Callejon

A German -- and German-speaking -- metal band that came to prominence in 2010 with the release of their David Cronenberg-inspired third album, Videodrom, Callejon employ a multifaceted blend of atmospheric hard rock and punishing metalcore that has drawn comparisons to sonic contemporaries like Unearth, Soilwork, and Parkway Drive. Since forming in 2002 the band has released a string of EPs and full-length outings that have helped to establish them as one of Western Europe's most volatile and versatile heavy music practitioners. Founded in 2002 and based out of Düsseldorf, the group originated around singer Bastian Sobtzick, guitarists Thomas Buschhausen and Bernhard Horn, bassist Thorsten Becker, and drummer Maximilian Kotzmann. They made their debut in 2005 with the My Favourite Toy-issued EP Chonos. Their first full-length, Willkommen im Beerdigungscafé, arrived in 2006, and was followed by Zombieactionhauptquarter, their first album for Nuclear Blast, in 2008. Their third full-length, the internationally acclaimed Videodrom, arrived in 2010, and would be the band's last album with Nuclear Blast before signing on with Four Music, which released 2012's Blitzkreuz, 2013's Man Spricht Deutch, and 2015's Wir sind Angst, all three of which cracked the Top Ten on the German hard rock charts. The group inked a deal with Century Media for their seventh studio long-player, 2017's Fandigo, which featured a lineup that included Sobtzick, Horn, Becker, Kotzmann, and guitarist Christoph Koterzina. ~ James Christopher Monger