Kerber

Kerber
Kerber performing in Niš on their thirtieth anniversary concert, 2011
Background information
Origin	Niš, Serbia
Genres	Hard rock, heavy metal
Years active	1981 – present
Labels	ZKP RTLJ, PGP-RTB, PGP-RTS, Take It Or Leave It Records, Raglas Records
Associated acts	Mama Rock, Generacija 5, YU grupa, Leb i Sol, Slomljena Stakla, Peđa D'Boy Band, Bulevar, Suncokret, Idoli
Website	www.kerber.rs
Members	Goran Šepa Tomislav Nikolić Branislav Božinović Josip Hartl Zoran Madić Nebojša Minić
Past members	Zoran Žikić Boban Đorđević Dragoljub Đuričić Milorad Džmerković Branko Isaković Zoran Stamenković Saša Vasković Vladan Stanojević Goran Đorđević Nemanja Gušić Vlada Karadžov

Kerber (Serbian Cyrillic: Кербер; trans. Cerberus) is a Serbian and former Yugoslav hard rock band from Niš.

The original members of Kerber were Goran Šepa "Gale" (vocals), Tomislav Nikolić (guitar), Branislav "Bane" Božinović (keyboard), Zoran Stamenković (drums) and Zoran Madić (bass guitar). In 1981, formerly known as Top (trans. Cannon), the band changed its name to Kerber. In November 1981, Kerber had their first official concert in Muzički klub in Niš. During 1982 the band had numerous concerts in Niš and Serbia, while working on the material for their first album. In early spring of 1982, Madić left the band due to his army obligations. He was replaced by former Mama Rock and Plamteće Nebo member Zoran "Sosa" Žikić who had an attractive on-stage performance: he played an axe-shaped guitar and performed fire breathing. In May 1983, Kerber won the first place at Festival Omladina in Subotica with the song "Mezimac" ("Minion").

In July 1983, Kerber recorded their debut LP Nebo je malo za sve (The Sky Is not Big Enough for All), mixed in Strawberry studio in Manchester, with Nightwing's bass guitarist Gordon Rowley as the producer. In December 1983, Kerber was an opening band on Uriah Heep, Ten Years After and Nightwing concerts in Yugoslavia. At about the same time, Kerber's Nebo je malo za sve was released, bringing hits "Mezimac", "Nebo je malo za sve" and "Heroji od staniola" ("Foil Heroes"). The album was released by ZKP RTLJ and immediately became successful, with 10,000 copies sold during the first week. In January 1984, during the tour through Macedonia, first Zikić, and then Stamenković contracted infectious hepatitis, so in March, during the Kerber's performance at the music festival in Opatija, Stamenković was temporarily replaced by Generacija 5 drummer Boban Đorđević and Madić briefly re-entered the bass player's post for this occasion. Despite the good performance, Kerber did not fit well in the pop format of the Opatija festival with their hard rock sound. After returning to Kerber, Žikić continued with his on-stage performance. On May 19, 1984, during the band's open-air concert in Novi Sad, he got second-degree burns while attempting to breathe fire under windy conditions. He continued the concert despite doctor's advice, and later on continued the tour with bandages on his face. After this accident other members forbade Žikić to continue performing the fire-breathing act. In June 1984, Kerber was an opening act for Nightwing concerts in Yugoslavia. In August drummer Zoran Stamenković returned to the band for the summer performances in Greece.