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SCARING UP A METAL REVOLUTION: After a series of tumultuous line-up changes, the Haunted’s latest finds the Swedish thrash metal group (almost) back to original form.
“rEVOLVEr” (Century Media Records) marks the return of vocalist Peter Dolving, who left the group after its self-titled debut in 1998. The 11-track set entered Billboard’s Top Independent Albums chart last week at No. 40 and the Top Heatseekers list at No. 50.
“I was like a jealous lover,” Dolving says of his replacement in the band for two albums, ex-Face Down singer Marco Aro. “I wasn’t ready for it before and I’m glad I have the opportunity now.”
Aro’s departure after the band’s third studio album, “One Kill Wonder,” in 2003 opened the door for Dolving’s return as the band planned its Century Media Records debut after a career on Earache.
“They weren’t very supportive,” says Dolving of the band’s former label, whose the Haunted discography also includes 2000’s “The Haunted Made Me Do It” and 2001’s live set, “Live Rounds in Tokyo.”
“Working with a community like Century Media, you have people who care about the business and what happens with the band. It’s a group effort,” he says.
Dolving’s powerful rage brings the corrupted characters of each song alive on the album. He mixes it up with soothing, slow-tempo vocals on “Abysmal” and “Burnt to a Shell,” and the spooky, spoken-word path of surrendering to demons on closing track, “My Shadow,” is an album highlight.
The album also features the screaming guitars of twin brothers Anders (lead) and Jonas Björler (bass) and Jensen (rhythm) and the frenzied drum work of Per Möller Jensen. Jensen replaced original drummer Adrian Erlandsson, who joined Cradle Of Filth after the group’s debut.
Dolving cites Iggy Pop as a hero and goes into every performance “as intensely as possible and try to leave myself out of it. I’m constantly aching when I’m on tour and that’s a sense of my physical boundaries and I think that the live show should be something extraordinary.”
The Haunted, which has a pair of Swedish Grammy Awards to its credit, is on a U.S. tour with Damageplan and Shadows Fall through December.
Links:
Label site: www.centurymedia.com
Artist site: www.the-haunted.com
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