They saw a poster featuring a German World War II tank, named Jagdpanzer literally "hunting tank" in German, but actually referring to what in English would be called a tank destroyer, which they decided to name their band after. They were, however, unable to pronounce the name correctly and as a result, dropped the letter "D" from the name and simply called it Jag Panzer. The band, who were all in their late teens at the time, played at local venues in the Denver club circuit, and recorded an EP in 1983, later known as Tyrants. In early 1984, the band recruited Joey Tafolla, a native of California, and promptly recorded their first album, Ample Destruction. The album was released in August of that year by the independent record label Azra Records. The album was an underground hit in the United States, and in Europe and Japan it was available on import only.
After the release of the album, the band relocated to Southern California. Tafolla quit the band in 1986, releasing a solo album, Out of the Sun, in 1987, while Conklin played with Riot for a brief period in the late 1980s, before forming his own band, Titan Force. Without the two key members of the Ample Destruction line-up, Jag Panzer, or more accurately Briody and Tetley, as Hilyard had also been replaced by Reynold 'Butch' Carlson (who also left in 1986 along with Tafolla), revamped the band by recruiting vocalist Bob Parduba, and guitarist Christian Lasegue.
The Swedish born drummer, Rikard Stjernquist, was added to the line-up and the band proceeded to record the follow-up to their debut LP. The album was recorded in late 1987, but never got an official release.
By 1994, the band had reunited, this time with vocalist Daniel J. Conca, with Tetley and Briody on bass and guitar. Guitarist Chris Hostka and drummer Rikard Stjernquist were employed on their first official album in almost 10 years, Dissident Alliance. It was released by the German indie label Rising Sun.
The next album was on Century Media, The Fourth Judgement, which came out in late 1997, followed by Age of Mastery (1998). Jag Panzer sought to tackle more ambitious territory for their next album, with Thane to the Throne, a concept album about William Shakespeare's Macbeth.
Mechanized Warfare was released in 2001, then the band released a double album in 2003 that featured previously unreleased tracks as well as songs from their first LP. Decade of the Nail Spiked Bat came out in 2003, and featured re-recorded and remixed old material. In 2004, the band released Casting the Stones. The previously unreleased Chain of Command album was remixed and was issued in 2004 as a limited edition.
In 2008, Chris Broderick left the band to join Megadeth, and was replaced by Christian Lasegue, who handled lead guitar duties on Chain of Command.
On December 23, 2008, Briody made a post on the band's official forum stating that the title of their next album would be The Scourge of the Light. On the official site, the band announced that SPV/Sony planned to release the album in February 2011. The album was released March 8, 2011.
Two weeks after its release, The Scourge of the Light placed at No. 117 on the Billboard New Artist Chart, making the album Jag Panzer's most successful to date.
On July 25, 2011, the band announced that they are to disband due to the rising costs of touring. Jag Panzer played a special early days show tour with Joey Tafolla for the first time in Europe. They played two shows in Greece, one in Austria and they headlined the Keep It True Festival XVII on April 25, 2014, in Germany.
High Roller Records released a 4-LP vinyl box set entitled Historical Battles – The Early Years, on April 19, 2013, limited to 500 copies.
By 2014, Jag Panzer had commenced working on their tenth album for a near future release, also featuring lead guitarist Joey Tafolla for the first time since 1997's The Fourth Judgement. Jag Panzer announced in August 2014 that it was looking for a new vocalist. However, it now appears that Harry Conklin has rejoined the group as of March 2015. In October 2015 the band announced their new album title would be The Deviant Chord and would be released sometime in 2017. The album, which was released by SPV/Steamhammer on September 29, 2017, included a cover version of the Irish folk song "Foggy Dew".
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jag_Panzer
Discography
Ample Destruction (1984)
Dissident Alliance (1994)
The Fourth Judgement (1997)
The Age of Mastery (1998)
Thane to the Throne (2000)
Mechanized Warfare (2001)
Chain of Command (2004, inedits in 1987)
Casting the Stones (2004)
The Scourge of the Light (2011)
The Deviant Chord (2017)
The Hallowed (2023)
Unworthy
Jag Panzer Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Dreams fade to dust and blow away
Faith withers in the hot sun of mid-day
I starve this vessel and I pray
No, nothing wipes the filth away, cleanse my spirit
No blood can wash them all away
Though all my tears may cause a flood
I receive no healing from above
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, cleanse my spirit
From Adam we were made to lust
Consuming pleasures born to us
Release my spirit like a dove
Return to once that was above
With this blood I cleanse the earth
Take my soul for what it's worth
Though all my tears may cause a flood
I receive no healing from above
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
The lyrics of "Unworthy" by Jag Panzer explore the theme of lost faith and the search for redemption. The song begins with the singer reminiscing about his past when he had faith in his dreams and beliefs. However, as time passed, his dreams turned to dust and his faith was lost in the sunlight of reality. He is spiritually hungry and prays for purification. He longs for his spirit to be cleansed but knows it's a futile effort to purify himself with his own efforts.
The following lines talk about the inherent nature of sin in human beings that is passed down from generation to generation. The singer acknowledges that no amount of bloodshed can absolve him completely. Even when he sheds tears, he receives no healing and realizes that he is unworthy. The song talks about the futility of the outward rituals of cleansing, like washing with water or tears, as true spiritual purification can only come from within.
The chorus "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust" is borrowed from the funeral liturgy in the Book of Common Prayer, which is a reminder of human mortality and our return to the earth. This song is a call for salvation, repentance, and renewal of the spirit.
Line by Line Meaning
Once long ago I believed in dreams, once long ago I relied on faith
There was a time when I used to have faith in my dreams and trust in faith itself
Dreams fade to dust and blow away
The dreams I had are now gone and have turned to dust, lost in the wind
Faith withers in the hot sun of mid-day
Just like dreams, faith has also disappeared and evaporated into thin air
I starve this vessel and I pray
I deprive myself of all physical needs and hope for spiritual redemption through prayer
No, nothing wipes the filth away, cleanse my spirit
Despite all my efforts, there's no true way to purify my soul and wash away my sins
All sins were born into our veins
We are all born with sin embedded in our very beings
No blood can wash them all away
Even the act of shedding blood won't be enough to erase all the evil we possess
Though all my tears may cause a flood
My tears may flow like a river, but they won't provide any divine intervention
I receive no healing from above
Spiritual healing remains elusive and out of reach
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, cleanse my spirit
We all eventually return to the earth, and I hope for purification before that inevitable end
From Adam we were made to lust
Our natural state is to crave and desire too much
Consuming pleasures born to us
All our pleasures are finite and temporary, leading to a never-ending cycle of seeking more
Release my spirit like a dove
I want my soul to be free and unencumbered
Return to once that was above
I yearn to be reunited with a higher power
With this blood I cleanse the earth
I offer this sacrifice as a way to cleanse the world of its impurities
Take my soul for what it's worth
I surrender my soul to the greater good, however insignificant it may be
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jojo Bagginses
Most under rated metal band ever!!
MetalMusicFromAcrossTheWorldYT
Brilliant classic!
Jardani Jovonovich
This is how i feel because i can't find my cat.
)':
i let Tater Tot down.
JonLucPritchard
i hope you found tater tot, bro :(
Arnaldo Andrés
¡Great song! lml
Srbin Srbijanovic
wery nice band \m/
Vojtěch Kinash
Still loving this song in 2021!!!
vescara
This song ah, everybody also like ler, aiyah...👺🤔
Phoenix Archangel
HOW could this opus get so few likes??????
>:c
Grade Marchiori
@Guillaume Labrecque i strongly disagre too.