After three decades together, Colorado power metallers Jag Pazner have announced that they are calling it quits. This news comes just a month after guitarist Christian Lasegue left the group to pursue his college studies full time.
Guitarist and founding member Mark Briody had the following to say about the band’s demise:
“We are proud of every album we released and the support we’ve received from the heavy metal community. We’ve played so many places around the world and enjoyed every minute of it but the time has come where we just cannot move forward as a band.”
Drummer Rikard Stjernquist revealed that they had already lined up a replacement for Lasegue before deciding to disband, saying:
“Several guitar players applied for the job. It was a pleasant surprise to see so many young guitarists with advanced chops. One player, 19 year old Jake Dreyer, submitted videos of him nailing solos from both Chris Broderick and Christian Lasegue. We were ready to welcome Jake into the band but unfortunately that will not happen. There is no doubt in any of our minds that Jake will go on to be a household name in his own right.”
Jag Panzer have had a rotating lineup of musicians since forming in 1981. One of their most notable former members was guitarist Chris Broderick, who was in the band from 1997 to 2008 before joining Megadeth. The band previously disbanded for a short time before reforming in 1994. Back in March, Jag Panzer released The Scourge of the Light, which sold slightly under 500 copies in its first week on the Billboard charts.
It’s unfortunate to hear that a band like Jag Panzer is closing shop, especially since they were looking at Jake Dreyer (who we interviewed just two weeks ago) to join the group. It would’ve been interesting to hear what they would’ve done next, but seeing that their last album was also one of their best selling albums, Jag Panzer is ending a three decade career on a high note.
