Arch Enemy
By: Justin Donnelly
 The introduction of a new member within any bands ranks can certainly make a difference. But when the member happens to be the vocalist, opinions are certainly swift and forthright from both fans and critics alike.
In the minds of some, Swedish melodic death metal act Arch Enemy’s replacement of Johan ‘Liiva’ Axelsson (After three highly regarded studio albums and a live album) with German vocalist Angela Nathalie Gossow in 2001 was certainly an unexpected change, and one that meant that the band would never be quite the same.
But for all the adverse criticism and scepticism thrown in the band’s direction initially, the release of ‘Wages Of Sin’ the same year soon proved that not only could Gossow fill the enormous gap left in Axelsson departure, but Arch Enemy could also move on creatively with a new member on board.
As strong as ‘Wages Of Sin’ was for the band, their follow up album in 2003’s ‘Anthems Of Rebellion’ was an even greater success sales wise, so much so that it has become Century Media Records’ fastest selling title to date.
Now with Gossow firmly established with the Arch Enemy in the line up (Alongside guitarists Michael and Christopher Amott, bassist Sharlee D’Angelo and drummer Daniel Erlandsson), the group’s new album ‘Doomsday Machine’ sees the band hitting their stride with a release that not only remains true to the signature sound of Arch Enemy’s past, but also throws up a couple of surprises that ensure that the bands aren’t solely relying on their past, but forging ahead with the future.
While travelling between dates on the latest Ozzfest jaunt (Which has a very European flavour this year with The Haunted and Soilwork joining Arch Enemy on the second stage), I caught up with drummer Daniel Erlandsson in Columbus (Ohio) travelling between shows to talk about the making of ‘Doomsday Machine’, his reflections on ‘Anthems Of Rebellion’, deciding again working with renown producer Andy Sneap this time around and the initial reactions towards Arch Enemy’s sixth full length effort.
“We just got the first reports on sales figures (Taken from Nielson SoundScan) today for ‘Doomsday Machine’, and it’s done pretty well so far. It’s only been released here in the U.S. for a week, and it’s sold around twelve thousand C.D.’s in that time. That’s pretty good for us, when you consider that ‘Anthems Of Rebellion’ did around four thousand in the same amount of time. So we definitely see this as a step up for the band. The reviews too have been overwhelmingly good. Usually you get people on the Internet bitching about the album being this and that, and not as good as the other albums or whatever, but then we’re pretty happy with ‘Doomsday Machine’ ourselves, so it doesn’t really matter what people say. We know we’ve done a good album, and it seems that a lot of people agree.”
Although receiving some harsh criticism for 2003’s ‘Anthems Of Rebellion’ at the time of its release, Erlandsson believes that the album was exactly the right direction Arch Enemy needed go for at the time as a follow up to ‘Wages Of Sin’.
“When we recorded ‘Anthems Of Rebellion’, we focussed more on getting the sound stripped down. We wanted to keep the song writing a little simpler, and we definitely achieved that. Comparing it to the new album, I think ‘Doomsday Machine’ has a lot more of everything. It’s got a lot more melody, and a lot more variation in the songs. I still think that ‘Anthems Of Rebellion’ was a very good album, and that it’s managed to stand the test of time. The songs from that album still go down very well live, so I’m happy with that album.”
As Erlandsson, compared to ‘Anthems Of Rebellion’, ‘Doomsday Machine’ does feature a lot more of everything, with a greater difference between the slower paced melodic tracks, to the faster paced more traditional sounding Arch Enemy numbers.
“I think you’re definitely right there. We wanted to make sure that we brought back all the trademark elements of Arch Enemy’s sound. I think we managed to do that quite well. But there’s also elements within the album that’s kind of new to us. Like there’s a little bit of keyboard sampling in a couple of tracks, and some other special effects that enhance the overall atmosphere of the album.”
Interestingly enough, it’s the two tracks (‘My Apocalypse’ and ‘Skeleton Dance’) that feature sound effects that will surprise most.
“That came about as a mix of us wanting to trying to do something new, and someone being available to help out. We were fortunate enough to work with people during the recording that were good at playing keyboards, and equally good at finding unique sounds. We definitely wanted to enhance the atmosphere on the album, and I think the sounds we chose in the end are there for that very reason. They were chosen to be solely in the background, and not to dominate the mix by adding a little bit of atmosphere.”
After five full length studio albums, Arch Enemy know are confident they’ve found their own unique sound in the melodic death metal genre, but it doesn’t stop them from experimenting and pushing forward into new areas.
“Yes absolutely. I totally agree with that! (Laughs) Some ideas are pre-planned, while the rest is left up to fate! (Laughs) I mean every album that we do is a reaction to the last one we recorded. ‘Anthems Of Rebellion’ was stripped down compared to ‘Wages Of Sin’, so this time around it wasn’t going to be stripped down. I think ‘Doomsday Machine’ is more of a combination of the older albums, but at the same time, I think it’s a progression for the band as well. When I listen to ‘Doomsday Machine’, I can definitely hear old Arch Enemy. If you listen to this album, and the very first Arch Enemy album (1996’s ‘Black Earth’), there’s obviously going to be a lot of difference because the band has progressed within that time.”
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