Melodeath Bands You Need to Listen To:
“This list is purely about lesser known Melodeath bands. Obviously, these bands are not necessarily an introduction to the genre. If you want to get into the genre check out the heavy hitters such as Arch Enemy, In Flames, Dark Tranquility, Before the Dawn, Insomnium, Swallow The Sun, Children of Bodom, Wintersun, Ensiferum, Amorphis, and At The Gates.
If I missed any essentials, comment below or tweet me at @ebombmetal on Twitter.”
In Mourning
In Mourning is yet another Melodeath offering from Sweden. But, comparing them to the likes of Dark Tranquility, In Flames, and At the Gates would be criminal. The small town Swedish “sad bois” are not your typical flavor of Melodeath. Of my two decades as a Metal fan, I have never heard such a diverse band. Their layers are endlessly entangled with Doom, Black Sabbath, Power Metal, and Amorphis-like brutality. To say this band is stunning, is a vast understatement. From the saga based lyrics, to the classic riffs, to the depressive overtones of three different growlers, this band had me absolutely mesmerized. Their Weight of the Oceans record is a timeless Melodeath gem that deserves far more press than it has received over the decade. The opening track “Colossus” has the haunting beauty that I look for in Melodic Death Metal. The atmospheric aspect transcends you to the ancient oceans as you await a giant sea creature to swallow the earth.
In Mourning has the most interesting song structure, making every track unpredictable and interesting. Verses last half of songs, preceding three staggeringly good guitar solos, and harmonized brutal growls over unique driving leads. Some songs have so many changes it is hard for me to keep up with at times, but it truly makes the music more interesting. It’s surprising, because you never know what influence the band will throw in the ring next. This band is a permanent addition to my collection and I will long await a North American tour.
Essential Tracks: Colossus, Thornwalker, Black Storm
https://www.instagram.com/inmourning/?hl=en
https://inmourning.bandcamp.com/
Omnium Gatherum
From the brain of Melodeath legend Markus Vanhala of Insomnium, comes a lighter hearted brother of Insomnium. Omnium Gatherum is Speed meets Melodeath with immensely beautiful atmospheric synths and meanings that make grown men cry in the pit. Omnium is an enigma of brutal growls from Jukka Peikonen and soft lead melodies from Markus with an occasional melancholic clean vocal. Omnium has a “battle ready” feel to it. I find them to be one of the most uplifting Melodeath bands. It’s a great diversion from the “my wife tragically died and came back to throw me in a well” feeling you get from Amorphis and Insomnium.
Seeing this band live twice, I can say they truly play to astound. They put one hundred percent of their passion and practice into each track and play with immense speed. It is shocking to watch the dueling guitars play perfectly together at neck break pace. Their drummer, albeit a different drummer every time I’ve seen them, is a machine of a metronome that keeps everything really tight. Jukka’s guttural growls for a whole set defy and blow me away. His vocal stamina is some of the highest for the difficulty of technique he displays. I also really enjoy the group cleans, as it gives an 80’s arena vibe. This band is fantastic on record but also one of the best live. I cannot recommend their catalog enough, specifically from Stuck Here on Snakes Way (2007) and on.
Essential Tracks: The Unknowing, Fortitude, New World Shadows
Countless Skies
For something fresh and completely different in Melodeath, I recommend UK newcomers Countless Skies. If you dig the Progressive aspects of Amorphis and also Devin Townsend, this band is a brilliant bright mix of both. Not to be confused with Pop Atmospheric duo, Silent Skies, these guys are all heavy goodness. If you like bands with bassists that sing, this band is definitely for you. Phil Romeo has one of the greatest voices I have ever heard, effortlessly laying tenor operatic on top of Melodeath speed and epic ballads beyond anything I could have imagined. This band has music that moves; it goes from gloom and doom to heavenly optimistic and heartbreaking. This is a band that deserves an entire symphony behind it (maybe a show at the famous Plovdiv Amphitheater). The music composition is beautiful and flawlessly flowing from orchestration to synth to perfect blast beats. Ross King wails on guitar while executing perfectly dictioned gutturals and soaring screams. Every song builds into something heavier or something immensely melodic and breathtaking.
Essential, Tracks: Zephyr, Tempest, Moon
https://www.countlessskies.com/
https://countlessskies.bandcamp.com/
http://willowtip.com/bands/details/countless-skies.aspx
Infected Rain
I may catch some slack from genre sticklers on this one, but I have to include Infected Rain on this list. The Moldovian Nu-Metal band displays a huge range of influences, I have trouble believing they’re among the likes of Korn and Slipknot. This heavy groove based band has a plethora of interesting sounds and progressive nuances. I wouldn’t compare them with any other band on the planet. Lena Scissorhands is one of the most unique vocalists of the past two decades. Her range from cleans to gutturals to harmonic screams. Her fluidity amazes me on every track. Vidick, the sole writer and mastermind, lays down addictive rhythm guitars ranging from Djent to Pantera. It grooves better than anything I’ve heard in twenty years. They’ve been around since 2008, but haven’t hit big time in the USA yet. I could see this band exploding very soon with the tours they’ve been on lately with Butcher Babies and Stitched Up Heart. This band deserves much more credit for quality and innovative Groove Melodeath. Part of me wishes Lena was the new addition to vocaless Fear Factory, but I would hate to see Infected Rain lose her. That’s how immensely good they are. She can scream, guttural growl, sing melodically, rap, and go into operatics occasionally. This band is just staggeringly good.
Essential Tracks: Fighter, Lullaby, Longing
Infected Rain Metal Band from Moldova
https://www.napalmrecordsamerica.com/infectedrain
Kalmah
This doomy brutal Melodeath band from 1998 has been vastly underrated and lost under the radar. I didn’t hear of Kalmah until 2013, after discovering Insomnium live supporting Epica in 2012. Kalmah is a bit slower, more under-stated in its take on Melodeath. It’s not as in your face, but the quality is formidable. Their doomy death metal layered with catchy lead guitars and insane piano melodies sets them apart in the genre. They cover a huge range of emotions and themes throughout every album, but remain solid. Older Kalmah is purer Death Metal with Thrash guitars, atmospheric synth, and chaotic heart pounding blast beats. There’s truly something for every Death Metal fan within the Kalmah catalog. They’re a much heavier version Children of Bodom with Doom layers intertwined throughout. They also show some love for Power Metal with dueling guitar melodies. They’re an unexpected gem, but not surprising being from the most Death Metal country in the world, Finland.
Essential Tracks: For The Revolution, Seventh Swamphony, Blood Rain Cold
https://spinefarm.merchnow.com/catalogs/kalmah
Deadtide
If you’re anything like me as a metal head, you’re constantly looking for underground epic bands to discover. I came across Deadtide on Bandcamp in a very saturated list of Death Metal bands. These guys stood out to me, because they offer a more approachable sound to Melodeath. They have the most clean vocals I’ve heard in the genre and some interesting Progressive Metalcore layers. I kno;w I am using a lot of genre jargon to describe sounds, but comparing them to anyone specific is not helpful. Every song i’;ve heard is totally different from the next with Deadtide. They have flavors of In Flames, Dark Tranquility, and Metalcore bands like Born of Osiris and All That Remains. The Ephemeral EP is a stunning sampler of what Deadtide has to offer. Check it out below. We don’t get a lot of quality Melodeath in the USA, so it was a wonderful surprise to discover these guys.
Essential Tracks; The Rabbit Hole, Alteration, Begin the Dream
Metal Valkyrie 