HISTORY BREAKING SEASON

HARD ROCKER HARD ROCKER BREAKING SEASON

It’s December 15, 2007 and I’m enjoying a day answers back with some nice compliments – off during the ongoing tour for the American that I’m experienced and good enough, and band W.A.S.P., where I’m working at several whether it would be better for me to start shows as the tour manager for the Czech thinking about having my own magazine. He support band KREYSON. At that time W.A.S.P. offers me the license for the Czech version of had the same booking agent as , who HARD ROCKER. After reading those words, I felt also served as her manager. We had already like a light bulb flashed in front of my eyes right been working together for a few years and our away. Since that moment, I couldn’t think about relationships were in friendly spirits, so that’s anything else. When we arrived to the venue, I why I had a chance to book KREYSON for some ran straight to Doro and eagerly presented the gigs abroad. I’m on my way to the northern news to her. She supported me and said: “Go part of Germany, to Düsseldorf’s Philipshalle, for it, this is what you have always wanted to where the Metal Christmas meeting is taking do anyway.” It was that moment that I decided place with the headliners W.A.S.P., SAXON my life’s new journey. and DORO later that night. I’m sharing some deep emotions connected with my inner A few days later, all the necessary steps for dissatisfaction about the situation of my life bringing my much dreamed-of magazine to with a friend of mine on the way there. I feel life were already in process. I accepted the unfulfilled because of my underused potential. collaboration license because I could decide Even though I’m collaborating with some about the materials myself, use original work bands, promoters, and festivals, I strongly feel and create articles and columns with my own I need a change. There are not so many rock team. Also, the name HARD ROCKER already magazines on the Czech market, which is a very had a good reputation and was internationally small market. It seems like I had already used known by several promoters and recording up all the possibilities there. I start thinking companies. Another version could make it about writing a review of the Christmas event even stronger. I wasn’t afraid about lacking and offering it to the Polish HARD ROCKER any material, because I had a lot of good magazine. I had already known Bart Gabriel, the connections in the music business myself. editor-in-chief, from various music events. So I Deep down I was more worried about the Czech send him a message with my offer to become mentality and trying not to be overwhelmed an editor for his magazine. He immediately by it. The situation around me wasn’t very

2 GOTTHARD, Rock 2008 pleasant anyway. I was deciding to start a new business in the times when everyone was talking about the world economic crisis. Rock and metal music were popular enough in our country, but the genres were not supported by commercial media nor by the general public. Some people tried to discourage me from my plan by using logical arguments. Some of them pretended using the tools of hypocrisy, simply due to the reason that they didn’t wish me any kind of success or happiness. Even HEAVEN AND HELL, Wacken 2009 fewer were actual fans of mine and because they are considered “too small” or not just hoped that I was able to fulfill the dreams attractive enough from the commercial point that I had been chasing for years. No matter of view. There was no publishing company what facts or arguments they used back then, behind me and no investor. I jumped straight I simply felt I had to go for it and that it was into things and took out a loan. Maintaining really important to me. high-quality graphic design, paper and printing were the most important aspects for me. I I had no ultimate business plan in my hands – I chose a very expensive option, as in my opinion just followed my heart. There were 3 main, very the design sells the product together with its important goals in my mind: to get a reader base content and I didn’t want to degrade the quality in the Czech and Slovak market, those sharing of the photos by choosing cheap paper and a the same passion and enthusiasm for rock tacky graphic design. I wanted the readers to music as I do, to bring as interesting interviews, get the best possible that I had to offer. I was profiles, reviews and reports to them as becoming the owner of a magazine, editor-in- possible, and also to support unknown artists chief, editor and accountant all in one. I didn’t and new talents who don’t have the chance have a sales representative, so I also negotiated to get attention from other media outlets the adverts and cared for the business side as

3 Whitesnake, Karlovy Vary 2008 DORO & Klaus meine, Düsseldorf 2008 well. I created my editorial team mostly from with my request. I don’t think they even friends I had known from shows or previous contacted ’s management, so I collaboration. For understandable reasons, immediately took to writing to JUDAS PRIEST’s Doro symbolically became the godmother of record company in London. Unfortunately, HARD ROCKER magazine. they referred me back to the representative in “my” region. But I wouldn’t accept the fact that I was experiencing the most amazing time I wouldn’t get the headline interview I wanted of my life up to this point, from the creative right from the start. So I started searching on point of view, as I got started with preparations the Internet and got in touch with a close friend for the first issue. I enjoyed every single step and co-worker of who was very and moment while working on it. These were friendly and helpful. Everything was solved the last five months of peace and tranquility very quickly and the interview happened for me in my life before a period of several heavy just a short while later on one Friday around years. I still had no clue about the things I was midnight European time. Rob Halford called supposed to go through and deal with. Step and patiently answered all of my questions by step I prepared the content for the first without limiting the time. I was so happy and issue, where I chose the heavy metal legend satisfied with the interview, no matter the fact JUDAS PRIEST for the cover and an interview that it took place really late at night – I had with their front man Rob Halford as the first no need to sleep as I started rewriting the headline article. I sent my interview request to whole thing immediately after. Visiting the the band’s representative for the Czech market hometown of singer Doro Pesch was another – and surprisingly received an answer with part of my plan. Years of mutual collaboration the question “What is the name of the JUADS had turned into a great relationship between PRIEST front man you wish to interview?” It felt the two of us. We visited Doro together with so strange that they didn’t know the names my photographer and experienced one of the band members, especially such well- unforgettable weekend in Düsseldorf. Doro known names, if they were working for them, showed us around the town and introduced us let alone asking a journalist for it without even the places connected with her childhood and trying to search for the name in their catalogue the beginnings of her career. We also visited themselves. Soon after I received another her home and met her mother! Our visit took message that it would be impossible to comply place just a few months before Doro’s show

4 Judas Priest, Graspop Metal Meeting 2008 BLUE ÖYSTER CULT, Sweden Rock 2008 honoring her 25th anniversary on the scene. you create or background you come from. The We went through the list of possible guests most important thing is to feel there is some together and she fulfilled my wish and invited soul, heart and honesty behind your work and the front man of , Warrel Dane, as a personal intention, not just something done one of the special guests. He’s one of my all- for a quick profit or to secure some monopoly time favorite singers and had just released his on the market. I contacted the editor-in-chief first solo album “Praises To the War Machine,” of a competitor magazine shortly before the so I of course wanted to get an interview with first issue was out with the naive intention him too. The recording company responded of satisfying both sides and working towards that his promo days were already over, but mutual collaboration. Nostalgia and a sense of after exchanging some emails and explaining being grateful played the main role in making the whole situation to them, I got my interview this decision. I had worked for this magazine in the end. By the way, I still had a full-time job as an external editor several years back and I as an accountant as I prepared the first issue had a feeling it could work out for us both on in my free time. Thanks to the time difference, the market. I didn’t see any problems sharing I had to take a day off to accomplish the our readership. But my intention was not interview, but Warrel didn’t call as arranged. I welcomed with opened arms. From the very knew Warrel a bit, so I took it easy and got in first moment the magazine appeared out on touch with the recording company again. The stands, I had to deal with big obstacles. The promoter apologized and shared that Warrel first sales results were pretty good, but not as totally forgot the date. One week later the good as expected. My intuition told me there interview was completed, so I finally had all I was something wrong behind it, but at first wanted for the first issue. I didn’t understand that gut feeling. After a short time the problem was revealed. People I’m not the kind of person to be totally started contacting me via guestbook, email competitive or waste a ton of energy with and over the phone as well. They all had the rivalries or fights. My main intention is doing same problem finding HARD ROCKER. So I what I love and what fulfills me and sharing contacted the customers back and asked them the joy from a job well done with others. I wish about the places they were searching for it. I success and happiness to anyone who bets on compared the addresses with the list from the their own potential, no matter what kind of art distribution company. The magazine should

5 MOTÖRHEAD, Wacken 2009 METALLICA, Prague 2008 have been on sale at almost every place they not only were they not selling the magazine, mentioned, but it simply wasn’t there. I think but they hadn’t even gotten the offer to sell it. I don’t have to point out the fact that this I didn’t understand how this can be possible puts you in a bad position in the eyes of your – to have such misleading information from potential customers. First, I visited around ten the distribution company – so I arranged places myself and was shocked to find out that an appointment with the company director. Everything was clear after couple of minutes of talking to him and I immediately left the contract and changed the distributor. But it didn’t bring any bigger changes because the second company didn’t have such a large share of the market and I had to deal with the same story. Behind it all, I still believed my readers will follow me anyway and that I was going to build my position through doing good work. I decided to give it all some more time and space as I concentrated mainly on the creative side of things. However, the problems just kept growing and it was impossible to ignore them. The competition gave me a really hard time in all sense of the word, and they played an unfair game from the start. I was chasing windmills with all of this. I was getting messages from some of my business partners and potential sponsors saying they couldn’t afford to continue working with me because they received threats from them. If they were going to work with me again, would be closed for them at the other magazine. In spite of the fact that my magazine had only been out for a short time, they had already decided WITHIN TEMPTATION, 2008 6 SCORPIONS, Košice 2009 for “certain.” I received e-mails and could prove that they were breaking the law and were using the name of my media in their Terms and Conditions. According to the law, this is part of unfair competition – practices that are so typical in Eastern European countries (and probably not just these countries).

During our first season I headed to a festival in Germany while part of the KISS, Prague 2010 HARD ROCKER crew attended one of the backed into a corner, but I had to accept this biggest festivals in our home country. A few also because of my crew – we would be pushed months before, the promoter and I agreed on out of the game and wouldn’t be accredited for the conditions for our mutual cooperation. the promoter’s events anymore. I was dealing According to them, we were allowed to sell the with this injustice as the rage was growing magazine at the festival. Everything changed inside me. Here I am, the owner of a very after the guys arrived to the venue. They hit me expensive, published magazine, promoting with the bad news that they were forbidden to those who are boycotting me at the same time. sell HARD ROCKER there and they were told to There was no bigger source of support back immediately pack up everything and leave. The in my home country. The promoter preferred photographer even had no place to charge his smaller webzines, often of a really bad quality, battery, because he wasn’t allowed to enter the over local printed media only for the reason backstage area – in fact nobody from our crew that they came from abroad. They even have was allowed. I called the promoter and tried to all the comforts provided by the promoter, sort out all the mess, but to no avail. He denied including a hotel and transport straight to the our agreement about the magazine sales backstage area. I couldn’t do anything about it. and warned me not to cause any problems, I had no rights to determine the conditions for otherwise all our cooperation would be over. investing in the event. There were just such big If I wanted to carry on in our market, I didn’t differences between media. The competitive have much of a choice. I felt like I was being magazine had exclusivity there, so everything

7 KING DIAMOND, Prague 2007 was more than clear. I hadn’t set up high prices have a chance to promote their media at for adverts either. I really appreciate anyone prestigious festivals like Wacken Open Air. who is willing to pay, and I always create some The collaboration occurs at different levels of bonus for each business partner. Even this course and the bigger ones are more exclusive fact worked against me more often than not. there, but you hardly can feel the disrespect or For many of these partners, I was considered the boycotting like I sadly had known from my nothing more than a naive fan and an easy home country. target of ridicule. I guess it’s more than clear that the media are The music, my team, the readers and the mainly dependent on adverts and sponsors. promoters who all preferred working with Keeping the magazine alive from sales that me rather than working with my competition didn’t reach any dizzying numbers is unrealistic. thanks to my human approach, they kept me After being involved for around 2 years on the from falling. I also didn’t give up thanks to the market, the situation became unmanageable support from the foreign labels and promoters for me. There was no money left to pay the who had given me some great feedback about awfully big liabilities. Unfair competition was at HARD ROCKER. They worked with us like we its peak and the promoter I already wrote about were no different than the others. We had no decided to terminate our agreement. I had no problem getting accreditations for prestigious chance to go on and get another sponsor at all. festivals like SWEDEN ROCK (one of the biggest So I tried one last step and started the digital and most popular festivals in the world) and version of the magazine. By now it’s 2010 and events outside our country, even if we were digital media are just starting to burst onto the not a local magazine. For example, nobody worldwide scene, so people mostly don’t react cared about the fact all the German magazines to it, especially not in our country. There is no 8 , Prague 2008 Doro, New York 2010 way to save the magazine. The circle is closed. was coming from. I started calling everyone I met with my lawyer and he uncompromisingly from my crew with the announcement of the advises me to start legal proceedings against definite end of the magazine. At the same time, my competition. After many dreamless nights I assured them I would never give up, no matter and endless amounts of time thinking about it what. Nobody understood where I drew this all, I made my final decision. I had to stop HARD energy from in a situation that seemed to have ROCKER and I was not going to start any legal no solution and how I can even think about the process with my competition – something that next journey. no one understood and something that made the lawyer especially mad. Issue number 18 Bankruptcy with all its associated obstructions came out and I knew this would be the LAST arrived with no compromises and there was ONE. On the day of its release I just lay on the nothing left behind but the cruel and cold reality. floor, surrounded by magazines, for hours in For a few years I was mostly immersed in myself, tears… my way of dealing with a terrible loss. In literally living in purgatory and coming through spite of large amounts of debt, I didn’t feel such the biggest and the deepest transformational sadness about losing all the money because I process of my life up to that point. Getting rid of knew I could still change the situation around. I old patterns, negative emotions and especially felt sad and heartbroken like I had lost a child. my big rebellious instincts, I was finally able to The words – this is the end – were spinning in my clearly see all the circumstances and myself head, round and round. But my inner voice was in a different light. I became more and more saying it’s going to be difficult and it will really aware of my own potential and everything I take a long time, but believe that this is just the had achieved in my life. The events I was able beginning. I suddenly felt hope in my darkest to participate in and the personalities I was able hour without really understanding where it to meet – experiences that other people were xxx 10 Doro & Warrel Dane, Düsseldorf 2008 just secretly dreaming of. I mostly managed to If I hypothetically think about the original plan make these things happen on my own without working out the way I wished at the start of nepotism or being favored by people in high magazine, I would never have tried to succeed positions. I needed to go through this experience anywhere else. to also realize this limited background, where I have never really fit in, is not the place I wanted I’m thankful to everyone who considered to spend the rest of my life. And it didn’t mean me their enemy and who ever had a need to losing all my love for the country where I was invest more energy in my defeat than to wisely born. I went through a big rebellious phase use it developing their own project in a more where I fought against everything. I tried to creative and effective way. Their fear helped me escape and move abroad. I wished to forget it understand how strong a competitor I was to all, but when I calmed down, I understood this them. Thanks to that, I have been able to turn model was not going to work out. I stayed during every negative experience to my advantage. the “dark” times in Prague and the only thing Instead of using the tools of rage, revenge and that was important to me was finding a way stagnation, I used my loneliness to work on my back to myself. I learned about the importance own potential and create brand new possibilities and impact on my life of the lesson by the name for myself. of HARD ROCKER. I was able to manage a huge test from destiny. I allowed my competition to Reality is very often different than it appears push me into a corner for some time, but I never from the outside. What we call evil is, in many let them cause me to identify myself with their situations, not coming to hurt us, but just to game and behave and act the same way as they kick our ass. This recognition needs time, do. I’m sure to this day they haven’t understood patience, passion, devotion and power to hold what kind of impact they had on me in reality. on and not give up, no matter what! 11 www.karlatallas.com

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