Cool artwork!

Glad to see there's no Marco Hietala contribution this time around.
I also could have done without White-Gluz making an appearance, but oh well, you do you, Delain.

I'm in love with it already. I'd quite given up hope on this band (did I ever really have any to begin with?) but their last album was surprisingly wonderful and quickly became a regular listen for me. I expect nothing less with this next record! Very beautiful cover, too.

(Why, Alissa White-Gluz, why must you leech onto everyone's albums? Your hair is cool but come ON.)

I never understand the Alissa hate

Feels like I'm the only person on the entire website who doesn't find The Agonist, or Alissa, to be utter garbage.

Written by Overrwatcher on 23.06.2016 at 12:56

I never understand the Alissa hate

Feels like I'm the only person on the entire website who doesn't find The Agonist, or Alissa, to be utter garbage.

Although not relevant to the music in any way, so it's most likely a moot point, I have trouble liking her apparent self-righteous attitude; it's all very holier than thou. I like her contribution to The Agonist, but prefer Vicky.

Written by Susan on 23.06.2016 at 05:43

(Why, Alissa White-Gluz, why must you leech onto everyone's albums? Your hair is cool but come ON.)

Maybe because she's one of the few with such a versatile voice. I bet she'll be doing both, clean and guttural vocals, as she did with Kamelot.

She might also be quite good at making friends though

Written by the_scarecrow on 23.06.2016 at 16:16

Written by Overrwatcher on 23.06.2016 at 12:56

I never understand the Alissa hate

Feels like I'm the only person on the entire website who doesn't find The Agonist, or Alissa, to be utter garbage.

Although not relevant to the music in any way, so it's most likely a moot point, I have trouble liking her apparent self-righteous attitude; it's all very holier than thou. I like her contribution to The Agonist, but prefer Vicky.

The way I always understood Alissa's personality is that she is super, super, super passionate about everything she does. Like, to an extreme. As a result she puts a ton of effort into her music (and it really shows), but can be extremely polarizing and, as you said, self-righteous. When she was kicked from The Agonist, the quality of the music dropped significantly (Vicky is good, they just no longer have Alissa's songwriting), but the band seems to be much happier and more refreshed now. You never saw the band having very much fun when Alissa was still around. It's been made clear that there is bad blood between them now. Hell, the video for "Gates Of Horn And Ivory" is indirectly a jab at her, since she was more known in the mainstream more for her looks and had entered another glamorized band (Arch Enemy). Let's face it, if Alissa weren't hot, "And Their Eulogies Sang Me To Sleep" wouldn't have 10 million views. It's a super messy, chaotic, and inaccessible song. It's their best song IMO, but come on.

I'm kind of curious as to how she has been so happy in Arch Enemy. Arch Enemy has always been a supergroup that has been lesser than the sum of its parts, sticking with the exact same melodeath as they always have done since Wages Of Sin. She mentioned that the band has a "no cleans" policy, and War Eternal only had some slight inspirations from Alissa's music. The very slight gothic elements are very very Alissa-like, and it's obvious that "Time Is Black" and "Avalanche" are the songs where she was a bigger part of the songwriting process, "Avalanche" featuring the first (semi) clean vocals in over a decade. Her cleans have been relegated to only symphonic metal features, and she has no say in songwriting in terms of those. I guess money speaks though. Arch Enemy is up there with In Flames and The Black Dahlia Murder for the best selling melodeath bands, and Century Media is probably paying really really serious money to them ever since Suicide Silence (their previous biggest name) moved to Nuclear Blast. Man, I wish they would do more with the fact they have Alissa and JEFF MOTHERFUCKING LOOMIS in the same band.

She says she has always felt like an outcast in metal, and that mentality doesn't really help with being friendly, that's for sure. I don't blame her, the vitriol I've seen thrown her way literally just because she's female (not even for music/personality) is pretty insane, but with her personality combined with an already cynical view it's not surprising she comes off as unlikable.

Written by Overrwatcher on 23.06.2016 at 16:51

She says she has always felt like an outcast in metal, and that mentality doesn't really help with being friendly, that's for sure. I don't blame her, the vitriol I've seen thrown her way literally just because she's female (not even for music/personality) is pretty insane, but with her personality combined with an already cynical view it's not surprising she comes off as unlikable.

That makes a lot of sense: feel like an outcast, put up a guard. You make a very intelligent and sensible statement.
As for being judged/discriminated against solely for being female in the genre, that's baffling. I would have liked to have thought that that issue wasn't prevalent anymore.

Anyhoo, bring on Moonbathers.

Written by mariano on 23.06.2016 at 16:31


She might also be quite good at making friends though

Haha probably!! She seems like an awesome person and there is no denying talent. I get tired of seeing the SAME PERSON guesting on so many albums, though. Variety, please!!!

Written by the_scarecrow on 22.06.2016 at 19:51

Glad to see there's no Marco Hietala contribution this time around.

I dunno, I reckon their last one without him was their worst.

Written by M C Vice on 29.06.2016 at 12:33

Written by the_scarecrow on 22.06.2016 at 19:51

Glad to see there's no Marco Hietala contribution this time around.

I dunno, I reckon their last one without him was their worst.

The We Are The Others album? Yeah, I agree. That one only had a handful of memorable songs.

I'll admit, I like some of his vocal work with Delain, I'd just rather not see him featured all the time.
His part in "Sing To Me", from The Human Contradiction was quite good; he and Charlotte do compliment one another.

Written by the_scarecrow on 29.06.2016 at 16:29


His part in "Sing To Me", from The Human Contradiction was quite good; he and Charlotte do compliment one another.

So they give each other compliments?
I guess you meant complement here.

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 29.06.2016 at 19:03

Written by the_scarecrow on 29.06.2016 at 16:29


His part in "Sing To Me", from The Human Contradiction was quite good; he and Charlotte do compliment one another.

So they give each other compliments?
I guess you meant complement here.

Haha, me being my ignorant self, I didn't know they are two different words; I thought they were interchangeable.
I've committed the most heinous crime: trying to sound smart and failing hard.
I hope now they actually do give each other compliments, so there's meaning to my statement.

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 29.06.2016 at 19:03

Written by the_scarecrow on 29.06.2016 at 16:29


His part in "Sing To Me", from The Human Contradiction was quite good; he and Charlotte do compliment one another.

So they give each other compliments?
I guess you meant complement here.

Why not both?