Formation and early years (2003–2009) After leaving
Megaherz in 2003 due to creative differences, Wesselsky got together with
Noel Pix, who composed the synths, guitars and
programming for Megaherz's albums
Kopfschuss and
Himmelfahrt. In January 2004, the band released their self-titled debut album,
Eisbrecher. The first 5,000 copies of the album included a blank CD with permission for purchasers to legally copy the music onto the blank. This was done as a protest against what the band felt was a "criminalization" of fans. The band would release their second album
Antikörper in October 2006. This album would become the band's debut album on the German
Media Control Charts as it charted at No. 85. The band then toured with
U.D.O. in December 2006. In 2007, Eisbrecher performed at two major German music festivals,
Wave-Gotik-Treffen (
"Wave Gothic Meeting") and
Summer Breeze Open Air. The band then went a tour between September 2008 and October 2009, playing in Germany, Austria, Russia, the Netherlands and Switzerland. Music videos were planned for "This Is Deutsch" and "Kann denn Liebe Sünde sein", but were cancelled in favor of new material and live shows. In early March 2009, the band signed with a new American music label,
Metropolis Records, due to
Dancing Ferret Discs closing in late 2008.
Eiszeit and Die Hölle muss warten (2009–2013) On 24 April 2009, Wesselsky and Noel Pix were guests on
Radio Goethe to promote the American release of
Sünde. Wesselsky mentioned that he would love to tour the United States "as soon as possible". He also mentioned that, with the popularity of
Rammstein,
Nena and
Falco, he hopes that Eisbrecher can become the next big German act in the United States. He also talked about their upcoming fourth album; no title was named, but he stated that work was in progress. He described that the new album will be "very rockish, very pop and very heart breaking." On 20 June 2009, Eisbrecher performed at their first major Austrian music festival,
Nova Rock Festival; other bands, such as
Killswitch Engage,
Monster Magnet and
In Extremo also performed on the same stage. Eisbrecher's fourth studio album,
Eiszeit, was released in mid-April 2010. The single "Eiszeit" was released on 19 March 2010 and became their debut single in the
Media Control Charts, at No. 84. The album was released on 16 April 2010 and debuted in the Media Control Charts at No. 5, the
Ö3 Austria Top 40 charts at No. 34, and the
Swiss Music Charts at No. 76. In August 2010, it was reported that Eisbrecher had signed with
Sony Records and
Columbia Records. After the
Summer Breeze Open Air festival, bassist Olli Pohl left the band. The band later found a new bass guitar player in Dominik Palmer. The reason for Dominik Palmer's departure from the band was not mentioned. In August, Eisbrecher performed at
Wacken Open Air, the largest metal festival in the world. To celebrate the band's first 10 years, Eisbrecher went on a 10th anniversary tour in November and December. During the tour, the band released a single titled "10 Jahre Eisbrecher" on 29 November 2013.
Zehn Jahre Kalt and Schock (2014–2016) On 12 February 2014, Eisbrecher announced on their official website that they have entered the studio to begin work on their next album. They mentioned that due to the recording of the new album for an early 2015 release, that they have had to limit their number of shows in 2014. Announced via the band's official website on 6 March 2014, the band released a special album titled
Zehn Jahre Kalt on 11 March 2014, available exclusively in the United States. The record was released via Metropolis Records. The band announced on 13 October 2014, that their next album would be released on 16 January 2015. A month later, however, it was announced that the release date for
Schock had been pushed back a week to 23 January 2015. The first single from
Schock, "Zwischen uns", became available via download on 28 November 2014. The second single, "1000 Narben/Zwischen uns", was released on 9 January 2015. "Rot wie die Liebe" was released as the third single on 12 June 2015. A fourth single, "Volle Kraft voraus!", became available during the
Volle Kraft voraus! 2016 Tour in March. Revealed via the band's website on 9 June 2015, their upcoming DVD, which was filmed at
Circus Krone, will be released as a live CD and DVD in September 2015. The live CD/DVD was later revealed to be titled
Schock Live and will have a release date of 25 September 2015.
Schock Live was released on 25 September 2015 and charted in the Top 10 DVD charts in both Austria and Switzerland, at No. 7. Eisbrecher's album
Die Hölle muss warten achieved
Gold status after selling more than 100,000 copies across Germany as of 23 January 2016.
Schock earned the band their second Gold album as of 11 April 2016. The album would also chart in the top 10 of the Swiss and Austrian charts at No. 8 and No. 10, respectively. The band went on tour through Europe in late September and October 2017 to promote the album. Eisbrecher headlined the second edition of the "Volle Kraft voraus Festival" in 2018. The festival was held in September as opposed to the first edition being held in July. Bands that played at the second festival were
Oomph!,
Stahlmann,
Zeromancer,
Die Krupps, and Schöngeist.
Sturmfahrt was nominated for "Best Rock National" at the 2018
Echo Awards held on 12 April 2018. The band embarked on a short four-date tour in May 2019 to promote the album.
Schicksalsmelodien, Liebe Macht Monster and Noel Pix's departure (2019–2024) Eisbrecher entered the studio in early 2019 to begin production on their next album, targeted for an early 2020 release. The band continued playing shows throughout 2019, consisting mostly of festivals, including their own "Volle Kraft voraus Festival" in September. The third edition of the festival was headlined by the band and featured
And One,
Mono Inc.,
Diary of Dreams, A Life Divided, and
Heldmaschine. Eisbrecher planned their first European tour, "Eis Over Europe", for May 2020, featuring fellow German Neue Deutsche Härte band Maerzfeld. However, due to the
COVID-19 pandemic, the tour was postponed to March 2021. The band released a cover of
Powerwolf's song "Stossgebet" on 21 May 2020. It would later be accompanied by a music video which was released on 30 May 2020. On 3 July 2020, Eisbrecher released a video from the studio onto their
YouTube channel, confirming an upcoming new album in October 2020 and a second new album in March 2021. October's album is a compilation of covers entitled
Schicksalsmelodien ("Melodies of Destiny"), released on 23 October 2020. A second single, "Anna (Lassmichrein Lassmichraus)" ("Anna let-me-in let-me-out"), was released on 7 October 2020.
Liebe Macht Monster was announced via the band's Facebook page on 15 January to be the next studio album due for release on 12 March 2021. The first single, "FAKK", was released on 15 January. Eisrecher announced on their website on 1 March 2022 that the "Eis Over Europe" tour would be further postponed to late April 2023, in order for the date to line up with the band's 20th anniversary. On 17 February 2024, Alexx Wesselsky announced in an interview with
Augsburger Allgemeine that co-founder and lead guitarist Jochen "Noel Pix" Seibert had departed Eisbrecher. He was replaced by Marc "Micki" Richter, who is the lead guitarist of Wesselsky's solo project "Die Herren Wesselsky" and who also plays guitar for the bands
Atrocity and
Leaves' Eyes. The band later confirmed the news in an official statement on
Instagram on 20 February.
Kaltfront (2024–present) On 21 November 2024, the band released a cover song, "Tränen lügen nicht", which was accompanied by a music video. On 29 November, they released the first single, "Everything Is Wunderbar", from their forthcoming ninth studio album
Kaltfront, followed by a music video on 30 November.
Kaltfront was released on 14 March 2025, containing 15 tracks. ==Members==