music instrumentz

new album of the year

2010-07-17T15:06:00.000-07:00

As I Lay Dying

album:The Powerless Rise

Biography:As a wise band once pointed out, what happens on the road always comes home. Sure, you can read into the darker side of that sentiment, but if you're talking about the San Diego quintet As I Lay Dying, for whom the road literally has been home since day one, the never-ending trail of unfamiliar cities, stages and faces that comes with touring has only cut a path toward something brighter.

Formed in early 2001 to realize the developing musical vision of ex-Society's Finest guitarist Tim Lambesis, As I Lay Dying first took shape as a trio, with (now-former) guitarist Evan White and drummer Jordan Mancino rounding out the lineup. One month into their lifespan, the group hit the studio to record their first album, Beneath The Encasing Of Ashes, released that June by Pluto Records. As I Lay Dying caught the touring bug shortly afterward, and started what to this day remains a pattern: With each new tour stop came new converts to the group's sound, and as more people caught on, Pluto found a new best-selling release in Beneath The Encasing Of Ashes—which, massive as it was, barely hinted at the material As I Lay Dying still had brewing inside of them.

Released by Pluto in August of 2002, As I Lay Dying's split CD with fellow San Diegans American Tragedy offered the first sign of where the band was headed. Though the chugging breakdowns, growled vocals and dissonant riffs of Ashes were still present in As I Lay Dying's five tracks, a stronger sense of melody undercut the music's darkness, resulting in songs that not only stuck in your head as easily as they tore it off, but that also started to garner serious attention for the band. So, touring as relentlessly as ever behind their latest effort, As I Lay Dying found themselves landing on the radar of several prominent record labels, with Metal Blade ultimately sealing the deal in March of 2003—and the band's Metal Blade debut, Frail Words Collapse, dropping on an unsuspecting public that July.

Long story short: Produced by Lambesis, Frail Words Collapse crystallized everything As I Lay Dying had been working toward into a massive knockout blow. Even though mainstream acceptance still eluded them, it didn't matter: Sonically, the band had united the classic "Göthenburg sound"—the punch-press rhythms, snarling vocals and melancholy riffs of seminal Swedish bands like At The Gates—with the chugging heartbeat of modern hardcore, launching themselves into the forefront of a new scene of metal bubbling under in the U.S. Relentless touring, several lineup changes and a growing fan buzz later, As I Lay Dying found themselves setting records they didn't even know existed: Heavy rotation on FUSE and MTV2'S Headbanger's Ball for their "94 Hours" and "Forever" videos; a No. 1 most-downloaded spot at the now-defunct MP3.com; record sales in the solid six-figure range based heavily on word of mouth; and festival dates and world tours alongside heavyweights such as Killswitch Engage, In Flames, Shadows Fall, Lamb Of God and Hatebreed. And, of course, with each tour came new fans, who told their friends, who told their friends, who told… Well, you get the idea.

Enter 2005. Strengthened by the road, creatively on fire, and with their lineup both solidified and contributing equally to the songwriting process, As I Lay Dying enter Big Fish Studios in Encinitas, California (the same place they'd recorded Collapse), at the beginning of January. With Lambesis at the production helm, along with help from bandmate Phil Sgrosso, and engineer/co-producer Steve Russell once again behind the boards, the quintet sequestered themselves until spring and emerged with their leanest, meanest and most focused effort yet, Shadows Are Security.

"All the touring we did off Frail Words Collapse really helped us learn what songs worked in a live setting and which ones didn't," says Lambesis, "and that helped us focus on the direction of this record. There's a slower, ballad-type song ["Repeating Yesterday"], but even it serves a purpose in tying the whole record together. As far as energy goes, I think all these songs are gonna be tremendous live."

Thematically, the record is just as heavy, with Mancino's coffin-tight drumming and the guitarists' melodic, lockstep riffage dropping like exclamation points around Lambesis' lyrics. While he hesitates to call Shadows a full-blown "concept album," Lambesis admits there's definitely a concept, and a very intentional sequence, guiding songs like the soaring "Confined," the spiritually revealing "Control Is Dead" (featuring Zao's Dan Weyandt on guest vocals) and the album-summarizing "Illusions." "My lyrics have always come from a very personal perspective, but this record really is a story of the last two years of my life, and everything I've learned since then," says Lambesis. Lyrically, the record flows in the same way, where I start by questioning what I've been taught, re-evaluating what's meaningful and recognizing what's meaningless." If all that sounds a little lofty, Lambesis easily brings it back into perspective: "It's really about love, and learning how to love all over again.

new album of the year

2010-07-15T09:44:00.000-07:00

Bullet For My Valentine

album 2010 :Fever

Matt Tuck spoke to Daniel Marez of Metal Hammer in March 2009 about the band's progress on writing and recording their third album. He stated that there were four or five songs that were finished and that "usually we write and record 14 tracks that I then have to write vocal lines for, but this time I’m trying to write the vocals as I write the music.Bullet for My Valentine confirmed in August 2009 that they were aiming for an early 2010 release for the new album, while Tuck stated that the upcoming record is "a lot more mature-sounding, it's a lot more classic. It'll stand the test of time [more] than both the previous things we've doneIn a January 2010 interview with Rock Sound, frontman Matt Tuck said the planned release date for Fever, the 11-track album is in late April 2010. He also said the album would sound more like The Poison than Scream Aim Fire and would contain no ballads.

Biography:
Bullet for My Valentine are a Welsh heavy metal band from Bridgend, formed in 1998. The band is composed of Matt Tuck (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Michael Paget (lead guitar), Jason James (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Michael Thomas (drums). They were formed under the name Jeff Killed John and started their music career by covering songs by Metallica and Nirvana. Jeff Killed John recorded six songs which were not released; two of these tracks were reworked later in their career as Bullet for My Valentine. Financial difficulties dictated the name change, which was followed by a change in music direction. In 2002, the band secured a five-album deal with Sony BMG. The band has stated that their music is influenced by classic heavy metal acts such as Metallica, Iron Maiden, and Slayer. The band is part of the Cardiff music scene.

Bullet for My Valentine's debut album, The Poison, was released on October 3, 2005 in the United Kingdom and on February 14, 2006 in the United States to coincide with Valentine's Day hence their band name. The album entered the Billboard 200 in the US at number 128. It was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. The band made appearances at the Download Festival and Kerrang! XXV, and undertook a US tour with Rob Zombie. Bullet for My Valentine's second studio album, Scream Aim Fire, was released on January 29, 2008 and debuted at number four on the Billboard 200. The band's third album, Fever, was released on April 26, 2010 and debuted at number three on the Billboard 200. The band has sold over two million albums worldwide.

new album of the year

2010-07-15T09:13:00.000-07:00

Mortemia

album of 2010 Misere Mortem
Written, composed and arranged by Morten Veland.
Recorded in Audio Avenue Studios, Tau, Norway.
Produced, engineered and mixed by Morten Veland.
Choir recorded in Sound Suite Studios, Marseille, France.
Mastered by Mika Jussila of Finnvox.

Biography:Mortemia is metal and gothic scene veteran Morten Veland's latest project. His musical endeavors have been many since his early beginnings in 1992. At the age of 15 he entered the music scene with his first band Uzi Suicide, a band characterized by its fusion of rock and metal. With time, his interest for more alternative music grew and he soon discovered the UK gothic scene, inspiring him write darker and more melancholic compositions.
In 1995 he co-founded Tristania and signed his first record deal at the age of 19. He released 2 full length albums and several EP's with this band, taking the underground scene by storm and becoming one of the leading acts within the genre almost overnight. Extensive touring in Europe and America followed including performances at some of the biggest music festivals in Europe. As the band's lyricist and main songwriter, Morten played a major role in defining gothic metal early on.
In January 2001 Morten parted ways with Tristania to form Sirenia. His intention was to set a new standard, taking his songwriting skills to a new level with a strong focus on the melodic aspects, as well as the more accessible song arrangements, without ever losing the foundation of his musical expression. The dramatic, symphonic, and sonorous elements still had an important role to play in his compositions. To date, Sirenia has released 4 albums and 1 EP. The band has toured worldwide and climbed the album charts in 6 countries, topping radio charts and receiving great reviews from the international press.
With his new project Mortemia, Morten intends to bring a new musical concept into the metal scene by balancing metal and classical music. Mortemia's debut album "Misere Mortem" is filled with sonorous songs that perfectly blend classical with the massive and powerful sound of a metal band. The guitar work seems more dominant here than in any of his previous projects and boasts of powerful guitar riffs accompanied by melodic leads and solos.
The vocal concept in Mortemia is based on an interaction between Morten's extreme vocals and the choir's dramatic rendition. The interaction between the vocals adds diversity and dynamics to the songs. Morten chose not to include female lead vocals this time to more easily set Mortemia apart from his other bands, as well as to differentiate Mortemia from the many female-fronted gothic metal bands presently overrunning the scene.
"Misere Mortem" represents a new beginning for Morten in many ways. It is the first album in which he is credited as the sole producer, in addition to also engineering and mixing the album on his own. The recording and mixing sessions took place in Morten's Audio Avenue Studios in Stavanger, Norway. The choral tracks were laid at Sound Suite Studios in France. Morten performed and programmed every instrument on the album, limiting outside contribution to the extraordinary French choir comprised by Damian Surian, Mathieu Landdry, Emmanuelle Zoldan, and Sandrine Gouttebel.

Grindcore bands

2010-07-12T13:39:00.000-07:00

01 Nasum

During the years, Nasum's had this lengthy biography which in reality is nothing else that a complete breakdown of the band's history, pointing out the highlights so far. This text has been rewritten and completed many times as soon as something new has happened. This is the last update, and the history of Nasum 1992-2004 is complete. The band was formed during the latter part of 1992 by Anders Jakobson (guitar) and Rickard Alriksson (drums/vocals) as a side project to the death metal band Necrony. The idea was to create true grindcore in the old Napalm Death style, no gore/porno-shit, just straight political grindcore. A couple of songs were written, but nothing really happened with the band. Spring 1993: Necrony's home label, German Poserslaughter Records offered Nasum to share a 7" EP with Australian goregrinders Blood Duster. Nasum accepted the offer, but in time the record turned out to be a Nasum/Agathocles split-7" EP. Two weeks before the first Nasum recording, another guitarist (Mieszko Talarczyk) was added. Together the band completed six tracks that were recorded at Unisound Studios in July 1993. The tracks were later released as the "Blind World" split-7" EP with Agathocles. Awaiting the release of the EP, a tape with the songs were sent out to different labels with the intention to pick up more offers for EP:s etc. Nasum recieved two positive answers; one offering a split-7" EP with Psycho on their label Ax/ction Records, but also an opportunity to participate on the well-reputated Swedish hardcore comp-LP "Really Fast"'s 9th volume. In November 1993 it was time for another trip to Unisound to record ten tracks; nine for the "Really Fast Vol 9" LP and one for Mieszko's comp-tape - "Corpse Flesh Genitals"' - second volume. Apparently, the track - entitled as the compilation - and the second volume ended up unreleased. The nine tracks (in all clocking 3.30!) contained a more rind/crust-inspired approach compaired to the grind/death kind of sound on the first recording, and the songs pointed out the future musical direction of Nasum. While dealing with Ax/ction Records, Mieszko decided to start his own label - Grindwork Productions - with a friend. As the label's first release a four-way split-3" MCD was planned, including Nasum, Retaliation (Swe), Clotted Symmetric Sexual Organ (Jap) and Vivisection (Jap). Eventually, Nasum yet again went to Unisound in September 1994, this time to record sixteen new tracks; eight which ended up on the "Smile When You're Dead" split-7" EP with Psycho and eight for the rindwork" split-3" MCD. On this recording the music took of where the preceding recording ended, but with a much heavier sound, changing the tuning from D to B. Inspired by Sweden's Regurgitate the next event in Nasum history was to record a demo, after two split-7" EP:s and two compilations! With a possibility to make a recording for free in a local studio, ten songs were written in a rush, and together with two re-recordings from the first two recordings and two covers, the songs were recorded as the "Domedagen" demo in November 1994. Since the recording was made in co-operation with inexperienced students learning to be sound ngineers, the sound turned out dark and muddy and obviously half of the new material turned out bad because of the rush.After two and a half years it was finally time for a record of their own as Poserslaughter Records offered a MCD. In February 1995 Nasum went to Unisound for the last time to record eighteen songs; twelve brand new ones and six re-recordings of the best songs from the "Domedagen" demo. One different detail from the previous recording was that fifteen of he songsincluded Swedish lyrics, although Nasum used lyrics in their native language on three tracks on the demo. The title of the MCD was "Industrislaven". In connection with the release of the MCD (September 1995), Poserslaughter invited Nasum to Berlin for a concert with labelmates Dead and Manos who released some records at the same time. Also a gig in southern Sweden were booked the day before. This led to some trouble as Rickard announced that he didn't want to do shows. Mieszko and Anders then got in touch with Per Karlsson (then a member of Suffer) who accepted the conditions for the "tour". So Nasum did their stage debute in Åstorp, Sweden, together with Kurbits I.R., Arsedestroyer, and Mentally Unstable, September 16th and then played in Berlin the day after with Dead and Manos This was the very end of Rickard's time in Nasum. He didn't share the same enthusiasm for the music and the lyrics as Mieszko and Anders, so he decided to quit. After an audition that didn't work out, Anders decided to take the empty place behind the drums leaving Mieszko alone with the strings. In November 1996 it was time for the "new" Nasum to do their first recording. Twentyfour tracks were recorded - eight for "The Black Illusions" (a split-7" EP with Abstain released by Yellow Dog Records, Germany in 1998) and sixteen for Nasum's first full-7" EP - "World In Turmoil", released by Blurred Records, Japan. This mighty recording was made in Nasum's rehearsalplace on a 8-tracker with a friend behind the soundboard. Although the conditions, this became Nasum's most brutal and rawest production up to date. The line-up was: Mieszko - guitar/vocals and Anders - drums/bass/vocals. June 1997, time for the seventh Nasum recording and this time 17 tracks were put on tape in Mieszko's own studio Soundlab. 16 tracks were recorded for an international grindcore/power violence compilation CD ("Regressive Hostility", released by Finnish Hostile Regression Records 1998). The seventeenth track was Discharge's "Vision Of War" recorded for a Scandinavian tribute to Discharge, released by Swedish Distortion Records a couple of years later. The complete recording was one of Nasum's best so far, hard hitting songs with a killer production. A tape with the songs was sent to American Relapse Records who, according to themselves, were "psyched" and wanted to sign the band for a fullength album. Nasum accepted at once and worked hard the whole fall of 1997 with the songs for the album, and in December Nasum once again entered Soundlab Studios to record what would be the "Inhale/Exhale" album. 42 new songs were put on tape over a two month period, of which 38 ended up on the final product. Even harder and more varied than before, Nasum brought some new blood to the grindcore style. In connection with the 42 songs, Nasum recorded 4 cover songs that was released as a bonus 7" in the vinyl version of "Inhale/Exhale" by Distortion Records in the fall of 1999. November 1998: Yet another visit to Soundlab Studios to record eight new tracks, four which were sent to Relapse to be used on compilations and eventually a split 7" EP with Warhate. The other four songs (clocking in at 1.20 minutes) were recorded only to appear on a split 5" EP together with three other split 5" EP's in a very interesting box set "Better off dead" which was to be released by Clean Plate Records. That never happened.After almost four years as a duo Nasum felt that it was time to expand the line-up with a bassplayer, since the offers for shows and tours started pouring in more frequently. In the spring of 1999 Jesper Liveröd (Burst) was tested and taken into the band. This was the start of a new era since Relapse not only offered Nasum to fly to USA to appear on the 13th Milwaukee Metalfest, but also to appear on a tour with four other Relapse acts following the festival. Summer 1999: After months if intense rehearsals the "new" Nasum debuted live on the Relapse stage at the Metalfest, almost four years since the last show in Berlin, Germany. Directly after the festival, Nasum did 10 more shows in the middle and east states as part of the Contamination 1999 tour with labelmates Today Is The Day, Soilent Green, Exhumed and Morgion.Nasum 2000. The Mark 5 line-up: Jesper - bass, Mieszko - guitar/lead vocals and Anders - drums/vocals.Fall 1999: Following the tour, Nasum wrote new songs and rehearsed intensly for six weeks before the recording of the second album started. This time Nasum devided the recording into two sessions, the first session in early October and the second one in late November/early December.The new songs showed a wider range of sounds compaired to the old material. Impressions picked up during the time in the states expanded the dynamic style of Nasum to a more varied version, with an addition of even more true grindcore. 31 songs were recorded, of which 25 ended up on the album, making it a shorter album with less, but longer songs compaired to it's predecessor. The album - "Human 2.0" - was released by Relapse Records during April 2000. In the middle of the recording, Nasum started to do shows in Sweden, with an appearence on a punk/HC festival in Umeå (way up north in Sweden). Later on, early January 2000, Nasum played in their hometown Örebro, with Entombed, and in March Nasum did a weekend-tour with Skitsystem. Spring 2000: In between doing shows in Sweden Nasum recorded the song "Tools of the Trade" for a Carcass-tribute. Summer 2000: Nasum did a couple of festivals, most memorable headlining the Fuck the Commerce III-festival in Germany and performing at the classic Hultsfred-festival in Sweden. Nasum also played with Napalm Death at the Dist 2000-festival in Forshaga, Sweden. By the end of the summer, Nasum recorded five new songs for the split 7" EP with Asterisk*. Fall 2000: Nasum did a seven week European tour supporting Napalm Death. Eight countries (France, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, Czech Republic, Germany, Holland and Belgium) and forty shows. Nasum had an online tour diary, which was updated while on tour. Only four days after the tour's last show, Nasum did their final show of 2000 in Gothenburg, Sweden, with Obligatorisk Tortyr and Mindsnare. Spring 2001: After not touching their instruments for over two months, Nasum rehearsed a few times and went out on a 14 days/14 shows tour together with The Haunted and Nine, doing 12 shows all over Sweden and one in Copenhagen (Denmark) and one in Oslo (Norway). The tour was a success, with a lot of media attention - features in the big newspapers, live recordings for the national radio and a 30-minute feature on national television (with all three bands). The toured showed that there are a big interest for harder music in Sweden (the show in Nasum's hometown Örebro was totally sold out - 560 people). Summer 2001: Cooling down after the intense spring tour, Nasum wrote a couple of new songs and got into the studio in May to record eight new songs, five for a split 7" EP with Skitsystem and three for the Swedish "Polar Grinder" compilation LP. The rest of the summer was spent on four festival shows in four countries, starting with the annual Arvikafestivalen in Sweden followed by an appearance at the Knock Out-festival in Switzerland. The biggest show during the summer was without doubt the Wacken Open Air in Germany where Nasum played at the Party stage in front of several thousands of people. The summer festivals tour then concluded with a return to the Milwaukkee Metalfest in the USA. Fall 2001: Another fall and another continent to visit - Nasum took part of the "Extreme the Dojo"-tour in Japan together with jazzy hardcore-rockers Candiria and the brutal deathmachine Cryptopsy. During three dates in Osaka, Nagoya and Tokyo this line up made the dojo extreme with different kind of underground music. Meeting the Japanese fans for the first time was a pleasure for Nasum and the tour was a great success for all parts. Spring 2002: After a pretty long break from everything Nasum flew to England and shared a nightliner with The Dillinger Escape Plan and Rabies Caste doing six shows together in England, Ireland and Scotland during a week in May. Playing for the fans in this part of Europe was something Nasum had been waiting to do for a long time. Summer and fall 2002: During the late summer Nasum started to write and rehearse songs for the third album, having just a short break in October to do two shows in Sweden (Stockholm and Örebro) with old friends Nine, Skitsystem, Daybreak and Relevant Few. Fall and winter 2002/2003: Nasum got into the studio and recorded the third album, entitled "Helvete" (Swedish for "Hell"). The recording was documented weekly in an illustrated studio diary on the website. Nasum was joined briefly by Shane Embury of Napalm Death and Jörgen Sandström of Entomber, playing bass and singing on some songs. Some local guests also appeared in the studio, the original drummer/singer Rickard Alriksson and Petter Freed of 2 Ton Predator came into the studio for some additional guitar noise. he third fullength from Nasum turned out to be a hellish album taking the "Human 2.0" style even further in it's variety, this time with a fullblown and powerful production, such the music of Nasum demands. Clocking in at 35.16, "Helvete" included 22 strong songs. Spring 2003: Avaiting the release of "Helvete" Nasum took the ferry to Finland for a short tour with fellow grinders Rotten Sound. Another country to add to the list. In May "Helvete" was released in Japan (by Ritual/Howling Bull again) the 8th, in USA (by Relapse) the 13th and in Europe (also by Relapse) the 19th. Nasum mark 6:Starting with the release party for "Helvete", Nasum was now a four piece, at least live. Urban Skytt from Regurgitate joined the band on the vacant second guitar spot. Summer 2003: Nasum played at some of the more important festivals in Sweden, starting with the infamous Hultsfredsfestival, where Nasum now played at a bigger stage compared to the 2000 show, further on to the Arvikafestival (again at a bigger stage compared to the 2001 show) and ending at the Augustibuller festival which also happened to be the last show Jesper did with Nasum. Jesper had even before "Helvete" was released announced to the other members in Nasum that he had decided to leave the band after the summer, to concentrate more on his other band Burst, who also released an album on Relapse during 2003. Fall 2003: A replacement for Jesper was found in Jon Lindqvist, a long time fan of Nasum and friend of the band. Jon, who also plays in bands like Sayyadina, Acursed and Victims, joined after only one audition and quickly became a full Nasum member alongside Urban who also joined the band as more than a live guitarist. The new line up debuted at a show in Uppsala together with Tragedy. Parts of the show was filmed by Swedish TV who did a feature about Nasum in the music show "Studio Pop". Nasum continued to establish the new line up with four more shows in Sweden before 2003 ended. Winter 2004: Nasum went for a second tour in Japan with Napalm Death, A.C. and Pig Destroyer in the seventh volume of the "Extreme the Dojo" tourpackage. A double pleasure this time, since it was great for Nasum to meet up with the Japanese fans and friends and also meet and tour with Napalm Death again. Back in Sweden Nasum attened two award ceremonies since "Helvete" had been nominated for best metalalbum of 2003. First of was the P3 Guld awards, which is the Swedish National Radio's award for new music. Nasum went to the award ceremony in Gothenburg and won the price! Just one week later Nasum went to Stockholm to take part of the Manifest award, which is the independent labels' Grammy award, and again Nasum won the price! Spring 2004: In frustation from a cancelled "Helvete" tour (slated for the fall of 2003) and inspirered by a new record deal with European, Swedish and even local label Burning Heart Records Nasum suprisingly, and secretly decided to do a new album. While the new deal, which also included licensing to Relapse in the US and to Ritual/Howling Bull in Japan, was worked out Nasum wrote and rehearsed new songs. Summer 2004: Unlike any other album recording, Nasum spent a month in Soundlab Studios during the hot season creating what would become the fourth album "Shift", a title chosen to pinpoint the changes the band had been through. While a load of new songs had been written, including stuff by the two new members, two old songs eventually made it to the album. One being a reworked leftover from the "Helvete" session, one being a personal favorite from the Abstain split 7" EP. Yet again, some friends were invited into the studio to add something extra, 2 Ton Predator's Petter Freed played some solos and Rogga Johansson put down all the low vocals. ust before, during and after the recording Nasum went to different festivals including a second visit to "Fuck The Commerce", the huge Finish festival "Tuska Open Air" and a gigantic free of charge show in Gothenburg. By that time the new deal was complete and Nasum could as a total surprise for most people announce the change of record label and the new album. Fall 2004: Awaiting the release of the album, Nasum recorded their first promotional video ever. The song chosen was the mid paced Carcass reminiscing "Wrath". The video was show at the classic Stockholm club Kafé 44 with some extras dressed in white coveralls and gasmaskes. "Shift" was released mid October and Nasum embarked on their first headlining European tour just a few days after the release. Starting in Stockholm, the four weeks on tour took Nasum through Germany, Holland, England, Scotland, Belgium, France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Austria and finally Denmark. Before 2004 was over Nasum managed to do one show in Sweden and one in Cremona, Italy together with Regurgitate, Cripple Bastards and Yaecopse. The year ended with high hopes of the future. A new recording was planned, a Swedish tour under consideration and new trips to the USA and Europe, not forgetting Nasum's most exciting show to date: an appearence at 2005's P3 The year ended with high hopes of the future. A new recording was planned, a Swedish tour under consideration and new trips to the USA and Europe, not forgetting Nasum's most exciting show to date: an appearence at 2005's P3 Guld award show to be aired live in national radio and TV

02 amon amarth

Deeply rooted in death metal with firm beliefs in Viking mythology, AMON AMARTH formed in 1992 in Tumba, Sweden, a southern suburb of Stockholm. They began writing material with lots of melodies, harmonies and lyrics about Vikings and the northern gods. In summer 1993 they entered Lagret Studio to record the never released demo "Thor Arise". The band continued to rehearse and writing stronger material and again entered the studio. The result was the second demo "The Arrival Of The Fimbul Winter". This time the band was much more satisfied with the sound and songs and launched it to an unsuspecting underground. The response was overwhelming, quickly selling out of the first pressing and secured them a one off deal with Singapore's Pulverised Records.

This time they decided to use Abyss Studio, owned by Peter Tägtgren of Hypocrisy, and during five days in November 1995 the MCD "Sorrow Throughout The Nine Worlds" was recorded. The five track recording contained three new songs plus two re-recorded tracks from the band's second demo. The MCD was released in April 1996 and continued the band's build to world dominance. June 1996 saw the exiting of drummer Nico who was quickly replaced with Martin Lopez. During this time labels began to show interest and after much consideration the band chose to sign with Metal Blade. In March 1997 AMON AMARTH entered again Abyss Studios to record their Metal Blade debut "Once Sent From The Golden Hall" with Peter Tägtgren. The result proved that they were destined to become force of fury in the Swedish Death Metal scene and beyond.

After the recording of "Once sent...", guitarist Anders Hansson quit just a month before their first major tour with Deicide, Six Feet Under and Brutal Truth in June 98. They quickly recruited Johan Söderberg to make the line-up complete. The line-up was now solidified. "The Avenger" was recorded at Abyss Studios Sweden February to March 1999. Produced by the band, the seven track album is a lesson in pure Viking aggression and brutality blurring the line between death and black metal. The tour following this release was the X-mas massacre festivals, headlined by Morbid Angel.

In November 2000 the band entered The Abyss Studio for, as it would turn out, the last time. This time they recorded the album "The Crusher" (released in 2001). Living up to it's name, "The Crusher", the album is the most brutal album the band has produced so far. This release gave Amon Amarth the opportunity to tour a lot more than before and right after the recording they went on their first headlining tour through Denmark and Germany with Purgatory and Seirim. That tour ended up with great succes and they also managed to be the first metal band entering the German stages for the century. 00.05, 01 of January in 2001 in Guben. Then they went on the No Mercy Festivals 2001 with bands like Marduk and Vader. In the fall of 2001, AMON AMARTH was supposed to support Marduk on their American tour, but due to the events of September 11th, that tour was postponed until January 2002, and if that wasn't enough, Marduk couldn't make it over to the states. So AMON AMARTH got to headline their very first US tour, supported by Diabolic from Tampa, FL. The tour was a huge success, but unfortunately the tour agency decided to cut the tour short with one week. Returning to Europe, AMON AMARTH was offered the possibility to headline their own full European tour, and in April 2002 they went on the road together with Swedish "gore-masters" Vomitory. During the tour the band kept writing new material for an upcoming album.

August 2002 started with the bands second appearance at Wacken Open Air. Approximately 12 000 people saw the show, and the response was overwhelming. Almost going straight from Wacken to the Studio, AMON AMARTH began recording their new album "Versus the World" on August 7th. This time, however, the band had to use a new studio, since Peter no longer produces or records any bands, except his own, in his studio. The choice fell on Berno Studio in Malmö, and it turned out to be a great choice. Berno Studio has a great reputation in the scene and AMON AMARTH found it to be very easy to work with both Berno (owner, engineer) and Henrik (engineer). Recording in a new studio gave new dimensions to the bands sound. During the recording, the band managed to squeeze in a trip to Germany and the Summer Breeze festival, where they made a successful appearance.

AMON AMARTH toured incessantly to promote this album (3 American and 2 European tours, no less), the press woke up to their qualities, and legions of followers put the band on one level with those acts who had dominated the scene for years on end. This set the stage for "Fate Of Norns", AMON AMARTH's breakthrough album and highest charting release to date. Once again recorded at Berno Studios, "Fate Of Norns" saw the band touring Europe and America to ecstatic response from their fans, as well as conquering several new territories, such as Iceland, Mexico, Ireland, Poland, Croatia, and Norway. One of the highlights of the "Fate" touring cycle was undoubtedly when over 30,000 rabid fans gathered in front of the stage at 2AM to celebrate their heroes at Wacken Open Air 2004.

As a tribute to their loyal following, the band released a 3 DVD set entitled "Wrath Of The Norsemen", comprised of five full shows, in May 2005. With no less than six weeks in the German Music DVD Charts as we speak, the momentum gathered by the band by now is one that marketing strategists and industry people would kill to be able to reproduce. Talent, perseverance, and hard work do pay off after all. Which brings us to "With Oden On Our Side"…

In January 2006, the band started writing the follow-up to "Fate Of Norns". Being able for the first time to concentrate 100% on the music, the sessions proved fruitful, as guitarist Olavi Mikkonen confirms: "We nailed down all ideas we had from the past year and we rehearsed 5 days a week, 9 to 5. At the end of the month we had finished a 5 song demo." After a two-month break, the band returned to write the rest of the material: "We started up where we had left off and began working on all new ideas we had. Again 5 days a week, 9 to 5. This time around we had 4 new songs and the album was written. We had never written an album under these intense circumstances, but we found out that this was totally right for us." The new masterpiece "With Oden On Our Side" was born.

03 Devildriver

A devil driver is the name witches give to the bells they use to drive evil away when they are casting their spells.
For lead singer Dez Fafara, music has always been a devil driver of sorts - allowing him to drive away all of the demons of his world with a bellowing howl that is distinctively his. Ten years long and ten years strong, his assault on music has created a sound that remains both remarkably resonant and pertinent in today's metal world. DevilDriver's second album, The Fury Of Our Maker's Hand , produced by Colin Richardson, sees Fafara and the band reaching well beyond the rock solid foundation of their self-titled debut and scaling all new sonic precipices.
While most bands mature from their debut to their follow-up, DevilDriver did so by growing tighter as unit and enabling every member of the band to add to the musical sound of the band. Like many bands before them, DevilDriver went through a number of transitions during this period, and rather than finding those changes to be creatively constrictive, they allowed the band to grow as a creative unit. A true collaborative effort, The Fury of Our Maker's Hand was built riff by riff, song by song, by Jeff Kendrick & Mike Spreitzer (guitar), Jon Miller (bass) and John Boecklin (drums). "This band is amazing," says Fafara. "They all strapped on guitars and really came together around my musical vision." Together they created an album whose sonic breadth is truly a testament to their collaborative effort. "There's more melody, more hooks, more solos. There's more symbiosis in the band. Everyone is playing together really well."
Songs like "End of the Line" and "Driving Down The Darkness" are unrelenting compositions of equal parts speed and fury, showing what team-work can actually accomplish, taking DevilDriver's sound into the red. "Sin & Sacrifice" is an opus in the truest metal sense with a DevilDriver twist, starting off with an eerie orchestral intro and slowly building into wave after wave of menacing metal madness. "Hold Back The Day", the first single from Fury , combines the old with the new, simultaneously harkening back to their debut album while clearly reaching into new and fresh directions. "The songs are all separate from each other, but they've also got that grindy groove sound that only we can capture," says Fafara. "We've got our own sound and that's what we set out to do."
Not only has the bands' music matured, but Fafara's lyrics have done so as well. Gone are the days of free-floating, non-linear vocal lines that have become Fafara's trademark of sorts, rather Fury finds Fafara tackling issues and telling stories in a more traditional lyrical sense. "Before you had to try and figure out what I was saying in my lyrics. On the new album I'm trying to be more of a storyteller." While DevilDriver was laced with some of Fafara's familiar cadences, The Fury of Our Maker's Hand finds him breaking free and redirecting his sound in line with that of this band.
Fafara looks back with respect on his Coal Chamber days, but DevilDriver is the realization of all his true musical aspirations. "The influence to start this band was that I wanted to do something that was heavier, darker and full of more of my metal influences that I listen to on a daily basis. Every time I get on stage, I want to feel the music behind me. That is DevilDriver." Born out of frustration with his former band, cultivated through numerous barbecues and free-flowing red wine and solidified through a near-death experience in an RV, DevilDriver is not Dez Fafara and crew - rather it is a hard-as-nails metallic maelstrom that pounds out some of the most vicious music heard on the metal landscape today.
A balancing act of contorted melody lines, jagged guitars and staccato double bass drumming, The Fury of Our Maker's Hand delivers a uniquely sinister sound. An uncompromising tirade on all that is wrong in the world and all that is right in metal, it delivers a resounding F*** YOU to the world at large. Joined by his band and fueled by perseverance it's good to see that after 10 years Dez Fafara's middle finger is bigger than ever.

04 Cattle Decapitation

Over the span of a decade, Cattle Decapitation has forged its not-so-humble beginnings in gore-grind into one of extreme metal's most relentless forces, encompassing a sound as schizophrenic as their record collections but with a determined lyrical stance resolutely damning the ills of humanity.

After a couple early line-up shifts, "Human Jerky," Cattle Decapitation's first full-length, was released in 1999 as LP-only by Nevada label Satan's Pimp. The album featured the bass-less trio of Travis Ryan on vocals, Gabe Serbian on guitar and Dave Astor on drums. Serbian and Astor split duties with the ubiquitous arty-grind act The Locust. "Human Jerky" as well as 2000's "Homovore" (released by San Diego's Three One G label) showcased Ryan's obsessively gore-oriented musings laced within his pro-vegetarian/anti-human posture. In keeping with the spirit of the genre as well as the lyrical urgency, the 90's trio was additionally known for its ultra-short songs and unforgettable live performances (Ryan was known to occasionally perform in a mask sewn
of beef jerky). The band procured Venezuelan installation artist Nelson Garrido's arranged pieces of deceased livestock for two unmistakable album covers.

The early twenty-first century brought about a slew of changes in personnel and increased sonic brutality. Shortly after the release of Homovore, Troy Oftedal filled the formerly-vacant bass slot. Josh Elmore (previously of notorious humor-grind act 7000 Dying Rats) was brought into the fold on second guitar only to take on sole duties after Serbian's departure to focus on The Locust. The revised line-up carved their debut for Metal Blade with 2002's "To Serve Man," a coalescence of brutal grind and death metal with an increased spotlight on Elmore's arrival. After months of touring in support of the album, the band parted ways with longtime drummer Dave Astor and swiftly brought aboard good friend Michael Laughlin, formerly of San Francisco's tech-grinders Creation is
Crucifixion. With Laughlin instantly adding an increased rhythmic dynamic to the group, the relentless tour cycle was resumed straight up to the release of 2004's "Humanure." The album offered a beefed-up production, an evolved song craft and artwork that perfectly depicted the ultimate revenge on humanity, a cow excreting human remains (resulting "Humanure" as their most-banned album domestically as well as overseas). The band's experimental leaning on this record reared its head in the form of a ten-minute long track constructed almost entirely of slaughterhouse field recordings.

Between more tours Cattle Decapitation recorded 2005's split 7" shared with the canine-fronted grindcore oddity Caninus. This material saw a return-to-form in terms of song lengths but introduced an increasingly-diverse range of extreme metal. This has laid the framework for 2006's full-length, "Karma.Bloody.Karma." In Ryan's words, "This will be
the most nihilistic, pessimistic and hateful record we've ever done lyrically. Musically, imagine the Caninus split material, just longer in every way." The album features guest appearances by Joey Karam (The Locust) and John Wiese (Sunn0))),Bastard Noise) and
production by Billy Anderson (Swans, Mr. Bungle, Melvins). Since the recording, Laughlin has parted company and J.R. "Kid Gnarly" Daniels of Tampa, Florida's Unholy Ghost has stepped in to fill drum duties.

05 Napalm Death

Napalm Death was originally called "Civil Defence" and started in Birmingham, a working class city, in 1982. Information about the background of the band during this period is very scarce, since they did little recording. Anyway, it started as a Punk rock project by high school student Nick Bullen, Miles Ratledge and some friends they met at school. At this stage, the band had a punk rock/hardcore sound and was strongly inspired by the band Crass and the anarchopunk scene that took place in England in the early 80's.
As this was a very different band, I have made a special page just with detailed information dealing with the origin of Napalm Death. For a bio, interview, notes and graphics of that era: EARLY NAPALM DEATH HOMEPAGE. This page wouldn't be possible without the help of Miles Ratledge and Stewart Lee, so a mighty thanks goes out to both of them.
This incarnation of Napalm Death didn't last very long though. In the beggining Napalm didn't sound like the holocaustic destruction that we know today, but they were more inspired by early punk bands and other underground acts such as Amebix and Crass.Within that style, the band recorded a few demos and a participation on the compilation "Bullshit Detector#3", that being a compilation of punk bands made by Crass records, a label owned by Crass, a very political and socially aware british band. This is the first official Napalm Death studio recording. They were developing quite a strong following, and the band started to grow.
Meanwhile, young guitarrist Justin Broadrick was playing by himself in a project called "Final", which he taped in his room or wherever (and whenever) he could, and didn't do much else (Justin still plays and releases records under the name Final, together with Godflesh's bassist B.C.Green). Nick Bullen met Justin Broadrick in a record shop that both used to hang out in Birmingham. They had similar interests (Punk Rock, Metal, Throbbling Gristle...) and soon enough Justin was admitted into Nick Bullen's project. This was around May 1985, and with him came the very first metal sounds. "Justin came about and presented a more metallic style, combined with loose Killing Joke playing" says former drummer Mick Harris. They then recorded a legendary demo (Hatred Surge). On the Hatred Surge demo they had some funny pseudonymous. The line-up described on the tape is: Nik - Vox, Just - Guitar, Nuts - Bass, Rat - Drums.
After recording the Hatred demo, The Rat got out (Harris says that they were having problems with him) and Mick Harris, a local fan who didn't even owned his own drum kit was admitted into the band. As he says: "I had become a keen fan watching every local show and got the job I guess. (...) all I had was a pair of sticks and i wanted to go Maniac behind the kit". The band then became a three piece (with Nik Bullen taking over bass duties besides singing) and having Justin only on guitar and newcomer Mick on drums. "It became more metal influenced as the three of us played more" continues Mick.

Then, they actually became the most extreme grindcore act ever. After getting in touch with Digby Pearsons, the owner of the small label "Earache Records", through mutual friends, Napalm Death signed a deal and recorded half (yes, HALF of the songs!) of what was to be their debut album "Scum" in 1986. As Dig himself says: "I first met them in 85 or 86, they had putted a demo out, and no one would touch it. But I listened to it, and I loved it, so I decided to put it out". The album was yet unreleased.
Although ND was the first band who actually coined the word "Grindcore" to classify and define the type of music that they played, lots of other bands where already doing it for a while. Acts such as Siege, Repulsion, Macabre, S.O.B., Larm, Heresy, Criptic Slaughter, Nausea, Death and many others where all known for playing ultra fast and brutal songs. They didn't actually "invented" grindcore, but more like helped it evolve and go forward. Anyway, Napalm Death was the first to actually pigeonhole those bands within a style, and to establish themselves as kings of the genre.
"Grindcore was Micky's (Mick Harris) term" says singer Mark Greenway: "It didn't come from the press, we invented it". Concerning the definition of what is grind, he says:"Grind can be anything from ultrafast thrash to really slow, heavy and dense music like early Swans". The grind scene was then beggining to take shape, and soon all bands would be led by Napalm Death.
At this time Nik Bullen was both playing the bass and singing but that was soon to change... As with everything in Napalm Death. In order to make things easier to Nik, a new bassist, Jim Whitley, was called, and Nik concentrated in singing.
On they went playing in small clubs and the like, gaining a small but loyal following.
During one of the concerts, the band played with fellow noisiers Head of David (which was also a brutal band, but industrial like) and Justin, which was absolutely mad about the guys, was offered to play with them, provided that he left Napalm. He didn't think twice before leaving Grindcore for good, and joining Head of David on drums. Napalm Death didn't have a guitarrist anymore.
Not long after Justin left, Nik Bullen ALSO left. According to Mick Harris he was loosing interest, showing up late for rehearsals, etc. He was asked to settle or get out. Obvioulsy he chose the latter, left the band and wen't to collage. (Later, he formed the ambient-dub-drum 'n' bass-industrial-dance-whatever combo "Scorn" with Mick Harris, but more of that in proper time). The lyrics sheet in Scum has a message from Mick Harris to both Nik and Justin, saying goodbye and telling them to keep together, which, to tell you the truth......they didn't!!!
The band was then reduced to Jim on Bass and Mick on Drums, and things were clearly not going anywhere this way.....they had to look for new members. Guitarrist Bill Steer played in a local grind band called Carcass, (you might have heard about them!!!) and given the afinity between the bands, he soon joined Mick and ND. Also, a new singer had been called: Lee Dorrian!! Yes!!! the king of screaming Grindcore himself! So now the band, whose original members where all gone (but Mick) had a new guitarrist (Bill), a solo singer (Lee), Mick on drums and Jim on bass, a lovely line-up.
With this line-up they recorded what was to become th B side of "Scum", and the result was finally released trough Earache as MOSH 3. An instant hit among the underground community, Scum sold very well as soon as it was released (more than 90 thousand copies in England only). It caused an impact in extreme music that is felt 'till today, influencing bands from all around the world. This classic attempt against logical musical structure and good taste features seminal Grindcore classics such as "Dragnet", "Mind Control", and the yet to be surpassed "You Suffer", an exquisite piece of composition which lasts for about 0.7 seconds (a world record for the world's shortest song maybe?)
After the warm welcome from thrashers, punks, metalheads, moshers, grinders and the like, the band went on tour. Nevertheless, no stranger to line-up changes, ND lost another of its members. Jim was out of the band just before the tour for "Scum" was about to be (again for reasons unknown...as one can see Napalm Death is a rather misterious band). Enter Shane Embury, the guy with the ugliest hair in the history of Grindcore. After this small line-up change, they took part in two compilations (North atlantic noise attack and the Pathological), recorded two Peel sessions and a Split 7" with japanese grinders S.O.B. On top of that, our adorable grinders went to Rich Bitch studio once more and recorded their second insult to moralistc society, the controversial classic "From Enslavement to Obliteration".
Very much in the same vein of "Scum", "From Enslavement..." differs from "Scum" as far as production goes, but that's about it. Here, again, we have the same bombastic waves of noise and ultra-fast-light-speed thrash that made our hearts warmer when listening to "Scum". Bill's guitar shreds through thin air, and Lee's vocals sound as if he was vomitating and agonizing in pain. Pure joy and clean entertainment for the whole family, a classic no doubt. Following the release of FETO Napalm had a participation on BBC's Arena Heavy Metal Special, which proved how successfull the band could be.
The band went on touring around the world for a while, but as soon as they came back home from Japan, in july 1989, Bill and Lee decided to quit and follow their own paths. Well, once again Napalm was reduced to a pair of members. But both Shane Embury and Mick Harris knew what to do, so it didn't take long before they contacted what were to be the new members of ND.
Soon enough they contacted Jesse Pintado (who had played in a Grind project called "Terrorizer"). A new singer, Mark "Barney" Greenway, who sung in the Death Metal act "Benediction" was also called, and immediatelly joined the Wild Bunch. The band was now ready to rock, and so they did.
After recruiting new members for the Napalm front, the band took part of the Grindcrusher tour, with fellow labelmates Carcass, Bolt Thrower and Morbid Angel. After the touring, our toxic avengers decided to change things a little bit.They called in a second guitarrist, Mitch Harris (Ex Rightous Pigs), and soon started writting new songs with this line-up. With different members, and differnet things in mind, Napalm Death now also wanted a new producer. On they went to american Death Metal producer extraordinarie Scott Burns (of Sepultura and Death fame), who lives and works in Florida. Burns records most of his stuff on Morrisound studio, a kind of "meeting point" for extreme bands. The place has already been used by acts such as Obituary, Fear Factory, Deicide, Death and others. It was time for Napalm Death to be introduced to this wonderfull place.
The band went to Morrisound and started working on their new album: "Harmony Corruption". While writting "Harmony..." they definitely changed their style a little, going from the straightforward, no-holds-barred Grindcore, to a healthy "mix" of good old sonic blast beats and some slower, more rithmic parts. It is much more Death Metal influenced than the previous albums, and it was a good progression as far as the compositions went. But, nothing is perfect, and Scott Burns production on this record is really shitty. Like me, the band also didn't like Burns's work, and never worked with him again.
After releasing the new record, ND went on touring around the world (starting with Brasil!!! yeah!! being supported by Sepultura during the Beneath the Remains era) and from the material filmed at those concerts they released a home-video, "Live Corruption". Napalm's last founding member, Mick Harris wanted to change the band. He was bored by all the Death/Thrash thing and wanted to experiment a little, try new things, risk a little more. His idea was to introduce things like samplers and drum machines into the band. Well, the other guys didn't like those ideas very much. They still wanted to play straighforward Grindcore!!! And so Mick was forced to quit Napalm and started his own band, Scorn. Ironicly enough, he called ND's original Bassist/vocalist Nik Bullen, and ND's original guitarrist Justin K. Broadrick, and together they went to the studio to record Scorn's debut, "Vae Solis".
An extensive US tour with Sepultura, Sacred Reich and Sick Of It All followed, widening the Napalm Death audience even further.
In the meantime, ND released a new record, "Utopia Banished". Now working with producer extraordinarie Colin "mr. soft" Richardson. This release was a kind of "return to the roots". Bombastic, "take no prisioners" grindcore is played here, no survivals at all costs!!! Much more minimal than "Harmony", this record follows the same style we had in "Scum" and "From Enslavament". A very nice record on the early ND tradition. After recording "The World Keeps Turning" EP, the band trekked Europe with Dismember and Obituary on the "Campaing for Musical Destruction" tour. The tour continued in the US, with Napalm playing with Cathedral, Carcass and Brutal Truth.
Things then went more smoothly to our dear Napalmers. The line-up was never to change again. Mitch, Jesse and Danny all went to England to live with Shane, and the only one living alone (in Bimingham, the others live in Wolverhampton) is Barney. After all the touring and stuff, the band rested for a while, went to the studio and recorded "Fear, Emptiness, Despair...". Now this was a major change!!

No:1 Atmospheric Death metal ever

2010-07-11T05:42:00.000-07:00

Septic Flesh

The band was originally formed under the name Septic Flesh in March 1990. Their first MLP "Temple of The Lost Race" was released in December 1991. It was completely sold out and now is a real cult item. Two songs from this release and the song "Morpheus (The Dreamlord)" formed the "Morpheus Awakes"-promo that gained them a contract with Holy Records.

"Mystic Places of Dawn" was their first full length album, a journey to ancient mysteries and places of myth and fantasy. It was recorded on Storm Studio, with Magus Wampyr Daoloth as co-producer, and was released on April 1994. It was one of the first underground releases that presented to the audience, the combination of fast speeds and brutality with melodic atmospheric parts, the sound that later was labelled as "Dreamy Death Metal". The devastating track "Return to Carthage" was chosen from this album to appear on the Nuclear Blast's "Death Is Only The Beginning III" compilation.

One year later on June 1995 the band returned with "Esoptron". It was recorded again on Storm Studio with the help of Magus Wampyr Daoloth as co-producer. The result was a unique threnody exploring the chaotic ego in a dark romantic way. The tempo this time was slower, and the band inserted more doom elements to the music. On the other hand, the influences from the ancient Hellenic culture and music were at their peak.

The next album "Ophidian Wheel" came out on May 1997 and exceeded all expectations raising the popularity of the band. This time the band used Praxis Studio and Lambros Sfyris as co-producer. The addition of female vocals, with the help of Natalie Rassoulis, and the neoclassical influences that were brought from Chris A. (due to his studies on an English university of music), made the songs sound even more theatrical and technical. As for the lyrics, they were designed to form a mystical concept about the secret "engine" that generates change and motion in reality...

"A Fallen Temple" was the last album under the name Septic Flesh and the last cooperation of the band with Natalie Rassoulis. The band decided to close the first chapter on March 1998, presenting to the fans the hidden treasures of it's history, the extremely rare songs of "Temple of The Lost Race" MLP. For that purpose, they entered Praxis Studio to re-record the old material. In addition, they recorded five new songs to give a taste of the future. Songs like "Marble Smiling Face' and " The Eldest Cosmonaut" became soon very popular.

"The Eldest Cosmonaut" was the band's first videoclip. Later it was included in a special package, along with a MCD filled with 4 bonus tracks. The title of this release was representative of what would come... D.N.A, a Dark New Age of musical enchantment.

The success of the "Temple of Humiliations" tour, with Natron and Misanthrope as supporting bands, proved that the followers of the Dreamlord are indeed powerful and their legions have grown a Hell lot! The time was right for a big bold step forwards...

On the 12th of June 1999 started the "Revolution DNA", on the Swedish Studio Fredman (Arch Enemy, In Flames, Hammerfall etc.), with the help of Fredrik Nordström as producer. The result is simply, innovative metal music for the Dark New Age. This album is the final breath of the flesh and the birth from its burning ashes of the Chaostar. The new name has the aura of the dark sun that rules the infinite worlds. Songs as "Nephilim Sons", "Last Stop to Nowhere", "Age of New Messiahs", "Android", "Chaostar", are destined to haunt the dreams of those that will unlock the doors of Revolution DNA. One small taste is capable to leave one addicted to the intense guitar melodies, the sharp rhythm section and the ocean of experimental sampler sounds that stigmatise this album. The vocals of Spiros A. are more theatrical and soulful now. As for the performance of Sotiris V., it is electrifying! Surely, the fans of the band will be more than satisfied, as the band has developed the music in a refreshing way, without loosing the elements that were always on the core of its essence.

Two years have passed since the release of the " Revolution DNA" album the band decided to move forward and expand its horizons. HOLY RECORDS was too limited for their ambition, demands and musical genius, so they started working with HARVEST MUSIC management, looking for a label fitted to their musical abilities. The search was on for months and several negotiations with big labels, multinational and independent, took place. Contracts were reviewed, deals were discussed. Finally in late 2001, the band found its new home: the European death metal factory of the mighty HAMMERHEART RECORDS. The pact was done!
In summer 2002 they entered the infamous FREDMAN STUDIO once again in order to record the new masterpiece! After 6 weeks of intense recordings in the Swedish land, the new opus was ready: " Sumerian Daemons"! As it is clear from its title the new album is their fiercest album to date! Sheer brutality combined with their classic melodic lines, mixed with pure devilry and symphonic, operatic parts of the highest musicianship! Everything packed together in an unbelievable combo: aggression, speed, melody, profanity, classical orchestrations and a devious dark atmosphere which engulfs everything!
For the photo session and layout photos the art of the notorious Alahouzos brothers (the famous special FX duo) was summoned. With their help, the band managed to transform their nightmarish music into images! Such profanity has never printed on film before! The experience of the Alahouzos brothers in horror movies, gave to SEPTIC FLESH the sinister atmosphere other bands luck! Be prepared for a piece of extreme art fuelled with visions from your worst nightmares! You have been warned...
Septic Flesh is the sick union of the following beings:
Spiros A. (Dragon Voice \ Bass) Sotiris V. (Vocals \ Guitars) Chris A. (Guitars \ Samplers)Akis K. (Drums)

the best Gothenburg metal 2010

2010-07-10T13:06:00.000-07:00

....Soilwork The Panic Broadcast....

Soilwork's eighth album 'The Panic Broadcast' marks the return of guitarist Peter Wichers. Since Wichers exited the band due to feeling he couldn't top what the band had done prior, it was crucial that this new album didn't repeat any patterns.

"We wanted to do a record that felt spontaneous yet genuine, not just using the formula that has worked in the past. We challenged ourselves," Wichers told Noisecreep. "In the past, we focused on that one song that could get radio airplay. We gave that a good shot, but it never 'happened.' So we were going to write what we felt is awesome and not focus on length and make sure the songs are interesting all the way through -- and not compromise to keep the length at [three and a half mintues]. I felt like that was one of the major differences."

Other differences and improvements on 'The Panic Broadcast' include extended verses, which is new for Soilwork. "We hadn't done that before and we are bringing back older elements," Wichers, who lives in North Carolina and is a transplanted Swede, said. "Also, with guitar solos, the problem we had [was] not working on what's behind the lead. It's usually just straight chords and then someone shreds for a minute. But if you write a specific part for the lead underneath, it's more interesting than people who just like a shred. Girls don't just love guitar solos!'

Like Wichers, much of the band splits time between the U.S. and Sweden and doesn't live in Sweden full time when not touring. Wichers feels like a resident of the U.S., too. "I am used to how it works here, so I am Americanized," he said. "When I go home, it's like, 'What do you mean the grocery store closes at 8? I can't get a burger at 2 AM? It's the convenience factor. You get used to that, and you can't beat the weather here compared to Sweden."

THE MERCURY ARC

2010-07-10T05:19:00.000-07:00

Heavy, all-out and riddled with multi-layered melodies - the distinctive metalcore mix of THE MERCURY ARC definitely thumbs the eardrums of demanding fans of relentless music.THE MERCURY ARC stands for impulsive tension, reactive melodies and aggressive audio-impact. Mercury is known for it's toxicity and for it's liquid state of aggregation which is unique among metal. So is the dynamic music of the band, named after the physical mercury phenomenon, which shifts the listener into a toxic flush. The band's name has been chosen consciously to express how the band's sound unifies metallic heaviness, liquid liveliness and melodic ease. Since 2006 it's the stated aim of the band to establish a musical massif of various styles of Metal and Hardcore. These six blooded musicians: Dennis Diehl, Benny Richter begin_of_the_skype_highlighting end_of_the_skype_highlighting, Thomas Helten, Dominic Paraskevopoulos, Andy Posdziech and Andy Latzko from the Ruhr-Area, Germany are now recording their debut album which will be released on 6th of November 2009. The upcoming record embodies the fast-paced development of THE MERCURY ARC. With the new record in stores and their new band name (formerly Butterfly Coma) along with their new guitar player these musicians will push the envelope in 2009. The sound of THE MERCURY ARC stands out with it’s cutting aggressive guitar riffs, paired with catchy melodies which are borne by several voice vocals and spherical keyboards. The driving drum rhythms and grooving bass lines along with the brute shouting of the singer form the backbone of the songs. The blend gets flavored with cutting-edge scratches and samples. Producer of their debut album is Benny Richter, who has previously worked in the studio with bands like Caliban, Krypteria and Emil Bulls. The soundtrack of the successful Halloween-event Terenzi Horror Nights also bears his musical signature. After the album release in autumn the band is up for an extensive support tour.

Top 10 Swedish bands

2010-07-10T05:02:00.001-07:00

01 Soilwork

Soilwork was first formed in the end of 1995, but under the name Inferior Breed with the following line-up: Peter Wichers - rhythm guitar, Jimmy Persson - drums, Bjorn Strid - vocals, Mattias "Nizze" Nilsson - lead and rhythmguitar and Carl-Gustav Doos - bass.
This sound was mostly technical stuff in the vein of Machine Head and Pantera.
As the time went by we started to get more and more intrested in the melodies. By the fall of 1996, we decided to change the name to Soilwork to fit the new sound we had created. We did a demotape that was entitled "In Dreams we fall into the eternal lake", this demotape consited of 5 songs. One of them was just a philosofical break, but the other four had good potential. The Demotape was passed out to many record companies and we actually hooked up with Mike Amott from ARCH ENEMY. Mike worked at a local recordshop in Helsingborg, and as we one day came in to glance the CD's we thought that it would be a good idea to give him a copy of the tape, so we did! Mike liked the demo very much, so we asked him if he could pass it on to some labels, and he did.
During the break between the demo and the album we maneged to get a new bassplayer by the name Ola Flink. He was tall as hell and most certainly could rock! We got in touch with two labels, which were very interested in us. Things took it's turns and we decided to write with a promising label from France called LISTENABLE Records. Shortly after we wrote the deal, we went into the famous Studio Fredman to record our debut album " Steel Bath Suicide ".

02 Scar Symmetry

Just when you think a genre has exhausted its possibilities, when a certain style of metal has hit the wall of mediocrity, along comes a band to jolt life back into it. Hailing from Sweden - a mecca for melodic death metal - and on a quest to pioneer their own form of that well-established genre, SCAR SYMMETRY proved to be an exceptional gathering of talents able to produce an eccentric mixture of metal that can only be described as an intoxicating, modern hybrid of melodic death metal. Encapsulating everything each band member loves about metal - harmony, melody, brutality, exceptional songwriting, complex instrumentation - this union of Yin/Yang elements lent itself to SCAR SYMMETRY's blueprint of amalgamation in their quest to make unbridled music devoid of borders.

The band's name - thought into existence by drummer Ohlsson - denotes a peculiar balance. A combination of a "hard" word (scar), and a "soft" word (symmetry), it symbolizes the emotional scars everyone harvests from living a human life and the symmetry we share with each other as a result. For Jonas Kjellgren (Carnal Forge, Centinex, World Below), Henrik Ohlsson (Altered Aeon, Theory In Practice, Mutant), Per Nilsson (Altered Aeon), Christian Älvestam (Unmoored, Incapacity, Torchbearer), and Kenneth Seil, the symmetry existed in spades. There was an instant "click" between these musicians hailing from different regions of Sweden, and difficult as it is to believe, the band sent the Stockholm-based Cold Records their one-track (!) demo, "Seeds Of Rebellion," and landed a deal in mid-2004.

For their debut album, SCAR SYMMETRY entered Kjellgren's own Black Lounge Studio to record and self-produce Symmetric In Design in three months. Featuring artwork by Pär Johansson, the lyrics tackled mystical & cosmic themes such as astral projection, reincarnation, and dark prophecies of a dystopian future. Showcasing ambient vocal harmonies, striking & intricate transitions, and a deeply rooted spirit of experimentation in all twelve tracks, SCAR SYMMETRY created one of 2005's buried treasures, as Symmetric In Design went on to place in multiple end-of-the-year lists among the metal press under various categories: "Best Debut Album," "Best of 2005," and "Bands You Should Know." Vocalist Christian Älvestam demonstrated all the signs of multiple personality disorder with his Mikael Åkerfeldt-styled guttural death growls, his higher, sadistic register similar to Hypocrisy's Peter Tägtgren, and ultimately unleashing an emotionally clean voice bordering on the likes of AOR-styled rock. "A standout first effort," hailed AllMusic.com, while Outburn Magazine praised: "Complete with amazing guitar work, dark symphonic synthetic ambience, and bone-crushing thrash-heavy grooves, SCAR SYMMETRY reaches into little-charted territory to capture the imagination."

With less than eight months between releases, SCAR SYMMETRY's ambition seeks to flex its muscular and melodic aggression once again with Pitch Black Progress. Featuring the same stellar cast from their debut album, this sophomore effort proves they have created a dominion of inherent diversity where THEY control the extremes. Re-entering Black Lounge Studio (owned and run by Kjellgren, who comes from a family lineage of professional musicians) with their no-holds-barred approach to music making, SCAR SYMMETRY dive deep into their collective subconscious and resurface to unveil another sonic tapestry of astoundingly versatile textures. With the aim to resurrect the awe in their listeners, "The Illusionist," "Slaves To The Subliminal," "The Kaleidoscopic God," "Calculate The Apocalypse," and "Retaliator" all exemplify Älvestam's extreme range (which takes you between fearsome death growls & blissfully clean vocals and back again), Kjellgren & Nilsson's tricky fretwork & heroic, prog-infused guitar solos, Seil's precise bass lines, and Ohlsson's exacting drum work. Every track converges into a pinnacle of raw talent that flourishes with its expression.

03 Arch Enemy

Who is a rebel but someone inclined to resist authority? What is rebellion but open defiance of that authority?
With a band name meaning chief attacker, principle opponent, and eminent hostile foe, ARCH ENEMY's blatant philosophy of insurgence is exactly what propels them out of the masses of convention and into the frontline of a movement that dares to defy imposed limitations on musical creativity.
Throughout his career, former Carcass guitarist and ARCH ENEMY founding member Michael Amott has never been concerned with conformity. In 1996, his pursuit to merge melody with aggression and technicality led him to collaborate with brother Christopher Amott, drummer Daniel Erlandsson, and vocalist Johan Liiva. Without even circulating a demo, they teamed up with the celebrated producer Fredrik Nordström and delivered ARCH ENEMY's debut, Black Earth - an album that is still hailed as a milestone in Swedish death metal. Michael Amott and Fredrik Nordström co-produced 1998's Stigmata, which pushed the band to new heights with its technical execution. Welcoming Mercyful Fate bassist Sharlee D'Angelo into the ranks for 1999's Amott/Nordström-produced Burning Bridges, ARCH ENEMY's now undeniable musical pedigree delivered an intricate and devastating album. Despite a North American tour with Nevermore, European tours with In Flames, Children Of Bodom, and Dark Tranquillity, three Japanese tours, performances at The Dynamo Festival, a co-headlining appearance in Santiago, Chile with Hammerfall, and sharing a bill with Cradle Of Filth in London, Michael Amott felt there was still more territory to cover, as all high-achievers are wont to believe.
In a completely unexpected turn of events, Angela Gossow - a completely unknown vocalist from Germany - replaced Johan Liiva in 2001 and delivered a staggering debut performance on the Wages Of Sin album (produced by Fredrik Nordström and mixed by Andy Sneap), marking the first time a band of this caliber and ferocity was fronted by a woman. The reception given to Gossow by the sold-out crowd at her worldwide debut in Los Angeles in March 2002 was nothing short of overwhelming. The album was bathed in unending universal praise from daily newspapers, front cover press in worldwide national magazines with Wages Of Sin proudly claiming stake in end-of-the-year "Best Of..." lists, while the metal underground showcased a faithful display of allegiance to the new line-up. Metal Maniacs hailed the album as a "relentless, eclectic and wholly charged album to keep even those with the shortest musical attention spans entertained." Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles insisted the album "requires a double-take, as Angela's gurgling undertow sticks needles in your eardrums while your eyes can't believe where it's coming from." Metal Edge declared Angela Gossow to be "one of the most promising talents in years." North America's Alternative Press quickly identified ARCH ENEMY as one of the five bands who exemplify "the sound of things to come" in 2002. This claim would soon prove itself prophetic during the band's performances at Japan's Beast Feast, the Milwaukee Metalfest, the New England Metal & Hardcore Festival, a North American tour supporting Nile, their own headlining North American tour, and six sold-out dates in Japan.
Fueled by their success and teaming up with producer English producer extraordinaire Andy Sneap for Anthems Of Rebellion, ARCH ENEMY unveils yet another stratum of their impressive musical depth, the obvious being Gossow's talents of enunciation, which truly rank with the accomplishments of Death's Chuck Schuldiner and Carcass's Jeff Walker. Filled with the trademarked tandem guitar work of the Amott Brothers and the flawless D'Angelo/Erlandsson rhythm section that has earned the band staunch recognition, "Tear Down The Walls/Silent Wars" is the articulation of awakening, a mandate for change; "We Will Rise" is a call to consciousness, a declaration of war against everything mediocre force-fed to us by society; "Leader Of The Rats" is a reminder of the much-needed cynicism that can keep everyday life in perspective; and finally, "Despicable Heroes" is a scathing critique of the hypocrisy of those appointed to leadership who abuse the loyalty of their followers.

04 Dark Tranquillity

Back in the early '90s Sweden's DARK TRANQUILLITY were laying the foundations for a style of metal that they could call their own. Having identified the limitations within the strict and rigid framework of the downtrodden death metal genre, DARK TRANQUILLITY began experimenting with and incorporating advanced melodic patterns and non-linear song structures into their intense, aggressive and accomplished music. Last year's Projector showcased DARK TRANQUILLITY's ability to expand their musical borders and constantly challenge their listeners: That diverse and introspective album brought home euphoric reviews and even got the band nominated in the Hard Rock category in the Swedish Grammy awards. 2000 brings yet another new opus from DT, perhaps even more ripened than its predecessor, the monstrous and challenging Haven.
Formed in 1989, DARK TRANQUILLITY have had a huge influence on the European underground scene, pioneering the now-archetypal style that journalists and fans have dubbed the "Gothenburg sound" (alluding to their native town in Sweden of course). This term is characterized with dueling guitar harmonies and complex song structures combined with an intense aural assault rooted in the '80s thrash tradition, although with a more melodic approach. Within the first several years DT released three full-length recordings and two EPs (the first two on Spinefarm and the next three on Osmose) and became one of the most heralded and talked-about bands in the entire Scandinavian metal movement. Their third full-length The Mind's I and its preceding EP Enter Suicidal Angels displayed the expected DARK TRANQUILLITY trademarks and characteristics, however the songs began to get shorter and more compressed, focusing on energy and vitality while still retaining the accurate sense of melody that have graced the band's past material. In early 1999 the band signed a deal with Century Media Records, who released the band's 1999 album Projector to the entire world. Projector was the band's most dynamic work to date, seething with technical power while representing more progression for the group in terms of creative maturity and approach. Mikael Stanne's voice was more effective and identifying than ever, while the playing of guitarists Niklas Sundin (who actually writes lyrics for fellow Swedes In Flames) and Fredrik Johansson amazed even the most selective of metal fan. The core elements of DARK TRANQUILLITY (who are rounded out with bassist Martin Henriksson and drummer Anders Jivarp) were very present, while newer influences and approaches were also integrated, resulting in an album that was as modern as it was impacting, and as aspiring as it was identifiable. Their European tour with In Flames, Children Of Bodom and label mates Arch Enemy did not only fulfill the dreams of every true Gothenburg-sound disciple, but turned out to be a triumphant advance for lovers of intelligent, extreme music that dares to embrace melody. Soon it was followed by two successful shows in the land of the rising sun with Soilwork, filling the overflow of Japanese crowds with rabid enthusiasm.

05 Nightrage

NIGHTRAGE was originally formed in Greece/Thessaloniki back in the year 2000 by Marios Iliopoulos (formerly of EXHUMATION) who released three high-quality death metal albums, all produced in Sweden). And his blood brother Gus G.

Now NIGHTRAGE is back after 2 excellent releases at Century Media Records. "Sweet vengeance" became fast one of the most spoken of and interesting melodic death metal releases of the year (2003) and the follow up "Descent into chaos"; (2005) got great reviews worldwide. From the very beginning this band has always stood for high quality melodic metal packaged in a perfect production. NIGHTRAGE have collaborated with highly skillful musicians like Tomas Lindberg (ex AT THE GATES, THE GREAT DECEIVER), Gus G (ex DREAM EVIL, FIREWIND), Per Möller Jensen (THE HAUNTED) and now the band have signed a new worldwide deal with Lifeforce Records.

The band did many shows so far including an opening slot for ARCH ENEMY, THE HAUNTED, and DARK TRANQUILLITY show at Forum/London, a USA tour (first ever US tour for NR) with bands like MANNTIS, GOD DETHRONED, Lifeforce Records label mates HELL WITHIN and THINE EYES BLEED, also a really successful sold-out European tour with BOLT THROWER, MALEVOLENT CREATION and NECROPHAGIST, and some festival appearances at Inferno festival/ Oslo and Lorca rock/ Murcia Spain, festival along with headline shows at Underworld/ London and Portugal/ Lisabon.

The remaining force of the band: Band-leader/song-writer/guitarist Marios Iliopoulos, bass-player/song-writer Henric Carlsson (ex CIPHER SYSTEM) along with new extreme vocalist/song-writer Jimmie Strimell, who is being described as the one of the best vocalists of his genre, are now working together with the new material for the third album. The results are amazing and some song-titles like:" A Condemned club" and "Reconcile" shows the progression that the band achieved and the new songs feel like having the edge of world class material.

06 Miseration

There's no big secret about the musical focus of Miseration: This Swedish quintet is death metal to the core! Miseration is the latest effort from Scar Symmetry Vocalist Christian Älvestam and Jani Stefanovic (Essence of Sorrow), who together perform a fast, brutal and aggressive melodic style of metal, what their homeland Sweden is best known for. Lifeforce Records is proud to give the band's critically acclaimed debut album "Your Demons, Their Angels" a worldwide release and help spread their metallic plague throughout the world.

07 Meshuggah

Meshuggah was formed in 1987 in Umea, Sweden. Guitarist Fredrik Thordendal, bassist Peter Nordin and vocalist Jens Kidman all played on the debut-EP of 1989. At that time Jens Kidman played the guitar as well. Umea has a healthy scene, and a lot of people are involved in rock music. According to Jens Kidman there are a lot of good bands from Umea, "probably because there is not a lot to do". The fact that there is a university in Umea might also strengthen the rock-scene. A lot of people play in bands, but few of these are known outside the town. The majority of the musicians wanting to get anywhere with their music leave town. Many of the session-musicians in Stockholm are from Umea, according to Marten Hagstrom.

It is quite easy to hear some of Meshuggahs early influences on their first release, "Psykisk Testbild" from 1989. (The title translates to something like "Psychological Test-Picture".) Metallica definitely was a major influence. The music of this EP is simplier and more "straight-forward" than their more recent material, but some of their more progressive elements are present in the form of time-changes and polyrythmics, and Fredrik Thordendals lead-playing stands out.

Tomas Haake joined on drums before Meshuggah recorded their first LP,"Contradictions collapse", which was released in 1991. The band had signed a recording deal with the German record-label Nuclar Blast, which specializes in metal-releases. The songs on this record are much longer and ymore complicated, in both structure and rythmics. The record company did nothing to promote the album, which consequently sold badly. Between this record and the next one guitarist/vocalist Jens Kidman decided to concentrate on the singing and left the guitar duties over to Marten Hagstrom, who had played in a band with drummer Tomas Haake already when they were in sixth grade (!). Marten Hagstrom feels that the song-title 'Building a big building' from that time accurately characterizes that band ...

The new line-up recorded the EP "None" in 1994. It was not until now that the record label realized that the band has a certain sales-potential, but a couple of accidents forced the band to remain silent for the rest of that year. Fredrik Thordendal managed to cut off the tip of his left middle- finger (He is a carpenter).The finger tip is sewn back on, and he is able, to a certain degree, to play with it again. As if this wasn't enough, Tomas Haake shortly after mangled his hand in some sort of grinding machine. Several months passed without much practice. the EP "Selfcaged" was recorded in April and May 1994, but the release was delayed with one year due to the accidents.

January 1995 saw the band returning to the public, when they left off for a short European tour organized by the record-label. Short after returning back home they recorded the album "Destroy, Erase,Improve", and then they were off again on a two month European tour supporting the american band Machine Head. Halfway through this tour bassist Peter Nordin became ill, and got problems with the balance nerve in his inner ear - he was chronically dizzy, consantly feeling like he was falling! He had to go back home to Sweden, leaving the band on tour without a bassist. The bassist of Machine Head offered to help out, but Meshuggah decided to try out as a 4-piece again. On some shows Fredrik played the bass through his guitar rig, on others they went with just 2 guitars - with Marten playing through a pitch shifter - shifted one octave down. When Fredrik handled the bass he even played his leads on it - taking care of tapping etc. ! "Destroy,Erase,Improve" was released in May 1995, this time with a more proper marketing by the record label. In the autumn of 1995 they did a short tour with Clawfinger, through Scandinavia and Germany. The first couple of shows were done without a bassist - Peter Nordin having now left the band. A replacement bassist joined the band for the show in Hamburg, this was Gustaf Hielm (formerly of Charta 77). During that fall Meshuggah also went on a month tour with Hypocrisy.

08 Sonic Syndicate

It all started in 2002, when Roger, Richard, and thirteen-year-old Robin wanted to start a band together after taking a break from playing in various other bands. They previously had a band together with a few classmates, but wanted to start a new project and take the music in a different direction. This new project became known as Fallen Angels, and played heavy metal influenced by Iron Maiden and Helloween. Fallen Angels completed their first gig at a school talent show in March 2003. They made it to the final but sadly didn't win the competition. Still, the band was satisfied enough with the great response from the crowd and everyone else involved in the competition. Shortly after, the band had made themselves a name in their hometown of Falkenberg, on the west coast Sweden.

In under a year, Fallen Angels recorded three demos. The 2nd and 3rd demo the band decided to record at Studio Mega (The Crown, Beseech, Lake of Tears) and shortly after started to play shows throughout Scandinavia. In December of 2004, Fallen Angels signed with Pivotal Records in the USA to release their debut album "Eden Fire". With their debut album on the way the band felt they had to decide on their final name. They had been searching for a band name for quite a while and thought Sonic Syndicate sounded more like them! The name was much more unique and is also a statement to enhance their musical direction. With time booked in Studio Mega in the spring of 2005 and the release date set for September 13, the band was rolling! With their sound of Swedish melodic metal and American hardcore Eden Fire has started to prove that Sonic Syndicate is a band that will break everything in its path. Eden Fire has been compared worldwide to acts such as In Flames, Children of Bodom and Killswitch Engage and the list goes on.

09 Kid Down

Kid Down är ett svenskt rockband. Bandet bildades 2002 i Åmål, Sverige och har gjort flera turnér bland annat med amerikanska Fall Out Boy och svenska the Sounds i Tyskland. Deras debutalbum And the Noble Art of Irony gavs ut Europa och Japan i mars 2007 av Burning Heart Records/Epitaph och 2008 släpptes I Want My Girlfriend Rich, även denna i Europa och Japan som följdes upp av ytterligare en europaturné under 2009 tillsammans med Underoath, Taking Back Sunday och Thursday och bandet drog till sig en ny stor skara fans ute i Europa.

10 Chemical Vocation

Chemical Vocation is a pop punk band, inspired by post-hardcore. The band members are from all over the west coast of Sweden. They met in highschool in Uddevalla and in 2005 they signed to an indie label called The Emo Foundation. In the Summer of 2005 their self-titled debut EP was released, leading with the catchy and memorable track ‘Unspection’.
Their full length album called ‘A Misfit In Progress’ was released on September 24th 2008 through the the indie label Panic & Action.

The best melodic-death album of 2010

2010-06-08T03:38:00.000-07:00

Solution .45 formed in late 2007 as a conceptual entity, but never blossomed into fruition until fall 2008, when the band recorded an 8-track demo with Tomas "Plec" Johansson (Unmoored, Scar Symmetry) handling production duties. The band's musical goal however, was quite daunting in its simplicity: mix in brutal riffs with unparalleled melancholic atmosphere and epic, progressive song structures. Fortunately, with such top-class musicians at the helm, meeting this goal was easily achieved. Solution .45 ushers forth some of the heaviest material any of the outfit's members have ever previously worked with, but yet also some of the most complex and sophisticated as well.

the best heavy metal bands

2010-06-02T11:39:00.000-07:00

1 Iron Maiden

In 1999, Iron Maiden is a household-name in every part of the world. After 20 years and almost 50 million album sales, Maiden is now rightly regarded as the 'classic' rock band in every sense: modern masters of that most emotionally extreme and technically dazzling form of rock music - the black sheep they call heavy metal. A genre Maiden single-handedly reinvented for the Eighties, when they released their first single, the punk-metal collision, 'Running Free', and their uncompromisingly raw debut album, 'Iron Maiden', in 1980. And a genre which is once again currently enjoying a vast renaissance worldwide with Maiden very much involved as always.

Back in the early eighties, Maiden was the band at the forefront of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal - a short-lived media-led phenomenon that would propel them onto the world stage. "People always used to call us punk-metal when we first started getting reviewed in the music papers in Britain," bassist and founding member, Steve Harris, recalls with a rueful smile. "But I think that was partly to do with the fact that our singer then, Paul Di'Anno, had quite short hair and the fact that we used to play so fast. We used to come across as really aggressive. But that was never really a punk thing to me - that was a pure metal thing. We used to frighten the life out of the punks·"

Despite receiving no radio play whatsoever, 'Running Free' their debut single leapt into the UK Top 40. When the band were then offered their first appearance on Top Of The Pops, the UK's biggest weekly TV chart show, Maiden refused to do it unless they were allowed to play live - something no artist had done on Top Of The Pops since The Who demolished the studio during a performance of their 'Quadrophenia' hit, '5.15', in 1972. The BBC execs were sceptical but eventually relented and such precocity was rewarded when their debut album, 'Iron Maiden', was released a few weeks later and immediately crashed into the UK albums chart at No.4!

It was this take-no-prisoners attitude the band started with, and still adopt to this day, which has served them so well throughout their career. Since then, every one of the 11 studio albums and three live albums that Maiden have released have been major Top 10 successes both at home in the UK and more than 25 other countries around the world, including over 20 hit singles - a fact that sometimes gets overlooked as so few of them have ever been played on radio - and no less than five consecutive million-selling albums in America.

Along the way, despite numerous line-up changes the quintessential Maiden sound - the rumbling-earth bass, searchlight guitars, spatter-gun drums and lion's roar vocals - remained mercifully undimmed throughout. Their second album "Killers" followed in 1981 which saw the band paying first time tour visits to America, Canada and Japan. The album achieved the band gold album status around the world but at the end of the tour singer Paul Di Anno left heralding the arrival of Bruce Dickinson.

1982 was to exceed all expectations for the new line up. After a couple of warm up shows with Bruce the band went in to record the legendary "Number of The Beast" album. This blew away all competition to enter the UK Chart at No.1 while the classic Maiden track,"Run To The Hills", got the band their first UK Top 10 single. This success was mirrored across Europe and also the American charts. The gruelling 180 date , 8 month 'Beast on The Road Tour' again broke new ground for the band as they did shows in Australia and New Zealand and saw the band headline their first sold out US Show at the New York Palladium proving a portent of things to come. Once again there was a band casualty with Clive Burr ,the bands drummer, leaving to make way for the now infamous drummer/prankster/headcase Nicko McBrain.

The band immediately started work on Piece Of Mind which they recorded in Nassau in the Bahamas The album went in the UK charts at No.3 when the band started their "World Piece Tour" in the UK. As before there was to be no let up in pace and Maiden found themselves playing to larger and larger audiences selling out everywhere and gathering more momentum in America with their first - of many - full scale arena headline tour. Powerslave was recorded in Nassau in 1985. The "Slavery Tour" was to give fans a massive stageshow of lights and production featuring Eddie, the bands hugely popular mascot and icon, now being transformed from a walk on part to a huge twenty foot mechanised monster. The groundbreaking tour started behind the Iron Curtain in Poland which was the first time a major band had taken full western production behind the Iron Curtain. By the third week of the tour the album itself was released , going straight in the UK Album Charts at No. 2.

The band found themselves breaking records everywhere playing the Rock In Rio Festival to 200,000 fans, selling out Radio City Hall in NewYork five nights running (illness preventing it from reaching seven) and the first act ever to sell out Long Beach Arena (Capacity 13000) for 4 consecutive nights. This Long Beach success was captured in the bands next release "Live After Death", Maidens first Double Live album and video of the same name. The Live album charted at No.2 and the video went to No.1 in the video charts and remained there for some time.These releases are still regarded by many as one of the best live albums/videos of all time.

"Somewhere in Time" was released in September 1986, this time recorded in both Nassau and Munich. This album marked a slight change in their style with the inclusion of keyboards for the first time but in no way diluted Maidens classic style. The first single released off the album "Wasted Years" reached the UK top twenty and was a track written about the rigours of their previous tours. The album continued to go gold or platinum in practically every major territory. The live show as before was a dazzling spectacle. The highlight featured Eddie , this time an understage inflatable and portrayed as a cyborg from the cover artwork, lifting the band off the stage with his two hands and sending Nicko and drumkit skywards balanced on his head. "Somewhere On Tour" again started in Eastern Europe and included six sell out nights at the Hammersmith Odeon before again spending the spring of 87 touring through the US and finishing in Japan some eight months later.

1988 brought "Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son", Maidens' first and only concept album. This wasn't the original idea at the outset, but in writing and followed by rehearsals it seemed the material had a common theme running through out. The first single "Can I Play With Madness" went to No. 3 in the UK Charts and was followed by 3 other singles from the album all reaching the Top 10 - quite a feat without Radio support. The "Seventh Tour of a Seventh Tour" saw them begin in the US. The high spot of the tour was to be the headlining of the legendary "Monsters Of Rock Festival" at Castle Donington which with support by the likes of Kiss, Dave Lee Roth, Guns and Roses and stablemates Helloween, they played to a all time record breaking 107,000 fans. The "Monsters" festival also had repeated success in Europe after which the band continued back to the UK to complete the tour with sell out shows at Wembley Arena for 2 nights the Birmingham NEC , 2 nights and 4 nights at the Hammersmith Odeon.

The band had previously decided to take the whole of 1989 off however, unable to rest, Bruce and Adrian spent their time recording their first solo albums and November 1989 saw the group team up again for the launch of the "Maiden England" video. In January 1990 work had barely begun on the "No Prayer For The Dying" album when Adrian decided to leave the band, this being their first personnel change for some seven years. Bruce meanwhile had been working through the previous summer with ex-Gillan and White Spirit guitarist, Janick Gers who after auditioning was invited to join.

The new line-up recorded the album in the UK at Steve's own Barnyard studio. Released October 1st the album entered the UK Chart at No.2. This album was to finally bring the band their first elusive No.1 single with "Bring Your Daughter to The Slaughter" going straight to No.1 for Christmas 1990.

Work on "Fear on The Dark" started early in 1992 and Eddie went through a transformation as for the first time artist Derek Riggs did not supply the cover art but instead the band took a more sinister image drawn by Melvin Grant. "Fear Of The Dark" was to be the bands third No.1 album and with an elaborate show the band hit the road again starting this time in Scandanavia. Again the opportunity to play Castle Donington came to the band. The show was filmed and later released on video while several other shows on the tour were being recorded for a possible live album. Finishing in Japan in November the band returned unaware of what was lurking around the corner.

In March 1993 Bruce announced his departure feeling he had got to saturation point with other projects and the band set to work on finding a replacement while doing a final "Real Live Tour" tour with Bruce. The band visited Moscow for the first time and received an amazing reception and went on to complete 44 shows across Europe. Bruces final show was to be a live pay-per-view televised spectacular "Raising Hell" featuring the magician Simon Drake performing grisly tricks interspersed with live performance by the band. This included Simon playing a guitar solo with guitarist Dave Murray severed hands and Bruce being decapitated!

After an intensive search Blaze Bayley of Wolfsbane was announced as Maidens new vocalist. The band and Blaze had already crossed paths as Wolfsbane had supported Maiden on 1990 UK Tour. This new partnership started work on the darkly smouldering "X Factor" album , again recorded at Steve's Barnyard Studios but with Steve himself co-producing it with Nigel Green. The X Factour started prior to the album launch in October 1995 with shows in new territories Israel and South Africa. The album itself went to No.8 in the album chart while the band continued to tour comprehensively in Europe and the UK, highlighted with the bands Brixton Academy show before they continued throughout Western Europe, America, Japan and headlining many major festivals including the "Monsters of Rock" in Sao Paulo to 50,000 fans.

1997 saw work start on Virtual XI, aptly named, this being their Eleventh Studio album. The cover artwork supplied by Melvin Grant depicted a boy watching a football match through a Virtual Reality headset while being surrounded by Armageddon and Eddie. This being a comment on technology taking over everything and the concern society shares as we approach the Millennium. This sentiment was also reflected in the material on the album with tracks such as "Futureal" and "When Two Worlds Collide". The football theme was carried through as Maiden, always being massive football supporters, decided to promote the album launch with their own Football tour, 1998 being World Cup year. The band set to work on putting together a dream team of world professionals such as Paul Gascoigne, Ian Wright, Faustino Asprilla, Marc Overmars, Patrik Viera and Stuart Pearce, Stuart being an immense Maiden fan. A Virtual XI team which featured ex-England stalwarts Terry Butcher, Tony Woodcock, Neil Webb and Paul Mariner toured throughout Europe playing games against teams with similarly famous names like Anders Limpar in Sweden, Gentile and Altobelli in Italy and even meeting up with the great Eusebio in Portugal.

2 metallica

Metallica performed 2 shows in San Francisco and found the crowds there more friendly than LA's "there to be seen" crowd. They also caught up-and-coming band Trauma, and most importantly their bass player, Cliff Burton. Eventually, Metallica moved upstate and Cliff joined Metallica. In New York, a copy of No Life Til Leather made its way to Jon Zazula's record shop, the aptly-named Metal rock 'n' roll heaven . Zazula quickly recruited Metallica to come out east to play some shows and record an album. The band made it to New York in a stolen U-Haul only to make announcement to their now manager/record producer: "Our guitar player has got to go." Roadie Mark Whitakker suggested a guitar player from a band he knew back in SF, and on April 1, 1983 Kirk Hammett joins Metallica.

Metallica's first album, Kill 'Em All, is released in late 1983. Metallica toured behind Kill 'Em All, and in 1984, a second album Ride The Lightning was recorded and released. This album was a more mature album, both lyrically and musically while not missing a beat of the ferocity of Kill 'Em All. Notable on Ride The Lightning's eight songs is track four; Fade To Black. Inspired by the theft of the band's equipment earlier that year in Boston, the song delves rather deeply into dealing with loss. Other tracks are inspired by H.P. Lovecraft and the movie The Ten Commandments.

The band signed with major management agency Q Prime and soon after is signed to major record label Elektra. 1986 brought their third album, Master Of Puppets, and a tour with Ozzy Osbourne. Metallica was reaching new highs: the new album reached #29 and enjoyed a 72-week run on the US charts. The Ozzy tour helped them gain wide exposure. The band endured a minor downfall when James broke his arm skateboarding and was unable to play guitar. John Marshall pulled double duty, acting as Kirk's guitar roadie and filling in on rhythm guitar until James healed. With the Ozzy tour complete the band moved on to Europe and planned their first venture to the Far East. It was hoped that James would be ready to handle his guitar duties, but for the first shows in Europe, Marshall filled in.

James returned in full guitar and vocal duties on September 26th, 1986, the last time Metallica performed with Cliff. Early the next morning, the tour bus skidded out of control and flipped, killing Cliff Burton. It probably would have been easier for Metallica to call it quits right then and there. Cliff was a major part of the band, not only supplying bass but being somewhat of a teacher and mentor, sharing his musical wisdom and "be yourself" attitude. Knowing Cliff would be the first to want them to carry on, Metallica minus one carried on.

Jason Newsted was chosen from over 40 auditions to play bass with Metallica. His many strengths included being able to keep up with the band's drinking habits! It was decided they would jump right back into "tour mode" to initiate the new bass player and wrap up loose ends. The band also released an EP of all cover songs as an introduction to Jason. The EP, titled Garage Days Re-Revisited is considered a sequel of sorts to Garage Days Revisited which appeared as a B-side in 1984.

With Jason established, the band went back to record their fourth full-length album, ?And Justice For All, released in August 1988. It reached #6 on the US charts, and received a Grammy nomination for Best Metal/Hard Rock album. The band took the show back out on the road and toured extensively to all parts of the world. ...And Justice For All produced two US singles and the band's very first venture into music video for the song One. They finally won a Grammy for the One single.

In 1991 Metallica released the self titled "black album." With new producer Bob Rock, this album was a departure from the previous album. The songs were shorter and the sound was fuller, deeper and less monotone. The "black album" went straight to number one all over the world.. and stayed there for several weeks. The album spawned several singles and videos and remains the most successful Metallica album to date. The band won several awards including a Grammy for the album and several MTV and American Music Awards. The band toured and toured and toured (get the picture?) playing all alone in "An Evening With Metallica" or with Guns N' Roses, or as headliner at many festivals. Metallica took the Black Album (and the other songs as well) to the people.

Five years would pass before the next Metallica album saw the light. The album was called Load and was the longest Metallica album to date. With 14 songs it took all available room on a compact disc. The album was again produced by Bob Rock, as was ReLoad, which followed in 1997. Both albums were written and mostly recorded together, and continued what the self-titled album started. Soundwise, the album was thick and and punchy, the songs were loose, powerful and eclectic. It would be unfair to say Metallica changed a great deal, as the band is the same band that recorded Kill 'Em All, ...And Justice For All and the rest, but the Load twins show a Metallica that has grown towards expanding past the "all attitude and speed" days and back to the "be yourself" attitude.

3 Megadeth

Lars Ulrich and James Hetfield form Metallica.Dave Mustaine leaves Panic and joins Metallica. Ron McGovney is hired as Metallica's bassist March, Metallica's first gig at Radio City in Anaheim
March, Metallica opens for Saxon on their "Denim and Leather" tour April, Brad Parker (a.k.a. Damian Phillips) is hired as Metallica's second guitarist. He leaves band after one gig, Metallica's only as a five-piece band. May, James Hetfield takes up rhythm guitar in addition to vocals. June, "Hit the Lights" is included on Metal Massacre compilation Rare demo album No Life 'til Leather is released. December, Cliff Burton leaves Trauma to replace Ron McGovney
March, Megadeth releases So Far, So Good... So What! Megadeth opens for Dio on US and Canadian tour Megadeth featured in acclaimed documentary, Decline of Western Civilization 2: The Metal Years August, Megadeth plays Castle Donnington with KISS, and Iron Maiden as the headliner
Megadeth opens for the "Monsters of Rock" tour. Megadeth cancels Australian tour Dave Mustaine helps produce Sanctuary's Refuge DeniedDave Mustaine makes a guest appearance on Diamond Head's Death and Progress Megadeth plays Milton Keynes Bowl with Diamond Head and Metallica
Megadeth opens for Iron Maiden for a few dates on their European Tour Aerosmith kicks Megadeth off their American "Get A Grip" tour, Jackyl takes their place Pantera opens for Megadeth's "Countdown to Extinction" Tour June, Megadeth's "Angry Again" featured on Last Action Hero soundtrack November, Megadeth's "99 Ways to Die" featured on The Beavis and Butthead Experience soundtrack Al Pitrelli joins the band replacing Marty Friedman. The band starts work on it's 10th release.Megadeth leaves Capitol Records.Megadeth signs with Sanctuary Records. "Kill the King" is number one most added song at rock radio. Megadeth releases Capitol Punishment: The Megadeth Years. The band returns to the studio in LA to finish recording their new release. Megadeth closes out the millenium in Anchorage, Alaska with the promise of a web broadcast of the New Years Eve show. March, Dave Mustaine and Al Pitrelli begin a world press tour for the new album
April, Megadeth shoots the video for Moto PsychoApril/May, Megadeth begins a short U.S. acoustic tour sponsored by local radio stations.May, The World Needs A Hero is released.June, Megadeth spends the summer on a world tour playing festivals, opening for AC/DC September, Megadeth tours the US, with Endo opening on the west coast and Iced Earth on the east.October, Megadeth's VH1 Behind The Music special is released on dvd.November, Megadeth plays last two shows of TWNAH tour in Arizona filming both for a live album and dvd.February, Killing Is My Business ...And Business Is Good! is re-mixed, re-mastered, and released March, the double live album Rude Awakening is released.April, Megadeth disband after Dave Mustaine suffers a nerve injury in his arm, leaving him unable to play guitar.September, Still Alive..And Well? is released by Sanctuary.February, Dave Mustaine announces his departure as an endorsee for Jackson GuitarsApril, Mustaine performs four Megadeth songs acoustically at a benefit for John Calleo July, Mustaine attends the summer NAMM convention in Nashville to unveil his new signature ESP guitars.October, Peace Sells ...But Who's Buying? is released as an audio dvd presented in Dolby 5.1 surround.January, Dave Mustaine makes an announcement about his good health, the future of Megadeth and upcoming releases.July, Megadeth's back catalog is re-mixed and re-mastered with bonus tracks!A new Megadeth album is recorded with drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, bassist Jimmy Sloas and guest soloist Chris Poland. "The System Has Failed" is released September 14, 2004.August, The new touring lineup is announced: Glen Drover (King Diamond/Eidolon) and James MacDonough (Iced Earth).October, The "Blackmail The Universe" tour begins in North America with Exodus opening. New drummer, Shawn Drover joins the band the week before.February, Megadeth continues its Blackmail The Universe tour worldwide with Diamond Head and Dungeon opening.June, more worldwide shows and European festivals; Megadeth plays Iceland, Romania and Bulgaria for the first time.June, Greatest Hits: Back To The Start is released.July, Gigantour 1 hits North America all summer. Megadeth headlines with Dream Theater, Anthrax, Fear Factory, Dillinger Escape Plan, Nevermore, Life of Agony, Symphony X, Dry Kill Logic and Bobaflex. Footage is shot for an upcoming CD and DVD.October, Dave Mustaine announces his decision to keep Megadeth together at a concert in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The show is filmed for a live album/DVD.March, the two-disc DVD anthology Arsenal of Megadeth is released.
March, James LoMenzo (Black Label Society) replaces James MacDonough on bass.March, Megadeth headlines the United Arab Emirates' Dubai Desert Rock Festival.April, Megadeth begins recording a new album at SARM recording studios in England.May, Megadeth signs with Roadrunner Records.
July, Megadeth plays Spain's Metalway Festival in Gernika and Jerez.August, Gigantour's inaugural festival tour is released on 2-CD and 2-DVD sets.September, Gigantour 2006 begins in North America. Megadeth headlines with Lamb of God, Opeth, Arch Enemy, Overkill, Into Eternity, Sanctity and the Smashup.October, Megadeth tours Japan and continues Gigantour in Australia with Soulfly, Arch Enemy and Caliban.Halloween, Megadeth takes part in launching the 'Gears Of War' XBOX 360 game with a mini-concert at Six Flags theme park in Springfield, MA.December, Dave Mustaine announces his departure from ESP guitars.January, Dave Mustaine signs with Dean Guitars, debuts his new VMNT guitar at the NAMM Convention.March, Megadeth opens for a reunited Black Sabbath (Heaven And Hell) on their Canadian tour.March, That One Night: Live In Buenos Aires, filmed in Buenos Aires, is released on DVD. The 2CD set follows in October.April, The 'Heaven And Hell' tour continues in the U.S.May, Megadeth's 11th studio album, United Abominations, featurng the singles/videos "A Tout Le Monde" (featuring Christina Scabbia) and "Never Walk Alone" is released, debuts at #8 on U.S. charts.June, Megadeth's 'Tour of Duty' begins in Europe with summer festivals and headline shows.September, 'Tour of Duty' continues in the U.S. and Pacific Rim.October, Megadeth release Warchest, a 4CD/1DVD career-spanning box set.November, 'Gigantour 2007' kicks off in Australia with Static X, Devildriver, Lacuna Coil and Bring Me the Horizon.

the best gothrnburg bands

2010-05-24T11:33:00.000-07:00

1 In Flames

It was the year 1990, Jesper decided to take leave of the band Ceremonial Oath, that he was currently in, together with Anders Fridén and Anders Iwers (Tiamat)

He wanted to make music in a different direction, and he teamed up with Johan Larsson and Glenn Ljungström to form IN FLAMES. The gang made a demo and shipped it off to Wrong Again records in order to get a record-deal, which they did. The owner of the company enjoyed the music so much that he immediately gave them a deal over the phone, as they rang him up one night. The next day, they sat down and wrote the album Lunar Strain, which was released some time later, and became a big underground success. They had some "in and out members" , and borrowed some from different bands. People that have been a part of IN FLAMES since the beginning, are Mikael Stanne and Anders Jivarp (Dark Tranquillity), Anders Iwers (Tiamat), Henke Forss (Dawn), Daniel Erlandsson (Eucharist, Arch Enemy), and a few more. The band then released a mini-CD called Subterranean, that became the "breaker" for IN FLAMES, in terms of getting out off the underground scene, that is, and led them to get a license deal with German company Nuclear Blast for the next record, and they have been there since then. After some time, the boys were getting tired of constantly borrowing people in order to make a record, or do a decent live show, and they asked Anders Fridén and Björn Gelotte to join the band, on vocals and drums, and they accepted. IN FLAMES were for the first time a band with a real line up.

They recorded and released yet another record . The Jester Race, which became a huge success, worldwide, and the band started to get some fantastic attention all over Europe, and in Japan, where they were licensed to Toy´s Factory. They went on a festival tour together with Samael, Grip inc. And Kreator - this was the first big thing that happened to them, but definitely not the last. Some gigs here and there over the next year, led to both Johan and Glenn feeling that they had to make a choice where their priorities were , and sadly, they choose not be a part of IN FLAMES any more. They both announced, unexpectedly after the recording of Whoracle, that they were leaving, and Björn, Jesper and Anders were left with a finished record and half a band.

Luckily they were good friends with Peter Iwers and Niklas Engelin, who both happened to play bass and guitar, and they filled in at the end of the recordings, to do a mini-tour with Dimmu Borgir. This worked out fine and the two gentlemen were asked to stay in the band permanently, and so they did. Together the group continued onto a successful tour in Europeand an amazing week in Japan, where they did their first two shows. Japan welcomed the Swedes with warm arms, and they had an amazing experience. As they return to Sweden, Niklas leaves the band, due to some different opinions, and the fact that he wanted to focus on Gardenian, his other band. This is the biggest turning point for IN FLAMES, as they decide to switch Björn from drums to guitar, (being a guitar player originally), and recruit Daniel Svensson ( Sacrilige) on Drums. This works out wonderful, and they record COLONY, the biggest success so far.

The Colonization takes them around the world, to Europe, USA and Japan, and this tour is an amazing experience for IN FLAMES, that finally receives the attention they´ve been waiting for. As they play full houses almost everywhere, the party goes on for a few months, and the response is excellent all over the world.

In August of 2000, after a few years of successful touring , the release of Clayman is a fact, after spending 3 months in the studio. This record spins off really well, and the sales are overwhelming and it knocks out the previous record sales in a few months.

After doing festivals with Dream Theater, Slipknot, Testament, Methods of mayhem, etc, a world tour was to expect. In Flames aimed for Japan and Europe, which was squeezed in between 2 American tours. This was the same round as last year, only this time bigger places, more people and more material. In Japan, Jesper received an award from BURRN! As the number 1 songwriter of the year. The tours were a huge success once again. Peter Iwers did not join them on all of these tours as he had a new arrival back home, that he stayed home with instead, a baby girl, but he joined in for the Scandinavian and Japan dates, and was temporarily replaced by Dick Löwgren from Armageddon for the other tours. In the year 2000, approximately 150 shows were performed by In Flames , and then a well deserved vacation was taken by the members. 2001, Peter is back and the band does a few single shows in Sweden, including a headline gig in Gothenburg, which was featured in 4 television channels, and aired live on the radio.

Charts this year were very high, including #4 in Japan, both group and record, # 3 in Canada´s greatest metal mag- Brave words and Bloody Knuckles, # 1 in Metal Maniacs, and # 17 on the official Swedish charts, to name a few.

A video is shot for Only for the Weak, and the band went on a mini tour in Europe, where they played 13 shows in front of 20 000 people, needless to say, it was a huge success.

Next: summer festivals, including Wacken Open Air, Rock Machina to name a few, then the release of a live album : The Tokyo Showdown, in August, before heading over to the US for another tour.

What next? well, another record was made, this time at a new location with a new producer: Dug-Out studios with Daniel Bergstrand. The band wanted to go elsewhere and try on a different studio and producer. Reroute To Remain was produced, and the the result was amazing. More touring, headline spins, support spins were done. Including raveling with the likes of Slipknot, Mudvayne, Soulfly and Slayer, that gave them the possibility to share their music with a different audience! Two headline spins in the US, one in Europe, festivals, including replacing Linkin park at Sweden's biggest festival: Hultsfred.

The day after that show they were offered to do a support slot for Metallica in Madrid, which was a huge success, playing in front of 30.000 people, making it the biggest show so far , that was not a festival.

The making of soundtrack to your escape started in may 2003 when they rented a small house in Denmark to do pre-production. The idea to do this came very natural as they had started working like this on the last record, but this time they wanted to go even further away from Sweden, to prevent any kinds of distractions. The result was 11 songs, and then two more followed as they went into another recording process, although this time they moved all their gear and Daniel Bergstrands studio equipment into a larger house in Denmark to do the recording ina much more relaxed atmosphere. Only the druns where recorded at Dug-Out as the previous record, but the producers were the same: Daniel Bergstrand and Örjan Örnkloo.. which brings us up to date, where a large tour is on it´s way, taking the band once again all over the world, trying to spread the In Flames word around !

Soundtrack to Your Escape increased the band's popularity considerably, selling 100,000 copies in the United States and yielding a #2 single on the Swedish charts with "The Quiet Place". The ensuing world tour saw the band make their first trip to Australia, where they played to mostly sold out crowds. Afterwards, In Flames toured with bands such as Judas Priest, Mötley Crüe, and Motörhead. In Flames also played on the main stage during Ozzfest 2005.

In 2005, In Flames recorded and self-produced their eighth studio album, Come Clarity, in Dug-Out studio. That same year, In Flames released Used and Abused: In Live We Trust, a box set consisting of material filmed and recorded throughout various live performances during 2004. Also in 2005, In Flames decided to sign with an additional record label so future releases could have better distribution in North America. In 2006, Come Clarity was released in North America through Ferret Music and elsewhere through Nuclear Blast. It became the band's first #1 album on the Swedish charts. That same year, In Flames toured with Sepultura, co-headlined a U.S. tour with Lacuna Coil, toured on The Unholy Alliance tour, was one of the headliners on the Sounds of the Underground tour, and played on the main stage at Download Festival.

In Flames finished recording their ninth studio album in October 2007 in their own studio, IF Studios, located in Gothenburg, Sweden; originally Studio Fredman. Alongside the recording sessions, the band released studio diaries documenting the recording process.

In 2007, the band played in Dubai for the annual Dubai Desert Rock Festival. In Flames also played at Bloodstock Open Air festival in August 2007.

In Flames were featured on the Gigantour 3 North American tour with Megadeth, Children of Bodom, Job for a Cowboy, and High on Fire.

On April 4th, 2008, In Flames released their 9th studio album, A Sense of Purpose. The first single from the new album is titled "The Mirror's Truth" which was released in Europe on March 7, 2008.

2 Arch Enemy

With a band name meaning chief attacker, principle opponent, and eminent hostile foe, ARCH ENEMY's blatant philosophy of insurgence is exactly what propels them out of the masses of convention and into the frontline of a movement that dares to defy imposed limitations on musical creativity.

Throughout his career, former Carcass guitarist and ARCH ENEMY founding member Michael Amott has never been concerned with conformity. In 1996, his pursuit to merge melody with aggression and technicality led him to collaborate with brother Christopher Amott, drummer Daniel Erlandsson, and vocalist Johan Liiva. Without even circulating a demo, they teamed up with the celebrated producer Fredrik Nordström and delivered ARCH ENEMY's debut, Black Earth - an album that is still hailed as a milestone in Swedish death metal. Michael Amott and Fredrik Nordström co-produced 1998's Stigmata, which pushed the band to new heights with its technical execution. Welcoming Mercyful Fate bassist Sharlee D'Angelo into the ranks for 1999's Amott/Nordström-produced Burning Bridges, ARCH ENEMY's now undeniable musical pedigree delivered an intricate and devastating album. Despite a North American tour with Nevermore, European tours with In Flames, Children Of Bodom, and Dark Tranquillity, three Japanese tours, performances at The Dynamo Festival, a co-headlining appearance in Santiago, Chile with Hammerfall, and sharing a bill with Cradle Of Filth in London, Michael Amott felt there was still more territory to cover, as all high-achievers are wont to believe.

In a completely unexpected turn of events, Angela Gossow - a completely unknown vocalist from Germany - replaced Johan Liiva in 2001 and delivered a staggering debut performance on the Wages Of Sin album (produced by Fredrik Nordström and mixed by Andy Sneap), marking the first time a band of this caliber and ferocity was fronted by a woman. The reception given to Gossow by the sold-out crowd at her worldwide debut in Los Angeles in March 2002 was nothing short of overwhelming. The album was bathed in unending universal praise from daily newspapers, front cover press in worldwide national magazines with Wages Of Sin proudly claiming stake in end-of-the-year "Best Of..." lists, while the metal underground showcased a faithful display of allegiance to the new line-up. Metal Maniacs hailed the album as a "relentless, eclectic and wholly charged album to keep even those with the shortest musical attention spans entertained." Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles insisted the album "requires a double-take, as Angela's gurgling undertow sticks needles in your eardrums while your eyes can't believe where it's coming from." Metal Edge declared Angela Gossow to be "one of the most promising talents in years." North America's Alternative Press quickly identified ARCH ENEMY as one of the five bands who exemplify "the sound of things to come" in 2002. This claim would soon prove itself prophetic during the band's performances at Japan's Beast Feast, the Milwaukee Metalfest, the New England Metal & Hardcore Festival, a North American tour supporting Nile, their own headlining North American tour, and six sold-out dates in Japan.

Fueled by their success and teaming up with producer English producer extraordinaire Andy Sneap for Anthems Of Rebellion, ARCH ENEMY unveils yet another stratum of their impressive musical depth, the obvious being Gossow's talents of enunciation, which truly rank with the accomplishments of Death's Chuck Schuldiner and Carcass's Jeff Walker. Filled with the trademarked tandem guitar work of the Amott Brothers and the flawless D'Angelo/Erlandsson rhythm section that has earned the band staunch recognition, "Tear Down The Walls/Silent Wars" is the articulation of awakening, a mandate for change; "We Will Rise" is a call to consciousness, a declaration of war against everything mediocre force-fed to us by society; "Leader Of The Rats" is a reminder of the much-needed cynicism that can keep everyday life in perspective; and finally, "Despicable Heroes" is a scathing critique of the hypocrisy of those appointed to leadership who abuse the loyalty of their followers.

3 Dark Tranquillity

Back in the early '90s Sweden's DARK TRANQUILLITY were laying the foundations for a style of metal that they could call their own. Having identified the limitations within the strict and rigid framework of the downtrodden death metal genre, DARK TRANQUILLITY began experimenting with and incorporating advanced melodic patterns and non-linear song structures into their intense, aggressive and accomplished music. Last year's Projector showcased DARK TRANQUILLITY's ability to expand their musical borders and constantly challenge their listeners: That diverse and introspective album brought home euphoric reviews and even got the band nominated in the Hard Rock category in the Swedish Grammy awards. 2000 brings yet another new opus from DT, perhaps even more ripened than its predecessor, the monstrous and challenging Haven.

Formed in 1989, DARK TRANQUILLITY have had a huge influence on the European underground scene, pioneering the now-archetypal style that journalists and fans have dubbed the "Gothenburg sound" (alluding to their native town in Sweden of course). This term is characterized with dueling guitar harmonies and complex song structures combined with an intense aural assault rooted in the '80s thrash tradition, although with a more melodic approach. Within the first several years DT released three full-length recordings and two EPs (the first two on Spinefarm and the next three on Osmose) and became one of the most heralded and talked-about bands in the entire Scandinavian metal movement. Their third full-length The Mind's I and its preceding EP Enter Suicidal Angels displayed the expected DARK TRANQUILLITY trademarks and characteristics, however the songs began to get shorter and more compressed, focusing on energy and vitality while still retaining the accurate sense of melody that have graced the band's past material. In early 1999 the band signed a deal with Century Media Records, who released the band's 1999 album Projector to the entire world. Projector was the band's most dynamic work to date, seething with technical power while representing more progression for the group in terms of creative maturity and approach. Mikael Stanne's voice was more effective and identifying than ever, while the playing of guitarists Niklas Sundin (who actually writes lyrics for fellow Swedes In Flames) and Fredrik Johansson amazed even the most selective of metal fan. The core elements of DARK TRANQUILLITY (who are rounded out with bassist Martin Henriksson and drummer Anders Jivarp) were very present, while newer influences and approaches were also integrated, resulting in an album that was as modern as it was impacting, and as aspiring as it was identifiable. Their European tour with In Flames, Children Of Bodom and label mates Arch Enemy did not only fulfill the dreams of every true Gothenburg-sound disciple, but turned out to be a triumphant advance for lovers of intelligent, extreme music that dares to embrace melody. Soon it was followed by two successful shows in the land of the rising sun with Soilwork, filling the overflow of Japanese crowds with rabid enthusiasm.

Spurred by their numerous, fresh impressions from the road, DARK TRANQUILLITY felt the need to explore some new musical territories (being adventurous as always) with Haven, but on the other hand also go back to some of their harsher roots. The songs are solid and immediate, and the more laid-back sonics of Projector are replaced by an expressive and more direct approach. Tracks like "Fabric" and "Emptier Still" show a modern, contemporary side of the band, while the likes of "Feast Of Burden" is without any doubt classic DARK TRANQUILLITY material. Haven is the first recording featuring new members Martin Brandstrom and Michael Nicklasson, further adding to their revitalized spirit and ongoing innovation that flows throughout this album, and which surely ranks as another very special and precious piece of metallic art. DARK TRANQUILLITY are metal virtuosity, and their songs couldn't be any more injecting and refreshing as they are now.

the best death bands

2010-05-23T07:43:00.001-07:00

1 amon amarth

Deeply rooted in death metal with firm beliefs in Viking mythology, AMON AMARTH formed in 1992 in Tumba, Sweden, a southern suburb of Stockholm. They began writing material with lots of melodies, harmonies and lyrics about Vikings and the northern gods. In summer 1993 they entered Lagret Studio to record the never released demo "Thor Arise". The band continued to rehearse and writing stronger material and again entered the studio. The result was the second demo "The Arrival Of The Fimbul Winter". This time the band was much more satisfied with the sound and songs and launched it to an unsuspecting underground. The response was overwhelming, quickly selling out of the first pressing and secured them a one off deal with Singapore's Pulverised Records.

This time they decided to use Abyss Studio, owned by Peter Tägtgren of Hypocrisy, and during five days in November 1995 the MCD "Sorrow Throughout The Nine Worlds" was recorded. The five track recording contained three new songs plus two re-recorded tracks from the band's second demo. The MCD was released in April 1996 and continued the band's build to world dominance. June 1996 saw the exiting of drummer Nico who was quickly replaced with Martin Lopez. During this time labels began to show interest and after much consideration the band chose to sign with Metal Blade. In March 1997 AMON AMARTH entered again Abyss Studios to record their Metal Blade debut "Once Sent From The Golden Hall" with Peter Tägtgren. The result proved that they were destined to become force of fury in the Swedish Death Metal scene and beyond.

After the recording of "Once sent...", guitarist Anders Hansson quit just a month before their first major tour with Deicide, Six Feet Under and Brutal Truth in June 98. They quickly recruited Johan Söderberg to make the line-up complete. The line-up was now solidified. "The Avenger" was recorded at Abyss Studios Sweden February to March 1999. Produced by the band, the seven track album is a lesson in pure Viking aggression and brutality blurring the line between death and black metal. The tour following this release was the X-mas massacre festivals, headlined by Morbid Angel.

In November 2000 the band entered The Abyss Studio for, as it would turn out, the last time. This time they recorded the album "The Crusher" (released in 2001). Living up to it's name, "The Crusher", the album is the most brutal album the band has produced so far. This release gave Amon Amarth the opportunity to tour a lot more than before and right after the recording they went on their first headlining tour through Denmark and Germany with Purgatory and Seirim. That tour ended up with great succes and they also managed to be the first metal band entering the German stages for the century. 00.05, 01 of January in 2001 in Guben. Then they went on the No Mercy Festivals 2001 with bands like Marduk and Vader. In the fall of 2001, AMON AMARTH was supposed to support Marduk on their American tour, but due to the events of September 11th, that tour was postponed until January 2002, and if that wasn't enough, Marduk couldn't make it over to the states. So AMON AMARTH got to headline their very first US tour, supported by Diabolic from Tampa, FL. The tour was a huge success, but unfortunately the tour agency decided to cut the tour short with one week. Returning to Europe, AMON AMARTH was offered the possibility to headline their own full European tour, and in April 2002 they went on the road together with Swedish "gore-masters" Vomitory. During the tour the band kept writing new material for an upcoming album.

August 2002 started with the bands second appearance at Wacken Open Air. Approximately 12 000 people saw the show, and the response was overwhelming. Almost going straight from Wacken to the Studio, AMON AMARTH began recording their new album "Versus the World" on August 7th. This time, however, the band had to use a new studio, since Peter no longer produces or records any bands, except his own, in his studio. The choice fell on Berno Studio in Malmö, and it turned out to be a great choice. Berno Studio has a great reputation in the scene and AMON AMARTH found it to be very easy to work with both Berno (owner, engineer) and Henrik (engineer). Recording in a new studio gave new dimensions to the bands sound. During the recording, the band managed to squeeze in a trip to Germany and the Summer Breeze festival, where they made a successful appearance.

AMON AMARTH toured incessantly to promote this album (3 American and 2 European tours, no less), the press woke up to their qualities, and legions of followers put the band on one level with those acts who had dominated the scene for years on end. This set the stage for "Fate Of Norns", AMON AMARTH's breakthrough album and highest charting release to date. Once again recorded at Berno Studios, "Fate Of Norns" saw the band touring Europe and America to ecstatic response from their fans, as well as conquering several new territories, such as Iceland, Mexico, Ireland, Poland, Croatia, and Norway. One of the highlights of the "Fate" touring cycle was undoubtedly when over 30,000 rabid fans gathered in front of the stage at 2AM to celebrate their heroes at Wacken Open Air 2004.

As a tribute to their loyal following, the band released a 3 DVD set entitled "Wrath Of The Norsemen", comprised of five full shows, in May 2005. With no less than six weeks in the German Music DVD Charts as we speak, the momentum gathered by the band by now is one that marketing strategists and industry people would kill to be able to reproduce. Talent, perseverance, and hard work do pay off after all. Which brings us to "With Oden On Our Side"…

In January 2006, the band started writing the follow-up to "Fate Of Norns". Being able for the first time to concentrate 100% on the music, the sessions proved fruitful, as guitarist Olavi Mikkonen confirms: "We nailed down all ideas we had from the past year and we rehearsed 5 days a week, 9 to 5. At the end of the month we had finished a 5 song demo." After a two-month break, the band returned to write the rest of the material: "We started up where we had left off and began working on all new ideas we had. Again 5 days a week, 9 to 5. This time around we had 4 new songs and the album was written. We had never written an album under these intense circumstances, but we found out that this was totally right for us." The new masterpiece "With Oden On Our Side" was born.

2 death

Exactly what does it take to be a pioneer? For some, it can simply be the result of releasing one, maybe two, influential records, never to be heard from again. For others, however, it is an ongoing endeavor which continues long after the initial wound is made on life's jugular. Guitarist/vocalist/songwriter, Chuck Schuldiner, first set the heavy metal underground aflame in the early 80's with his seminal metal outfit, Death, a band that has achieved unparalleled status as one of the genre's most respected and influential acts. Despite the early acclaim and attention, Chuck had no interest in resting on his laurels and the musical prowess and originality he had already become known for were pushed further and further, consistently remaining ahead of the times. And now, in 1998, having seen fourteen years and six albums of setting new standards for metal, Schuldiner has proven yet again with no room for debate, that his reputation as a pioneer is no fluke.

Death's history dates back to 1983 when Chuck formed Mantas together with a couple of high school friends and started gaining much notoriety within the underground tape trading circuit. Soon after the band's name was changed to Death and several more self-released tapes followed. It was the blistering 3-track Mutilation demo that drew Combat Records' attention and Death was subsequently inked to the label. The debut album, Scream Bloody Gore, surfaced in '87 and has since then become a metal classic. Even now it is impossible to get through a live Death performance without hearing the crowd chant for incredible songs like "Zombie Ritual". The following year saw the release of their second album, Leprosy. Though certainly not lacking ferocity in any manner, Leprosy contained material which was much bolder and musically adventurous, foreshadowing progression to come. Over the course of the band's next four albums (Spiritual Healing - 1990, Human - 1991, Individual Thought Patterns - 1993 and Symbolic - 1995, through Roadrunner), the musical and lyrical boundaries continued to expand while the gap between brutality, progression and tradition started to close. It was at this time, primarily around Human, that Schuldiner had truly captured Death's essence and distinctive style; a style that major publications like Guitar World (ranked amongst the top 100 most important guitarists in rock), Bass Player and Modern Drummer have stood up to recognize. Death's rabid fan base is in no way confined to The United States, though. Their headlining tours have dominated world-wide for many years now, touching upon mainland Europe, Japan, South America, etc...

After the release of Symbolic, for the first time in Chuck's adult life he was free of any/all contractual obligations with record labels. It was truly a new beginning; a time for decisions to be made and doors to be opened. At that time a bold choice was made to write music for another metal project Chuck had wanted to pursue appropriately named Control Denied. The musical direction in C.D. was even more melodic than Death and most notably, Chuck was not the vocalist. Instead a more traditional style (ala Iron Maiden, Queensryche, Nevermore) was incorporated. After an album's worth of material was laid to tape Chuck surprised the metal masses again by announcing that he was putting C.D. on hold so he could complete a new Death album, which he had started working on right around the time Symbolic was released. Schuldiner explains, "Timing is everything when it comes to music. I was feeling music bubbling to the surface that was unmistakably Death and the fans have always been so supportive of what I have done, it just felt right. It was time to seek out a new recording contract for the band. I haven't given Control Denied up and I plan to release material in the future, but only after everything with the new Death album is done."

Having always been about high standards, both musically and professionally, for the new album, The Sound Of Perseverance, Chuck sought out the best, feeling and knowing that this is to be the most important release in his 14 year career. Shannon Hamm and Scott Clendenin (both from Control Denied) were recruited first and soon after Richard Christy (dubbed at Holland's Dynamo Festival by many as "the most amazing drummer to come along in the last decade") was added to complete the strongest Death line-up to date. A demo was recorded in Chuck's home studio and solicited to labels worldwide before a logical choice was made to sign with Nuclear Blast Records.

3 Immortal

1990: Founded by Abbath (bass and vocals) and Demonaz (guitar). Earlier the band went under the name "Amputation". The brilliant concept of this band was all based upon Blashyrkh, the name of all the sacred places Demonaz and Abbath found when walking in the wilderness surrounding their homes in Os. Blashyrkh is a fictional realm of demons, grim nature and northern blizzards. The line-up also contained two other members as well: Armagedda (drums) and Jørn (guitar). Musically and visually inspiration sources were bands such as: Bathory, Celtic Frost and Venom.

1991: Their first demo "Suffocate" was released early '91 and later that year followed up by their second effort, "The Northern Upins Death". A short time after this release Jørn got kicked out. Later the band was approached by the French label "Listenable Records" as they were impressed by their latest demo. They got the opportunity to do a 7" single and started to create songs like "Unholy Forces of Evil" and "Cold Winds of Funeral Frost" which later would appear on their debut album as the song "Cold Winds of Funeral Dust". The 7" was recorded and released during the winter 91-92. They also had some very special photo sessions that winter.

1992: Another label that early shown interest for Immortal was Osmose Productions, also French. Immortal signed a two record deal with them and headed for Grieghallen Studios in Bergen to record their first full length. Originally it was going to be called "Battles in the North" but they changed it to "Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism" as that fitted the music better. DFM is a very atmospheric album with several acoustic guitar parts. You can definitely hear the Bathory influence. All in all DFM mad a foundation for Immortal. Later this year Armagedda was asked to leave. He was a skilful drummer, but he didn't follow them mentally. His replacement was this guy named Kolgrim. He was a big failure as a drummer in the band and was fired after 6 months due to laziness.

1993: As they didn't have any drummer at the time Abbath did the skin beating himself on their second album "Pure Holocaust". During the mixing a new drummer, Erik came in to the band. He participated on the cover photo but he didn't play on the album. After the release Immortal got a lot of attention for their controversial choice of title and the fact that they claimed to play "holocaust metal" (their own style) and not black metal. This holocaust thing does of course not have anything to do with Nazism and today they have totally abandoned that term and prefer no label at all. However this was not the only reason they got much attention, because their new album was a true masterpiece of black metal or "holocaust metal".

1994: September: New material was written and again Immortal went for Grieghallen Studios and again Abbath had to take care of the drums. Their former drummer, Erik was fired one month earlier because Abbath and Demonaz wanted to move on, and Erik didn't have the right mentality or skills in order to follow them. Anyway, the album was recorded with Abbath behind the drum kit. The title was "Battles in the North".

1995: Great Immortal year. Their popularity grew and grew and after the release of "Battles in the North" they went on their first big European tour as a special guest with Morbid Angel. Hellhammer from Mayhem agreed to join in as a session drummer for Immortal on this tour. He also played on "Masters Of Nebulah Frost", the first official video of Immortal. The two songs on the video was "Grim and Frostbitten Kingdoms" and "Blashyrkh (mighty ravendark)". The last-mentioned was actually recorded in the free nature on one of the seven mountains surrounding Bergen! It's not a very professional video, but it's very cool.

1996: For six years Immortal had problems finding a suitable drummer, but at spring time '96 Horgh took contact with Abbath and Demonaz. Horgh was known to be a talented drummer, so they arranged a meeting with him. After seeing Horgh in action, both Abbath and Demonaz knew he was the right drummer for Immortal. It took them six years to find him. Three months later Immortal entered Sigma Studios to record the next full length. Now as a full band. The reason for the studio switch was that they wanted to work on the sound, the band wanted to bring forward Demonaz' Leads. Sigma has also better equipment and circumstances for recordings.

1997: In February "Blizzard Beasts" was released. It turned out to be a quite different album compared to the previous ones. Later this year Demonaz got problems with his arms. He couldn't even wash his hair. This was the worst thing that could happen to Immortal as they were just that ready for a tour. They waited, waited and waited even more. Nothing happened. After a few months they got a message from Osmose who said that they had to do a tour now. They sat down and discussed the matter with Demonaz and unfortunately he had to give up. Abbath took over the guitar playing. There're of course many skilled guitarists around, but then there was that matter of style. It was easier for Abbath to switch to the guitars.

1998: Now they were back in business, with Ares from Aeternus as session bass player. They finally went touring again and Demonaz did all the management, like selling stuff and made sure they got their money, while the band could focus on the artistic side of Immortal. Ares was asked to become a full time member of Immortal, but chose to concentrate on his main band Aeternus. In November their new album "At the Heart of Winter" was recorded, this time in Peter Tägtgren's Abyss Studios. Actually Peter contacted Osmose and said he really wanted to produce Immortal's next album and that was ok to both Immortal and Osmose. In addition to this the song "To Walk The Infernal Fields" was recorded for a Darkthrone tribute album on Moonfog Productions.

1999: "At the Heart of Winter" is released in march and it marks the start of a new era for Immortal. Many things have changed: The music to a certain point, the way the music is created, new logo and this time they used fantasy art on the front cover instead of the traditional band photo. But in all these changes they still have stayed faithful to their roots. Before they went touring Iscariah came in filling the vacant bass spot. Immortal is a productive and new songs were already written in October when they again went to Abyss Studios to start the recording of their next opus, entitled "Damned in Black". They finished the drums, bass and guitar, only leaving vocals and guitar solos for recording...

2000: ...in February. "Damned in Black" is a more brutal album than the previous and they have this time taken their style to an even higher and more out breaking level than their predecessors. This was Immortal's last album on their contract with Osmose. After a 9-year cooperation, the band signed a worldwide one album record deal with the Germans from Nuclear Blast. Immortal also celebrated their 10th anniversary this year. A special box with a live cd, photos never published before and many other rare things were supposed to be released, but I haven't seen it yet, so it's most probably canceled.

2001: Immortal was Alarm-nominated for their last album "Damned in Black". They was nominated in the class "best metal album 2000" and they won! A tribute to Mayhem was released this year by Avantgarde and Immortal participated with the song "From the Dark Past". In September they recorded "Sons of Northern Darkness" and the collaboration with Peter Tägtgren is great as he is really into Immortal's music now. The sound is greater than ever, especially the guitar sound.

the best gothic bands

2010-05-23T07:27:00.000-07:00

1 Nightwish

Nightwish started as an acoustic project by Tuomas Holopainen of Nattvindens Grat, who wanted to do something different from what he had been playing before. So he came up with three songs just for keyboards, acoustic guitar and female vocals. Acoustic guitars were performed by his friend Emppu, who came up with the idea of using their friend Tarja, a student from Sibelius Academy, on vocals. The result was something they all had hoped for: Tarja's voice fit the music perfectly.

The self-titled demo was recorded during Dec.96 and Jan.97 at Kitee Huvikeskus Studio by their friend Tero Kinnunen. The tape, however, did not end up being distributed; it was only sent to some labels and magazines, which all gave the tape relatively good credit but the labels thought music was too narrow, and did not have enough variety. However, this first tape never reached the ears of Spinefarm.

In Apr.97 the band entered the same studio again to record seven new songs they had written, now including also electric guitars and drums. The line-up was still the same: Tarja handling the vocals, Emppu acoustic and electric guitars and bass, Tuomas the synths and some vocals. Drums and percussions were performed by their friend Jukka, the latest addition to their line-up.

After the recording they received offers from two labels and Spinefarm's proposal was accepted. Nightwish debut album Angels Fall First (SPI 47 CD) was released in Finland in October 1997 and for the rest of Europe in March 1998.

Angels Fall First featured 12 songs of atmospheric metalrock with incredible female vocals, a good load of gothic influences and with a great sound, with total running time of nearly 52 minutes.

The second album Oceanborn was released in December 7th. It went up to fifth place on the Finnish official album chart (and stayed on charts over 30 weeks!). Singles from Oceanborn, Sacrament of Wilderness and Walking in the air also ruled the charts. Actually Nightwish had three (3) singles at the top 10 at the time - also their first single The Carpenter returned to the single chart. Beat that!

After Oceanborn Nightwish started to do some serious touring around Finland. Even though they had done just couple of gigs before it was clear from the very beginning of tour that Night wish would take their audience just like that. Almost every venue and festival was packed with opera metal maniacs. Now it was time to go abroad. Autumn 1999 Nightwish toured European venues with German progressive metal gods Rage. Again, the feedback just excellent. No wonder since the German release Sleeping Sun EP had sold over 15000 copies in one month.

In early 2000 the band entered studio again for the recordings of our third album. A welcome interruption to the repetitive studio work became when we took part in the Finnish qualification of the Eurovision Song Contest with the song Sleepwalker. Nightwish cleared the first round of the qualification but the final position was second despite an overwhelming win in the public televoting.

The newest album, Wishmaster, was released in May and it immediately was number one on the Finnish charts, kept the position for three weeks, and finally went gold just like its predecessor Oceanborn and all the singles released so far!

The idea of making a live Nightwish-recording took shape during the autumn of 2000, and that idea was made into reality on New Years Eve 2000-2001, when Nightwish played a gig at club Pakkahuone in Tampere, Finland. The gig was filmed and recorded, and that material was then made into a DVD and VHS. The Finnish fans also got an extra treat: a limited edition full-length Live CD for Finland only. All of these formats were released under the name "From Wishes to Eternity - Live", and every format proved to be a huge seller.

To relieve the pain the fans were feeling while waiting for Nightwish's next full-length CD, the band decided to release a Mini-CD called "Over the Hills And Far Away". The CD included a cover version of the title song, originally performed by Gary Moore, a re-make of "Angels Fall First"'s "Astral Romance" and two new songs. On the other hand to relieve the misery of the European fans who didn't get a live CD, Drakkar's version of "Over the Hills And Far Away" included a few of the Finnish Live CD's songs as a bonus.

After "Over the Hills and Far Away", some changes had to be made in the band line-up because there had been tensions. Holopainen even quitted the band for 2 weeks, but then realised it was a mistake and rejoined. Sami Vänskä was excluded from the band, and Marco Hietala was included.

Their 4th full-length CD came out in May 2002. It sold platinum in Finland and reached high chart positions in many countries. This album was followed by "Century Child World Tour 2002". Nightwish toured South America for the first time, and almost every concert there was sold out. After the tour they took a break.

In 2003, Nightwish received a double-platinum award for Century Child and gave around 20 concerts, only 1 of them to the Finnish audience. In 2003, the material for the End of Innocence DVD was put together and released in October.

The year 2004 was eagerly expected by both the fans and the band. The band released their first single "Nemo", which rapidly became a hit. This song earned Nightwish many new fans. Also a video was made for Nemo.
The 5th full-length studio album "Once" was released in May 2004. The album sold gold in Finland on the day of its release, as did the single "Nemo". Nightwish started a world tour of 130 concerts, which lasted until the end of 2005. This tour was the biggest in the history of Nightwish so far.
The second single from Once, "Wish I had an Angel", was released in Autumn 2004. The single gained great success and boosted the sales of the Once album. In august 2004, Nightwish finally made it to the USA.

In the beginning of 2005 Nightwish received many major Finnish awards.
In July, the 3rd single, a new version of "Sleeping Sun" was released to promote the forthcoming best-of album "Highest Hopes". The "Highest Hopes" collection has sold double platinum in Finland and gold in Norway by the end of the year 2005. Also a new video for Sleeping Sun was made, in which the band acts! During all this, the band was still touring. . During the Autumn 2005, Nightwish played several shows and performed in the legendary Hammersmith Apollo Venue for sold out seats. After a short festival tour in South America (in October), the Once World Tour was coming to an end. The final concert was played on 21 October for 11,500 people in Hartwall-Arena in Helsinki. The concert was also recorded to be released as an End of an Era live DVD.
By the end of 2005, "Once" has sold approx. 1,000 000 copies worldwide as well, it has sold triple platinum in Finland, platinum in Germany, and gold in Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Greece, and Austria.

After the last concert, Nightwish fired their frontwoman Tarja Turunen and her manager-husband Marcelo Cabuli. The reason for this was because during the Once Tour their attitude and actions had turned out to be against almost all that Nightwish represents. As one may guess, the news of the firing was followed by an incredible sensation and hullabaloo which didn't really stop until late summer in 2006 (more and more scandals within the bands relationships with Tarja Turunen were revealed, which caused the fuss to last that long).

In 2006-2007, the band recorded their sixth full-length studio album, Dark Passion Play.

On Thursday 24 May 2006, the 35-year-old Alyson Avenue lead singer Anette Olzon from Katrineholm, Sweden was announced to replace Turunen.

Dark Passion Play was released around Europe in the last week of September, 2007, in the UK on October 1st, and the United States on October 2nd.

Several magazines, including Kerrang! have noted how the departure of Tarja Turunen seems to have released the band from their shell and how restraint has been left to other bands. The use of some 175 additional musicians for the orchestral and solo parts of the album has resulted in the band now being described as "epic metal" by many people - especially in 14 minute album opener "The Poet and The Pendulum". The album was awarded 5/5 (classic) by Kerrang! magazine.

2 Katatonia

Katatonia have been together for an incredible 13 years. In that time they have recorded six full-length studio albums plus a vast array of mini- CD's & singles. Using the metal genre as an early template Katatonia have never been a band to stand still or stagnate in any way. As Jim Martin - esteemed scribe with Brit music mag Terrorizer so eloquently asserted: "Katatonia, as with so many truly special bands are all contradictions, still ostensibly a metal band, but purveyors of an understated kind of grandeur that has long outgrown all or any generic restrictions". This short succinct statement says more about the enigmatic Swedes than a 1000 word effort ever could.

The music of Katatonia is never easy to rationalize. How does one describe something so equivocal? Well they are undoubtedly heavy. This heaviness does not come from an obvious place. Their heaviness is more from the structure of the songs & the arduous but reassuring vocal. Think of the darkness generated by the likes of Nick Drake, Will Oldham or PJ Harvey. Katatonia sound nothing like these artists but they do share a similar vision, an effortless flow & simple but personal lyrics.

Very much a live band Katatonia have played Europe many times, hitting the road most recently in 2002, with long time friends Opeth. Their festival appearances range from Sweden's 2000 Decibel Fest to The Milwaukee Metal Fest in the USA.

Viva Emptiness is Katatonia's sixth full-length album & was produced by Nyström & Renkse. The album was recorded @ Soundtrade Studios (part of the 301 group) in their hometown of Stockholm in October/November 2002. Mixed by Jens Bogren with Nyström & Renkse at Studio Kuling A, Örebro, December 2002, with additional editing by Dan Swanö at The Room, Örebro.

To support the album the band will embark on an extensive tour of Europe that kicks off in Finland on 2nd April & takes in Denmark, Germany, Poland (show to be recorded), Hungary, Switzerland, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, UK, Norway & Sweden.

The support for the Finnish dates will be Lullacry + Pornorphans. To Die For & Daylight Dies will join Katatonia for the rest of the tour.

The artwork for the album was designed by Travis Smith, (famed for his work with Opeth, Devin Townsend, Death, King Diamond & Bloodbath among others), with direction from Katatonia.

5 Moonspell

Throughout all the years of Moonspell existence I've been responsible by issuing and composing up to date Moonspell biographies maybe because I was the most familiar with writing or because I have been in ALL the moments of Moonspell story, whatever... and throughout the years I've done several biographies according to the ideological and musical oscillations and evolution's we have experienced as a band and as individuals. So I started off with very "eloquent", "poetic" biographies, totally non informative but that value for the over the top language and epicism of a really simple story. Naturally these "novels" were totally useless for labels and promoters and I had to step to more formal biographies. I have even done a middle term one between information and delirium to magazines and fanzines that could use both sides of Moonspell biographies. So I ended up with dozens of different biographies each for its use but I was only being bureaucratic about it so I dropped the case and let Century Media do the dirty doings. But I offered my services to our Internet page so, after the biography of my biographies, I should just put into life Moonspell's current biography that I really do not know how it will turn out. So I hope you get informed about the band since this all virtual hype is information anyway but let me warn you I am not capable of doing a formal biography. But let us cut this talk before gets as boring as it got paternal so ... The band real beginning was back in mid-1989 when myself, Ares and two other guys ,whose names are irrelevant for our history, formed a band called MORBID GOD. This was already a culmination of a long process of talking about doing a band, drawing logos, writing lyrics, designing and conceiving layouts and above all dreaming about the privilege of doing music. The closest thing to a band we had besides Morbid God was a project called ARCHANGEL (which I still think is a very good name for a band, so if you are looking for one...) where I was supposed to play drums and Ares was supposed to sing. Anyway as we realised it would be difficult and dull to have two bands with the same guys on different functions, we decide to concentrate on Morbid God as something more serious and left behind prolific names and ideas that bring a red colour to our faces when we mention them occasionally.

Well after a lot of hardwork to get instruments, essential gear and a rehearsal place that would replace the purely theoretical meetings on weekends in our former guitarist place we found a place owned by the City hall of our little urban village (Brandoa-where we still live by the way) and started working. I don't want to remember the very first rehearsals when nothing palpable or not was ever composed and jump to the very first track we have ever done called "The Fever". We rehearsed it a lot of times in candlelight, had it recorded on a 12 track mixer by Mantus who would join a little after in late 1990 I suppose, listened to it and finally decided it was not good enough to go in a professional studio. We started to be auto-critical since the beginning and until now we only profited from that and also of the fact we always knew how to wait, never rush anything but work hard to establish our projects on a real basis.

Army came for both our drummer and guitarist and the result was a small catastrophe since we were frozen in our very start. We haven't done anything for almost a year, our guitarist was kicked out in the meanwhile, and Mantus came and we could compose something worthy of a studiowork and that would came in the shape of "Serpent Angel" our very first release ever. We were also invited to be featured on a double compilation LP with the best Portuguese metal bands by an independent label MTM so we felt it was righ time to risk and to go and record our music. Careful as we were we rehearsed like lunatics, pre produced it on a small studio (where we played 13 times the track and where I had the reverb on full for my vocals) and finally went to a 24 track studio and issued it as a promo track, featured it on the record and spread it ourselves throughout all the underground scene we knew for more than 5 years now. It was August 1992, and the track was recorded on the 22nd.

We collected great reviews, small labels were offering deals for EP's and occasionally full lengths but we decided to wait, record a demo, do some necessary changes on the concept of the band and go for serious with it . So we started off by kicking our original drummer, got ourselves a new guitarist, Mike known as Nisroth joined the band right in October 1992, and we changed our name to MOONSPELL which we felt was like a true beginning for us. We continued on rehearsing, with better spirit and better people now and composed some tracks, three of each we recorded again on the same studio and that were featured in the one and only Moonspell demo "Anno Satanae" recorded in January 1993 and issued one month after. The tracks were "Goat on Fire", "Ancient Winter Goddess" and "Wolves from the Fog". This demo was regarded as a classic by the underground scene and brought us two self financed editions, one polish edition (still available) and one single with two tracks (still available). The reaction was so good that Adipocere from France offered us the best deal for a mini CD that we would record one year after on January 1994 and that was our true debut on a record sphere.

Naturally we lost a guitarist on the process, welcomed Tanngrisnir ex-Decayed (which coasted us the friendship with that band, which we cared for a start but could not care less nowadays) and got ourselves a keyboard player of our own Pedro Paixão alias Passionis or Neophytus. Both brought new things to the band and we composed one of the most ambitious and surprising records of 1994 on the underground scene: "Under the Moonspell" which combined our interests in southern culture, occultism and eroticism with a spawn of wide music influenced by our everlasting sources Bathory and Celtic Frost and by bands such as Dead can Dance and Arabian and Portuguese traditional music. This mini album that contained both Tenebrarums and Opus Diabolicum brought us the very first real fan and press attention and it had the undeniable value of getting us a deal with our current label Century media.

In the meanwhile we started playing live. Before 1994 we had played once with Decayed supporting on November 1993. We did few shows in the South of Portugal, in Lisbon and Oporto and had our live breakthrough supporting Cradle of Filth in Lisbon and Cannibal Corpse/Samael and Anathema in Lisbon as well.

Signing to Century Media was a dream come true. We rehearsed a lot in order to do the best we could and tried to experiment a lot of different stuff in our mosaic of influences going on for a darker sound, stronger songs and erotic, deadly lyrics. "Wolfheart" came into life so we travelled to Germany to work with Waldemar Sorychta whose productions we loved and became in a short period of time the second dream coming true. When "Wolfheart" came out nobody believed so much on it except for ourselves and the following months besides some successful gigs in Portugal were pretty low to get the album going. We needed an European tour and it made its appearance on the form of supporting Morbid Angel on the Domination 1995 tour. Before that we played a small headline tour in England with only 3 dates and had the chance to know better the foreign audience.

The Morbid Angel tour was simultaneously one of the best things that happened to Moonspell but one of the hardest experiences on our lives. First in the gap between the release of Wolf and the start of the tour we lost both guitarists each one for different reasons and we recruited Ricardo from a Portuguese band P.Waltz (that was not happy with the idea at all and had no prejudice of showing it through childish interviews that only amused us on boring tourdays) and went for seven weeks on a van, playing, driving, cooking, selling merchandise, whatever we had to. We played for the first time in Germany, Italy, Austria, France, Spain, etc. and had a fantastic reaction in spite of the poor conditions we had sometimes as a support act but we got on until the end and Wolfheart sales triplified with the release of the digipack and we overcomed Morbid Angel on selling's for instance. People discovered "Alma Mater", "Vampiria" and other titles and we sold around 50.000 copies of an album nobody believed in.

With an eye put on the European scene we were welcomed very well on the two gigs we did in Portugal before going again on tour in November with Tiamat in Germany which helped us to build our following there. Shortly afterwards we travelled to Poland and Czech Rep. to play the biggest festivals in our career back then with bands like Kreator and Testament and attendance's in the order of the 7000 people. We had enthusiastic reactions and became between 1995 and 1996 one of the most popular heavy metal bands in Poland with continuos tv broadcast.etc.

We started then preparing our second album and went back to Germany to participate on the Out of the Dark festivals I with Crematory, The Gathering and Secret Discovery. This tour was an overwhelming success and allowed us to present some new tracks to the audience and to break some t-shirts sales records! It was a very positive experience that ended on a Monday seven a.m. in Dortmund (Germany) the date we entered directly on studio two hours after to start working on our new album. Waldemar was behind the desk again but he had now a more mature band on his hands that knew exactly what they wanted. The result was our best so far in the shape of Irreligious a different album from Wolfheart of course and that turned into something we always wanted to do, regardless of the many critics we had because we changed. We accept them gladly, we wanted to change! On with the biography, I am sorry, we stopped a little bit the recordings to come to Portugal and play a gig with Mão Morta, and then finish the recordings of the album on mid May.

In the meanwhile we played on the Super Bock, Super Rock for the disgust of the promoter, and after recording our first video clip "opium" locate in the old and narrow streets of Lisbon we released the album first in Portugal on the best gig of our lives (and hopefully many of you out there) that took place on an old convenant (Convento do Beato) on the 12 of July 1996. We had promised something memorable to our fans and I hope that the almost 3000 people that came to see us have found a place for this memory in the deep of their wolfhearts. It was the first time we worked with our full tour production in Portugal and the result was beyond imagination. VIVA from Germany did a great special about Moonspell and everyone was astonished with the crowd reaction and the chemistry between Moonspell and them. So thank you all!

The album sold around 10000 units now in Portugal which is making history for this kind of outcast music and culture in our territory. Later followed the European release in Dortmund in the font of 1000 people in a fairly warm gig but an efficient one since the album broke into the German Top 50 and stayed there for eight entire weeks! This gig was followed by an one off gig at the PopKomm in Koln (Germany) and we returned Portugal to prepare ourselves for a 2 months European tour with Samael that occurred from September to early November resulting in a well succeeded tour that in Germany had a medium average of a thousand. The album broke into the Italian, Austrian, Finnish and Dutch charts in the meanwhile.

Lastly we got confirmed as the support band for Type O Negative European tour which was another dream come true for us. But before we headlined between two of the most famous Portuguese bands at the Lisbon Coliseum playing to an unforgettable 3000 audience that took over the show from us and to whom we thank so much and defy to do it once again. Back to Type O this was our real BIG tour playing to sold out arenas most of the times, conquering over a new audience, leaving other indifferent but all in all a highly profile tour with Dark Rock sex symbol himself : Mr Steele, thy good giant! ( I hope he does not have Internet) that together with a fantastic band and a fantastic crew made of this tour one unforgettable experience and one of the most vital steps on our history as a band.

In the meanwhile Irreligious sold more already (since August) than 50000 copies and Moonspell was voted by VIVA as the revelation band for 1996 leaving the strong Marilyn Manson and Korn behind. It was a good year definitely! Now we are trying to prepare our third album (SIN/PECADO), relaxing from all the intensive touring we did so far and going on and being stubborn enough to impose ourselves and our undeniable Portuguese flavour to all of you who are thirsty of honest and hopefully fresh Art! I hope it was not a so bad biography, I still count on my memory to do a lot of things but I am not a computer... Maybe I should erase this last comment?... December 1996.

After a really short break, we got together again in our old rehearsal place to find out and finally realize that Moonspell was well career wise but that there was something rotting in the core of the band, that are always the personal relationships and liberties, regardless of what you say to the exterior world. Between discussions and profound disagreements, things were getting personal and we were loosing the elegance that characterized our chemistry and hate was setting in. Fortunately now, we had no tours planned, and for the first time since late 1994 we had the time to think and analyze ourselves and our status. Of course, do not expect we gathered around a table and discussed it as civilized beings. We had music to do and music solved things at the end, bruising and healing the band. A lot was said about Ares getting out, especially by himself, and I must openly detach our elegance dealing with the subject, not answering to cheap provocations that came from a lot of sources and never giving importance to the stories created. The truth was what matter to us and its crude and complete version will always stay between these walls, really. Once I wrote for the page an emotional explanation of everything, that was abstract and poetic enough not to calm down the questions. Putting the finger on the wound for a few lines we parted way with Ares (nobody expelled anyone, no one is a victim of anyone) because we came to an unbearable situation when he wanted to put us at an inferior level, criticized rudely our work and most importantly not presenting anything in trade or as an alternative to his harsh and mindless criticism. He had forgot how to work either alone or with us since ages, you could recognize this on his playing and his terrible need of self promotion leaving the rest of us behind. He came to the point of believing Moonspell has his and him alone and we took this situation to the point of reflecting on it and creating a rupture. This happened in early February, and apparently in an amicable way, with Ares shaking our hands and wishing us luck, after we all reflected and decided Moonspell would go on without him. The definitive stage of the situation came later when he learnt that Ares registered Moonspell's name on his behalf, registered songs from Sin, deviating a rehearse tape through still unknown means to us, filling lawsuits against us and legal threats, not only breaking the professional deal that bounded us together to Century, but totally making the handshaking ritual ridiculously cynical and unbearable. We defended ourselves the ways we had to and even if the novel goes on for has the importance we give it, ranging from total despise to sleepless nights of revolt against the fact that we believed and supported a person that betrayed us and endanger the Moonspell future as much as he did. If everything he said about himself, if he had really been the composer and the leader he said he was, he?d compete with us, healthy, through his talent or his new project. Almost three years are gone and besides discovering uglier aspects of our pre and post relationship, I heard just insipid news and vain projects. I would rest my case here, if I could.

After the schock, we answered with music and work. We found out a new bass player Sergio C., that adapted to us in a perfect manner and still remains with us as you know, contributing now to the composition part of the band, as well. He came from an odd background of casinos and clubs, being an eclectic, practiced musician, that left Brazil to dedicate himself into playing music. His first experience was playing a track on an award party at the Lisbon Coliseum and he liked it, shame he didn't had the time to even warm up. He would warm up with MetalMania festival in Poland with 7000 people assisting and then on Dynamo Festival, on the main stage Saturday afternoon, one of the highlights of our live career as the very first and very only Portuguese Metal band to desecrate the mythical Eindovhen stage. The end of the year was completed by a small headliner tour with not much to tell.

The summer of 97 was divided between playing all the possible summer festivals in Europe and recording Sin, an album whose values and mistakes you have debated abundantly and that I probably will fail to add something else. Factually, the release of Sin brought us besides all the already debated, the golden chance of visiting the Lisbon Coliseum as headliners, playing to a sold out audience of 4000 brothers and countrymates, that like in 1996 stole the flame from us and gave it back in a way that words can not truly describe, truly! We got the silver records from both Irreligious and Sin on that night and marked some more territory, forgetting the problems, embracing the energy. We had also the chance always to expand and do a quick but memorable South American tour covering Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Columbia and Mexico. To cut it short we nicknamed it the Ego Tour. Enough said then. Apart from the usual Summer engagements that included festivals like Roskilde, Bizarre, Artifacts this time, we had the privilege of playing Paredes de Coura, in one of the most beautiful stage we ever played in to an excellent Portuguese crowd. The experience was in fact so good that not even the always so right and critical could say bad things about it. We had also then the chance of a headliner experience throughout whole Europe, to scare away the ghosts. In a 50 dates trek, we sold out 10 venues, were met with enthusiasm and finally could exercise a full show of our own, something only possible and well done after 3 intense years of proudly supporting and learning. When we finished up this trek in Lisbon, almost 8 weeks after its start, we were not even tired, so glad were the memories of this experience we shared with Therion, Darkside and occasionally with Anathema.

December 1998, one year ago, come as a mostly resting period where we, nevertheless, started laying the foundations for our upcoming work that was already named and concepted at the time. Facing changes, originated by the different motivations and guidelines that were in our spirit at the time of its composition, we recruited a new producer Andy Reilly, to help us out to break some routines in Moonspell and to achieve our great goal with the butterfly album which was to come closer to an unique style, conciliating the soul of Moonspell with his contemporary presence and artistic context. At Trident Studios we think we achieved it, creating a powerful and different album, that is being welcomed with respect above all. Shortly before and after we had always live experiences from which I?d detach the travel to Istanbul and its peculiarities and the headlining at Printemps de Bourges festival in France, country that delivered us an unexpected but very welcome attention since the release of Sin, that accounted 12000 copies sold only on that territory ! Also relevant were the several headlining experiences on Portuguese festivals, with the bad note of a cancellation already explained to the ones who care.

best folk metal bands ever

2010-05-23T07:08:00.000-07:00

1 Ensiferum

Ensiferum was started in ca. 1995 - 96 by Markus Toivonen (guitar), Sauli Savolainen (bass) ja Kimmo Miettinen (drums). In the end of 1996 they were joined by Jari Mäenpää on guitar and vocals. Pretty soon, in the beginning of 1997, Jari had to go to the army and the band froze for a while. Luckily, the service in the Finnish army is not too long and the band recorded their first demo the same year. About 300 copies found their way to tapeplayers across the globe and the response was very promising. At the time, the band drew influences from f.ex. Amorphis and folkmusic. 1998 was the year of a few line-up changes. Jukka-Pekka Miettinen stepped in as the new bassplayer and Oliver Fokin from Arthemesia filled the drummers seat when Kimmo Miettinen moved to Arthemesia. In other words, the bands traded drummers.
In the beginning of 1999 Ensiferum recorded their second demo that was also very well-greeted in the metalscene across the world. Later the same year a third demo was recorded with Janne Joutsenniemi (Sub-Urban Tribe) twisting the knobs at the MD-Studios in Helsinki. This was the demo that landed them the deal with Spinefarm Records. It also got them tons of gigs and it was chosen "Demo of The Month" at f.ex. Noise, Metal Blade and Suomi Finland Perkele magazine. And there's more; the demo even got airplay not only in Finland but also in Sweden and Italy. The band was naturally chuffed...

2 Finntroll

One night in march 1997 two men were sleeping in a rehearsal room in Helsinki. The other woke up and started playing the keyboards and came up with a folkish melody. Soon the other one woke up too. Liking the melody he asked the other guy to play the riff in traditional finnish "humppa" style (humppa is a variety of polka...). This sounded very mean and guitars and brutal vocals were added immediatly. Thus Finntroll was born..

These two very drunk founding fathers were Somnium (ex-Thy Serpent, Impaled Nazarene) and Katla. Almost a year later in January Finntroll recorded their debut demo "rivfader". They were still using drummachine but were already discussing a future adding of other members at least for session musicanship. Soon several musicians stepped into the picture. Drummer B. Dominator (Barathrum, Rapture), Skrymer on live guitars, Trollhorn (Moonsorrow) on keyboards and Tundra on bass. Spikefarm had shown interest in the band and now that Finntroll was a band with several strong musicians the deal was sealed. So there you had it, the record that probably affected the black and folk metal scene for good. The debut album "Midnattens Widunder" contains nine tracks of advanced trollish metal. At last the Finntroll woke up from its long sleep to strike down the followers of the christian plague...

About a year after that, it was the time to take the next step in this trollish crusade and Walltone Studios were once again inhabited by Finntroll. This time the guys knew better what they wanted to do and the session went smoothly and without any problems they encountered on the first trip. The result was an album called "Jaktens Tid". With this album Finntroll took a huge step forward both musically and in overall atmosphere. At last they could say that this was how they wanted to sound like. The album got great reviews all over the world and was praised by countless of people. Finntroll was stronger that ever before. The album managed to climb to 20th place in the Finnish album charts, surprising both band and the label. Soon after that Century Media was attracted by this success and licensed the album for the rest of the world. On that summer Finntroll played in several open-airs both in Finland and abroad.

Beginning from the year 2002 the band hit a string of bad luck, beginning from cancellations of some tours, continuing with the vocalist Katla's worsening throat problems which finally lead to his early retirement from the band. Several shows were made with replacing singers, Tommy Åberg of Bloodshed, Pete Eskelinen of Rapture and Mika Luttinen of Impaled Nazarene. In January 2003 the band realized a long planned project, an acoustic/experimental cd "Visor Om Slutet" with Katla and the new vocalist Wilska (Sethian, ex-Wizzard, ex-Nattvindens Gråt to name a few...) sharing the vocal duties. The album was recorded at a cabin in the woods on the outskirts of Helsinki, with the aid of a mobile studio, sauna and large quantities of alcohol. It was released as a mid-price album, and surprisingly inhabited the no. 1 place of the Finnish Midprice chart for several weeks...

Just before the release of this record, the band met with a heart-breaking blow; The death of Teemu "Somnium" Raimoranta in an alcohol related accident in Helsinki. While recovering from the loss of a dear friend and bandmate the rest decided that ending the band would be an insult to his memory, and decided to honour and grieve him the best way they could, by going on tour and keeping his music alive. The band did a two week European tour in support of Katatonia, and brought in an old member of the family, guitarist Routa who had earlier played some gigs as a stand-in guitarist in Finntroll. During the summer the members spent a lot of time on the road, playing festivals like Graspop in Belgium, The Vienna Metal Fest and Sweden Rock.

3 eluveitie

Eluveitie clearly belongs to the fast growing Pagan Metal-scene, anyhow brings some "fresh air" into it. Eluveitie's sound is traditional, authentic celtic Folk Music combined in a unique way with modern styled Melodic Death Metal, strongly influenced by the classic "Göthenburg Sound".

Originally formed by Mastermind Chrigel Glanzmann in winter 2002 as a mere studio-project, the first EP "Vên" was recorded in 2003, already unique in it's way of having the Folk-Part being on an equal footing with the Metal-Instruments. This self-financed MCD was ardently received by the scene, zines etc. and sold out within a few Months. In 2004 Eluveitie signed to the dutch label Fear Dark Records, which released a re-mastered (and partly re-recorded) version of "Vên", and continued as a "real" band, playing gigs together with bands such as Cruachan, Korpiklaani and Skyforger.

Although many line-up changes still had to happen, Eluveitie grew into being a band, and developed it's very own style, formed by the many different influences of nine musicians rooted in different styles of music. In late 2005, Eluveitie was finally ready to enter the studio and record their first full-lenght Album, to be released on Fear Dark Records again. With "Spirit" , Eluveitie goes a big step forward, presenting a completely new style of Folk Metal to the scene - starting a new wave of Folk Metal!

top 3 black metal bands ever

2010-05-23T06:54:00.000-07:00

1 Dimmu Borgir

Dimmu Borgir is a melodic black metal band hailing from Norway. Shagrath, Silenoz and Tjodalv initiated the band in 1993. Shortly after, Brynjard Tristan joined to play bass, and Stian Aarstad joined for keyboard duties. Dimmu Borgir was born. They are a band which success is measured with such bands as Emperor, Kreator and Cradle of Filth. I will without a doubt say that Dimmu Borgir is the best black metal band in the world today (webmaster's comment).

Haunting keyboard melodies, aggressive guitar work, destructive drums, grim/raw vocals and a touch of melodic/operatic vocals characterize Dimmu Borgir's sound. They are musically inspired by 80's black metal and heavy metal. Classic composers, like Wagner and Dvorak, also inspire them.

Dimmu Borgir began their career by releasing a 7" EP entitled "Inn I Evighetens Morke" ("Into the Eternity of Darkness") on Necromantic Gallery Productions in 1994. It sold out within a few weeks, marking the start of a successful and magnificent band. Dimmu Borgir existed in the black metal scene for quite some time but did not get the recognition they deserved until late 1994, when they released their debut full length album "For All Tid"--a slow, dark and atmospheric recording--on No Colour Records. The album features contributions by Aldrahn from Dødheimsgard and Vicotnik from Ved Buens Ende. The lineup on their debut album was: Shagrath - Drums & Vocals (Guitar on track 5), Erkekjetter Silenoz - Guitar & Vocals, Tjodalv - Guitar, Brynjard Tristan - Bass, Stian Aarstad - Synthesizers, Piano & Effects.

In 1996 they released one of the most important albums in black metal history, "Stormblåst", on a new label, Cacophonous records. During that time period, this album showed that Dimmu Borgir was one of the better melodic black metal bands. They took a big step forwards, towards the distinctive sound in which Dimmu Borgir is known for today. Mature song writing, with good variance of tempos, a strong classical influence and one of the best black metal sounds out there. "Stormblåst" showed an increase in speed, yet maintained the melody and atmosphere. Lineup on this recording was: Shagrath - Lead Guitar & Vocals, Erkekjetter Silenoz - Rhythm Guitar & Vocals, Tjodalv - Drum & Percussion, Brynjard Tristan - Bass Guitar, Stian Aarstad - Synthesizers & Piano.

For the first two full lengths, Dimmu Borgir wrote their lyrics in Norwegian, however after the release of "Stormblåst", they changed the lyrics into English. The main reason was that the majority of the audience did not understand the lyrics and so Dimmu Borgir wanted use a popular language to communicate their message--to reach a broader audience.

After "Stormblåst", Dimmu Borgir released the "Devil's Path" MCD on Hot Records, in 1996. Shagrath actually worked in Hot records and he was responsible for the signing and promotion of bands. "Devil's Path" is a MCD with 4 songs, and includes a brilliant song entitled "Devil's Path", so it's worth purchasing this release to complete your Dimmu Borgir discography. For the MCD, Nagash, who at that time was in Troll and The Kovenant (previously called Covenant) was recruited to replace Tristan on bass. Stian Aarstad did not perform keyboard duties on this album due to the fact that he had to take care of business regarding the Norwegian army. Line up on this recording was: Shagrath - Guitar, Vocals & Keyboard, Erkekjetter Silenoz - Guitar, Tjodalv - Drums, Nagash - Bass.
Euphoric

In 1997 Dimmu Borgir released their masterpiece "Enthrone Darkness Triumphant"--an engaging, powerful and moving recording. One of the most important black metal releases this century (webmaster's comment). "Enthrone…" marked a move to a bigger label, impeccable production (by the famous Peter Tagtren) and the success of 150,000+ in record sales. Due to these reasons, many have claimed that Dimmu Borgir have sold out. This is not true. The fact is that with this release they have made black metal available for a much broader audience and with their melodic-yet-still-aggressive sound, they became one of the biggest names in black metal. This was a great achievement, and being a hard working, dedicated and persistent band, Dimmu Borgir deserve their high status. "Enthrone…" was released on their new label, Nuclear Blast, after their old record label failed to give their best to promote Dimmu Borgir. If you are curious as to why the lyrics of "Tormentor of Christian Souls" are not include in the booklet is because Nuclear Blast did not want to be responsible for printing them! Line up on this recording was: Shagrath - Guitar & Vocals, Erkekjetter Silenoz - Guitar, Tjodalv - Drums, Nagash - Bass, Stian Aarstad - Synthesizers and piano.

After the recording of "Enthrone…" the band hired Astennu to play guitars during live performances, so Shagrath could fully concentrate on his vocals and stage performance. Astennu replaced Jens Petter who was a member for a short while between "Stormblåst" and "Enthrone…" Astennu is originally from Australia and came to Norway to record his solo project Carpe Tenebrum, which was previously called Lord Kaos. He then played guitar in The Kovenant and after a short time, became aware of his priorities, quit, and is presently a full-time member of Dimmu Borgir. After the "Enthrone…" tour, Dimmu Borgir had a mini-tour where Tjodalv left the band for a few months to be with his family and newborn child. His replacement was Aggressor, filling in as a session drummer, who is currently with Aura Noir. In the "Enthrone…" tour, Stian Aarstad had trouble participating in some of the performances and was fired from the band. Stian Aarstad has now joined the ranks of the Norwegian black metal band Enthral. His replacement was Kimberley Goss, who has previously worked with Therion, Ancient and currently, Sinergy. But after an incredibly brief stay with Dimmu Borgir, Kimberly Goss had to leave the band, due to the fact that she was a session member. Her replacement--on a very short notice--was Mustis, a young keyboard player from Norway and acquaintance of Shagrath since early 1998. He had his first live appearance with Dimmu Borgir at the Dynamo Open Air festival 1998. Mustis has not played in any significant bands previous to Dimmu Borgir, but he has added a new element to the band, and the new sound can be heard on "Spiritual…" Mustis had a heavy influence on this album, considering 60% of Dimmu Borgir songs are created on keyboard first.

A very nice surprise was the re-release of Dimmu Borgir's debut album, "For all Tid", on Nuclear Blast in 1998. This album contains all of the original material and includes two songs from their 7" EP "Inn I Evighetens Morke" ("Into the Eternity of Darkness"). In the same year, Dimmu Borgir released a MCD, "Godless Savage Garden", which is also on Nuclear Blast. The album contains 2 new songs, 2 re-releases, one cover and 3 live recordings. This release was only intended to be a "goodie" while the fans were waiting for the new album, "Spiritual…" This MCD was rated so good that it was nominated for "Spellemannsprisen", a Norwegian Grammy, in the metal category. "Godless…" was nominated together with albums from The Kovenant and Mundanus Imperium. The whole show was aired on Norwegian television and Dimmu Borgir played "Grotesquery Concealed" live, from the "Spiritual…" album. The performance was the only highlight of the entire show. Unfortunately Dimmu Borgir did not win the Grammy, but The Kovenant did, for their "Nexus Polaris" album.

The recording of "Spiritual Black Dimensions" once again took place in the infamous Abyss Studios with Peter Tagtren (Hypocrisy, Pain, The Abyss). Dimmu Borgir achieved an outstanding sound, complexly layered and powerfully enchanting. "Phantasmagoria" was the name of the song first performed live at 1998 Dynamo festival. Another song from "Spiritual..." was released on the Beauty in Darkness Vol.3 compilation, on Nuclear Blast, entitled "The Insight And The Catharsis", serving as a teaser before the albums official release.

Released officially on March 1, 1999, by Nuclear Blast, "Spiritual..." took the record stores by storm and proved once again that Dimmu Borgir are the kings of the dark throne. Prior to the release, many have been curious as to what direction the music would take. Those in doubt of Dimmu Borgir's dedication to extreme music were forced to face reality when "Spiritual…" proved to be their most complex and extreme album to date. After this recording Nagash decided to quit Dimmu Borgir to concentrate fully on The Kovenant. The temporary replacement, Simen Hestnaes (also known as I.C.S. Vortex) from Borknagar contributed to this recording with clean and operatic style vocals. He is also the session bassist on the "Spiritual…" tour 1999. In late 1999 Simen became (as I think everybody hoped for) the permanent replacement on bass and full member of Dimmu Borgir. The line up on this recording was: Shagrath - Vocals, Erkekjetter Silenoz - Guitar, Astennu - Lead Guitar, Tjodalv - Drums & Percussion, Nagash - Bass, Mustis - Synthesizers & Piano.

A month after the release of "Spiritual... ", Dimmu Borgir made a split album with Old Man's Child, titled "Sons of Satan Gather for Attack." Also in the same month Astennu released his side project, Carpe Tenebrum, entitled "Mirrored Hate painting". This project involved vocals from Nagash and contains similar elements as Dimmu Borgir, only faster. Both of these albums were released through Hammerheart Records, and more information is available at the following link: Hammerheart Records

In the early stages of the 1999 Dimmu Borgir tour, right after their crushing gigs in New Jersey and Montreal, Tjodalv decided to leave the band due to musical and personal differences. He has a family to take care of and cannot do the immense touring of Dimmu Borgir. Tjodalv's replacement should be familiar to everyone, it is none other than the godly Nick Barker, former Cradle Of Filth drummer. Nick has recently finished drumming duties with Borknagar on the North American "Kings of Terror Tour". Nick will release a new album with his side project "Lockup", the album is titled "Pleasure paves sewers". The album was recorded in Peter's Abyss Studio in Sweden and released 22.11.99 by Nuclear Blast.

Dimmu Borgir was about to start the recording of a new album in March 2000 the band was booked into Abyss studio with producer Peter Tagtgren to record the yet untitled new album in March and April 2000. This did not happend because they needed more time to finish the new material. They also have had some financial problems that restricted the rehersal time, because Nick still live in England and could not afford to come over to norway as often as he should have.

Further line-up changes took place during the writing period for their new album when the band fired guitarist Astennu due to various personal reasons. Astennu's replacement ended up being a man named Galder (Tom Rune Andersen) the "Mastermind of Old Mans Child" who is known for his brilliant guitar playing in Norwegian black metallers Old Man's Child.

With a firm line-up now intact Dimmu Borgir entered Sweden's Fredman Studio (At The Gates, In Flames, Dark Tranquillity) in Fall 2000 to record their highly anticipated new album, Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia. Once again the band created a masterpiece in aggressive music with outstanding atmosphere and audibly evil songs. "Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia" was not just another DIMMU BORGIR release that so many people are expecting to hear by any means. It possesses its own dark emotions and exciting creativity that only a band as experienced as DIMMU BORGIR can deliver leaving all other "top tiered" Black Metal bands flailing helplessly in their wake. The songwriting is at its highest peak making Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia the band's strongest release to date (proven by such standout tracks as"Blessings Upon The Throne Of Tyranny", "Kings Of The Carnival Creation","The Mealstrom Mephisto" and "Architecture Of A Genocidal Nature").

As an added bonus, the band recorded various tracks with the Gothenburg symphonic orchestra yielding astonishing conclusions sure to turn heads. The end result is nothing short of perfection from the complex guitar work to the dynamic keyboard tinkering. Drummer Nick Barker blasts through the material with devastating force and fluidity while Hestnaes' bass rumbles supremely below as he adds intelligently lays down well-placed backing vocals for added enhancement. Vocalist Shagrath pushes himself to an underworldly level never sounding more sinister and ferocious. Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia is not just another Dimmu Borgir release that so many people are expecting to hear by any means. It possesses its own dark emotions and exciting creativity that only a band as experienced as Dimmu Borgir can deliver leaving all other "top tiered" black metal bands flailing helplessly in their wake.

After being nominated for the third time, Dimmu Borgir have now won the Norwegian Grammy Award 2001, within the category "Metal" for their masterpiece "Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia". Besides Dimmu Borgir also Emperor and Borknagar were nominated. A great moment in the history of the band, who wants to thank everybody who believed in them.

DIMMU BORGIR entered Studio Fredman in Gothenburg, Sweden for the second time on March 3 to begin tracking the drum parts for their forthcoming CD, "Death Cult Armageddon" was recorded and produced by Frederik Nordström. This time Dimmu Borgir was finished with the new song material befor entering the studio and they had all the new material ready and they also mastered their our own pre-production.

DIMMU BORGIR have managed to become the most prominent and important Melodic Black Metal act around the globe. With their new studio album "Death Cult Armageddon" DIMMU BORGIR reach an even higher level, climbing up the next step close to Baphomet's Throne. DIMMU BORGIR always stood for the orchestral side of Black Metal; classical arrangements have ever been a certain aspect in their unique sound. To give the songs an even more authentic feeling, the band recorded parts of the album along with the Philharmonic Orchestra Prague, which consisted of 46 professional musicians. This is feeling of majesty and power that makes the Norwegians special. "Death Cult Armageddon" is their most varied and therefore also most extreme album.

"Death Cult Armageddon" takes that high level and even goes one step further ahead. There is an incredible dark feeling about the whole album, which will capture every metallic soul. DIMMU BORGIR set a new standard for Black Metal with each of their record. This is the now and the future! Join the Deathcult!

Guitarist Silenoz had this to say: "The new DIMMU BORGIR album has been a hard and long fucking road to hell, and 'Death Cult Armageddon' is what we're bringing back. With that we're pleased to announce that this will be considered our most epic, majestic, somber, evil and grimmest release to date, containing absolutely everything we're known for — the never-ending presence of atmosphere, diversity and variety! In other words, it's huge! Darkness is once again upon us!"

Another notch in Dimmu Borgirs belt is the recording of their first ever promotional video for "Progenies Of The Great Apocalypse" to support the release of the new album "Death Cult Armageddon" this is an awesome piece of art and work and every metal fan should check it out, This video was also included in the DVD Audio release of the new album, this release also contains the album in excellent 5.1 surround multichannel sound mix and bonus songs.

The next chapter is in Dimmu Borgir history is about to take place as they hit the roads to give their brilliant piece of work to the thousands of loyal fans around the world, well.....people
"You wanted the best you got the best..... Dimmu Borgir!" show up and prepare to se another awesome show performed by the one and only Dimmu Borgir.

2 Behemoth

There had been a long hard road out of hell until the cursed day when the furious intensity of the Eastern beast, set up by Nergal, the main man behind the band , struck the world in mid 1991. Following the paths of the ancient heroes like VENOM, early FROST or first Norwegian black metal acts, Behemoth started their unearthly existence with a couple of raw and primitive rehearsal tapes ("Endless Damnation") and demos ("The Return of the northern moon"), the most significant of which was the second one - "From the pagan vastlands" (1993), showing the growing potential of the main composer/writer.

This tape was released by polish label Pagan Rec. and later on by infamous American Wild Rags which pressed this stuff on CD.
Signing with a minor Italian company Entropy rec. the band had the chance to record their debut release, a mini album entitled "And the forests dream eternally" (1994) followed by the full length with Polish underground label Pagan rec.

"Sventevith (storming near the Baltic)" gained extremely positive responses worldwide and eventually saw the band moving on to a new deal with German label Solistitium. Rec. That record established Behemoth as one of the very few black metal bands from mid-eastern Europe with enormous potential and its own, peculiar character. Consequently ,stepping forward, the band (as the three piece - Nergal, Baal, Les) recorded the second album "Grom". This has been probably the most controversial release so far, due to its many different influences, using female vocals as well as acoustic guitars and synthesizers. This was also the time when Behemoth finally got a chance to play first shows in their native country and finally tour around Europe (Pagan Triumph tour 1996) gaining stage experience as well as positive feedback from the crowds.

Then the time came to record third album, called "Pandemonic Incantations", which benefited from the precious aid of new members, especially the very talented human drummer machine- Inferno. It was some kind of "breakthrough moment" in Behemoth's short career. Reactions of the still growing fanbase and metal medias set the new quality standards for this polish band. Unfortunately, that awesome album suffered from the lack of interest worldwide caused by very weak promotion. The last opus released by Solistitium was strictly limited mini cd called "Bewitching The Pomerania" which is a highly estimated collectors item at this moment.

After another extensive and rewarding tour, in the fall of 1998 Behemoth signed a two albums deal with Italian Avantgarde Music. The first output of this new collaboration was the highly successful album "Satanica": Long lasting feedbacks covered "Satanica" with 'gold awards' even one year after its release date (the album was licensed in the USA in Summer 2000!). The label also secured the band with two very effective European tours in support to DEICIDE and another to SATYRICON. In that very successful period, the band had to go through some line up changes and problems with their ex- polish label, but at the end of the day, everything was back on the right tracks. The new members on the board were Novy (formerly known from Devilyn, right now in Vader, Dies Irae) who handled the bass duties and an inexperienced but very talented guitarist Havok. The new deal concerning the efforts on the polish territory Behemoth signed with highly respectful and undoubtedly professional Mystic company.

The next masterpiece is the logic follow-up to 'Satanica', although unpredictable in all its smallest details was Thelema6. Massive guitar parts and a most precise drumming, as well as influences from different sources, showed that Behemoth were there to offer something really varied and innovative once again. 'Thelema.6' is a complete album with characteristic fierce brutality and speed. It has also the most essential ingredient: creativity. Behemoth goes on searching for new dimensions both musically and lyrically. Splendid arrangements and technical invention on individual compositions made this album an ultimate one for Black/death metal genre.
Lyrically, once again Nergal and his partner in poetry Krzysztof Azarewicz offered something of a very sophisticated, intimate and profound obscurity.

'Thelema.6' has been massively supported in the press and media all over the world. The album was licensed for the United States area to Olympic rec. and for the first time in their career the album was officially out in Russia by Irond Rec., as well as in Brazil by Moira rec. New songs were also
already experienced live during European tour X-MASS FESTIVALS in December 2000 e.v., in support to MORBID ANGEL, THE CROWN, DYING FETUS, ENSLAVED to name a few. Behemoth invaded their eastern neighbors (Russia, Belarus, Latvia) in February 2001 e.v. being maniacally welcomed by the public.

Continuing the support for 'Thelema.6' Behemoth appeared on several prestigious live events like Wacken Open Air, With Full Force, Inferno Festival, Mystic Festival, Mind Over Matter to mention the most recognizable ones ...
Autumn and winter 2001 has been the most active period for the band so far. They started first headlining tour alongside with Carpathian Forest(Nor) and Khold (Nor) followed by festival tour in Poland (Thrash em all fest. with Vader and Krisiun among others), first headlining tour in Czech Rep. and Slovakia with Czech deathsters Hypnos. This marathon ended on two occasional shows on X MASS, where the band got extremely positive feedback.

In 2002 Nergal and Co. focused on writing new material for their 6th opus. Meantime, they did their second headlining tour in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine (February 2001) as well as "exotic" mini tour in Mexico (february 2001) along with acts like The Haunted and Witchery. There's also the brand new limited mini cd - "Antichristian Phenomenon" hit the stores shelves as the kind of gift for the most dedicated supporters.

Having the new songs completed Behemoth entered Hendrix Studio for the second time, and with help of their long time friend and sound engineer Arkadiusz Malczewski, produced album called "ZOS KIA CULTUS (Here and Beyond)".

"ZOS KIA CULTUS (Here and Beyond)" was recorded with almost double production budget and the band spent in the studio two months (almost 700 hours). The result is impressively massive and overwhelming for all those who thought that the band couldn't go any further since the yet excellent Thelema's production. Musicwise, 'ZOS KIA CULTUS' presents the very well known trademark of Behemoth, with hyper-tech guitar riffing by the axemen in crime Nergal-Havok, the glorious leather-baiting of Inferno and the precise bass patterns by Novy. This time Behemoth sound got APOCALYPTIC ! Adding ultra heavy mid-tempo parts here and there, bringing the listener to the deepest abyss of earth, Nergal and company prove again that they can go anywhere with their killing machine, leaving no survivors behind.

"ZOS KIA CULTUS" street date (November 2002) was shortly after followed by the amount of 36 shows all over Europe. Behemoth headlined different territories with support of such acts like Destroyer 666, Diabolic. In Poland they crushed the venues and spread the odour of sulphur with Darkane, Frontside, Crionics. They reached new fans from the south of Europe (Spain, Portugal, Italy) to the north (England, Scandinavia)...

In February 2003 the band did their first tour in Norway, playing in the most important cities as Bergen, Oslo and Stavanger.

On March 11th 2003 the American premiere was scheduled (Century Media Rec.), followed by the first Behemoth's appearance on the US continent. The tour started on the 9th of March at the New Jersey's Metalfest and continued with decent amount of shows across America and Canada with the company of Deicide, Revenge and Amon Amarth. Shortly after doing their first US tour the band was invited to join BLACKEST OF THE BLACK FESTIVALS by Glenn Danzig himself. Already legendary festival included such acts like DANZIG, SUPERJOINT RITUAL, NILE, OPETH.In the fall of 2003 Behemoth flew over to US to complete their third tour with SIX FEET UNDER and SKINLESS. The band did their Finnish debut appearance on famous TUSKA FESTIVAL along with MINISTRY, SOULFLY and more.

In the meantime due to some line up difficulties Nergal parted his ways with Havok and Novy, who decided to focus on activities with their own bands.

Behemoth has also signed a new deal for next two albums with Swedish REGAIN REC. (gaining i.e. DANZIG, DARK FUNERAL, MARDUK, DEFLESHED, FRONTSIDE on their roster) for European territory, CENTURY MEDIA (USA) and MYSTIC for Polish market. With the new line up consisting of Nergal on guitars and vocals, Inferno on drums and a new member Orion on bass and a session guitar player Seth, the band is currently writing songs for their newest record DEMIGOD which is scheduled for release in the fall 2004.

3 Cradle Of Filth

These are dark days. We live our lives cowering in the shadow of a future black and bleak, snatching all too brief glimpses of romance, hope and humanity, burdened by monochrome drudgery and the stupidity of mankind. The shit keeps hitting the fan and we're all getting splashed. That's why those of us who live for the moment need a soundtrack that provides both unhindered escapism and a heightened, tangible sense of reality's uplifting sensual power. That's why we need Cradle Of Filth more than ever. This is a band that caters for the filthy little secrets inside all of us, eliciting those exhilarating erotic and animal charges that make our time on this planet worth living. Prepare yourself for a hefty shot of 'Nymphetamine'…

Cradle Of Filth first burst into the choking glow of Hell's spotlight in the early 90s, when the UK metal scene was striving to produce a fitting response to the purposeful malevolence and youthful intensity of the Norwegian black metal scene, with its church burnings, death threats and random acts of extreme violence. Smarter, more ambitious and more fiendishly creative than any of their Norse contemporaries, Cradle emerged in 1991 from the bat-infested Suffolk shadows with a fully-formed and multi-faceted sound; a cunning amalgam of venomous black metal, high gothic drama and pure British steel that immediately elevated them above the malnourished aspirations of their peers and grabbed the attention of both the global metalhead legions and the controversy-starved music press in the UK. A raw and belligerent debut album, 1994's 'The Principle Of Evil Made Flesh', ensured that the band's now trademark bombast and arrogance were proclaimed loud and clear and within months Cradle Of Filth were firmly established as the UK metal scene's sharpest and bloodiest blades.

The subsequent decade brought untold success and a further consolidation of the band's inestimable sonic prowess, with a series of bold and audacious albums, a never-ending stream of dullard-baiting merchandise (including the infamous 'Jesus Is A Cunt' shirt) and a relentless procession of eye-popping live extravaganzas. 1996 saw the release of the hideous, blistering 'Vempire' and its extravagant, lascivious follow-up, 'Dusk & Her Embrace'. Two years later, 'Cruelty & The Beast' took Cradle's popularity to new heights, revealing a new sophistication and maturity in the band's songwriting and a greatly enhanced degree of musicianship that belied the never-ending litany of line-up changes that, until recently, have been a fixture in the Cradle story. The 'From The Cradle To Enslave' EP and the masterful, epic 'Midian' (2000) followed in close succession, reaping widespread plaudits and applause from all quarters. The new century was ushered in with 2001's 'Bitter Suites To Succubi', a stopgap compendium of old and new material. 'Live Bait For The Dead', the first official audio document of Cradle Of Filth's notoriously ferocious and hallucinatory live show appeared in 2002 and, as the band enjoyed a brief spell in major label land, the grotesque majesty of the orchestrally twisted 'Damnation And A Day' made 2003 their most victorious and creatively remarkable 12 months to date. Visual offerings came in the form of DVDs 'PanDaemonAeon' and 'Heavy Left-Handed and Candid'.

And so to Cradle Of Filth in 2004. Ten years on from the ominous eruption of their debut album, the UK's premier merchants of darkness have regrouped and found a new home at Roadrunner Records, a label with a suitably metallic past, present and future. After spending the majority of 2003 on the road, performing over 100 shows and hitting a rich vein of creative endeavour as a result, the current Cradle line-up - founder member/frontman Dani Filth, guitarists Paul Allender and James McKillbroy, keyboard maestro Martin Foul

"We weren't under any pressure to make this record and that's been the catalyst for us to create something really incredible," cackles a triumphant sounding Dani Filth. "The only way to top the last album was to go a completely different way, so it's a real mixture of styles this time. We haven't anchored ourselves to a concept. It was a real pleasure to write on a variety of different themes and the music is really diverse and sonically precise. The whole thing sounds perfect and very fucking heavy."

top 3 Alternative metal bands ever

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1 Tool

Tool's greatest breakthrough was to introduce dark, vaguely underground metal to the preening pretentiousness of art rock. Or maybe it was introducing the self-absorbed pretension of art rock to the wearing grind of post-thrash metal — the order really doesn't matter. Though Metallica wrote their multi-sectioned, layered songs as if they were composers, they kept their musical attack ferociously at street level.Tool didn't — they embraced the artsy, faux-bohemian preoccupations of Jane's Addiction while they simultaneously paid musical homage to the dark, relentlessly bleak visions of grindcore, death metal, and thrash. Even with their post-punk influences, they executed their music with the ponderous, anti-song aesthetic of prog rock, alternating between long, detailed instrumental interludes and tuneless, pseudo-meaningful lyrical rants in their songs.Tool, however, had a knack for conveying the strangled, oppressive angst that the alternative nation of the ea! rly '90s claimed as their own. So, the band was able to slip into the definition of alternative rock during the post-Nirvana era, landing a slot on the third Lollapalooza tour in 1993, which helped their first full length debut album, Undertow, rocket into platinum status.By the time the band delivered their belated follow-up, Aenima, in 1996, alternative rock had lost its grip on the mainstream of America, and their audience had shaped up as essentially metal-oriented, which meant that the group and the record didn't capture as big an audience as their first album, despite debuting at number two on the charts. When their first full-length album was released in 1993 (they released an EP a year earlier), Tool won lots of fans with their grinding, post-Jane's Addiction heavy metal. With their dark, angry lyrics and numbing guitar drilling, they appealed both to metalheads and alternative rock fans. When they landed an opening spot on Lollapalooza, their audience grew by leaps! and bounds; the increased exposure helped their debut album, Undertow, go gold. Its 1996 follow-up, Aenima, was also a success. After a co-headlining slot with Korn on Lollapalooza '97 wrapped up, Tool remained on the road, supporting Ænima until well into the next year. During their usual extended hiatus between albums, Keenan decided to use his downtime productively by forming a side project, dubbed A Perfect Circle. The band's 2000 debut, Mer de Noms, was a surprise hit, while their ensuing tour was a sold-out success as well. With Tool break-up rumors swirling, the band put the speculation to rest by re-entering the recording studio and issuing the stop-gap B-sides/DVD set Salival late the same year. May 2001 finally saw the release of Tool's third full-length release, Lateralus, which debuted at the number one position on the Billboard album chart and became the band's biggest hit.In 2004, working hard on a new album, even though singer Maynard James Keenan is wrapping up his tour with his other band A Perfect Circle. Bassist Justin Chancellor, drummer Danny Carey, & guitarist Adam Jones have been jamming away for the past couple months while Keenan has been on tour, and they've already got the framework for 10 to 12 new songs.They have sent the early demo's to Keenan to start the writing process on the lyric's for the new album that could be out by Christmas, but the group may wait till early 2005. The band is also working on a Live DVD from the footage taken from the Lateralus tour, with plans of a summer release for that. So never fear, new Toolage is a-comin'. Tool might not disband disband until the end of 2005 or early 2006 - you'll never know what will happen on their next big thing...This biography was written by Greg Prato for Allmusic.com.

2 slipknot

Slipknot's first songs were composed in 1993, during what is referred to by the band members as the "Basement Sessions". During the early years the band went through the names The Pale Ones , Pyg system, and Meld before they settled on Slipknot. Conducted in the basement of Anders Colsefini, co-founder of the band. Many of the songs on Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat and some that were added to later albums were written during these sessions. Shawn Crahan was the lead drummer before Joey Jordison entered the band. Crahan, being one of the founders, came up with the idea on having three drummers; first to create a powerful tribal sound that Crahan wanted, and second to create a 'wall of sound' effect.They achieved a stable line-up in 1995, and released a demo entitled Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat on Halloween in 1996. The demo sold well, but had a very small release of only 1000 copies. A few major record labels became interested in the group. At that time, the band contained five members, but Roadrunner Records didn't want tsign them at first, feeling that the songwriting needed some work. One year later, after a rather large promotional blitzing by John Kuliak, a Midwest Promotion representative for Roadrunner, an agreement was worked to get Slipknot signed to the reluctant label. In due course, Slipknot went out to find a new lead singer, hired Corey Taylor as the lead vocalist, and pushed Anders to percussion. Anders was not interested in being a percussionist and left the band to pursue his own musical goals.Roadrunner Records eventually signed the band, and released their self-titled debut album, Slipknot, in June of 1999, produced by Ross Robinson. The album became Roadrunner Records' first Platinum certified album. Regarding the album, one reviewer wrote "You thought Limp Bizkit was heavy? They're the Osmonds. Slipknot is something else entirely."2001's Iowa, the follow-up to their debut album, was much anticipated by fans and debuted at number three on the Billboard Magazine album charts and at number one on the UK album chart. They again toured extensively to promote the release. The band also appeared as themselves in the concert scene of the 2002 movie Rollerball, where they played the song "I Am Hated" from Iowa.After a hiatus of close to two years, the band regrouped in late 2003 and began writing and recording with renowned producer Rick Rubin, who had peviously worked with artists such as Johnny Cash, Red Hot Chili Peppes, Britney Spears, System of a Down, Pennywise, Jessica Simpson and Sayer. The band released their fourth album, Vol. 3 (The Subliminal Verses) in May 2004. It debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart.After the release of Vol. 3 (The Subliminal Verses), the band took part in the 2004 The Unholy Alliance tour in Europe with Slayer, Mastodon and Hatebreed.A live album recorded from shows in Phoenix, Las Vegas, Osaka, Singapore & Tokyo was released in November 2005 titled 9.0: Live. Several members of the band also collaborated with other artists on the Roadrunner United: The All-Star Sessions CD released in October 2005. They also appeared in cartoon form in the adult comic Viz (issue 152, Feb 2006), where they appear singing "People = Shit" at the end of the "Mrs Brady, Old Lady" strip. The band is currently on hiatus until 2007 as they work on their side projects; Corey Taylor and James Root are both with Stone Sour, Joey Jordison is with Ministry, and Chris Fehn is working on his golf. It was announced on Slipknot1.com that the new Voliminal: Inside the Nine DVD is done and will be released on December 5, 2006. However, vocalist Corey Taylor has stated that the band do not expect a new album until 2008, as they are all currently working with their respective side projects.The band is known for its peculiar image. The members wear matching uniform jumpsuits, and custom-made masks inspired by facets of their respective personalities. In the past, their jumpsuits have featured large UPC barcodes printed on the back and sleeves, which are identical to the barcode on their first album, Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat. The members' masks are typically altered or presented in a new form with the advent of each new studio album. Their masks and jumpsuits are now more unique to each member and sometimes include ties.Initially, the group's members desired to preserve their secret identities, refusing to be photographed maskless, even to the point of conducting interviews or posing with fans while wearing their masks (or at least obscuring their faces in some other way) Aside from their real names, members of the band are also referred to by numbers 0 through 8. During an interview in 2000, when Corey Taylor was asked about the history behind the masks he responded with this:"During a practice before we recorded Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat, The Clown (Shawn Crahan) brought a mask with him and played wearing it and it just kind of branched out from there."Today most members of the band have now been openly photographed without their masks, largely as the result of their work outside of Slipknot.

3 System Of A Down (soad)

System of a Down (also known by the acronym SOAD, or SoaD, and often shortened as System) is an Armenian-American rock band from Glendale, California, formed in 1993. It consists of Serj Tankian (lead vocals, keyboards, rhythm guitar), Daron Malakian (vocals, guitar), Shavo Odadjian (bass, background vocals) and John Dolmayan (drums). All four members are of Armenian descent, and are widely known for their outspoken views expressed in many of their songs confronting the Armenian Genocide of 1915 by the Ottoman Empire and the ongoing War on Terror by the US government. System of a Down is the only band to have two original number one albums released in the same calendar year. The bands Guns 'N' Roses, The Beatles, and rappers DMX and Tupak Shakur have had two number one albums in a year, but they released unoriginal content (e.g., greatest hits albums or anniversary editions of older albums) one at least one of those albums.

The band has achieved commercial success with the release of five studio albums. System of a Down has been nominated for four Grammy Awards, and won the award in 2006 for Best Hard Rock Performance. On August 13, 2006, the group went on indefinite hiatus.

2010-05-22T03:54:00.000-07:00

the best metal bands ever top 10

1 Death

Best Album: 'Symbolic'

About the band: Chuck Schuldiner created the many variations of the Death lineup over the years and is known as the "Father of Death Metal." In response, Schuldiner said, "I don't think I should take the credits for this death metal stuff. I'm just a guy from a band, and I think Death is a metal band." In 2001, Schuldiner passed away from pneumonia after being weakened by a recently diagnosed brain tumor.

2 Cannibal Corpse

Best Album: 'Bloodthirst'

About the band: Because of their horror-based lyrics and gruesome image, Cannibal Corpse has been banned in several countries, namely Australia and Germany. In response to the violence in their songs, vocalist George Fisher said, "There's nothing ever serious. We're not thinking of anybody in particular that we're trying to kill ... The people doing the killing in our songs are zombies."

3 Vader

Best Album: 'The Art of War'

About the band: This Polish band adopted their name from the villain of the 'Star Wars' movies, as the forming members were fans. As of now, the current lineup features only one original member -- the other three have all joined in 2008.

4 Morbid Angel

Best Album: 'Gateways to Annihilation'

About the band: Created in 1983, the band is considered crucial in the development of death metal. They hold the current record for best-selling death metal album in the United States with the album 'Covenant.'

5 Amon Amarth

Best Album: 'Twilight of the Thunder God'

About the band: Formed under the name Scum, the band changed its name to Amon Amarth, which is an alternate name for Mount Doom from J. R. R. Tolkien's 'Lord of the Rings,' meaning "mountain of fate." Playing off its name nicely, the band's lyrics often refer to Norse mythology and the Viking Age.

6 Bloodbath

Recommended Album: 'Nightmares Made Flesh'

About the band: Bloodbath is a Swedish death metal supergroup that has had different members from album to album. 'Nightmares Made Flesh' is the only album without lead singer Mikael Akerfeldt from Opeth. Akerfeldt was replaced by Peter Tagtgren from Hypocrisy, who stayed only long enough to record this album.

07 Kataklysm

Best Album: 'Shadows & Dust'

About the band: Kataklysm calls their sound "northern hyperblast," which they adopted after seeing a commercial describing the band Fear Factory as "hyperblast." The "blast" refers to the typical death metal use of "blast beats" provided by their drummer. The band is also known for incorporating movie quotes into its music.

8 Nile

Best Album: 'Ithyphallic'

About the band: Lead singer Karl Sanders' interest in Egyptology has been a strong influence on Nile's music and lyrics. Horror novelist H.P. Lovecraft is also an influence in the band and many of its lyrics are based on his works. This accounts for the grammatical peculiarities found in the songs.

09 Six Feet Under

Best Album: 'Death Rituals'

About the band: Originally formed as a side project by Cannibal Corpse vocalist Chris Barnes, Six Feet Under have released nine studio albums during the past 14 years. Barnes created the band so he could break away from the speedy sound of Cannibal Corpse and make something more "grooving."

2010-05-22T03:49:00.000-07:00

10 Suffocation

Best Album: 'Pierced From Within'

About the band: Suffocation are credited with the invention of the subgenre 'Brutal Death Metal' and introducing the 'Death Growl.' Death Metal magazine commented on their 1991 EP by saying it was the first death metal album to fuse elements of punk, hardcore, grindcore and doom metal together.

category of metal (the dark side)

2010-05-21T06:15:00.000-07:00

Black metal

The first wave of black metal emerged in Europe in the early and mid-1980s, led by Britain's Venom, Denmark's Mercyful Fate, Switzerland's Hellhammer and Celtic Frost, and Sweden's Bathory. By the late 1980s, Norwegian bands such as Mayhem and Burzum were heading a second wave. Black metal varies considerably in style and production quality, although most bands emphasize shrieked and growled vocals, highly distorted guitars frequently played with rapid tremolo picking, a "dark" atmosphere and intentionally lo-fi production, with ambient noise and background hiss. Satanic themes are common in black metal, though many bands take inspiration from ancient paganism, promoting a return to pre-Christian values. Numerous black metal bands also "experiment with sounds from all possible forms of metal, folk, classical music, electronica and avant-garde." Darkthrone drummer Fenriz explains, "It had something to do with production, lyrics, the way they dressed and a commitment to making ugly, raw, grim stuff. There wasn't a generic sound."By 1990, Mayhem was regularly wearing corpsepaint; many other black metal acts also adopted the look. Bathory inspired the Viking metal and folk metal movements and Immortal brought blast beats to the fore. Some bands in the Scandinavian black metal scene became associated with considerable violence in the early 1990s, with Mayhem and Burzum linked to church burnings. Growing commercial hype around death metal generated a backlash; beginning in Norway, much of the Scandinavian metal underground shifted to support a black metal scene that resisted being co-opted by the commercial metal industry. According to former Gorgoroth vocalist Gaahl, "Black Metal was never meant to reach an audience.... [We] had a common enemy which was, of course, Christianity, socialism and everything that democracy stands for.By 1992, black metal scenes had begun to emerge in areas outside Scandinavia, including Germany, France, and Poland The 1993 murder of Mayhem's Euronymous by Burzum's Varg Vikernes provoked intensive media coverage Around 1996, when many in the scene felt the genre was stagnating, several key bands, including Burzum and Finland's Beherit, moved toward an ambient style, while symphonic black metal was explored by Sweden's Tiamat and Switzerland's Samael.In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Norway's Dimmu Borgir brought black metal closer to the mainstream,as did Cradle of Filth, which Metal Hammer calls England's most successful metal band since Iron Maiden

Thrash metal

emerged in the early 1980s under the influence of hardcore punk and the New Wave of British Heavy Metal,particularly songs in the revved-up style known as speed metal. The movement began in the United States, with Bay Area thrash metal being the leading scene. The sound developed by thrash groups was faster and more aggressive than that of the original metal bands and their glam metal successors.Low-register guitar riffs are typically overlaid with shredding leads.Lyrics often express nihilistic views or deal with social issues using visceral, gory language. Thrash has been described as a form of "urban blight music" and "a palefaced cousin of rap.The subgenre was popularized by the "Big Four of Thrash": Metallica, Anthrax, Megadeth, and Slayer.Three German bands, Kreator, Sodom, and Destruction, played a central role in bringing the style to Europe. Others, including San Francisco Bay Area's Testament and Exodus, New Jersey's Overkill, and Brazil's Sepultura, also had a significant impact. While thrash began as an underground scene, and remained largely that for almost a decade, the leading bands in the movement began to reach a wider audience. Metallica brought the sound into the top 40 of the Billboard album chart in 1986 with Master of Puppets; two years later, the band's ...And Justice for All hit number 6, while Megadeth and Anthrax had top 40 records.Though less commercially successful than the rest of the Big Four, Slayer released one of the genre's definitive records: Reign in Blood (1986) was described by Kerrang! as the "heaviest album of all time."Two decades later, Metal Hammer named it the best album of the preceding twenty years.Slayer attracted a following among far-right skinheads, and accusations of promoting violence and Nazi themes have dogged the band. In the early 1990s, thrash achieved breakout success, challenging and redefining the metal mainstream.Metallica's self-titled 1991 album topped the Billboard chart,Megadeth's Countdown to Extinction (1992) hit number 2,Anthrax and Slayer cracked the top 10,and albums by regional bands such as Testament and Sepultura entered the top 100.

Death metal

Thrash soon began to evolve and split into more extreme metal genres. "Slayer's music was directly responsible for the rise of death metal," according to MTV News.The NWOBHM band Venom was also an important progenitor. The death metal movement in both North America and Europe adopted and emphasized the elements of blasphemy and diabolism employed by such acts. Florida's Death and the Bay Area's Possessed are recognized as seminal bands in the style. Both groups have been credited with inspiring the subgenre's name, the latter via its 1984 demo Death Metal and the song "Death Metal," from its 1985 debut album Seven Churches (1985).Death metal utilizes the speed and aggression of both thrash and hardcore, fused with lyrics preoccupied with Z-grade slasher movie violence and Satanism. Death metal vocals are typically bleak, involving guttural "death growls," high-pitched screaming, the "death rasp," and other uncommon techniques. Complementing the deep, aggressive vocal style are downtuned, highly distorted guitars and extremely fast percussion, often with rapid double bass drumming and "wall of sound"–style blast beats. Frequent tempo and time signature changes and syncopation are also typical.Death metal, like thrash metal, generally rejects the theatrics of earlier metal styles, opting instead for an everyday look of ripped jeans and plain leather jackets. One major exception to this rule was Deicide's Glen Benton, who branded an inverted cross on his forehead and wore armor on stage. Morbid Angel adopted neo-fascist imagery. These two bands, along with Death and Obituary, were leaders of the major death metal scene that emerged in Florida in the mid-1980s. In the UK, the related style of grindcore, led by bands such as Napalm Death and Extreme Noise Terror, emerged out of the anarcho-punk movement. A large Scandinavian death metal scene, with bands such as Sweden's Entombed and Dismember, began to develop as well. Out of this evolved a melodic death metal sound, typified by Swedish bands such as In Flames and Dark Tranquillity and Finland's Children of Bodom and Kalmah.[citation needed]

Power metal

During the late 1980s, the power metal scene came together largely in reaction to the harshness of death and black metal. Though a relatively underground style in North America, it enjoys wide popularity in Europe, Japan, and South America. Power metal focuses on upbeat, epic melodies and themes that "appeal to the listener's sense of valor and loveliness." The prototype for the sound was established in the mid- to late 1980s by Germany's Helloween, which combind the power riffs, melodic approach, and high-pitched, "clean" singing style of bands like Judas Priest and Iron Maiden with thrash's speed and energy, "crystalliz the sonic ingredients of what is now known as power metal."Traditional power metal bands like Sweden's HammerFall, England's DragonForce, and Florida's Iced Earth have a sound clearly indebted to the classic NWOBHM style.Many power metal bands such as Florida's Kamelot, Finland's Nightwish, Italy's Rhapsody of Fire, and Russia's Catharsis feature a keyboard-based "symphonic" sound, sometimes employing orchestras and opera singers. Power metal has built a strong fanbase in Japan and South America, where bands like Brazil's Angra and Argentina's Rata Blanca are popular.Closely related to power metal is progressive metal, which adopts the complex compositional approach of bands like Rush and King Crimson. This style emerged in the United States in the early and mid-1980s, with innovators such as Queensrÿche, Fates Warning, and Dream Theater. The mix of the progressive and power metal sounds is typified by New Jersey's Symphony X, whose guitarist Michael Romeo is among the most recognized of latter-day shredders.

Doom and gothic metal

Emerging in the mid-1980s with such bands as California's Saint Vitus, Maryland's The Obsessed, Chicago's Trouble, and Sweden's Candlemass, the doom metal movement rejected other metal styles' emphasis on speed, slowing its music to a crawl. Doom metal traces its roots to the lyrical themes and musical approach of early Black Sabbath and Sabbath contemporaries such as Blue Cheer, Pentagram, and Black Widow.The Melvins have also been a significant influence on doom metal and a number of its subgenres. Doom emphasizes melody, melancholy tempos, and a sepulchral mood relative to many other varieties of metal.
The 1991 release of Forest of Equilibrium, the debut album by UK band Cathedral, helped spark a new wave of doom metal. During the same period, the doom-death fusion style of British bands Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride, and Anathema gave rise to European gothic metal, with its signature dual-vocalist arrangements, exemplified by Norway's Theatre of Tragedy and Tristania. New York's Type O Negative introduced an American take on the style.
In the United States, sludge metal, mixing doom and hardcore, emerged in the late 1980s—Eyehategod and Crowbar were leaders in a major Louisiana sludge scene. Early in the next decade, California's Kyuss and Sleep, inspired by the earlier doom metal bands, spearheaded the rise of stoner metal, while Seattle's Earth helped develop the drone metal subgenre. The late 1990s saw new bands form such as the Los Angeles–based Goatsnake, with a classic stoner/doom sound, and Sunn O))), which crosses lines between doom, drone, and dark ambient metal—the New York Times has compared their sound to an "Indian raga in the middle of an earthquake".

Christian alvestam

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Christian Älvestam (Born April 14, 1976 in Sweden) is a vocalist, lyricist, guitarist, bassist and drummer for several bands from Sweden. He is, however, best known as the former vocalist for the Swedish melodic death metal band Scar Symmetry. He currently performs with several bands, including Solution .45 and Miseration, and has made several guest appearances for other bands music.

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John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer-song writer, whose career has now spanned four decades. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead vocalist of pioneering British heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and eventually achieved a multi-platinum solo career which revolutionized the heavy metal genre. As a result he is known as the "Godfather of Heavy Metal", and, because of some of his material, the "Prince of Darkness". In the early 2000s, his career as a celebrity hit a new zenith when he became a star in his own reality show, The Osbournes, alongside wife/manager Sharon and two of their three children, Kelly and Jack. In August 2008, Osbourne stated in USA Today that he intends to retire from his music career after two more albums.

Band of Gypsies

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After Hendrix disbanded the Jimi Hendrix Experience in mid-1969, he formed Gypsy Sun and Rainbows to fulfill the contract for the Experience to play Woodstock.[citation needed] Bassist Billy Cox (who had played with Hendrix while they were in the army) had been rehearsing and playing with Hendrix since April, but the band was short-lived.

With Cox and his drummer friend Buddy Miles, Hendrix next formed the Band of Gypsys, this time to fulfill his obligation to produce an LP of new material for Ed Chalpin, to be released on the Capitol label. Hendrix, in interviews as early as March 1969, had already mentioned a "jam" album to be titled Band of Gypsys. Hendrix also mentioned in his introduction at Woodstock that "Band of Gypsys" was an alternative name for the group performing there.

They recorded a single "Stepping Stone" (b/w "Izabella") for Reprise, which was quickly withdrawn after its release. They also recorded some studio material, and several finished tracks, some of which have been released on First Rays of the New Rising Sun and elsewhere. They made their live debut at the Fillmore East on New Year's Eve, 1969, for a series of four shows spread over two nights.

The Fillmore East concerts featured mostly new songs, as the songs for the Band of Gypsys LP would have to be original due to a recent judgment against him in a contractual suit. This performance was captured using the then new portable Sony Portapak B&W video camera and open-reel 1/2" videotape recorder, from two different angles.[1]

The set of concerts is notable for being the only known time in which Hendrix used an Octavia pedal, though its effects were recorded on many of his studio songs, including "Purple Haze". Custom made for him, Hendrix rarely brought the Octavia to shows for fear it might get stolen.[citation needed]

In some markets, including the UK, the album was released with a cover photograph that featured dolls of Hendrix, Brian Jones, Bob Dylan and British DJ John Peel, an early supporter of Hendrix.

Hendrix selected two Buddy Miles songs and three of his own for the album, not wanting to give away any more of his new songs than he had to.[citation needed] "We Gotta Live Together" is heavily edited to fit on the album. Its original length is about twice that which can be heard on the album. A longer version can be heard on Live at the Fillmore East album; the full version has never been officially released.

Due to the demands of four sets over two days, the band needed a lot of material and played the Experience-era favorites "Wild Thing," "Hey Joe," "Purple Haze, "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)," "Foxy Lady," "Fire," and "Stone Free" to fill out the sets. Nearing the end of the fourth set, Hendrix said, "We're just trying to figure out something to play, but we only know about six songs right now...seven...nine."[1] He then launched into a version of "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)." "Foxy Lady" was included on the later Japanese/German re-release (details below). Furthermore, "Wild Thing," "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" and "Stone Free" can be heard on Live at the Fillmore East.

After a disastrous show at Madison Square Garden on January 28, 1970, where Hendrix insulted a woman in the audience, played just two songs and then left the stage, Band of Gypsys was disbanded.

A documentary entitled Band of Gypsys: Live at the Filmore East was released on DVD in 1999.[1] It focused on the album and Hendrix's performances at the Fillmore during New Year's Eve 1969, and New Year's Day 1970. It contains the original half-inch open-reel black and white video footage shot by a fan at the concerts, and interviews with people that were involved in Hendrix at the time.[1]