Powerwolf, often stylized as POWERWOLF, is a German

power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in contra ...

band founded in 2003 in

Saarbrücken Saarbrücken (; french: link=no, Sarrebruck ; Rhine Franconian: ''Saarbrigge'' ; lb, Saarbrécken ; lat, Saravipons, lit=The Bridge(s) across the Saar river) is the capital and largest city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken is S ...

by members of

Red Aim Red Aim was a German rock band. The group was founded in 1995 and mainly played stoner and raga rock. After the change of vocalist to Karsten Brill, the music started to go more into the direction of punk rock and heavy metal. History Red ...

. The band consists of vocalist Karsten Brill as "

Attila Dorn Karsten Brill (; born 27 October 1970), best known by his stage name Attila Dorn, is a German singer. He has been the lead vocalist of power metal band Powerwolf since 2003. Career Dragon's Tongue and Meskalin (1991–1998) In 1991, Br ...

", lead guitarist Benjamin Buss as "

Matthew Greywolf Benjamin Buss (; born 7 October 1977), best known by his stage name Matthew Greywolf, is a German musician, best known as the guitarist and a main songwriter in the power metal band Powerwolf. He's married to a photographer Janine Buss. Biog ...

", bassist/rhythm guitarist David Vogt as "

Charles Greywolf David Vogt (; born 5 September 1975), best known by his stage name Charles Greywolf, is a German musician, record producer, mixer and recording engineer. He is best known as the guitarist of the power metal band Powerwolf. He runs a recording ...

", keyboardist Christian Jost as "

Falk Maria Schlegel Christian Jost (born 29 September 1975), best known by his stage name Falk Maria Schlegel, is a German musician. He is best known as the keyboardist of power metal band Powerwolf. Career Jost started as a keyboardist of a progressive thrash ...

" and drummer

Roel van Helden Roel van Helden (born 2 September 1980) is a Dutch musician known mostly for his work as a drummer for German metal band Powerwolf. Early life Born in Lottum, Roel van Helden's first experience with playing drums was in a talent show at the a ...

. The group uses dark themes and images, contrary to traditional power metal music, as well as

corpse paint Corpse paint is a style of black and white makeup used mainly by black metal bands for concerts and band photos. The makeup is used to make the musicians appear inhuman, corpse-like, or demonic, and is perhaps "the most identifiable aspect of the ...

, gothic-tinged compositions and songs about

werewolf In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely or ...

and

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

legends. They released their debut album, ''

Return in Bloodred ''Return in Bloodred'' is the first full-length studio album by the German power metal band Powerwolf, released in 2005. History First songs for the album, such as "Mr. Sinister" and "We Came to Take Your Souls", which were completed in the f ...

,'' in 2005. Their second album, ''

Lupus Dei ''Lupus Dei'' (Latin for ''Wolf of God'') is the second full-length studio album by the German power metal band Powerwolf. In addition to recording at Woodhouse Studios, Germany, the band recorded some parts of the album in the 12th-century ''De ...

'', was released in 2007. The band entered the official German charts for the first time in 2009 with their third album, ''

Bible of the Beast ''Bible of the Beast'' is the third studio album by the German power metal band Powerwolf. The album was released on 24 April 2009. It was recorded at the Studio Fredman in Gothenburg, Sweden. Powerwolf revealed the details of their third album o ...

''. Shortly after its release, their first drummer Stefan Gemballa (stage name Stéfane Funèbre) left the band. He was replaced by Tom Diener, who was replaced in 2011 by Roel van Helden. In the same year, the band released their fourth album, ''

Blood of the Saints ''Blood of the Saints'' is the fourth studio album by the German power metal band Powerwolf, released in 2011.- - - It is the band's first album with songs that had music videos, made for "We Drink Your Blood" and "Sanctified with Dynamite". In ...

''. In 2012, Powerwolf signed with

Napalm Records Napalm Records is an Austrian independent record label focused on heavy metal and hard rock. Originally, Napalm focused on black metal bands, such as Abigor and Summoning, and folk metal bands, such as Falkenbach and Vintersorg. The label later ...

and released ''

Preachers of the Night ''Preachers of the Night'' is the fifth studio album by the German power metal band Powerwolf. It was released on 19 July 2013.- - - The band wrote it during 2012 and began recording it in December of the same year at the Studio Fredman in Goth ...

'' in 2013. It has debuted at No. 1 in Germany. Their sixth album, ''

Blessed & Possessed ''Blessed & Possessed'' is the sixth studio album by the German power metal band Powerwolf, released on 17 July 2015 by Napalm Records. The band wrote it during 2014 and began recording it in January 2015 at the Studio Fredman in Gothenburg, Swed ...

'', released in 2015, was certified gold in the Czech Republic. Their seventh album, ''

The Sacrament of Sin ''The Sacrament of Sin'' is the seventh studio album by German power metal band Powerwolf, released on 20 July 2018 by Napalm Records. The band wrote it during 2017 and began recording it in January 2018 at the Fascination Street Studios in Örebr ...

,'' was released in 2018. Their eighth album, ''

Call of the Wild ''The Call of the Wild'' is a short adventure novel by Jack London, published in 1903 and set in Yukon, Canada, during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, when strong sled dogs were in high demand. The central character of the novel is a dog named Bu ...

'', was released in 2021. Powerwolf has embarked on several tours, with a majority of their tour dates taking place inside of Europe. They also change their costumes for every album. Over the years, a theme has developed which personifies the band members as werewolves, leading fans to refer to the band affectionately as "The Wolves".

History

2003–2009: Formation and first albums

Powerwolf was formed in 2003 by the members of the

stoner rock Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Kyuss and Sleep. ...

band

. When the band was founded, the members decided to take on pseudonyms and build up backstories around those. Officially, the brothers Charles and Matthew Greywolf had been playing together for years when they decided to create a band, and so Powerwolf was started. Soon the brothers added German drummer Stéfane Funèbre and German keyboardist Falk Maria Schlegel to the band, but could not find a suitable singer to complete the line-up. In the meantime, the band started writing, and on holidays in Romania, Charles and Matthew met Attila Dorn in a

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

and invited him to join their band. Dorn, a student of classical

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

at the academy in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

, moved to the band's hometown

, and became the frontman of Powerwolf. With Dorn's love of Romanian

legends, the band created their debut album, ''

'', which used these same legends as the basis for many of the lyrics. After the album's release, Powerwolf went on their first tour titled Europe in Bloodred Tour. In 2007, they followed up with their second album, ''

'', a concept album starring a wolf as the main character and his rise from bloodlust to enlightenment. Powerwolf supported

Grave Digger A gravedigger is a cemetery worker who is responsible for digging a grave prior to a funeral service. Description If the grave is in a cemetery on the property of a church or other religious organization (part of, or called, a churchyard), ...

during their tour. In 2008, Powerwolf released their first video album ''

The Wacken Worship ''The Wacken Worship'' is the first video album by German power metal band Powerwolf. The album contains live footage of their show at Wacken Open Air on 2 August 2008. It was also released as a bonus DVD for the limited edition of their third s ...

''. It contained live footage of their show at

Wacken Open Air Wacken Open Air (, abbreviated as W:O:A) is a rock music, rock music festival, held annually since 1990 on the first weekend of August in the village of Wacken, Schleswig-Holstein, Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Almost all styles and su ...

2008. In the same year, they went on a Metal is our Mission Tour together with Brainstorm and

Pagan's Mind Pagan's Mind is a progressive metal band from Skien, Norway. They have released five studio albums, and the current line-up only features original members. Biography Founded in 2000 from the band Silverspoon by Nils K. Rue, Thorstein Aaby, and St ...

. The single "Raise Your Fist, Evangelist" was released on 19 March 2009. Powerwolf's third album ''

'' was released on 24 April 2009. The record was able to place as the band's first album in the German charts and reached number 76. They embarked on a tour supporting the album in 2010. "Raise Your Fist, Evangelist" was nominated for the Metal Hammer "Metal Anthem 2010" award.

2010–2011: Drummer change and ''Blood of the Saints''

On 2 March 2010 Stéfane Funèbre left the band and was replaced by Tom Diener. Powerwolf announced it on their Myspace blog. In November 2010, Powerwolf organist Falk Maria Schlegel stated about the group's new material: On 28 May 2011 the band announced on their website that Tom Diener was replaced by a new drummer

from the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. The band released the single " Sanctified with Dynamite" on 24 May 2011 and the second one on 5 July 2011 titled "We Drink Your Blood", to which Powerwolf recorded their first ever music video. It was shot in an ancient

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

church. Falk Maria Schlegel commented that "Shooting the video in such a special and atmospheric place was incredible. The combination of the sacral interior of the church, including

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...

confessional A confessional is a box, cabinet, booth, or stall in which the priest in some Christian churches sits to hear the confessions of penitents. It is the usual venue for the sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Churches, but sim ...

box and a

church organ Carol Williams performing at the United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel.">West_Point_Cadet_Chapel.html" ;"title="United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel">United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel. ...

with a lot of fire, fog and metal insanity was the perfect set for a Powerwolf video." Their fourth album, titled ''

'', was released on 29 July 2011 in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and 2 August in the United States. In September 2011, Powerwolf went on a quadruple headline tour with

Sabaton A sabaton or solleret is part of a knight's body armor that covers the foot. History Fourteenth and fifteenth century sabatons typically end in a tapered point well past the actual toes of the wearer's foot, following fashionable shoe shapes o ...

, Grave Digger and

Skull Fist The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, the ...

2012–2013: Debut with Napalm Records

In 2012, Powerwolf released two albums. The first was the ''Wolfsnächte 2012 Tour EP'', a split EP with

Mystic Prophecy Mystic Prophecy is a power metal band from Bad Grönenbach, Germany. Their sound is described as hard and melodic, similar to American power metal bands such as Iced Earth, due to their melodic riffing and powerful drumming. History The band wa ...

Stormwarrior Stormwarrior is a German power metal band that was formed in 1998 by vocalist and guitar player Lars Ramcke and drummer Andre Schumann, adding later in the same year guitarist Scott Bolter and bass player Tim Zienert. The members of Stormwarri ...

, and Lonewolf. This EP featured a previously unreleased Powerwolf track, "Living on a Nightmare". Copies of this EP were originally distributed along with the purchase of tickets to Powerwolf's

Wolfsnächte Tour 2012 The Wolfsnächte Tour 2012 was a European concert tour by German power metal band Powerwolf. Supporting the release of their fourth studio album ''Blood of the Saints'', the tour ran from 9 December 2011 to 21 July 2012, taking place in Germany, ...

but since the tour's conclusion, copies have been available in the Powerwolf webstore. The second of Powerwolf's 2012 releases was ''

Alive in the Night Powerwolf, often stylized as POWERWOLF, is a German power metal band founded in 2003 in Saarbrücken by members of Red Aim. The band consists of vocalist Karsten Brill as "Attila Dorn", lead guitarist Benjamin Buss as "Matthew Greywolf", bassist/ ...

'', the band's first live album. It contained 10 tracks and was just over 45 minutes in length. It was released with the April 2012 issue of the German edition of ''

Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...

''. On 13 August 2012 Powerwolf signed a deal with

. Powerwolf released their EP ''The Rockhard Sacrament'' on 22 June 2013. The band also released their single "Amen & Attack" on 28 June 2013. ''

'' was released on 18 July 2013. The album has entered the official German album charts at position 1.

2014–2016: ''Blessed & Possessed''

In 2014, Powerwolf released '' The History of Heresy I'' and ''

The History of Heresy II Powerwolf, often stylized as POWERWOLF, is a German power metal band founded in 2003 in Saarbrücken by members of Red Aim. The band consists of vocalist Karsten Brill as "Attila Dorn", lead guitarist Benjamin Buss as "Matthew Greywolf", bassis ...

'', the second of which included several orchestral versions of Powerwolf songs. Powerwolf began working on their sixth album in June 2014. They announced their new album on their

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

page on 5 December 2014. On 8 May 2015, the band released their single "Army of the Night" and "Armata Strigoi" on 5 June 2015. Their new album ''

'', which was released on 17 July 2015. They embarked on a tour supporting the album into 2016. Boxset and Earbook Edition of the album featured a bonus CD ''

Metallum Nostrum ''Metallum Nostrum'' is a cover album by German power metal band Powerwolf, originally released on 17 July 2015 as a bonus disc to ''Blessed & Possessed''. It was re-released separately on 11 January 2019. Track listing Personnel Musicians ...

'', which contains 10 songs of different artists that Powerwolf's band members selected to cover, such as

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...

, Running Wild,

Savatage Savatage () was an American heavy metal band founded by brothers Jon and Criss Oliva in 1979 in Tarpon Springs, Florida. The band was first called Avatar, but, shortly before the release of their debut album ''Sirens'' (1983), they changed thei ...

, Chroming Rose,

Gary Moore Robert William Gary Moore (4 April 19526 February 2011) was a Northern Irish musician. Over the course of his career he played in various groups and performed a range of music including blues, blues rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and jazz ...

Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...

Amon Amarth Amon Amarth () is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Tumba, formed in 1992. The band takes its name from the Sindarin name of Mount Doom, a volcano in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. Their lyrics mostly deal with Viking mythology and hi ...

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

and

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

. Powerwolf released their second video album ''

The Metal Mass – Live ''The Metal Mass – Live'' is the second video album by German power metal band Powerwolf. The album contains live footage of three shows: Masters of Rock 2015, Summer Breeze 2015, Oberhausen Turbinenhalle, music videos to "Amen & Attack", "Arm ...

'' on 27 July 2016 in Japan and 29 July 2016 in Europe. It contained live footage of three shows: Masters of Rock 2015, Summer Breeze 2015, Wolfsnächte Tour 2015, music videos to "Amen & Attack", "Army of the Night", "We Drink Your Blood" and "Sanctified with Dynamite", a festival documentation "A Day At Summer Breeze" and a tour documentation movie "Kreuzweg – Of Wolves And Men".

2017–2019: ''The Sacrament of Sin''

On 10 October 2017, Powerwolf announced on

that they had completed writing for their seventh full-length album, promising its release to occur sometime in 2018. In January 2018, the band entered the studio to begin recording the album, due later in the year. The title of the album was later announced as ''

'', which was released on 20 July 2018. It was

Jens Bogren Jens Peter Daniel Bogren (born 13 November 1979) is a Swedish record producer, mixer and recording engineer specializing in heavy metal music. He has worked on albums by Opeth, Dimmu Borgir, Sepultura, Arch Enemy, At the Gates, Katatonia, Babym ...

's first production work for Powerwolf. The album was rated positively by the critics, highlighting mainly the new elements that Powerwolf put in the music. The album also flourished commercially, ranked first in the German charts, and also ranked in several other countries. On 14 September 2018, the album won a German

"Best album of the year" award. A limited edition mediabook version of ''The Sacrament of Sin'' featured a second disc named ''Communio Lupatum'', which featured Powerwolf songs covered by other artists selected by the band members, such as

Epica Epica or EPICA may refer to: * Epica (band), a Dutch symphonic metal band * ''Epica'' (Kamelot album), 2003 * ''Epica'' (Audiomachine album), 2012 * The European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) * The Epica Awards (International Adver ...

Saltatio Mortis Saltatio Mortis is a German medieval metal group. The Latin name means "dance of death". It is an allusion to the Danse Macabre, and a motto of the band is: "He who dances does not die." Members Current * Alea der Bescheidene - vocals, b ...

Caliban Caliban ( ), son of the witch Sycorax, is an important character in William Shakespeare's play '' The Tempest''. His character is one of the few Shakespearean figures to take on a life of its own "outside" Shakespeare's own work: as Russell ...

, Battle Beast,

Heaven Shall Burn Heaven Shall Burn are a German extreme metal band from Saalfeld, formed in 1995. The band consists of vocalist Marcus Bischoff, guitarists Maik Weichert and Alexander Dietz, bassist Eric Bischoff and drummer Christian Bass. They are currently si ...

Kadavar Kadavar is a German Rock music, rock band from Berlin, founded in 2010. Their retro style, incorporating psychedelic rock and stoner rock, has been compared to bands of the 1970s hard rock/heavy metal music, heavy metal era such as Led Zeppelin ...

Kissin' Dynamite Kissin' Dynamite is a German heavy metal band from Burladingen and Münsingen. History Kissin' Dynamite started as a school band. Since 2007, the band has worked with the Flensburg production team Elephant Music. At the end of 2007, they sta ...

Mille Petrozza Miland "Mille" Petrozza (born 18 December 1967) is a German guitarist and singer of Italian descent. He is best known for being the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of thrash metal band Kreator, which he started playing in as Tyrant in 1982 and ...

, Marc Görtz,

Amaranthe Amaranthe is a Swedish metal band originally known as Avalanche. The band is notable for their blend of various metal genres and having three lead vocalists. History Formed by Olof Mörck (Dragonland, Nightrage) and Joacim "Jake E" Lundbe ...

and

Eluveitie Eluveitie ( ; )Chrigel Glanzmann: "...According to current research, it is pronounced in Bernese German as, i.e. ''"Elvèyti"''. But I don't know if this is correct. The gods know that.:: Metalist Magazine :: Interviews :: Eluveitie is a Swiss f ...

. In support of the album, the band performed in Europe during 2018 and 2019. On 11 January 2019, Powerwolf re-released their cover album ''Metallum Nostrum''. On 1 November 2019, the band released their single of their re-written and re-recorded version of "

Kiss of the Cobra King "Kiss of the Cobra King" is a song by German power metal band Powerwolf. It was originally released on the album '' Return in Bloodred.'' The song earned the Gold and Platinum Record award in Czech Republic. Background and release The first v ...

2020–present: ''Best of the Blessed'' and ''Call of the Wild''

In 2020, Powerwolf went on their first Latin America tour along with

. They had to cancel the last three concerts due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. On 16 January 2020, Powerwolf announced their

greatest hits album A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

titled ''

Best of the Blessed ''Best of the Blessed'' is a greatest hits album by German power metal band Powerwolf. Initially set to be released on 5 June 2020, it was later released on 3 July 2020 via Napalm Records. The album is partly a collection of songs released since 2 ...

''. Initially set to be released on 5 June 2020, it was later scheduled to be released on 3 July 2020. On 28 April 2020, Powerwolf announced work on a new studio album, to be released in 2021. On 19 January 2021, Powerwolf announced their new album will be named ''

''. Later on 20 May 2021, the first song of the album, "Beast of Gévaudan", was released. On 9 June 2021, a re-recorded version of " Demons Are a Girl's Best Friend" featuring

Alissa White-Gluz Alissa White-Gluz (; born 31 July 1985) is a Canadian singer, best known as the lead vocalist of the Swedish melodic death metal band Arch Enemy, and former lead vocalist and founding member of the Canadian metalcore band the Agonist. Her vocal ...

on vocals (from ''Missa Cantorem'', the bonus cover album included with various special formats of ''Call of the Wild)'' was released. On 23 June, the band released another new song of their new album called "Dancing with the Dead". On 16 July 2021, ''Call of the Wild'', the band's eighth album, was released. On 4 October 2022, the band announced that they are set to perform their first North American shows in New York City and Montreal in February 2023.

Artistry

Musical style and lyrics

Powerwolf's sound has primarily been described as

and

traditional heavy metal Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With roots in blues rock, psychedelic rock and acid rock, heavy metal bands developed ...

. Powerwolf's musical style is different from other power metal bands. In addition to the classic metal instruments, organ sounds are used. For the studio albums a church choir was recorded. The band states that their main influences are

Mercyful Fate Mercyful Fate is a Danish heavy metal band from Copenhagen, formed in 1981 by vocalist King Diamond and guitarist Hank Shermann. Influenced by progressive rock and hard rock, and with lyrics dealing with Satan and the occult, Mercyful Fate w ...

, Forbidden and

. The dominant language of the lyrics is English, but they also use Latin ("Werewolves of Armenia", "Lupus Dei", "Kreuzfeuer", "Stossgebet", "Sanctus Dominus"), and rarely German ("Moscow After Dark", "We Take the Church by Storm", "Werewolves of Armenia", "Kreuzfeuer", "Amen & Attack", "Stossgebet", "Glaubenskraft"). The lyrics of the band are characterized by the treatment of Christianity and ancient Romanian legends. Powerwolf, however, do not consider themselves a religious band, but rather call themselves spiritual. When asked if he was a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

or a

Satanist Satanism is a group of ideological and philosophical beliefs based on Satan. Contemporary religious practice of Satanism began with the founding of the atheistic Church of Satan by Anton LaVey in the United States in 1966, although a few h ...

, Matthew Greywolf answered: "I am a metalist, a metal fan. Metal is my religion. Look at all these people, what unites them? I can tell you, it's the fucking metal." In one of the interviews, Matthew is quoted saying:

Live performances

Audience engagement, and

pyrotechnics Pyrotechnics is the science and craft of creating such things as fireworks, safety matches, oxygen candles, explosive bolts and other fasteners, parts of automotive airbags, as well as gas-pressure blasting in mining, quarrying, and demolition. ...

are important parts of Powerwolf's stage show. The vocalist Attila Dorn often speaks directly to the audience and engages them in various activities, such as singing or shouting, before announcing the next song. The band calls their concerts a "heavy metal mass". Their stage setup was designed by Matthew Greywolf.

Members

Current

* Benjamin "Matthew Greywolf" Buss – lead guitar (2003–present) * David "Charles Greywolf" Vogt – rhythm guitar, bass (2003–present) * Christian "Falk Maria Schlegel" Jost – keyboards (2003–present) * Karsten "Attila Dorn" Brill – vocals (2003–present) *

– drums (2011–present)

Live

* Markus Pohl – rhythm guitar (2016–present) * Fabian Schwarz – rhythm guitar (2012)

Former

* Stefan "Stéfane Funèbre" Gemballa – drums (2003–2010) * Tom Diener – drums (2010–2011)

Timeline

Discography

*''

'' (2005) *''

'' (2007) *''

'' (2009) *''

'' (2011) *''

'' (2013) *''

'' (2015) *''

'' (2018) *''

'' (2021) *''Interludium''

Tours

* Europe in Bloodred Tour 2005 (2005) * Grave Digger Tour 2007 (with

) (2007) * Metal is our Mission Tour 2008 (with Brainstorm and

) (2008) * Bible of the Beast Tour 2010 (2010) * Power of Metal Tour 2011 (with

, Grave Digger and

) (2011) *

(with

and Lonewolf) (2011–2012) * Wolfsnächte Tour 2013 (with

Majesty Majesty (abbreviated HM for His Majesty or Her Majesty, oral address Your Majesty; from the Latin ''maiestas'', meaning "greatness") is used as a manner of address by many monarchs, usually kings or queens. Where used, the style outranks the st ...

, Battle Beast,

Ashes of Ares Ashes of Ares is an American power metal band featuring ex-Iced Earth members Matt Barlow on vocals and Freddie Vidales on guitar. It previously included drummer Van Williams (formerly of the band Nevermore). History In June 2012, Barlow anno ...

and

Wisdom Wisdom, sapience, or sagacity is the ability to contemplate and act using knowledge, experience, understanding, common sense and insight. Wisdom is associated with attributes such as unbiased judgment, compassion, experiential self-knowledge, ...

) (2013) * Wolfsnächte Tour 2015 (with

Orden Ogan Orden Ogan is a German power metal band with progressive and folk metal elements. The band was formed in 1996 by Sebastian Grütling (drums) and Sebastian Levermann (lead vocals and guitar). They currently have three demos and seven studio albu ...

Xandria Xandria is a German symphonic metal band founded by Marco Heubaum in 1994. Originally a project, Heubaum later restarted the project as a band in 1999, and has gone through various lineup changes. The German vocalist Lisa Middelhauve joined fo ...

and

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

) (2015) * Blessed & Possessed Tour 2016 (with Battle Beast and

Serenity Serenity may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Serenity'' (2019 film), a thriller starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway and Diane Lane * Sailor Moon (character), also known as Princess Serenity and Neo-Queen Serenity, in the ' ...

) (2016) * Wolfsnächte Tour 2018 (with

and

) (2018) * The Sacrament of Sin Tour 2019 (with

Gloryhammer Gloryhammer (often stylized in all capital letters as GLORYHAMMER) is a British power metal band founded by keyboardist Christopher Bowes, lead vocalist of the band Alestorm. Each member of the band represents a character in the story concept. ...

) (2019) *Berserker Latin America '20 (with

) (2020)

Awards and nominations

, - , 2010 , "Raise Your Fist, Evangelist" ,

— Metal Anthem 2010 , , - , rowspan=2, 2011 , Powerwolf , Metal Hammer — Newcomer of the year , , - , ''

'' , Metal Hammer — Power metal album of the year , , - , rowspan=2, 2013 , rowspan=7, Powerwolf , Metal Hammer — Best German band , , - , Metal Hammer — Best Live Band , , - , rowspan=2, 2014 , Metal Hammer — Best German band , , - , Metal Hammer — Best Live Band , , - , 2015 , Metal Hammer — Best German band , , - , 2016 , Metal Hammer — Best Live Band , , - , 2017 , Metal Hammer — Best Live Band , , - , 2018 , ''

'' , Metal Hammer — Best album of the year ,

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 2003 establishments in Germany Musical groups established in 2003 Musical quintets Bands with fictional stage personas German power metal musical groups German heavy metal musical groups Napalm Records artists