Poisonblack was a Finnish

gothic metal Gothic metal (or goth metal) is a fusion genre combining the aggression of heavy metal music, heavy metal with the dark atmospheres of gothic rock. The music of gothic metal is diverse with bands known to adopt the gothic approach to different ...

band led by singer and guitarist

Ville Laihiala Ville Laihiala (born 13 June 1973) is a Finnish musician. He was the vocalist and guitarist of the gothic metal band Poisonblack, and the frontman for Sentenced from 1996 (when he replaced their former bassist and vocalist Taneli Jarva) unti ...

. They released six studio albums.

History

In 2003, the band's first album, ''Escapexstacy'', was on the Finnish national charts for three weeks, peaking at No. 21. They opened for

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...

at the Hartwall Areena in Helsinki on 21 December 2003 for the

Dance of Death World Tour The Dance of Death World Tour was a concert tour by heavy metal band Iron Maiden in support of their thirteenth studio album, ''Dance of Death''. The group's eighth live record, '' Death on the Road'', was recorded in Dortmund. The tour was s ...

. Singer Juha-Pekka Leppäluoto left in the autumn of 2003 to concentrate on his work with

Charon In Greek mythology, Charon or Kharon ( ; ) is a psychopomp, the ferryman of the Greek underworld. He carries the souls of those who have been given funeral rites across the rivers Acheron and Styx, which separate the worlds of the living and ...

. Ville Laihiala, the band's principal songwriter, assumed vocal duties and has since led Poisonblack out of the gothic genre of their first album and in a musical direction that closely mirrors that of his former band

Sentenced Sentenced was a Finnish gothic metal band that played melodic death metal in their early years. The band formed in 1989 in the town of Muhos and broke up in 2005. Lead guitarist Miika Tenkula was the band's vocalist for the first album, but du ...

. In 2006, the band toured Europe with

Lacuna Coil Lacuna Coil is an Italian gothic metal band from Milan. Since their formation in 1994, the group has had two name changes, being previously known as Sleep of Right and Ethereal, and they have recorded ten studio albums, two extended plays, two l ...

, and their second album, '' Lust Stained Despair'' reached No. 2 in Finland for one week. In 2008, they released '' A Dead Heavy Day,'' which hit the Finnish Album Chart in position 6. Following this success, they toured Europe with

Dark Tranquillity Dark Tranquillity is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Gothenburg. They are considered one of the pioneering acts of the Swedish death metal, Gothenburg metal scene, which also includes bands such as In Flames and At the Gates - regarded a ...

and

Fear My Thoughts Fear My Thoughts was a German melodic death metal band from Rheinfelden, founded in 1997. Their album '' Vulcanus'' was produced by Jacob Hansen and was released on January 15, 2007. In November 2009, the band announced that they were planning ...

. In 2010, Poisonblack released ''

Of Rust and Bones Of Rust and Bones is the fourth studio album by the Finnish gothic metal band Poisonblack. It was released on 22 March 2010 in Europe by Century Media Records. Track listing All music by Laihiala, except for tracks 1, 3, 6 and 8 by Markus. Al ...

'', their fourth album. The fifth album, ''

Drive Drive or The Drive may refer to: Motoring * Driving, the act of controlling a vehicle * Road trip, a journey on roads Roadways Roadways called "drives" may include: * Driveway, a private road for local access to structures, abbreviated "drive" * ...

'', was released in 2011 on Hype Records, and the band's latest album, ''

Lyijy Poisonblack was a Finnish gothic metal band led by singer and guitarist Ville Laihiala. They released six studio albums. History In 2003, the band's first album, ''Escapexstacy'', was on the Finnish national charts for three weeks, peaking at ...

'', was released in September 2013 by

Warner Music Finland Warner Music Group (WMG) owns, has a joint share, or is associated with the record labels listed here. Flagship labels *Atlantic Records *Elektra Records *Parlophone Records *Warner Records Atlantic Music Group * 1st & 15th Entertainment * A ...

. The album reached No. 4 on the Finnish album chart. On 23 August 2015, singer Ville Laihiala posted a statement announcing that the band had broken up. The band played their final show in Oulu, Finland, on August 21, 2015, with Leppäluoto joining them for their final performance. Poisonblack reunited and performed several shows in 2023 for Escapexstacy's 20th anniversary. All of the band's members, throughout their tenure, reunited, except for Dahlgren and Kukkonen.

Band members

Last known lineup

* Juha-Pekka Leppäluoto – vocals (2001–2003, 2015, 2023) *

– vocals (2003–2015, 2023), guitars (2000–2015, 2023) * Antti Leiviskä – guitars (2010–2015, 2023) * Janne Markus – guitars (2004–2010, 2023) * Antti Remes – bass (2004–2015, 2023) * Marco Sneck – keyboards (2000–2015, 2023) * Tarmo Kanerva – drums (2000–2015, 2023)

Former members

* Janne Dahlgren – guitars (2000–2003) * Janne Kukkonen – bass (2000–2004)

Touring member

* Veli-Matti Kananen – keyboards (2008)

Timeline

Discography

Albums

*''

Escapexstacy ''Escapexstacy'' is the debut album of Finnish gothic metal band Poisonblack. It was released on 17 February 2003 in Germany, 25 February 2003 in the United States and Canada, and 8 March 2003 in Japan. Amy Sciarretto gave a favourable review ...

'' (2003) *'' Lust Stained Despair'' (2006) *'' A Dead Heavy Day'' (2008) *''

'' (2010) *''Drive'' (2011) *''Lyijy'' (2013)

Video albums

*''A Dead Heavy Day'' (DVD) (2008)

Singles

*"Love Infernal" (2003) *"Rush" (2006) *"Bear the Cross" (2008) *"Mercury Falling" (2011) *"Scars" (2011) *"Home Is Where the Sty Is" (2013) *"Down the Ashes Rain" (2014)

Compilation

* ''Classics'' (2009)

References

External links

*
Interview with Ville Laihiala "Music Is My Savior In So Many Ways" February 9, 2010

Hype Records
{{Authority control Finnish gothic metal musical groups Finnish heavy metal musical groups Finnish hard rock musical groups Finnish musical quartets Finnish musical quintets Finnish musical sextets Musical groups established in 2000