DG 307 was a Czech underground rock band founded in 1973 in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

Milan Hlavsa Milan "Mejla" Hlavsa (Prague, 6 March 1951 – 5 January 2001) was the founder, chief songwriter, and original bassist of the Czech band the Plastic People of the Universe, which was part of the inspiration for the anti-establishment movement C ...

and

Pavel Zajíček Pavel Zajíček (born 15 April 1951, in Prague) is a Czech poet and musician. In 1973, he founded the experimental band DG 307 (named after the code for the psychiatric diagnosis that would exempt young men from compulsory military service) toget ...

. The group has been inactive since 2016.

Overview

Bass guitarist

and poet

launched DG 307 in 1973, taking the name from a psychiatric diagnosis that allowed young men to obtain a blue booklet and thus avoid compulsory military service. Together with

the Plastic People of the Universe The Plastic People of the Universe (PPU) is a Czech rock band from Prague. They are considered the foremost representatives of Prague's underground culture (1968–1989), which defied the Czechoslovakia's Communist regime. Members of the band ...

, a band Hlavsa had also been a member of, DG 307, among other underground ensembles, was a target of persecution by the

communist regime A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state that is administered and governed by a communist party guided by Marxism–Leninism. Marxism–Leninism was the state ideology of the Soviet Union, the Cominte ...

. The repression climaxed in 1976, when Zajíček was arrested and imprisoned for a year, allegedly for

disorderly conduct Disorderly conduct is a crime in most jurisdictions in the United States, the People's Republic of China, and Taiwan. Typically, "disorderly conduct" makes it a crime to be drunk in public, to " disturb the peace", or to loiter in certain are ...

. After his release, only two DG 307 concerts took place, in 1979. In 1980, Zajíček emigrated and the group went on indefinite hiatus. The

Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution ( cs, Sametová revoluce) or Gentle Revolution ( sk, Nežná revolúcia) was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations agains ...

in 1989 made it possible for Zajíček to return to his homeland, at which point he reestablished the band and became its lead singer. Since 2016, the group has been inactive due to Zajíček's health. The only permanent member of DG 307 throughout its existence was Pavel Zajíček. The group had a rotating membership of musicians that at various times included

Josef Janíček Josef Janíček (born 28 December 1947 in Prague, Czechoslovakia, now Czech Republic) is a Czech rock keyboardist, singer, accordion and guitar player. He was a former guitarist of The Primitives Group; from 1969 he played with The Plastic People ...

, Jan Sahara Hedl, and Eva Turnová.

Partial list of band members

– vocals *

– bass guitar * Jana Jonáková – vocals * Ivo Pospíšil – bass guitar * Ivan Bierhanzl – bass guitar, double bass * Tomáš Vtípil – violin, electronics * Tomáš Schilla – cello * Petr Fučík – drums * Ivan Manolov – electric guitar * René Starhon – drums * Antonín Korb – drums * Otakar "Alfréd" Michl – guitar * Pavel Cigánek – guitar, violin * Michal Koval – bass guitar * Přemek Drozd – drums * Dalibor Pyš – violin * Oto Sukovský – bass guitar * Eva Turnová – bass guitar

Discography

* ''Gift to the Shadows (fragment)'' (1982) * ''DG 307 (1973–75)'' (1990) * ''Dar stínům (jaro 1979)'' (1992) * ''Pták utrženej ze řetězu (podzim 1979)'' (1993) * ''Torzo (léto 1980)'' (1993) * ''Umělě ochuceno (Artificially flavored)'' (1992) * ''Tvář jako Botticelliho Anděl'' (Live bootleg – 1995) * ''Kniha psaná chaosem'' (1996) * ''Siluety'' (1998) * ''Koncert'' (1999) * ''Šepoty a výkřiky'' (2002) * ''Historie hysterie'' (1973–75 recordings)'' (2002) * ''Nosferatu'' (soundtrack to the film ''

Nosferatu ''Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror'' (German: ''Nosferatu – Eine Symphonie des Grauens'') is a 1922 silent German Expressionist horror film directed by F. W. Murnau and starring Max Schreck as Count Orlok, a vampire who preys on the wife ...

'' – 2004)) * ''DG 307 – LIVE (17.4.2005)'' (2005) * ''Květy podzimu – barvy jara /live at La Fabrika'' (2008) * ''Veřejná zkouška/Public rehearsal Praha-New York'' (2009) * ''Magický město vyhořelo'' (1994 live recording – 2008) * ''V katedrálách ticha'' (1994 live recording – 2011) * ''Životy? Nebo bludné kruhy?'' (2013) * ''Svědek spálenýho času /komplet nahrávek z let 1979–1980'' (5CDs – 2013)

References

External links

DG 307 at Bandzone
{{Authority control Czech alternative rock groups Czech underground music groups Musical groups from Prague 1973 establishments in Czechoslovakia 2016 disestablishments in the Czech Republic Musical groups established in 1973 Musical groups disestablished in 2016