Bloodbath, the legendary Swedish death metal 'supergroup', have long been touting their comeback and with new music on the very near horizon the band are about to reveal who has taken over from previous vocalists Mikael Åkerfeldt (Opeth) and Peter Tägtgren (Hypocrisy) and Åkerfeldt again.
1. Nick Holmes
Paradise Lost boast Nick Holmes among their ranks and with the two biggest credentials under his belt, along with a killer death metal growl, he’s almost a dead cert for the job. With Paradise Lost taking a backseat next year while bandmate Gregor Mackintosh gets on the Vallenfyre train, it’s plausible and Bloodbath did post a little hint with a picture of a red British phone booth in the foreground. Hmmmmm.
2. Jörgen Sandström
Jörgen Sandström, ex-Entombed and Grave, and currently fronting Torture Division, is another extremely likely candidate for the role. Both bearded and born in the correct year, Sandström is a frontrunner for metal’s most prestigious slot (if we ignore that bright red telephone box, ahem). Plus, he is Swedish which would be in keeping with the band’s main “hey, we’re Swedish as heck” manifesto.
3. Fenriz
This is just wishful thinking but imagine the Darkthrone drummer getting to grips with Bloodbath. Imagine!
4. Attila Csihar
Attila Csihar of Mayhem isn’t usually the hirsute gentlemen that Bloodbath have pictured. But who’s to say that he hasn’t grown an impressive beard since we saw him last? Stranger things have happened.
5. Jason Mendonça
He’s a Brit, he was born in 1971 and last time we saw him there was definitely hair on his face. The biggest problem with this is that he isn’t particularly active on the band front at all anymore. Still Mendonça is one of the more interesting vocalists on this list, for Bloodbath that might be a signal for new beginnings.
6. Johan Edlund
Formerly of Tiamat, Johan would be quite the wildcard entrance for this particular race but with a solid pedigree and a background in the scene, he isn’t completely out of the question. Perhaps he’s been wearing a fake beard for shits and giggles?
7. Tomas Haake
Meshuggah’s drummer may be more well known for keeping time on some of the most technically challenging metal around, but he’s also done a few vocal appearances for the band. It wouldn’t be completely outrageous for him to be tapped to lend those skills to Bloodbath for their new material.
8. Or…
The final option is thus, it’s all a clever ruse and Åkerfeldt or Tägtgren is back for good.
Head back to Metal Hammer on Tuesday as we EXCLUSIVELY reveal who the new Bloodbath vocalist is.
