Rough Silk

 Today in 1997 Rough Silk released the album Mephisto

Hanover, Lower Saxony, Germany Melodic Power Metal

Status:Active

Years active:1989-2004, 2006-2012, 2015-present

Formed in 1989 and originally comprising Jan Barnett (vocals/guitar), Herbert Hartmann (vocals/drums), Ferdy Doernberg (vocals/keyboards/guitar), Hilmer Staacke (d. 25 May 2006; guitar) and Ralf Schwertner (bass), Hannover, Germany-based rock band Rough Silk represented part of the new wave of European rock music. With an easily detectable bent towards American AOR stylings, in the vein of bands such as Rainbow, Bon Jovi and REO Speedwagon, Rough Silk struggled to throw off accusations of imitation. However, they have proved competent at their craft, most notably on two early 90s albums recorded at Dieter Dierks’ German studio. The second of these, Walls Of Never, was the better, with songs such as ‘Toxical Roses’ and ‘One More For The Ride’ demonstrating the band’s ability to tackle contrasting material without losing momentum.

Hartmann, Doernberg and Schwertner remained at the helm into the new millennium on a series of albums for the Massacre and SPV labels. Other members have included Thomas Ludolphy (vocals), Andreas Laszewski (guitar), Curt Doernberg (drums) and Nils Wunderlich (vocals/guitar).

Massacre Records

Ferdy Doernberg Keyboards, Guitars, Vocals

Jan Barnett Vocals

Nils Wünderlich Guitars, Vocals

Ralf Schwertner Bass, Vocals

Curt Doernberg Drums

Guest/Session

Jochen Wollenhaupt Programming (additional) (tracks 4, 6)

Mirko Mikulicz Violin (tracks 4, 6)

1. Mystery Bay 00:48

2. Recall 04:32

3. Mephisto 05:25

4. Subway Angel's Caravan 06:38

5. My Last Farewell 04:37

6. Dust to Sand 05:15

7. Glissando 04:36

8. Stay Cold 04:02

9. Far from Home 06:02

10. The Day of the Loner 04:56

11. Wheels of Time 05:20

52:11

Produced by Rough Silk.

12. On the Edge of a Dream (Bonus track)

2002 Russian Reissue on CD Maximum has following bonus tracks:

12. Wisdom In Steel 6:38

13. Desent Wind 5:37

Recording information:

Recorded at Big House studios