Citron is a Czech hard rock/heavy metal band founded in Ostrava in 1976. The band's history is divided into two distinct eras: between 1976 and 1981, when their name was spelled with a long "ó", Citrón, and they played mainly blues rock. During this time, the band leader was bassist Petr MichalÃÂk. The second era, from 1982 until the present, signalled a change in musical style towards hard rock and heavy metal, with drummer Radim Paà ÂÃÂzek as band leader and the group's name slightly altered to Citron. As of 2021, Citron has released twelve studio albums (including three English versions), two EPs, and three official compilation albums.
Citrón's inception dates back to 1976, when several musicians left the side of Frantià ¡ek Ringo ÃÂech and founded an accompanying band for singer Aleà ¡ Ulm. Among them were guitarist Olda à ÂÃÂha, drummer Tolja Kohout (Katapult), keyboardist Miloà ¡ Nop, and bass guitarist Petr MichalÃÂk, who gave the group its name. They recorded two singles in this lineup, but MichalÃÂk went his separate way shortly after and Citrón became its own entity, though with only one member. VladimÃÂr Kubala soon joined on vocals, followed by guitarist Jià ÂàSchmutz and drummer Milan Tutsch. They began to play blues rock, influenced by such bands as Bad Company, Free, and Led Zeppelin.
The four were already experienced musicians, and they soon established themselves not only on the radio, but also on television. They released their first single, "Tvých sedmnáct/Pantomima reklam", under Supraphon in 1978, and it proved a success. Their next single, "Aà ¾ se vrátàrokenrol/Diskà ¾okej", came out the following year, and Citrón found themselves at the top of the Czechoslovak rock scene alongside such acts as Katapult and Jià ÂàSchelinger's band. The same year, one major lineup change occurred: drummer Milan Tutsch left to join Katapult and was replaced by Radim Paà ÂÃÂzek, who would later go on to lead the group. Additionally, Miloslav BenÃ½à ¡ek joined Citrón on second guitar. They played a large number of concerts throughout Czechoslovakia, and released two more singles as they worked on their debut album, ObratnÃÂk Raka, which was recorded in 1981. Two versions of the record were produced, one for the domestic market and one for international audiences. The Czech version was never released, however; only the English one, titled Tropic of Cancer, was published, in 1983, though by that point the band had mostly disintegrated: MichalÃÂk and Kubala, and later BenÃ½à ¡ek, left the project. Only guitarist Schmutz and drummer Paà ÂÃÂzek remained.
Radim Paà ÂÃÂzek took over the leadership of Citron and brought in seasoned musician Stanislav Hranický (Majestic) on vocals. They were joined by guitarist Jindà Âich Kvita and bassist Jià ÂàKrejÃÂÃÂ. In this lineup, they recorded a few singles in 1983, and moved sonically towards a heavier sound. The same year, Schmutz and KrejÃÂàleft the group and were replaced by guitarist Jaroslav Bartoà  and bassist Václav Vlasák, both from the band Proto.
Citron's musical style began to change gradually around this time, tending more towards heavy metal. Work began on their upcoming album in 1985, recorded at Prague's Mozarteum. Two versions of the album were created, again. The Czech version, Plni energie, was released in 1986, and Full of Energy followed a year later. The Czech album was certified Gold, and Citron won a Zlatý slavÃÂk award, taking second place after the Slovak band Elán. A concert tour was organized, which saw the band travel to West Germany, among other locations. In 1987, vocalist Stanislav Hranický broke his leg after one concert in Bratislava and became unable to perform.
The band had to solve the unexpected situation quickly, and they hired vocalist Ladislav Kà ÂÃÂà ¾ek from the Prague band Vitacit. Preparations for their third album, Radegast, began the same year, with the band recording in their own studio. Two singles were released, and demonstrated a definitive shift towards heavy metal. The album came out in the fall of 1987, again in two versions, and the Czech record was certified Gold. The English record came out two years later, under the same title. A number of large concerts followed, this time not only in Czechoslovakia but also in Poland, the USSR, and Germany. Citron also made numerous television appearances, topped various music charts, and won Song of the Year with their single "Zase dál". In 1988, they achieved a crowning victory by winning the Zlatý slavÃÂk award, becoming Band of the Year. During this time, the band also began collaborating with singer Tanja Kauerová, known by the mononym Tanja, who went on to marry frontman Radim Paà ÂÃÂzek. Tanja also sang the successful 1988 duet "Kam jen jdou lásky mé" with Kà ÂÃÂà ¾ek, which was later released on his debut solo album Zlatej Chlapec in 1991.
At the beginning of 1989, Citron began preparing their next studio album, Vypusà ¥te psy!, but disagreements within the band led to Kà ÂÃÂà ¾ek's departure after the release of only one single, "Uragán/SvÃÂt patà Âànám", though the song became an immediate hit. By August, Kà ÂÃÂà ¾ek was gone, followed shortly after by Jaroslav Bartoà Â, and the two went on to start their own band, Kreyson. Citron found replacements in Slovakia in the form of singer Tibor à  Ã¡ndor and guitarist Pavol Chodelka. In this new lineup, the band completed a number of planned concerts in the fall and continued recording the new album, though à  Ã¡ndor would not end up singing on it.
At the beginning of 1990, Citron discovered singer Frantià ¡ek "Fany" MichalÃÂk and replaced Tibor à  Ã¡ndor. The band went on a concert tour of France. Another Slovak guitarist, Henry Tóth, joined up. With this new lineup, they went back into the studio to rework their upcoming album. Vypusà ¥te psy! was finally released in May 1990. A concert tour to promote it followed, but afterward a period of inactivity ensued, which resulted in further personnel changes. In the spring of 1991, Pavel Chodelka and Henry Tóth left and were replaced by Libor Kozelský. Citron began preparing another record, but in the summer, the band neared disintegration. Jindà Âich Kvita, Václav Vlasák, and Frantià ¡ek MichalÃÂk chose to leave and form the band Funny. Only Libor Kozelský and Radim Paà ÂÃÂzek remained, so again, there was a need to rebuild Citron from the ground up. In the fall of 1991, new musicians were hired: Aleà ¡ HubáÃÂek on vocals, Pavel Silber on bass, and Pavel Novotný on guitar, though this latter was soon replaced by Ladislav KreÃÂmer. In this format, the band opened for Ian Gillan in Czechoslovakia and in the spring of 1992, they released the album Sexbomby. Few concerts took place to promote it, however. At the end of 1993, Citron's most successful lineup, from their Plni energie era, met up and began planning a comeback.
This period was marked mainly by the band's comeback to large stages, as well as one notable loss. Just as Citron was in the process of producing their first hits compilation in 1997, guitarist Jindra Kvita died. This was a major shock to the band, and put a stop to the album preparations. It wasn't until 1999 that Best of Citron, dedicated to the memory of Jindra Kvita, was released. The album did well commercially and was certified Gold. The band continued to perform as a quartet for a while, but eventually hired guitarist Stanislav Balko, though he didn't stay long and was replaced by the returning Libor Kozelský.
In 2001, Citron reunited with former vocalist Ladislav Kà ÂÃÂà ¾ek. A retrospective album, SÃÂla návratà ¯, consisting of re-recorded versions of old songs, mainly from the Radegast era, was released. A short concert tour followed, after which Kà ÂÃÂà ¾ek departed again. In 2004, the band was invited to perform in the United States, where they held several successful concerts and shot the video for a new single, "Rock, rock, rock". More performances followed, including at festivals, and Citron again returned to the studio to prepare a new album.
In 2008, Citron opened for Judas Priest at the Ostravar Aréna in their hometown. At the beginning of 2009, Libor Kozelský left the band and was replaced by guitarist Jià ÂÃ à  perl. In May 2010, the long-awaited album BigbÃÂtový pánbà ¯ was finally released.
On 7 April 2013, former Citron vocalist Stanislav Hranický died of cancer.
In May 2015, Citron supported Def Leppard on their tour of the Czech Republic, opening for them both in Prague and Ostrava. In September, after much internal squabbling, Citron came close to disintegrating yet again. Frantià ¡ek MichalÃÂk, Jaroslav Bartoà Â, Jià ÂÃ à  perl, and Václav Vlasák went on to found the group Limetal, leaving drummer Radim Paà ÂÃÂzek as the only remaining member of Citron. He called on Ladislav Kà ÂÃÂà ¾ek to return to the band once more, and they were joined by Djordje Eriàand Pavel Hanus on guitar, and Jià Âà"George" Rain (Kreyson) on bass. The newly reformed band went straight back to work on a new album. Before its release, they launched a concert tour and issued the EP Rebelie Vol. 1, followed a year later by another EP, Rebelie Vol. 2. Former collaborator Tanja joined them at a number of shows during their tour, and as of 2020 is a permanent member of the band. The planned album, Rebelie rebelà ¯, was finally released towards the end of 2016. A year later, Citron finally released their 1981 album ObratnÃÂk Raka, which had until then only been published in its English version.
Radim Paà ÂÃÂzek, the last remaining member of the band's original lineup, died on 2 March 2021 after complications from a recent surgery; he was 67 years old.
Current
Past
Studio albums
EPs
Compilations