Cacumen - Biography
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1972-1985
Biography
Bonfire has a unique history to them as currently there are two bands who have held the name. The original group started out as Cacumen, became Bonfire and currently performing as Charade. The second group began as Lessmann/Ziller and then purchased the rights to the Bonfire name, which they have used ever since.
In 1972, in the West German town of Ingolstadt a teenaged guitarist, Hans Ziller, put together a rock band called Cacumen with his brother Karl, whom also played guitar, then gathered a bunch of friends to complete the band. The name of the group was from a school test Hans had taken and it translates from Latin meaning "the top of a mountain". For the next six years, the band played at local small venues, but had a fan base in their hometown. In 1978, the group consisted of Hans and Karl on guitars, Horst Maier on guitar (in 1983, Horst's last name would become Maier-Thorn), Hans Hauptmann on bass and Hans Forstner on drums. When the band was seeking a replacement singer at that time, Claus Lessmann, a fellow student of Hans', was hired.
Claus previously was in the bands Ginger and Sunset and was known for his harmonic vocals and he fit in perfectly with Cacumen. With this line-up, the band had a chance to start branching themselves out to venues outside Ingolstadt. A single record was recorded called Riding Away, which featured the song Wintertale on the flip side in 1979. The group used this opportunity to begin touring at clubs, schools and even in parking lots. The fan base grew and Cacumen was finally signed to an independent label. By then though, Karl had departed the group. The self titled Cacumen album was released in 1981 and featured a new version of Riding Away.
By some circumstances Cacumen get in contact with Hanns Schmidt-Theissen, who owned a small music studio (Hanns had played with the group on the Riding Away single). Since money was poor and Hanns a good guy, they recorded the album Bad Widow at his studio in Rodgau / Germany in 1982. Hanns tried to help these guys to get a contract, but this wasn't successful at this time.
The fans of the band were growing, as were performance dates. In 1983, Robert Prskalowicz replaced Hans Hauptmann on bass and this group became the well-known Cacumen band, but when they signed with BMG, the group had a total make-over. Robert and Hans Forstner were no longer with the group as of March 1985. In 1985 band changed name to Bonfire
Source: http://www.metalstorm.net/bands/biography.php?band_id=3568&bandname=Bonfire
In 1972, in the West German town of Ingolstadt a teenaged guitarist, Hans Ziller, put together a rock band called Cacumen with his brother Karl, whom also played guitar, then gathered a bunch of friends to complete the band. The name of the group was from a school test Hans had taken and it translates from Latin meaning "the top of a mountain". For the next six years, the band played at local small venues, but had a fan base in their hometown. In 1978, the group consisted of Hans and Karl on guitars, Horst Maier on guitar (in 1983, Horst's last name would become Maier-Thorn), Hans Hauptmann on bass and Hans Forstner on drums. When the band was seeking a replacement singer at that time, Claus Lessmann, a fellow student of Hans', was hired.
Claus previously was in the bands Ginger and Sunset and was known for his harmonic vocals and he fit in perfectly with Cacumen. With this line-up, the band had a chance to start branching themselves out to venues outside Ingolstadt. A single record was recorded called Riding Away, which featured the song Wintertale on the flip side in 1979. The group used this opportunity to begin touring at clubs, schools and even in parking lots. The fan base grew and Cacumen was finally signed to an independent label. By then though, Karl had departed the group. The self titled Cacumen album was released in 1981 and featured a new version of Riding Away.
By some circumstances Cacumen get in contact with Hanns Schmidt-Theissen, who owned a small music studio (Hanns had played with the group on the Riding Away single). Since money was poor and Hanns a good guy, they recorded the album Bad Widow at his studio in Rodgau / Germany in 1982. Hanns tried to help these guys to get a contract, but this wasn't successful at this time.
The fans of the band were growing, as were performance dates. In 1983, Robert Prskalowicz replaced Hans Hauptmann on bass and this group became the well-known Cacumen band, but when they signed with BMG, the group had a total make-over. Robert and Hans Forstner were no longer with the group as of March 1985. In 1985 band changed name to Bonfire
Source: http://www.metalstorm.net/bands/biography.php?band_id=3568&bandname=Bonfire