Pavor

Biography

Pavor was founded in 1987 near Bonn, Germany, by guitarists Armin Rave and Holger Seebens. Efforts to increase professionality led to three changes in the early line-up, and quickly Michael Pelkowsky (drums), Rainer Landfermann (bass), and Claudius Schwartz (vocals) were regular members.

The band's desire for high quality in all matters resulted in the delay of a first official release. Finally, during the winter of 1992/1993, 28 minutes of music were recorded and released some months later as an untitled tape EP, which was soon sold out and is no longer available today. After a year of composing and gigging, Pavor re-entered the studio during May/June/July 1994 to record their first full-length album, A Pale Debilitating Autumn. Shortly after the album's release, guitarist Holger Seebens left the band, and Pavor continued as a four-piece.

During 1995 and 1996, Pavor promoted the album with interviews and shows, and started preparing for the next album. However, organizational problems resulting from the jobs of some members led to a partial withdrawal from public relations work and the public in general during the following years. The band made brief appearances in the media. In February 2000, German metal magazine RockHard featured Pavor with an interview and the track "Perplexer: Perdition Projectile" on its annual "best unsigned acts" compilation "Unerhört!". In June 2000, Pavor won the underground-contest held by Heavy Oder Was?!-magazine, and played the renowned Bang Your Head Festival in Balingen, Germany, as a result.

In the year 2003, Pavor finished the recordings of their second album, Furioso. Among the album's eight songs is a re-recorded version of the Pavor classic "Crucified Hopes," which was composed back in 1989. The lyrics of the track "Dilettante's Dilemma," a song written by Landfermann in 2000, suggest in a self-deprecating tone (the speaker almost mocks himself as a "dilettante" and an "ungifted man") the reason for the band's low output over the years and their quest for perfection. At the same time, the speaker confirms, or tries to convince himself of, the quality of the result: "Hundreds of thousands / Well-defined operands in an intricate equation / Perfect conciseness / A fulminant contrivance pushing brilliance to its apex." The dilemma, then, is the attempt at perfection in an imperfect world, imperfect first because of "ailing objectors," and second because of the inherent doubt of man ("ungifted man") in his own capability.

Current members

Past members

Discography