Arch Enemy

Arch Enemy is a Swedish melodic death metal supergroup with ties to Carcass, Armageddon, Carnage, Mercyful Fate, Spiritual Beggars, the Agonist, Nevermore, and Eucharist. The band takes a straight-ahead approach to death metal reminiscent of Entombed or late-period Carcass, blending catchy, classic-style metal riffs with crushing grooves for an intense yet accessible sound. Emerging in 1995, Arch Enemy hit its stride in the early 2000s with Doomsday Machine (2005) and Rise of the Tyrant (2007), both of which charted internationally. Despite enduring multiple shifts in personnel — founding guitarist Michael Amott remains the sole constant member – the band has continued to thrive, issuing late-period death metal opuses like War Eternal (2014), Will to Power (2017), and Deceivers (2022).
Arch Enemy’s charter lineup featured Carcass guitarist Michael Amott and bassist/vocalist Johan Liiva (who were both originally from the death metal band Carnage), and drummer Daniel Erlandsson (Eucharist); they released their debut album, Black Earth, in 1996. For their second album, 1998′s Stigmata, Armageddon bassist Martin Bengtsson took over those duties from vocalist Liiva, while Armageddon drummer Peter Wildoer sat in for Erlandsson. More personnel turnover ensued, as Mercyful Fate reunion bassist Sharlee D'Angelo (also formerly of Witchery and Dismember) joined them for 1999′s Burning Bridges, which also featured the return of Erlandsson. Wages of Sin from 2001 found Johan Liiva departing and replaced by Angela Gossow.
After touring extensively across Europe and Japan, the band returned to the studio and released Anthems of Rebellion in 2003. The EP Dead Eyes See No Future was released by the end of the year and featured a mix of cover versions and live tracks. The album Doomsday Machine landed in July of 2005 just as guitarist Christopher Amott announced he was leaving the band. Former Tiamat member Fredrik Åkesson replaced him, though the two would switch places again two years later, with Åkesson leaving the band to join Opeth, and Amott taking back his spot on guitar. The band then released its seventh album, Rise of the Tyrant, in 2007. The album would be Arch Enemy’s most successful to date, and they followed up the release by heading out on tours with Swedish metal giants Opeth and Dark Tranquillity. In 2009, the band looked back to its older material with The Root of All Evil. The album featured tracks from the band’s first three albums that were re-recorded with current singer Angela Gossow. 2011′s Khaos Legions, the band’s eighth studio long-player, marked a return to new original material, and proved to be the band’s highest-charting album to date. It would also be the last outing for Gossow, who left the following year.
2014′s War Eternal saw the additions of ex-Agonist vocalist Alissa White-Gluz and ex-Arsis guitarist Nick Cordle (who left shortly before the band’s European tour and was replaced by former Nevermore axe-slinger Jeff Loomis). In 2017, the band released the concert LP/film As the Stages Burn, which captured their 2016 performance at Wacken Open Air in its entirety, along with a 2015 performance in Tokyo. 2017 saw the band issue their tenth studio long-player, Will to Power, which marked the first Arch Enemy release to feature clean vocals. The covers album, Covered in Blood, arrived in early 2019, and featured the band’s take on songs by Judas Priest, Tears for Fears, Queensrÿche, and more. Deceivers, the group’s 11th full-length effort, appeared in 2022 and saw Arch Enemy adding symphonic metal elements to their sonic oeuvre. ~ Steve Huey