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Astral Doors is a
Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
heavy metal band formed in 2002. They have released nine studio albums and an EP. Their latest work is ''Worship or Die'', released in 2019.


History

Nils Patrik Johansson Nils Patrik Johansson (born 14 October 1967) is a Swedish heavy metal singer who has been the lead singer of Astral Doors since 2002 and was the lead vocalist of Civil War from 2012 to 2016. He is also a member of the bands Lion's Share and ...
, Joachim Nordlund and Martin Haglund all inhabited the
Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
town of
Borlänge Borlänge is a locality in Dalarna County, Sweden with 44,898 inhabitants as of 2020. It is the seat of the Borlänge Municipality with a total population of 51,604 inhabitants as of 2017. History Originally Borlänge was the name of a ti ...
, where they all practiced with their respective bands at a club called the Rock House. Nordlund and Johansson barely knew each other, and neither were aware of Martin Haglund. Johansson's melodic metal band, Staircase, lost its drummer in 1991, and their search for a replacement led them to
Johan Lindstedt Johan Lindstedt (born 28 January 1972) is a retired Swedish ice hockey player. Lindstedt was part of the Djurgården Swedish champions' team of 1991. Lindstedt made 48 Elitserien Elitserien (literally, "the Elite League") is the name of severa ...
, who was a drummer for a
techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...
thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...
band. Lindsedt played briefly for Staircase before moving on to a
rap metal Rap metal is a subgenre of rap rock and alternative metal music which combines hip hop with heavy metal. It usually consists of heavy metal guitar riffs, funk metal elements, rapped vocals and sometimes turntables. History Origins and ear ...
group, Buckshot OD. In 1998, Johansson and Lindsedt were in another band together: Barfly. Influenced by
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. The band helped de ...
and Deep Purple, the band went on until 2002, when it broke up following a musical decline during their fourth demo recording. The engineer for the demo recording was another Rock House regular, Nordlund, frontman for the band Erina. A lot of Johansson's trademark Dio-esque sound was developed during this time. Soon after, Nordlund and Lindstedt began writing together, and they contacted Johansson. The songs that came out of their collaboration dealt with "dark, cosmic" material, the best example of this was "Far Beyond the Astral Doors". They named themselves "Astral Doors" shortly after writing the song. They hired Joakim Roberg, whom they had collaborated with on some of the songs, and Martin Haglund of the band earflog, as members, and began the project. The band reached a temporary climax when they were a support act on
Blind Guardian Blind Guardian is a German power metal band formed in 1984 in Krefeld, West Germany. They are often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres.A Twist in the Myth ''A Twist in the Myth'' is the eighth studio album by German power metal band Blind Guardian. It was originally set to be released on 5 September 2006 in Europe (which became the North American release date), but Nuclear Blast changed the rel ...
''.


''Of the Son and the Father''

Their sound was allegedly born through their song " Of the Son and the Father", about the clergy sex abuse scandal in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
. Haglund, who had begun the project as the bassist, soon switched to guitar, and Mika Itäranta was hired to play bass. All six members were now in place. ''Of the Son and the Father'' was released in 2003, and shot to No. 5 in ''Rock Hard'', a well known
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typi ...
magazine. The cover chosen for OSF depicted priests being crucified for their crimes. The cover did not encounter any problems in the west, but was challenged by the Japanese distributor, who felt it was too offensive. As a result, the Japanese cover features a spaceship, and is called ''Cloudbreaker'', after the first song on the album.


''Evil Is Forever'' and ''Astralism''

''Evil Is Forever'' was a critical release for the band. They toured non-stop following its release, as the album landed them spots in several tours. ''Evil Is Forever'' is actually a
James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 19 ...
reference, to the song " Diamonds Are Forever". ''Astralism'', released in 2006, continues the band's aggressive style, but the lyrics, according to the band, are those of "the thinking man... a quest for peace". This shines through in songs like "Black Rain", which is a song about the
Atomic bomb A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...
dropped at Hiroshima, and "London Caves", which is about the terrorist attack on the
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
underground. Its cover has not faced criticism, but features a nun praying in front of a stone face, crying blood.


''New Revelation'' and ''Requiem of Time''

''New Revelation'' was released in 2007. This album took on a more Power Metal influence and even contains some prog elements. This change in sound resulted in a mixed reception from fans. ''Requiem of Time'' was released in early 2010. This was Martin Haglund's last album with Astral Doors; after mixing the record and he retired to spend more time with his family. Mika Itaranta also retired from roadlife to have kids. The album has 14 songs with 2 more songs for the Japanese edition on King Records. Ulf Lagerstrom was hired to replace Itaranta. Ulf had played in both Barfly and Lunatic Parade with Nils Patrik Johansson.


Members

;Current members *
Nils Patrik Johansson Nils Patrik Johansson (born 14 October 1967) is a Swedish heavy metal singer who has been the lead singer of Astral Doors since 2002 and was the lead vocalist of Civil War from 2012 to 2016. He is also a member of the bands Lion's Share and ...
vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or witho ...
(2002-present) * Johan Lindstedt –
drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...
(2002-present) * Joakim Roberg – keyboard, organ (2002-present) * Joachim Nordlund – guitar (2002-present) * Ulf Lagerström –
bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...
(2009-present) * Mats Gesar –
guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...
(2014-present) ;Former members * Mika Itäranta – bass (2002-2009) * Martin Haglund – guitar (2002-2010) Timeline


Discography

* ''Of the Son and the Father'' (2003) - ''Cloudbreaker'' in Japan * ''Evil Is Forever'' (2005) * ''Raiders of the Ark'' - EP (2005) * ''Astralism'' (2006) * ''New Revelation'' (2007) * ''Requiem Of Time'' (2010) * ''Testament Of Rock''(Compilation, 2010) * ''Jerusalem'' (2011)Astral Doors Posts Title Track Of New Album "Jerusalem" Online
/ref> * ''Notes from the Shadows'' (2014) * ''Black Eyed Children'' (2017) *''Worship or Die'' (2019)


References


External links

* {{Authority control Swedish heavy metal musical groups Musical groups established in 2002 2002 establishments in Sweden Locomotive Music artists