Doro

Home >> Features >> Come Taste The Band >> Doro

Doro

Posted by Frank Riester 21 May 2010

Come Taste The Band

Doro Pesch (full name: Dorothee Pesch, born 3 June 1964, Düsseldorf, Germany) is a female vocalist, formerly of the German heavy metal band Warlock and one of the few female singers of the 1980s heavy metal scene, which was primarily a male-dominated genre of music. After Warlock went through many line-up changes, Pesch was the only remaining original member of the band. After changing her record label, she released the fifth album as Doro, as the former label owned the trademark on the Warlock name. Pesch now pursues a solo career and lives in New York City. Her latest album is Fear no Evil which was released in 2009.

Biography

Doro Pesch has always been a natural fighter. One who stays true to herself with heart and soul. She is an icon and a decisive power in the Heavy Metal scene. One who doesn’t give up when life becomes hard and who doesn’t shy away from long and difficult paths.

When Dorothee “Doro” Pesch is born on a 3rd June in Germany's city Duesseldorf fate has already planned many things for her. Already as a small girl her father, a lorry driver, takes her with him on his lorry-tours and awakens her love for travelling. Moving forward, facing new situations belongs to Doro `s life since she can remember.

Until that day – she is 16 years old by then – when she suddenly gets ill. The girl from Duesseldorf still goes to school as the clouds above her sky turn darker and darker. Week after week Doro gets weaker and weaker and it takes some time until doctors find out in hospital that she is suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis.

Almost one year Doro has to stay in hospital because of that. She faces bad days as well as better days and has to experience how so called good friends turn away from her in that time. But she stays brave: If she gets well again one day, she promises herself, she will dedicate her life to music – her only real passion. And Doro recovers. And keeps her promise as she founds the band Warlock in 1983, gains a record deal for them and can lead the life that she used to love in her childhood so much: The life on the road. Travelling around the world.

Soon she plays shows with bands such as Ozzy Osbourne, Bon Jovi or Judas Priest and turns to an idol for the whole music scene. Doro turns, as the first female bandleader of the whole genre, to an example for many others to follow. Especially for many other women. Until now Doro has that role.

Warlock has turned into a legend and a true cult band. Due to songs as “Für Immer”, “True as Steel”, All We Are” or “I Rule The Ruins” their name has become immortal and is still alive.

In 1987, after Warlock's fourth album, Triumph And Agony, and after many line-up changes within the band, Doro Pesch remained as the only original member of Warlock.

Her ten year contract with Polygram expired in 1995, after which she signed with WEA (now Warner Music Group). In 1995, Doro also made her acting debut on the German television program Verbotene Liebe (Forbidden Love).

After the "Love Me In Black" tour in 1998, Doro parted ways with WEA and signed with SPV Steamhammer. She also signed a U.S. deal. In 2000 she sang a ballad with Lemmy called “Alone Again” on Calling The Wild. In 2001 she had a guest appearance at the Wacken Open Air festival and performed the song “Too Drunk To Fuck” with Holy Moses.

In 2002 she composed the song “Fight” for her friend Regina Halmich, WIBF's world boxing champion. In the Year 2003 she was represented with Udo Dirkschneider (former Accept vocalist) as U.D.O. feat. Doro Pesch and published the rock ballad “Dancing with an Angel”. She sang live at Ministry-Antella, Firenze in Italy on 25 March 2006 with Jorn Lande, performing the song “All we Are”. She performed a Classical live version from Fear of the Dark in 2004 at Wacken Open Air with Blaze Bayley (former Iron Maiden) featured by strings and acoustic guitars. She was a guest singer on the After Forever's self-titled album, and added her vocals on the song "Who I Am”.

On June 27, 2007, Doro headlined the very first Flight of the Valkyries female-fronted metal festival in St. Paul, MN. Doro also performed live on Metal Female Voices Fest 5 in Belgium in 19 October 2007, and featured the song “All we Are” with Sabina Classen from Holy Moses. In 2008 Doro played at the Magic Circle Festival 2008. She has also provided vocals for the track 'The Seer' with Tarja Turunen on her limited edition The Seer EP.

Doro celebrated her 25-year career as the reigning queen of Heavy Metal by performing a three-hour set on December 13, 2008 at the 20,000-capacity ISS Dome in Düsseldorf, Germany. HOLY MOSES, LEAVES EYES' and ARCH ENEMY opened the show and were followed by full set by DORO herself, which included guest appearances by Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth (OVERKILL), Jean Beauvoir, GRAVE DIGGER's Chris Boltendahl and guitarist Axel Rudi Pell, former NIGHTWISH singer Tarja Turunen, SCORPIONS' Klaus Meine and Rudolf Schenker, as well as a host of other female vocalists, such as Liv Kristine (LEAVES' EYES), Floor Jansen (AFTER FOREVER), members of GIRLSCHOOL, Liv of SISTER SIN and Sabina Classen of HOLY MOSES.

In January 2009 the German Metal Queen released her new album “Fear No Evil” via AFM Records featuring her new single “Herzblut”.

Doro also wrote the Wacken Anthem for the 20th anniversary of Wacken Open Air Festival. The song was released on 30 July 2009 at Wacken Open Air and was performed by her and Wacken-organizer Thomas Jensen's ex-band Skyline.