Amaranthe

Amaranthe (stylised as ΛΜΛRΛИТНЕ) is a Swedish heavy metal band originally known as Avalanche. The band is notable for having three lead vocalists: Elize Ryd, Henrik Englund Wilhelmsson, and Nils Molin, each presenting a different vocal style.

Amaranthe
Amaranthe at Wacken Open Air 2018
Background information
Also known asAvalanche (2008–2009)
OriginGothenburg, Sweden
Genres
Years active2008–present
Labels
Associated acts
Websiteamaranthe.se
Members
Past members
  • Andreas Solveström
  • Joacim "Jake E" Lundberg

History

Formed by Olof Mörck (Dragonland, Nightrage) and Joacim "Jake E" Lundberg (Dreamland, Dream Evil) in 2008, the project began taking shape when singers Elize Ryd (toured with Kamelot) and Andreas Solveström (Cipher System, Within Y) signed on, as did drummer Morten Løwe Sørensen (The Cleansing, Koldborn, Mercenary). Bassist Johan Andreassen (Engel) joined after the photoshoot for the Leave Everything Behind demo but before the recording of the first album Amaranthe. The band was originally called Avalanche until May 2009, when they were forced to change their name due to legal issues.[1] The members chose to rename the band Amaranthe. They later released their first demo, Leave Everything Behind.

The band's debut album, Amaranthe, was released in April 2011 and reached a peak position of 35th on Swedish charts and 16th on Finnish Charts.[2][3] Their second album, The Nexus, was released in March 2013.[4] Guitarist Olof Mörck described the album as having greater contrasts, a more controversial mix of genres, and featuring more creative freedoms than Amaranthe.[5] According to Olof, the band "took everything [up] to eleven" in the new album.[5] The album reached 6th on Swedish charts,[2] 4th on Finnish charts,[3] and reached a peak of 12th on the US Heatseekers charts.[6]

In October 2013, harsh vocalist Solveström left the band and was replaced by Henrik Englund Wilhelmsson (Scarpoint).[4] Their third album, Massive Addictive, was released on 21 October 2014.[7] A special compilation Breaking Point - B-sides 2011-2015 was released on 30 October 2015. It consists b-sides and bonus tracks from Amaranthe's career. Their fourth album, Maximalism, was released on 21 October 2016.

In November 2016, male clean vocalist Jake E announced that he would take a break from the band.[8] In February 2017, the band confirmed that he was permanently leaving.[9] In March 2017, he joined CyHra.[10] In July 2017, Amaranthe stated on their Facebook page that Nils Molin of Dynazty would join the band as their permanent vocalist, after filling in for Jake E on tour dates.

On 10 August 2018, they released their new single, "365", from their new album Helix, which itself was released on 19 October.[11] At that time, they wrote and performed the credits theme song to the 12 oz. Mouse special "INVICTUS".[12]

On 16 October 2019, they announced that they had signed with Nuclear Blast Records.[13]

On 3 January 2020, the band released their rendition of Sabaton's "82nd All the Way", originally taken from Sabaton's 2019 studio album The Great War.[14]

On 13 February 2020, the band released the single "Do or Die",[15] which features former Arch Enemy-vocalist Angela Gossow on growling vocals and Arch Enemy-guitarist Jeff Loomis on the guitar solo. The official music video, which was filmed in Spain, was released the next day.[16] In the music video's description, the band's label Nuclear Blast announced that their sixth studio album would be released in September 2020.

On 5 March 2020, the band released the music video for "Endlessly", originally from the album Maximalism. The video was directed, filmed and edited by Duminciuc Bogdan and is actually the documentation of the Transylvanian wedding between guitarist Olof Mörck and his wife Cătălina Popa (the flutist from the German symphonic metal band Haggard), which took place on 19 July 2019 at Sungarden, Cluj-Napoca, Romania.[17]

Amaranthe had announced on 26 June 2020, that their sixth studio album titled Manifest will be released on 2 October 2020.[18] The first single 'Viral' (a song about the COVID-19 pandemic) was released on 26 June 2020, followed by a second single, 'Strong,' on 14 August 2020, and 'Archangel' as the third single on 18 September 2020.

Musical style

Reviews of Amaranthe's style are varied, though they all acknowledge that they are mainly a subgenre of heavy metal. According to AllMusic, Amaranthe's musical style mixes death metal with melodic pop music, giving for a feel of metalcore overall.[19] Lead singer Elize Ryd acknowledges the difficulties in trying to ascribe their music to one specific genre and describes Amaranthe's sound as "dance-rock with a taste of death and modern/melodic metal," though she admits that, unlike death metal, their focus is on "positive energy" and to "open up minds [and] give passion, strength and love".[20] MusicMight classifies the band as melodic death metal and power metal.[21] Sputnikmusic's overview of the band refers to them as an outfit that is a hybrid of metalcore and power metal, more specifically, combining heavy riffs and breakdowns with Ryd's "soaring vocals."[22]

Band members

Timeline

Discography
Main article: Amaranthe discography

References
  1. "AVALANCHE Changes Name To AMARANTHE". 20 May 2009. Archived from the original on 26 May 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2011.
  2. "AMARANTHE". Swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  3. "AMARANTHE". Archived from the original on 16 December 2013. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  4. "Amaranthe | The Official Website". Amaranthe.com. Retrieved 31 January 2013.
  5. "INTERVIEW: AMARANTHE". Rock Revolt Magazine. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  6. "Amaranthe - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  7. "Amaranthe". Facebook.com. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
  8. "Amaranthe Singer Jake E. Taking Break From Band". Loudwire.com. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  9. "Exclusive: AMARANTHE Vocalist JAKE E. Makes Departure Official - "I Can't Stand On Stage Not Believing In What I'm Doing"". Bravewords.com. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  10. "Ex-In Flames + Amaranthe Members Resurface in CyHra, Debut Album in the Works". Loudwire.com. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
  11. "AMARANTHE To Release 'Helix' Album In October". Blabbermouth.net. 10 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  12. "Invictus". Adult Swim. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  13. "AMARANTHE sign to Nuclear Blast".
  14. "AMARANTHE - 82nd All The Way (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)". 3 January 2020. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
  15. "Do or Die (feat. Angela Gossow)". 13 February 2020. Retrieved 13 February 2020.
  16. "AMARANTHE - 'Do Or Die' Feat. Angela Gossow (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)". 14 February 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  17. "Amaranthe - Endlessly (An Amaranthe Wedding)". 5 March 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  18. "AMARANTHE To Release 'Manifest' Album In October". Blabbermouth.net. 26 June 2020. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  19. "Amaranthe - Biography & History - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
  20. "Elize Ryd – Amaranthe". Femme Metal Webzine. 13 February 2013. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  21. Born, R. "Amaranthe biography". MusicMight. Archived from the original on 10 November 2012. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  22. "Amaranthe reviews, music, news". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
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