Formed in 1982 in a dodgy Copenhagen suburb called Taastrup. Back in 1982 neither Metallica nor Slayer had released any records, so from the very beginning it was obvious that Artillery were pioneering what would later be labeled thrash metal.
The bands two first demo recordings Shellshock and Deeds Of Darkness were both released in 1984 with Artillery's first vocalist Carsten Lohmann, at the mike, the two brothers Morten and Michael Stützer handling bass and guitar, and Carsten Nielsen on drums. Carsten Lohmann, however, left the band a year later in 1985 and Artillery was then joined by vocalist Flemming Rønsdorf. Flemmings marvelous and unique vocal performances matched Artillerys style of playing perfectly and the bands 3rd demo tape Fear of Tomorrow soon got them a deal with Neat Records. Things immediately started to move and within that same year, 1985, the band released their debut album likewise entitled Fear Of Tomorrow. Two years later came what to this date is still considered a landmark in the history of European thrash metal; the release of Terror Squad. A highly praised masterpiece which immediately caught the attention of the underground press worldwide. The only one who didn't give the album the attention it deserved was Neat Records, so despite the fantastic reviews, to this date Terror Squad remains one of the most overlooked album of the eighties.
During this period Artillery hung out and made friends with Metallica when Metallica visited Copenhagen to record Ride The Lightning and Master Of Puppets, and they gigged with some of the biggest names in thrash metal such as Destruction and Slayer just to name a few.
One of the bizarre highlights of Artillery's career occurred in 1989 when the cold war was still in full effect. A Danish project called Next Stop founded with the purpose of creating mutual understanding through cultural exchange, between East and West asked Artillery if they wanted to be part of the project and thus do a small tour in the Soviet Union together with an old Danish punk band called Sort Sol (Formerly SODS). Guitarist Michael Stützer recalls this about the trip. We did actually play a number of sold out shows together with Sort Sol and the Soviet metal kids went absolutely nuts. One night things really got out of hand. The fans rushed the stage covering us with homemade crosses and metal badges. At one point somebody wrapped the soviet flag around my shoulders and I guess that apparently ticked off the authorities. Police cleared the stage by beating up the fans and it was all just chaos really. Right after we were labeled decadent and dangerous to the Soviet society, put on a train and escorted out of the country. We spent five days riding the Trans Siberian railroad, before making it to the border. Actually the song 07:00 From Tashkent and Dont Believe (By Inheritance) were both written on that train, says Michael with a grin.
Despite Neat Records lack of support Artillery carried on and in 1989 they recorded a promotional tape which immediately got them hooked up with Roadrunner. Roadrunner agreed to release the next Artillery album, and within that same year Artillery entered the Sweet Silence Studio in Copenhagen (where Metallica recorded both Ride The Lightning and Master Of Puppets) and recorded "By Inheritance" their finest album ever, and the first Artillery album to be backed by a major budget. "By Inheritance" was released in 1990 but despite the good vibes during the recording and Roadrunner's good intentions things didn't exactly turn out the way they were expected to.
According to frontman Flemming Rønsdorf: Roadrunner promised us a lot of things and in the beginning things really seemed to be working out. When we were in the studio recording By Inheritance, we were visited by press people from all over, and everybody was really excited about what they heard. It really seemed like things were finally moving our way. For some reason though it seemed like Roadrunner forgot what they had promised. They didn't advertise the album and there wasn't any touring like they had promised us.
The disappointment of once again finding themselves in a dead-end situation eventually led to the split-up of Artillery and thus in 1991 the European metal scene lost one of its most prominent names. Well at least that's what everybody thought, but as it turned out Artillery still had yet another chapter to add to the history of European thrash metal.
After the split the members of Artillery each went in different directions. Flemming Rønsdorf got by playing bars and wine lounges, for small change and square meals. At one point Flemming responded to an ad in a local news-paper where a Beatles cover band was looking for someone sounding like John Lennon. Flemming immediately stepped in and the Beatles cover band Rubber Band have been paying his bills ever since. Morten and Michael Stützer got involved in a metal project called Missing Link and furthermore Michael Stützer started a metal show called Terror Squad on a local radio station. Thus Michael have followed the development on the metal scene very closely and he has also paid frequent visits to metal festivals like Wacken Open Air and Dynamo.
In 1998, seven years after the split, Danish underground metal label Mighty Music decided to release a collection of old unavailable Artillery demo songs on the Deadly Relics album. Mighty Music persuaded Artillery into doing a one time reunion gig in support of the release of Deadly Relics. This event took place in Copenhagen in August 1998. The venue was absolutely packed and amongst the eager spectators were representatives from Diehard.
Like every-body else the Diehard staff was completely overwhelmed by the energy displayed by Artillery during their short set, and afterwards Diehard asked Artillery if they would be interested in doing a reunion album. And the answer to that question is obvious. Doing a one time reunion gig is one thing but actually doing a new album just gotta be a completely different ball game. How do the members feel about having to spend time on Artillery again?
Frontman Flemming Rønsdorf has this to say about the reunion: Honestly, I did have certain reservations towards starting up again. The anger that drove me back then was buried together with a lot of other things when we ended Artillery. I thought I had left all that behind for good. Surprisingly being back in the studio once again taking part in a recording session felt really good. I guess my heart never really stopped beating for metal and honestly, while recording I really got an adrenaline kick and I realized that the anger had never really died but merely laid dormant.
For Michael Stützer the situation is perhaps a bit less complex: I think its gonna be fun. Often when I've attended various festivals I've been recognized by people who kept asking us to get back together again. Whenever I have interviewed bands for my radioshow or answered letters there's always been questions and inquires about Artillery, and I guess the name Stützer still rings a bell in the metal scene. I just feel its really great to be able to give something back and say thanx to all the people who's been able to keep the interest for Artillery going for so many years.
The recordings process of B.A.C.K. went pretty smoothly. The backbone of Artillery; Michael and Morten Stützer, who's been in Artillery since day one and vocalist Flemming Rønsdorf entered the Starstruck Studio in Copenhagen owned by Konkhra frontman Anders Lundemark. With drummer Per M. Jensen as session drummer "B.A.C.K." was recorded during the summer of 99 and the recordings were then handed over to top producer Andy Sneap (Stuck Mojo, Exodus, Testament etc., etc.) in order to make sure that the genuine Artillery style of metal was wrapped in the sound of the nineties.
In essence: Artillery, the frosting and the topping on the thrash metal pie, are back. After seven years in absence one of Europe's finest mid eighties metal acts have now come back to set things straight and to prove to the world that there are more chapters to be added to the history of Artillery.
