Cacumen (1972-1986)
In 1972 in the West German town of Ingolstadt a teenage guitarist, Hans Ziller, put together a rock band called Cacumen with his brother Karl, who also played guitar, and gathered a group of friends to complete the band. The name of the group was from a school test Hans had taken; it translates from Latin to mean "the top of a mountain". For the next six years the band played at local small venues but had a fan base in their home town. In 1978 the group consisted of Hans and Karl on guitars, Horst Maier on guitar (in 1983, Horst's last name would become Maier-Thorn), Hans Hauptmann on bass and Hans Forstner on drums. The band was seeking a replacement singer at that time; Claus Lessmann, a fellow student of Hans', was hired.
Claus was previously in the bands Ginger and Sunset, was known for his harmonic vocals and fit in perfectly with Cacumen. With this line-up, the band had a chance to start branching out to venues outside Ingolstadt. A recording entitled Riding Away was made, which featured the song Wintertale on the flip side in 1979. The group used this opportunity to begin touring clubs, schools and even parking lots. The fan base grew and Cacumen was finally signed to an independent label. At this time, Karl departed the group. The self titled Cacumen album was released in 1981 and featured a new version of Riding Away.
Cacumen got in contact with Hanns Schmidt-Theissen, who owned a small music studio (Hanns had played with the group on the Riding Away single and was supporting the band at live venues on keyboards). Since funds were low, Hanns helped them out; they recorded the album Bad Widow at his studio in Rodgau / Germany in 1982. Hanns also tried to get the group a contract but was unsuccessful.
The fan base of the band was growing and more performances were planned. In 1983, Robert Prskalowicz replaced Hans Hauptmann on bass and this group became the well-known Cacumen band. The group was later signed by BMG and received a make-over; Robert and Hans Forstner were no longer members as of March 1985, after departing upon deciding they couldn't commit to the group full time. Their replacements were Joerg Deisinger (previously with Rascal and Dynasty) on bass and Dominik Huelshorst from Darxon on drums. The group also donned the stereotypical image of an 80s hard rock group. Finally, the company requested a name change, as they thought Cacumen would be too difficult to pronounce and not as marketable a name as they desired. After a brainstorming session the name Bonfire was chosen, which came into effect in May 1986.
Bonfire, the First Coming (1986-1994)
Bonfire's worldwide début album, Don't Touch the Light, was released in June 1986. During recording of the follow-up album, in May 1987, Dominik was fired due to musical differences and Bonfire proceeded to release their next album, Fireworks, as a quartet, the drums being recorded by Ken Mary from Fifth Angel. Two versions of this album exist: the worldwide version and the North American version (the cover of which features the four members as well as the song 'You Make Me Feel', taken from their début album).
Between the second and third albums, Bonfire went through many changes. Although Tommy Wagner performed on drums for a TV spot, a new drummer needed to be hired. In December 1987, Edgar Patrik from Sinner, Samson and Tyran Pace joined. In July 1988, during the Fireworks Tour, Horst had to leave due to his rheumatism becoming too much of a crippling factor to play guitar on stage. Taking his spot in August was Angel Schleifer, formerly of Doc Savage, Red Alert, Sinner, Mad Max, Pretty Maids and Helter Skelter. The tour proceeded and at its completion the band settled down to collaborate for a new album. At this time, Hans had problems with the record company and the band's management, due in part to his family commitments at the time. Albeit with reluctance, he was fired from the group in June 1989 due to the lack of commitment and Bonfire carried on as a quartet. Bonfire's first two albums were the only to be released commercially in North America.
Despite the business decision, Claus and Hans maintained a great friendship. When Hans formed his own group, Claus was asked to write songs as well as perform vocals. The record company wouldn't allow him to do so, however, leaving Hans to find a replacement singer for his new band, EZ Livin'.
The decision to remove Hans from Bonfire troubled Claus, and after many failed attempts to break through in the North American scene and what he deemed was a failure of a fourth album, Claus left the band on September 25, 1992. His announcement was not unexpected, but did leave the remaining members the decision of who should take his place. One vocalist the group has interest in was Michael Bormann, vocalist for Letter X and his own side-project Jaded Heart, who had also previously been a member of High Voltage and the J.R. Blackmore Group. Although he was willing to sing with Bonfire, he was committed to his two other projects, so the group continued looking. Unsuccessful attempts to find a full-time vocalist led to Michael eventually becoming the new front-man of Bonfire in March 1993. He departed Letter X but remained with Jaded Heart.
Despite having a new vocalist, Bonfire seemed to be stagnating; their record company refused to release any new material that did not have Claus singing and grunge was an emerging new scene. The band suspected the end was nigh, so a live album that featured concert recordings from the Point Blank Tour and Claus on vocals was released. The album Michael had performed on was shelved (albeit to be released later as a bootleg entitled 'Bonfire - End of an Era Demos') and Bonfire performed for the last time on the 29th of July 1994, without officially breaking up.
Claus & Hans - Lessmann/Ziller to Ex (1992-1996)
While Bonfire were attempting to continue with their new lead vocalist, Claus reunited with Hans after he left the band and together they became Lessmann/Ziller in 1992, with Hans disbanding EZ Livin'. In 1993 they released an EP entitled Glaub Dran, which featured lyrics entirely in German. This was followed by a few single releases, of songs not present on the initial recording. The duo's following was slowly growing, but not in accordance with initial expectations. In 1995, Lessmann/Ziller evolved to become a group called Ex, and in May featured Joerg Deisinger on bass and Dominik Huelshorst on drums, almost a reunion of the 1986 Bonfire line-up. Claus and Hans realized that their best chance at recapturing their fan base was to become Bonfire again.
The Return of Bonfire - Charade Emerges (1996-2000)
In 1996, Claus and Hans decided to start legal proceedings to get the rights to the Bonfire name and their music from 1986 to 1992. On July 3rd, 1994, a one-time payment was made to the remaining Bonfire members and Claus and Hans renamed their Ex project to Bonfire. They reissued Glaub Dran, with additional songs in English, in 1996. In 1997 they hired Chris Lausmann (Affair and Frontline) on guitar and keyboards, Uwe Kohler (Black Tears, Paradise Leaf, Big Apple, Lipstikk, Blitzkrieg, British Steel) on bass, and Jurgen Wiehler (Backdoor Affair, Heaven Sent, Chain Reaction, Loud & Proud, EZ Livin', Parish Garden, Wet Paint and 88 Crash) on drums.
Michael and Angel also got back together in 1997, with a desire to release the shelved Bonfire album they had recorded in 1993. Joerg was not interested in being involved and Edgar had other commitments, so the reunion was a duo, and due to Claus and Hans owning the Bonfire name Michael and Angel decided to call themselves Charade. The previously shelved album was then released in 1998 in Japan, later becoming a highly sought after item. The duo continue to work together.
Worldwide exposure (2001-)
Since 1996, Bonfire has released at least one album each year and their fan base has grown, surpassing their 1980s popularity. Chris left the group in 2002 but the remaining members continued. After successfully gaining the rights to their pre-Bonfire material in 2004, the band released a five-part CD series called The Early Days. Parts 1 to 3 were reissues of the Cacumen albums, part 4 was the EZ Livin' album and part 5 was the Lessmann/Ziller album, each disc also featuring bonus material.
In 2006, Bonfire celebrated their 20th anniversary and Chris Limburg (Vice, Wet Paint and Lustfinger) took on a role as co-guitarist. A rock opera album entitled 'The Rauber' was released in 2008. A special DVD of the opera performance-- which also featured new music videos of several of the songs from the album-- was released soon afterwards and included a remixed version of their song 'You Make Me Feel'. This new version of the song is featured on the PlayStation game Sing Star.
January 15th 2009 saw the return of Dominik Huelshorst, when Jürgen left the band unexpectedly, followed by a long anticipated return to the North American stage, as the band performed at the Rocklahoma Festival on July 12th in Pryor, Oklahoma, USA.
On March 25th, 2010, Bonfire were signed to Universal Music. The album 'Branded' was released on January 22nd, 2011. The new second guitarist of Bonfire is Frank Pané, member of the German metal band Solemnity and ex-member of Red to Grey, and Valley's Eve.
In 2016, Bonfire celebrated their 30th anniversary and a new double album, Pearls, released on UDR/Warner on 18 March 2016. This recording featured past band hits that were re-recorded. At the beginning of July it was announced that Reece and the band had mutually agreed to part ways. To fill in the vacancy Michael Bormann was announced as the new frontman, but he was not be able to join the group for a few months. Alexx Stahl of Purple Rising and Roxxcalibur agreed to be a temporary singer to fulfill the band's commitments until Bormann's arrival. During that time the group agreed that Stahl put a lot of effort in to the performances, so it was agreed all around that he would become the full-time lead vocalist.
2022 - German rockers Bonfire consisting of lead vocalist Alexx Stahl, lead guitarists Hans Ziller and Frank Pané, bassist Ronnie Parkes and drummer Fabio Alessandrini have unveiled a video for their new single “Freedom Is My Belief” from their upcoming album Point Blank MMXXIII.
Band members:
Current members
Hans Ziller – lead and rhythm guitars, talkbox, backing vocals (1972–1989, 1996–present)
Frank Pané – rhythm and lead guitars, backing vocals (2015–present)
Ronnie Parkes – bass, backing vocals (2015–present)
Alexx Stahl – lead vocals (2016–present)
Fabio Alessandrini – drums, percussion (2022–present)
Charade
* Michael Bormann - lead vocals, acoustic guitar (1997–present)
* Angel Schleifer - lead guitar, keyboards, programming (1997–present)
Former Members of Bonfire / Cacumen
* Karl Ziller - guitars (1972–1980)
* Hanns Schmidt-Theißen - keyboards (circa 1977-1980)
* Hans Hauptmann - bass (circa 1972-1982)
* Hans Forstner - drums (circa 1972-1986)
* Robert Prskalowicz - bass (1982–1986)
* Horst Maier-Thorn - lead guitars, rhythm guitars, backing vocals (circa 1972-1988)
* Michael Bormann - lead vocals, acoustic guitar (1993–1994)
* Angel Schleifer - lead guitar, acoustic guitar, backing vocals (1988–1994)
* Joerg Deisinger - bass, backing vocals, mouth drums (1986–1994)
* Edgar Patrik - drums, percussion, backing vocals (1987–1994)
* Chris Lausmann - rhythm guitar, lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1992–2002)
* Jürgen Wiehler - drums, percussion, backing vocals (1997–2009)
Bonfire's official website
Cry For Help
Bonfire Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Howling in his pain?
Waiting for his coup de grace in his cage
Do you wonder when you're playing chess
Where your ivory king is from?
Can you see the elephant croaking in his blood?
Subdue the earth he said
The pride of creation we've been
But what have we become
What would God do, it he was one of us
Would he stop the pain?
What would God do, if he was one of us
Would he light the flame?
Who sheds a tear for the crocodile
That you carry as a bag?
Does your mink coat still keep you warm
When you think about its fate?
It ain't just another protest song
About laboratory crimes
It's also a cry for help
For the cowards of our time
For the beauty and eternal youth
And so many human lies
To satisfy man's vanity
Do we all close our eyes?
What would God do, if he was one of us
Would he stop the pain?
What would God do, if he was one of us
Would he feel the shame?
What would God do, if he was one of us
Would he take the blame?
What would God do, if he was one of us
Would he light the flame?
The lyrics of Bonfire's song Cry for Help showcase the cruelties humans inflict upon animals and the environment. The opening line of the song asks the listener if they have ever heard a beagle cry while waiting for their inevitable death in a laboratory. Bonfire then poses philosophical questions about the state of the world and the responsibility humans hold. The line “subdue the earth, he said, but look what we have done” highlights the destructive nature of humanity and our lack of control over our actions. The chorus imagines what God would do if he were one of us and faced the same moral dilemmas. The song implores the audience to consider their own actions and the impact they have on the world around them.
Line by Line Meaning
Have you ever heard a beagle cry
Have you ever heard an animal in pain, crying out for help?
Howling in his pain?
Making loud noises in agony.
Waiting for his coup de grace in his cage
Waiting for mercy, an end to the animal’s suffering, often in captivity.
Do you wonder when you're playing chess
Do you ever think about the origin of the ivory used to make the chess pieces you’re playing with?
Where your ivory king is from?
Are you aware of the unethical treatment of elephants that takes place to obtain ivory?
Can you see the elephant croaking in his blood?
Can you see the elephant dying and bleeding as a result of inhumane treatment?
Subdue the earth he said
God said to exert control over the planet.
But look what we have done
But instead, humans have caused destruction and devastation.
The pride of creation we've been
Humans are supposed to be the greatest creation of God.
But what have we become
But what has become of humans with their destructive and cruel ways?
What would God do, it he was one of us
If God took on human form, what actions would he take?
Would he stop the pain?
Would he relieve the suffering of those in pain and distress?
Would he light the flame?
Would he take a more aggressive stance and instigate change?
Who sheds a tear for the crocodile
Who mourns the loss of an innocent animal’s life?
That you carry as a bag?
When you adorn yourself with a luxury item made from an endangered animal, do you acknowledge the consequences?
Does your mink coat still keep you warm
When you wear a coat made from an animal that has been killed for its fur, do you still find warmth in it, or does guilt cloud your thoughts?
When you think about its fate?
Do you spend a moment considering the pain and suffering the animal went through to create your coat?
It ain't just another protest song
This song is not just another song promoting a protest message.
About laboratory crimes
It’s about the unethical, cruel, and inhumane treatment of animals in laboratories and research facilities.
It's also a cry for help
This song isn’t just a statement, it’s a desperate plea.
For the cowards of our time
For those who choose to remain ignorant and apathetic about the pain of animals, those who are too afraid to speak up and demand change.
For the beauty and eternal youth
For beauty is defined by the appearance of the skin, and eternal youth is what people seek at the expense of what animals go through.
And so many human lies
And the lies told to cover up what’s really happening in research facilities and inhumane treatment of animals.
To satisfy man's vanity
To satisfy the ego of people, to fit into society standards, and propelling them into positions of power.
Do we all close our eyes?
Do we choose to ignore and pretend that the pain doesn't exist, so we don't feel guilty about our actions?
Would he feel the shame?
If God were human, would he feel deep regret and shame for the pain and suffering humanity has caused?
Would he take the blame?
Or would God look for someone or something to blame for the pain and suffering humanity has caused?
Would he light the flame?
Would God seek to spark a revolution of love for animals and the planet to spread messages of change?
Contributed by Stella I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
mi. li.
How always, perfect performance ! 🎤🎧💪❣
Сергей Цупа
I know BONFIRE from school .... but I only listened to Don't Touch the Light .... this is the best album! the other day I studied all their discography .... and left the assembly in my opinion the best .... it turned out almost 80 songs with Claus Lessmann .... with others it's not that ..... though there are nice songs .. ... this song is one of the most beloved ones .... and in general I regret that I did not follow the work of BONFIRE
JARED BILL
beautiful song I loved
Isabelle Buchs
Merci pour cette superbe chanson bien angager contre la crypter animal🇫🇷🇫🇷🇫🇷🇫🇷💐💐💐🦁🦁🦁🦁🍁🍁🍁
Andi Freisinger
Da war Bonfire noch Bonfire!!!!!
saul manuel ferreira goncalves
Nice song.
Bonfire
GET YOUR TICKETS NOW!!!!
https://youtu.be/AY1tB-C4xVA
Andi Freisinger
Only buy Tickets if Lessmann is in the Band again
Börje Johansson
Very good song, but the pictures of the animals make me sick.
Mouse Metal
Well, that´s the point. People do terrible things to animals.