Piet Sielck
Encyclopedia
Piet Sielck is a power metal
guitarist
and vocalist. He is member of the power
/speed metal
bands Iron Savior
and Savage Circus
, as well as owner of the studio Powerhouse in Hamburg.
, Germany, Piet started playing piano at the age of 8 and bass at the age of 10, but realized after half a year that bass was not his favourite instrument and took up the guitar.
. In 1982, he left the band and worked first as a technician, then traveled for one year to Los Angeles. After his return, he began his career as a producer; his first production was Heading for Tomorrow
, the debut album of Gamma Ray
, the new band of his old friend Hansen. Other bands with which he cooperated are Uriah Heep
, Saxon
, and Blind Guardian
. He maintains a good relationship with many bands, having participated in several of their albums as a guest musician.
In 1996, Sielck created his own band, Iron Savior
, together with Hansen and Blind Guardian's then-drummer Thomen Stauch. Those two would step out later, but Sielck continued the band with new musicians.
In 2004, he agreed to produce and participate as a guitarist/bassist in Stauch's new band Savage Circus
.
Power metal
Power metal is a style of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. The term refers to two different but related styles: the first pioneered and largely practiced in North America with a harder sound similar to speed metal, and a...
guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
and vocalist. He is member of the power
Power metal
Power metal is a style of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. The term refers to two different but related styles: the first pioneered and largely practiced in North America with a harder sound similar to speed metal, and a...
/speed metal
Speed metal
Speed metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that originated in the late 1970s from NWOBHM and hardcore punk roots. It is described by Allmusic as "extremely fast, abrasive, and technically demanding" music....
bands Iron Savior
Iron Savior
Iron Savior is a German power metal band that formed in Hamburg, Germany in 1996. Following a period of several years working behind the scenes in music production, multi-instrumentalist and producer/engineer Piet Sielck joined with former Helloween bandmate Kai Hansen and then-drummer for Blind...
and Savage Circus
Savage Circus
Savage Circus is a German/Swedish power metal band originally created as a side project by Thomen Stauch before leaving Blind Guardian.-Biography:...
, as well as owner of the studio Powerhouse in Hamburg.
Early years
Born in HamburgHamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Germany, Piet started playing piano at the age of 8 and bass at the age of 10, but realized after half a year that bass was not his favourite instrument and took up the guitar.
Career/Development
Sielck's first band was Gentry, which he formed along with Kai HansenKai Hansen
Kai Michael Hansen is a power metal guitarist and vocalist.Hansen is the founder, lead guitarist, and vocalist of power metal band Gamma Ray, and the co-founder and former member of German metal band Helloween. He is a prominent figure in power metal, and has sold millions of albums worldwide...
. In 1982, he left the band and worked first as a technician, then traveled for one year to Los Angeles. After his return, he began his career as a producer; his first production was Heading for Tomorrow
Heading for Tomorrow
Heading for Tomorrow is the first studio album released by German power metal band, Gamma Ray on 19 February 1990 by Noise Records. In 2002 it was re-released with a different cover as part of the Ultimate Collection box-set...
, the debut album of Gamma Ray
Gamma Ray (band)
Gamma Ray is a power metal band from Hamburg, northern Germany, founded and fronted by Kai Hansen after his departure from the German power metal Helloween. Hansen is the current lead vocalist, guitarist as well as the chief songwriter of Gamma Ray. The band is known as one of the most prominent...
, the new band of his old friend Hansen. Other bands with which he cooperated are Uriah Heep
Uriah Heep (band)
Uriah Heep are an English rock band formed in London in 1969 and regarded as a seminal classic hard rock act of the 1970s. Uriah Heep's progressive/art rock/heavy metal fusion's distinctive features have always been massive keyboards sound, strong vocal harmonies and David Byron's operatic vocals...
, Saxon
Saxon (band)
Saxon are an English heavy metal band, formed in 1976 in Barnsley, Yorkshire. As front-runners of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, they had 8 UK Top 40 albums in the 1980s including 4 UK Top 10 albums. Saxon also had numerous singles in the Top 20 singles chart...
, and Blind Guardian
Blind Guardian
Blind Guardian is a German power metal band formed in the mid-1980s in Krefeld, West Germany. They are often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres...
. He maintains a good relationship with many bands, having participated in several of their albums as a guest musician.
In 1996, Sielck created his own band, Iron Savior
Iron Savior
Iron Savior is a German power metal band that formed in Hamburg, Germany in 1996. Following a period of several years working behind the scenes in music production, multi-instrumentalist and producer/engineer Piet Sielck joined with former Helloween bandmate Kai Hansen and then-drummer for Blind...
, together with Hansen and Blind Guardian's then-drummer Thomen Stauch. Those two would step out later, but Sielck continued the band with new musicians.
In 2004, he agreed to produce and participate as a guitarist/bassist in Stauch's new band Savage Circus
Savage Circus
Savage Circus is a German/Swedish power metal band originally created as a side project by Thomen Stauch before leaving Blind Guardian.-Biography:...
.
Iron Savior
- Iron SaviorIron Savior (album)- Track listing :-Personnel:Iron Savior* Piet Sielck – vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, production* Kai Hansen – guitar, vocals, additional production* Thomen Stauch – drums, additional productionAdditional musicians...
(1997) - Coming Home (SingleSingle (music)In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, 1998) - UnificationUnification (album)* The Swiss power metal band Excelsis won a band competition on Iron Savior's 1998 Atlantis Falling tour, earning them a guest spot on Unification.-Personnel:Iron Savior* Piet Sielck – lead vocals, backing vocals, guitar...
(1998) - InterludeInterlude (Iron Savior album)Interlude is an EP by the German power metal band Iron Savior, composed of five live tracks, four new songs, and one cover. The live tracks were recorded at the 1998 Wacken Open Air festival during the tour promoting their first album, Iron Savior...
(EPExtended playAn EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, 1999) - I've Been to Hell (SingleSingle (music)In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, 2000) - Dark AssaultDark Assault-Personnel:Iron Savior* Piet Sielck – lead vocals, guitar* Kai Hansen – guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Solar Wings"* Joachim "Piesel" Küstner – guitar, backing vocals* Andreas Kück – keyboards, backing vocals...
(2001) - Condition RedCondition RedCondition Red, Red Rockers' first full length album, was released in 1981 on 415 Records. It was recorded at the famed Automatt studio in San Francisco. The Dead Kennedys' Jello Biafra sings background vocals on Folsom Prison Blues...
(2002) - Battering RamBattering Ram (album)Battering Ram is the fifth studio album by the German power metal band Iron Savior.-Track listing:-Reception:The album was released to generally favorable reviews, with reviewers citing the band for remaining faithful to the genre of Power Metal...
(2004) - MegatropolisMegatropolisMegatropolis is Iron Savior's sixth full length album, released on the 4th of June, 2007.- Track listing :#"Running Riot" - 4:58#"The Omega Man" - 4:52#"Flesh" - 5:01#"Megatropolis" - 5:04#"Cybernetic Queen" - 4:52#"Cyber Hero" - 4:59...
(2007)
Guest recording
- Gamma Ray: Sigh No More backing vocals (1991)