Swedish melodic metallers AMARANTHE will release their new album, “The Catalyst”, on February 23, 2024 via Nuclear Blast Records. The effort will be made available digitally and in different physical formats, including CD, vinyl and a 2CD special edition.
AMARANTHE guitar player Olof Mörck said in a statement: “So at last it is official! This has been a long time in the making, and more effort went into this album than any previous AMARANTHE record. You have already gotten a taste of what’s to come on ‘Damnation Flame’, but as the most varied and eclectic AMARANTHE album to date, expect the unexpected! We cover a lot of musical ground on ‘The Catalyst’, but the core of what we are about creatively is completely intact. It will be immediately obvious that you are listening to AMARANTHE, as much as it will be immediately obvious that this is both a leap forward as well as a step up. Can’t wait for all of you to hear what we have been cooking, as well as seeing us perform these pristine new songs on the road SOON!”
“The Catalyst” is the most conceptually coherent piece of work in AMARANTHE‘s storied history. Dedicated to notions of transformation and revelation, it delves deeper than any previous album, as Mörck explains.
“We’ve done these things before, but we’ve never been as theatrical as we have this time,” he says. “In fact, we all questioned whether we went too far this time, but I also figured that this band was always this way. Literally the first seconds of our first video was a big explosion! But yes, ‘The Catalyst’ is more theatrical than ever. We’ve never really been symphonic or orchestral before, but this time we just thought why not? Because we can! The key to this album is that we let go of the boundaries and decided to do something even more adventurous.”
AMARANTHE has spent more than a decade establishing itself as a formidable, positive and fervently melodic force for metallic good. From their explosive self-titled debut in 2011 to the more sophisticated, streamlined likes of 2014’s “Massive Addictive” and its immaculate follow-up “Maximalism” (2016),AMARANTHE have masterfully blurred the lines between melodic metal, crushing brutality, cinematic sweep and futuristic sparkle.
Led by the endlessly ingenious songwriting of guitarist Mörck and powerhouse vocalist Elize Ryd, their rise to prominence has been a joy to behold.
Widely acclaimed as a dazzling live act, the Swedes reached a new peak of creativity on 2018’s hugely successful “Helix”, an album that pushed the band’s vision to new heights, breadths and depths, while showcasing the brilliance of Elize and her co-vocalist, recent recruit Nils Molin.
Not just a glorious return but a wholesale upgrade for their exuberant sound, their latest offering, 2020’s “Manifest”, was the most daring, dynamic and unforgettable album that AMARANTHE had released to date.
AMARANTHE 2023 is:
Elize Ryd – vocals
Mikael Sehlin – growls
Olof Mörck – guitars, keyboards
Johan Andreassen – bass
Morten Løwe Sørensen – drums
Nils Molin – vocals