metal" band, a theme which took off with the release of Under...
, and Sodom
Sodom (band)
Sodom is a German Thrash metal trio from Gelsenkirchen, formed in 1981.Along with the bands Kreator and Destruction, Sodom is considered one of the "big three" of Teutonic thrash metal...
.
In 1992, the company joined forces with Bertelsmann Music Group to become Drakkar Promotion Musikverlag GmbH. At the same time, another company, G.U.N. Records GmbH
GUN Records
GUN Records was a record label located in Bochum, Northrhine-Westphalia, Germany and was founded 1992 by Bogdan Kopec and Wolfgang Funk....
was created. This second company became so successful that Kopec, who felt overworked, decided to sell his shares to BMG. He then closed the merchandising, booking, and trading departments of Drakkar Promotion, and founded "Drakkar Records". His original company became "Drakkar Entertainment GmbH".
Drakkar Entertainment now has four divisions:
- Drakkar Classic, a label publishing rock and metal with orchestral accompaniment.
- Drakkar Records, their metal label.
- e-Wave Records, their electronic label.
- Edition Drakkar, their publishing company.
Artists
- Akrea
- De/VisionDe/VisionDe/Vision is a German synthpop musical group. The band started as a quartet consisting of Thomas Adam, Steffen Keth, Stefan Blender, and Markus Ganssert. They formed the band in 1988. The name De/Vision is a play on words. The majority of the band's lyrics are in English, but they have had some...
- DiabloDiablo (band)Diablo is a Finnish melodic death metal band, formed in 1995 as Diablo Brothers. The band cite Testament, Slayer, Metallica, Megadeth, Opeth, Death, and Meshuggah as influences, but influence from several Gothenburg bands, including Dark Tranquillity, Hypocrisy, and In Flames, is also evident in...
- Emil BullsEmil BullsEmil Bulls is a German alternative metal band that was formed in 1995 in Munich, Bavaria. The group currently consists of two guitarists, a bass guitar player, a drummer and a vocalist/guitarist.-History:...
- Eternal Tears of SorrowEternal Tears of SorrowEternal Tears of Sorrow is a Finnish symphonic death metal band formed in Pudasjärvi in Northern Ostrobothnia, Finland...
(until 2006) - GothministerGothministerGothminister is an industrial metal band from Norway. Formed in 1999, they have released four albums and have had success in Germany, playing many German music festivals, including Wave-Gotik-Treffen , the Dark Storm Festival, the M'era Luna Festival, and performing for over 10,000 people at the...
- GrantigGrantigGrantig was a metal band from Munich, Germany. Their music is rooted in thrash metal, but is influenced by southern rock, blues and traditional heavy metal. The word grantig is of south German origin and translates into English as grouchy or angry....
- HaggardHaggard (band)Haggard is a German symphonic metal musical group founded in 1991. The group combines classical music and early music with doom metal.-Background:...
- Jesus on ExtasyJesus on ExtasyJesus on Extasy is an electronic rock band from Essen, Germany, formed in 2005.-History:The band was formed in 2005 by the cousins Dorian Deveraux and Chai Deveraux. After their first show big show at one of the biggest festivals in europe Bochum-Total Festival the band signed to Drakkar...
- KareliaKarelia (heavy metal band)Karelia is a French heavy metal band created in 2000 by Lionel Vest and Matthieu Kleiber.-Biography:Karelia first released a self-titled demo in 2000....
- The Killer Barbies
- KreatorKreatorKreator is a thrash metal band from Essen, Germany, formed in 1978, but formalized in 1982 under the name Tormentor. They originally performed a speed metal style with Venom influences. Their style of music is similar to their compatriots Destruction and Sodom, the other two big German thrash metal...
(for EndoramaEndorama-Personnel:Kreator*Mille Petrozza - Guitar, Vocals, Producer, Cover art, Concept, Design*Jürgen Reil - Drums*Christian Giesler - Bass guitar*Thomas Vetterli - Guitar, Guitar synth, Producer, ProgrammingProduction*Tilo Wolff - Guest vocals...
) - Letzte InstanzLetzte InstanzLetzte Instanz, founded in Dresden, Germany in 1996, is a German metal band particularly noted for their use of the violin and cello. The founding members included Hörbi, Tin Whistle, Muttis Stolz, Kaspar Wichman, Holly D. and Markus G-Punkt. Benni Cellini and Robin Sohn entered the group a year...
- LordiLordiLordi is a Finnish hard rock/heavy metal band, formed in 1996 by the band's lead singer, songwriter and costume-designer, Mr. Lordi. The band is known for wearing monster masks and using pyrotechnics during concerts...
- Los Los
- LoudnessLoudness (band)is a Japan-based heavy metal band formed in 1981 by guitarist Akira Takasaki and drummer Munetaka Higuchi. They were the first Japanese heavy metal act signed to a major label in the United States, releasing twenty-three studio albums...
- LumskLumskLumsk is a folk metal band from Trondheim, Norway. It combines traditional Norwegian folk music and folklore with rock, progressive rock and metal...
- My Mind's Weapon
- NightwishNightwishNightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Kitee, Finland. Formed in 1996 by songwriter and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and former vocalist Tarja Turunen, Nightwish's current line-up has five members, although Tarja has been replaced by Anette Olzon and the...
(until 2004) - Omega LithiumOmega LithiumOmega Lithium is a Croatian industrial metal band. Despite its origins, it is classified as a Neue Deutsche Härte band. The band was formed in 2007 and is signed to Drakkar Entertainment, a part of Sony BMG. The band's debut album, Dreams in Formaline, was released on 18 September 2009.The first...
- RebellionRebellion (band)Rebellion is a German power-metal band. It was formed in 2001 when guitarist Uwe Lulis left Grave Digger in 2000, taking ex-Grave Digger bassist Tomi Göttlich with him...
- The SorrowThe SorrowThe Sorrow is a metalcore/melodic death band from Austria. They were formed in 2005 by Mathias Schlegl and Andreas Mäser from the band Disconnected and Dominik Immler and Tobias Schädler from Distance...
- Twisted SisterTwisted SisterTwisted Sister is an American heavy metal band from Long Island. Musically, the band implements elements of traditional heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, along with a style that is similar to early glam metal bands...
- XandriaXandriaXandria is a German symphonic metal band, founded by Marco Heubaum in 1997. The band's music combines elements of symphonic metal with light electronic elements and rock....
- ZeraphineZeraphineZeraphine are a gothic alternative rock from Berlin, Germany, formed in 2000 by Sven Friedrich and Norman Selbig from the then-defunct Dreadful Shadows.-History:...
External links
- Official site of Drakkar Entertainment, contains both an English and German version.
- Drakkar archive website run by Drakkar Entertainment, which gives a description of the history of the label listed here. It's mostly in German, but an English version is available.