The Poodles
Encyclopedia
The Poodles are a glam metal
/heavy metal
band from Sweden
.
They are best known for their hits "Metal Will Stand Tall" and "Night of Passion", the latter of which was played in the Swedish
Melodifestivalen
in 2006.
The band was formed by singer Jakob Samuel (a.k.a. Jake Samuels) who in the early 1990s was Talisman's drummer, bassist Pontus Egberg (ex Lion Share), guitarist Pontus Norgren
(also in Talisman, Humanimal) and drummer Christian Lundqvist.
The Poodles played in the Swedish
Melodifestivalen
contest in 2008, this time with E-Type
. In addition, they played at the Sweden Rock Festival
in 2006 and 2008.
The Poodles were one of ten finalists in the Melodifestivalen 2006
, and by the time of their performance had added an old friend of Samuel's, Mats Levén
, on backing vocals. Melodifestivalen
is an annual music competition in Sweden that determines the country's official representative to the Eurovision Song Contest
.
The Poodles finished in fourth place in Melodifestivalen 2006, then released their debut album called Metal Will Stand Tall to the Swedish market in May 2006. They inked a deal with Germany's AFM Records and then released the album in the rest of Europe on January 19, 2007.
The single "Night of Passion" was certified platinum and a follow-up single, "Metal Will Stand Tall" (a duet with Tess
from the Swedish dance band Alcazar
), was certified gold.
The song "Kingdom Of Heaven" was co-written by Jakob Samuel and Marcel Jacob
.
The band made an initial selection based on 35 songs to be used for their second album. They chose 12 tracks for this release, which was titled Sweet Trade, and was released on September 28, 2007 by AFM Records.
"Seven Seas", produced by Matti Alfonzetti and Johan Lyander, was selected as the first single. The song was written by Jakob Samuel, Jonas Reingold
and Peter Stormare
, the Swedish actor.
On April 22, 2008, The Poodles guitarist Pontus Norgren
left the band. He was since replaced by Henrik Bergqvist.
The band issued the following press release:
Norgren himself said the following:
Glam metal
Glam metal is a subgenre of hard rock and heavy metal that arose in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United States, particularly on the Los Angeles Sunset Strip music scene...
/heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band from Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
.
They are best known for their hits "Metal Will Stand Tall" and "Night of Passion", the latter of which was played in the Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Melodifestivalen
Melodifestivalen
Melodifestivalen is an annual music competition organised by Swedish public broadcasters Sveriges Television and Sveriges Radio . It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest, and has been staged almost every year since 1959...
in 2006.
The band was formed by singer Jakob Samuel (a.k.a. Jake Samuels) who in the early 1990s was Talisman's drummer, bassist Pontus Egberg (ex Lion Share), guitarist Pontus Norgren
Pontus Norgren
Karl Pontus Norgren is the current guitarist of the Swedish power metal band HammerFall and formerly played guitar for The Poodles.- Biography :...
(also in Talisman, Humanimal) and drummer Christian Lundqvist.
The Poodles played in the Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Melodifestivalen
Melodifestivalen
Melodifestivalen is an annual music competition organised by Swedish public broadcasters Sveriges Television and Sveriges Radio . It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest, and has been staged almost every year since 1959...
contest in 2008, this time with E-Type
E-type (musician)
Bo Martin Erik Eriksson , better known by his stage name E-Type, is a Swedish Eurodance musician.-Early years:...
. In addition, they played at the Sweden Rock Festival
Sweden Rock Festival
Sweden Rock Festival is an annual rock/metal festival held in Sweden since 6 June 1992. While having a clear rock/metal focus, the festival is noted for its diversity across these genres, having featured southern rock bands such as Molly Hatchet to death metal legends like Obituary.The first...
in 2006 and 2008.
Formation
In 2006, Jakob Samuel was asked to sing the track "Night of Passion" (lyrics by Sonja Aldén and music by Matti Alfonzetti, Johan Lyander and Robert Olausson). Samuel loved the song, and asked Christian Lundqvist to join him as drummer for that session. Later bassist Pontus Egberg and guitarist Pontus Norgren joined them to perform the song as a band called The Poodles.The Poodles were one of ten finalists in the Melodifestivalen 2006
Melodifestivalen 2006
Melodifestivalen 2006 was the selection for the 46th song to represent Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest. It was the 45th time that this system of picking a song had been used. Five semifinals had taken place to select the ten songs for the final, in Leksand, Karlstad, Karlskrona, Gothenburg...
, and by the time of their performance had added an old friend of Samuel's, Mats Levén
Mats Levén
Mats Levén is a singer. His most notable recent collaborations have been with symphonic metallers Therion and doom metallers Krux.-Biography:...
, on backing vocals. Melodifestivalen
Melodifestivalen
Melodifestivalen is an annual music competition organised by Swedish public broadcasters Sveriges Television and Sveriges Radio . It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest, and has been staged almost every year since 1959...
is an annual music competition in Sweden that determines the country's official representative to the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
.
The Poodles finished in fourth place in Melodifestivalen 2006, then released their debut album called Metal Will Stand Tall to the Swedish market in May 2006. They inked a deal with Germany's AFM Records and then released the album in the rest of Europe on January 19, 2007.
The single "Night of Passion" was certified platinum and a follow-up single, "Metal Will Stand Tall" (a duet with Tess
Therese Merkel
Eva Therese Margaretha Merkel also known as "Tess Merkel" is a Swedish singer who is one of the original members of the pop group Alcazar. Tess started her career in a number of musicals, she soon landed the job as a showgirl on Wallmans salonger in 1991...
from the Swedish dance band Alcazar
Alcazar (band)
Alcazar is a Swedish eurodance group which has established themselves as one of Sweden's most successful music groups with a string of hits since their debut single in 1999. Worldwide, Alcazar sold over 12 million records between 2001 and 2004...
), was certified gold.
The song "Kingdom Of Heaven" was co-written by Jakob Samuel and Marcel Jacob
Marcel Jacob
Marcel Karl Jacob was a Swedish musician, best known as the bassist in the hard rock bands Talisman and Last Autumn's Dream.-Biography:In 1978, Jacob formed the band Rising Force together with guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen...
.
The band made an initial selection based on 35 songs to be used for their second album. They chose 12 tracks for this release, which was titled Sweet Trade, and was released on September 28, 2007 by AFM Records.
"Seven Seas", produced by Matti Alfonzetti and Johan Lyander, was selected as the first single. The song was written by Jakob Samuel, Jonas Reingold
Jonas Reingold
Jonas Reingold is a bass guitar player from Malmö, Sweden. He started to play bass in 1986 when he subbed for a friend in the local famous act WIRE. The band was happy with his performance and offered him the spot...
and Peter Stormare
Peter Stormare
is a Swedish film, stage, voice and television actor as well as a theatrical director, playwright and musician.- Early life :...
, the Swedish actor.
Current members
- Jakob Samuel - Vocals
- Christian Lundqvist - Drums
- Pontus Egberg - Bass
- Henrik Bergqvist - Guitar
Former members
- Pontus Norgren - Guitar
On April 22, 2008, The Poodles guitarist Pontus Norgren
Pontus Norgren
Karl Pontus Norgren is the current guitarist of the Swedish power metal band HammerFall and formerly played guitar for The Poodles.- Biography :...
left the band. He was since replaced by Henrik Bergqvist.
The band issued the following press release:
We regrettably have to inform you that Pontus Norgren has decided to leave The Poodles. We would like to thank Pontus for all the great times we’ve shared and wish him the best of luck for the future.
Norgren himself said the following:
I like HammerFallHammerFallHammerFall is a power metal band from Gothenburg, Sweden. The band was formed in 1993 by ex-Ceremonial Oath guitarist Oscar Dronjak.- Early days :...
. I think they have amazing stage shows and I like their songs, so when I heard they were looking for a guitar player I thought I'd give it a try. Playing in The Poodles has been a wonderful experience in many ways, but I have always liked a little heavier music and have felt at times that this wasn't the right kind of forum for the music I'd most like to play. It's simply time to move on.
Albums
- Metal Will Stand Tall (2006)
- Sweet Trade (2007)
- Clash of the ElementsClash of the Elements (The Poodles album)Clash of the Elements Is the 3rd studio album of Swedish metal band The Poodles, released 20 May 2009. It was the first album with new guitarist Henrik Bergqvist, who replaced Pontus Norgren after he quit the band to play with Hammerfall.-Track listing:...
(2009) - No Quarter (Live) (2010)
- Performocracy (2011)
Singles
- "Night of Passion" (2006)
- "Metal Will Stand Tall" feat. Tess Merkel (2006)
- "Song for You" (2006)
- "Seven Seas" feat. Peter StormarePeter Stormareis a Swedish film, stage, voice and television actor as well as a theatrical director, playwright and musician.- Early life :...
(2007) - "Streets of Fire" (2007)
- "Line of Fire" feat. E-TypeE-type (musician)Bo Martin Erik Eriksson , better known by his stage name E-Type, is a Swedish Eurodance musician.-Early years:...
(2008) - "Raise the Banner" (2008) Swedish official song for the Olympic Games in Beijing 2008
- "One Out of Ten" (2009)
- "I Rule the Night" (2009)
- "Cuts Like A Knife" (2011)