Arch Enemy

From the prolific stronghold of Sweden, Arch Enemy emerged in their first incarnation in 1996 and quickly became another quality worldwide export from Scandinavia. Since their emergence onto the scene five years ago, the goal of successfully enveloping traditional twin leads and guitar solos within a death metal context has been met a thousand fold. Arch Enemy have persistently challenged and redefined the limits of melodic death metal with their trademarked alchemy of aggression, melody, technicality, brutality, exceptional musicianship, and their stunning live performances.

The career of founding member Michael Amott is an illustrious and intense workshop in musical genealogy and history. In addition to his previous tenure as a guitarist in Carnage and as a guitarist and songwriter with the mighty Carcass, he is also active with the psychedelic doom band Spiritual Beggars. While Arch Enemy is virtually full of legends (brother and fellow guitarist Christopher Amott played in Armageddon; singer Johan Liiva came from Carnage; the ubiquitous Sharlee D’Angelo is currently in Mercyful Fate and Witchery; drummer Daniel Erlandsson played with In Flames), it should be known that the musical vision of the band – not the pedigrees – are what have sustained them through four charismatic albums.

Relentlessly busy since the release of the passionately acclaimed Burning Bridges, Arch Enemy have successfully toured the United States with Nevermore; toured Europe with In Flames, Children Of Bodom, and Dark Tranquillity; performed at the Dynamo Festival in the Netherlands; co-headlined a show in Santiago, Chile with Hammerfall; made a one-off appearance in London with Cradle of Filth and have also triumphantly toured Japan three times. With such incredible anticipation building for their next studio album, fans were left understandably confused when vocalist Johan Liiva left in 2001.

Rumors flew about who would succeed the vocal throne, and in a completely unexpected turn in their own musical direction and setting a noteworthy precedent for bands of their caliber, the members of Arch Enemy unveiled German singer Angela Gossow. Beginning her career in Germany in 1991 singing for two extreme death metal bands, Asmodina and Mistress, Angela is unquestionably the most aggressive female vocalist in existence, leading Brave Words and Bloody Knuckles to state, "Angela Gossow’s performance is nothing short of staggering, giving many of her peers serious competition, if not putting them to shame entirely." The fearlessness exuded in the delivery of her incredibly powerful and clearly accentuated vocals (in the vein of Death’s now sadly departed Chuck Schuldiner and Carcass’ Jeff Walker) perfectly complements the dark energy and aggressiveness of Arch Enemy and crowns their current achievement, Wages Of Sin, with a firebrand that secures their authoritative position in the worldwide extreme metal scene.

Recorded at Gothenburg’s famed Studio Fredman with celebrated producer Fredrik Nordström (Dimmu Borgir, In Flames, At The Gates) and mixed by the brilliance of sound engineer Andy Sneap (Nevermore, Testament, Kreator) at Backstage Studios in England, Wages Of Sin boldly captures Arch Enemy’s ravenous temperament for stunning brutality in sound and speaks to their unparalled ability to embrace new paradigms that exemplify their defiant leadership and emblazons their unyielding music into the psyche of resistance that dwells within us all.