Armageddon is a Swedish
melodic death metal
Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal (including New Wave of British Heavy Metal). The genre features the heavines ...
band led by
Christopher Amott
Christopher Amott (born 23 November 1977) is a Swedish guitarist, younger brother of Michael Amott and founding member of the metal bands Arch Enemy (band), Arch Enemy and Armageddon (Swedish band), Armageddon. He is most recently the former gui ...
of
Arch Enemy
Arch Enemy is a Swedish melodic death metal band, originally a Supergroup (music), supergroup from Halmstad, formed in 1995. Its members were in bands such as Carcass (band), Carcass, Armageddon (Swedish band), Armageddon, Carnage (band), Carna ...
.
History
Formed in
Halmstad
Halmstad () is a port, university, industrial and recreational urban areas of Sweden, city at the mouth of the Nissan (river), Nissan river, in the provinces of Sweden, province of Halland on the Sweden, Swedish west coast. Halmstad is the seat ...
in 1997 by
Christopher Amott
Christopher Amott (born 23 November 1977) is a Swedish guitarist, younger brother of Michael Amott and founding member of the metal bands Arch Enemy (band), Arch Enemy and Armageddon (Swedish band), Armageddon. He is most recently the former gui ...
, Armageddon began when
Arch Enemy
Arch Enemy is a Swedish melodic death metal band, originally a Supergroup (music), supergroup from Halmstad, formed in 1995. Its members were in bands such as Carcass (band), Carcass, Armageddon (Swedish band), Armageddon, Carnage (band), Carna ...
were invited to Japan to sign a new record deal with Toy's Factory records after the release of the ''
Black Earth'' album. While in Japan, Christopher secured his own record deal for a solo project, which became Armageddon. When he returned to Sweden, he recruited drummer
Peter Wildoer
Karl Peter Wildoer is a Swedish musician who is the drummer for Darkane, Electrocution 250 and Grimmark. He has also drummed for the bands Armageddon, Majestic, Pestilence, Silver Seraph, Arch Enemy, Time Requiem, Soilwork, Gardens of Obscuri ...
(
Darkane
Darkane is a Swedish metal band that originated in Helsingborg in 1998. Their music contains ample thrash elements interspersed with acoustic interludes and symphonic features, such as the in-studio use of synthesizers and occasionally full or ...
,
Majestic), bassist
Martin Bengtsson, and vocalist Jonas Nyrén (In Thy Dreams).
The band released their 1997 debut album, ''
Crossing the Rubicon
The phrase "crossing the Rubicon" is an idiom that means "passing a point of no return". Its meaning comes from allusion to the crossing of the river Rubicon from the north by Julius Caesar in early January 49 BC. The exact date is unknown ...
'', on the now defunct W.A.R. records in Europe, and on Toy's Factory Records in Japan. ''Crossing the Rubicon'' focused primarily on
melodic death metal
Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal (including New Wave of British Heavy Metal). The genre features the heavines ...
, but incorporated instrumentals and special effects pieces between each song. The album was released by the same label that released Arch Enemy's first album in Europe, but it folded soon after the release of ''Rubicon'' and the album has since become a rare find. To this day, ''Crossing the Rubicon'' has never been released outside of Europe and Japan.
Following ''Crossing the Rubicon'', Peter Wildoer and Martin Bengtsson both joined Arch Enemy, recording and releasing ''
Stigmata
Stigmata (, plural of , 'mark, spot, brand'), in Roman Catholicism, Catholicism, are bodily wounds, scars and pain which appear in locations corresponding to the Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion Five Holy Wounds, wounds of Jesus in Christian ...
'' in 1998. Christopher would focus on Arch Enemy for the better part of three years, and did not return to Armageddon until 2000's ''
Embrace the Mystery'', released in Japan on
Toy's Factory
is a Japanese record label founded in the late 1980s as a subsidiary of the entertainment company VAP, based in Japan. On May 30, 1990, it was established as an independent company. It is an associate member of the Recording Industry Assoc ...
records. The album featured
Last Tribe members Rickard Bengtsson on vocals and Dick Lövgren on bass (later of
Meshuggah
Meshuggah () is a Swedish extreme metal band formed in Umeå in 1987. Since 2004, the band's lineup consists of founding members Jens Kidman (lead vocals) and Fredrik Thordendal (lead guitar), alongside rhythm guitarist Mårten Hagström, drumm ...
), as well as Arch Enemy's new drummer Daniel Erlandsson (
In Flames
In Flames is a Swedish Heavy metal music, heavy metal band, formed by guitarist Jesper Strömblad in Gothenburg in 1990 out of the Swedish death metal, Swedish death metal scene. Their lineup has changed several times, with vocalist Anders Frid ...
,
Eucharist
The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christianity, Christian Rite (Christianity), rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an Ordinance (Christianity), ordinance in ...
).
In 2002, Armageddon resurfaced with ''
Three
3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...
'', this time as a three-piece band, and featuring the vocals of Christopher Amott and new bassist Tobias Gustafsson (of
Eucharist
The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christianity, Christian Rite (Christianity), rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an Ordinance (Christianity), ordinance in ...
). Almost a pure power metal effort, the album was again released by Toy's Factory, and only in Japan.
On 16 November 2009, ''Embrace the Mystery'' and ''Three'' were re-released as 2-CD set with upgraded artwork, several bonus tracks and liner notes on 16 November 2009 in Europe and on 26 January in North America via Century Media Records.
In 2012, Christopher Amott once again quit Arch Enemy, and reformed Armageddon once again, featuring Matt Vicklund of
God Forbid
God Forbid is an American metalcore band formed in East Brunswick Township, New Jersey, East Brunswick, New Jersey in 1996. Initially breaking up in 2013, they have been semi-active since reuniting in 2022.
History Early career (1996–2004) ...
on guitars and
Van Williams
Van Zandt Jarvis Williams (February 27, 1934 – November 28, 2016) was an American actor best known for his leading role as Kenny Madison in both Warner Bros. television detective series '' Bourbon Street Beat'' (1959–1960) and its sequ ...
of
Nevermore
Nevermore is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1992. The band was formed after three of its members — vocalist Warrel Dane, bassist Jim Sheppard and guitarist Jeff Loomis — ended their prev ...
on drums.
In January 2015, the band announced
Nightrage
Nightrage is a Greek/Swedish melodic death metal band originally from Thessaloniki. They later re-located to Gothenburg, Sweden.
History Formation and ''Sweet Vengeance'' (2000–2003)
Nightrage was founded by Marios Iliopoulos and his cl ...
vocalist
Antony Hämäläinen as their replacement for the recently departed Matt Hallquist.
On 25 May 2016, the band announced via their social media ''"We are happy to announce that the next Armageddon release will be
a re-recording of the very first Armageddon album from 1997 entitled 'Crossing The Rubicon'. We are excited to share this news with you!''"
As Amott was not able to commit time to Armageddon, in 2019, former members Hämäläinen, Concepcion, Claudius, Pevny and drummer Yanni Sofianos have formed Daughter Chaos, a band intended to be a spiritual successor of Armageddon.
Band members
;Current members:
*
Christopher Amott
Christopher Amott (born 23 November 1977) is a Swedish guitarist, younger brother of Michael Amott and founding member of the metal bands Arch Enemy (band), Arch Enemy and Armageddon (Swedish band), Armageddon. He is most recently the former gui ...
– guitars, vocals
*
Joey Concepcion – guitars
* Márton Veress – drums
*
Antony Hämäläinen – vocals
* Andrew Pevny – bass
;Former members
*
Jonas Nyrén
Jonas Nyren is a Swedish metal vocalist. He joined In Thy Dreams in 1996 recording an EP (''Stream of Dispraised Souls'') and the band's debut album, ''The Gate of Pleasure'', but before the album's release he left the band in 1999. He also recor ...
– vocals
*
Martin Bengtsson – bass
*
Peter Wildoer
Karl Peter Wildoer is a Swedish musician who is the drummer for Darkane, Electrocution 250 and Grimmark. He has also drummed for the bands Armageddon, Majestic, Pestilence, Silver Seraph, Arch Enemy, Time Requiem, Soilwork, Gardens of Obscuri ...
– drums
* Rickard Bengtsson – vocals
*
Dick Lövgren
Dick August Lövgren (born 11 November 1980) is a Swedish musician. He is the bass guitarist for extreme metal band Meshuggah, which he joined in 2004.
Biography
In his early days, Lövgren was particularly impressed with the Metallica bass gu ...
– bass
*
Daniel Erlandsson
Daniel John Erlandsson (born 22 May 1976) is a Swedish musician, best known as the drummer in the melodic death metal band Arch Enemy and as former drummer of extreme metal bands Carcass and Brujeria.
His early work includes drumming on the In ...
– drums
* Tobias Gustafsson – bass
* Matt Wicklund – guitar (
*
Van Williams
Van Zandt Jarvis Williams (February 27, 1934 – November 28, 2016) was an American actor best known for his leading role as Kenny Madison in both Warner Bros. television detective series '' Bourbon Street Beat'' (1959–1960) and its sequ ...
– drums
* Matt Hallquist – vocals
* Sara Claudius – bass
Timeline
Discography
;Studio albums
*''
Crossing the Rubicon
The phrase "crossing the Rubicon" is an idiom that means "passing a point of no return". Its meaning comes from allusion to the crossing of the river Rubicon from the north by Julius Caesar in early January 49 BC. The exact date is unknown ...
'' (1997)
*''Embrace the Mystery'' (2000)
*''Three'' (2002)
*''Captivity & Devourment'' (2015)
*''
Crossing the Rubicon (Revisited)'' (2016)
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Armageddon
Swedish melodic death metal musical groups
Swedish power metal musical groups
Swedish thrash metal musical groups
Swedish progressive metal musical groups
Musical groups established in 1997
Musical groups disestablished in 2002
Listenable Records artists
Toy's Factory artists
Musical groups from Halmstad