All Hails, Natalie!

Hailing from Germany, Natalie is one of the latest Valkyries to join the Heavy Metal Citadel. This badass bassist crushes stages with her band Post Modern Fantasy, stormed the stage with Steel Panther, and loves her Apfelwein, so what’s not to like! She made a stop over to The Heavy Metal Citadel to chat with us. Read what she had to say below and drop some comments to show your support!

Hi, Natalie, can you introduce yourself to our readers

Hey, my name is Natalie and I’m from Frankfurt, Germany. I sometimes post guitar and bass covers as well as band related content on my instagram @natalie.ptthn. You can also watch some live videos of me performing on my bands’ instagram @postmodernfantasy!

Does your town/city/village have a good metal scene?

Well it depends on what you expect from a metal scene. There are only few bars and clubs that play exclusively metal and rock music, I personally only know one bar and one club. But if you are looking for concerts I would say there are a lot of options. There’s a few locations for bigger and huge bands in Frankfurt and surrounding smaller cities. But there’s also a lot of clubs for smaller and underground bands to play live gigs. I really appreciate that. Everywhere you look there are small concerts to go to.

How did you discover your love for metal, and what drew you to the genre?

Well growing up, my father always listened to bands like Judas Priest, Def Leppard and Iron Maiden. That’s where I got to love heavy metal music. I still listen to those bands and I frequently visit concerts with my father and sister. We will see Judas Priest next year in March, I am really excited.

Who are your top three favourite metal bands/artists at the moment, and what makes them stand out to you?

I know some might not like them but I love them: Sabaton. I really like their guitar riffs mixed with interesting stories about war. Saw them live 3 times now!
Steel Panther: Although being a parody band on glam metal, they are really talented musicians. Love Satchels’ guitar riffs and solos. I’m just sad their bass player left. What can I say, I really enjoy glam metal bands in general like Mötley Crüe and Cinderella.
Can’t say these bands are my favourite ever, but at the moment I really enjoy listening to Soilwork and Kvelertak. Saw Soilwork as support for Kataklysm, and I have to say, I liked them more than the headliner.

As a woman in the metal scene, how do you navigate and overcome any challenges or stereotypes you may encounter?

Yes, there are definitely stereotypes. Most people are really welcoming and don’t care about your gender. But there’s always some people that suck. For example, I’ve never seen a man questioned about his knowledge of a certain band if wearing band merch. As a woman, some men feel like you have to “prove” your love for the music and that’s really sad I think. The same counts for being a female guitar and bass player.

Of course you will get attention more easy than men, but you’ll also be critiqued more harshly I think. I noticed that playing in my band. We have a female singer and me as a female bass player. After gigs we sometimes get comments, that - I would say - men would not get. Comments like “show was good but you two should smile more” whilst pointing at our singer and me. I don’t know it just doesn’t sit right with me. Sometimes you’ll even get asked whose girlfriend you are when arriving at a gig, you’ll not even be recognised as a musician playing.

But overall the scene is awesome and I think metalheads are the most welcoming and open armed people I know.

You’re at a gig do you mosh, stand at the front crushed against the barriers, or stand in the back arms folded nodding along?

Definitely depends on the band. Mostly I’m enjoying the concert without moshing but with a lot of (really bad) singing and headbanging.

What’s the craziest thing you’ve done at a gig?

I would say dancing on stage with Steel Panther. It was along time ago though, almost seven years now lol.

Are there any up-and-coming female-fronted metal bands or artists you'd like to highlight and recommend?

I don’t know if it sounds self-centred to mention my own band here. Like I said before we have 50% females and 50% males, which is also not often seen in metal bands (to my knowledge). We would describe our genre as Symphonic Pop-Metal. Sounds weird at first but it’s just metal with some dancy beats and synths but still heavy guitars. I really enjoy playing there it is a lot of fun. I’m really excited for every gig we play.

Also a dear friend of mine sings in a alternative metal band called Pentastone. I really enjoy their music, they work hard and really deserve recognition for it.

What’s your favourite piece of band merchandise or memorabilia?

I have a pick from Sabatons bass player Pär Sundström.

Are there any metal albums that you consider underrated or overlooked?

I’d say Verkligheten by Soilwork. I really like that album. Also Angel Of Retribution by Judas Priest. I think it’s a well known album, but I think most Judas Priest fans might overlook it and rather listens to albums like British Steel and Painkiller.

How should a fellow metalhead approach you if they want to know more about your metal tastes?

Usually I’d just say social media. I had a lot of pleasant conversations on there and made some friends in the metal scene. I do work in a pub that focuses on metal music occasionally. If it is a slow night and there’s not a lot of work to do, I’m open for a chat about music.

Have you got any tattoos or piercings? Any favourite or cool ones you want to share the meaning of?

I’ve lost count on how many tattoos I have. Most of them don’t really have a meaning to be honest. I have a hedgehog with flowers on my left under arm, which might be my favourite, it turned out so pretty. I do have some piercings as well.

Image credit from left: Yasmin Abbas, Andreas Lenk

What’s your drink of choice?

Well since I’m German the answer will have to be beer. Just kidding I really love beer, but I also love wine or Aperol, stuff like that. There’s a regional speciality where I’m from called Apfelwein. It’s essentially just wine but made from apples, but not as sweet as cider. I even have a glass of Apfelwein tattooed on my arm.

What’s your favourite band shirt?

That’s a hard question, I have so many cool ones. I always love shirts that have a front and back print, I just think back prints look really dope on t-shirts. I have a self made Steel Panther denim jacket which I also really love. It’s actually just an old Steel Panther shirt sewn to the back of the jacket. Also every band shirt that I had for a long time, they just remind me of good times listening to those bands.

This or That:

Satanism or Paganism

Paganism

Slayer or Black Sabbath?

Slayer

Elf or Orc

Elf

Corpse paint or leather jackets?

Leather Jackets!

Blast beats or guitar solos?

Guitar solos

Metal festival or intimate underground show?

Small intimate metal festivals haha

Bullet belt or spiked wristbands?

I wear neither, but bullet belts look really nice I think

Clean vocals or harsh growls?

Clean vocals

We at the Citadel want to thank Natalie for stepping foot in our spooky Citadel and taking the time to share her thoughts. Show your support by following her on socials and supporting her band!