Pokolgép

Pokolgép in a nutshell (the “Kalapács era”)

Pokolgép is one of the foundational names of Hungarian heavy metal. Formed in Budapest in the early 1980s, the band became a defining force of the local scene—mixing classic heavy metal with harder-edged speed/power elements as the decade progressed.

Their most widely celebrated classic lineup is strongly associated with József “Kalapács” on vocals, whose powerful, gritty delivery helped turn Pokolgép into a mainstream metal phenomenon in Hungary during the late ’80s. This period is often framed around the band’s first wave of studio albums, starting with the landmark debut Totális metál (1986), frequently cited as the first Hungarian heavy metal LP to break through at a national level.