At the Gates
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At the Gates
At the Gates concert at Sweden Rock Festival, 2008.
Background information
Origin	Gothenburg, Sweden
Genre(s)	Melodic death metal
Years active	1990–1996, 2007–present
Label(s)	Earache Records, Peaceville Records
Associated acts	The Haunted, Cradle of Filth, Liers in Wait, Grotesque, Nightrage, The Crown, Disfear, Skitsystem, Lock Up, The Great Deceiver
Website	www.atthegates.se
Members
Tomas Lindberg Anders Björler Jonas Björler Adrian Erlandsson Martin Larsson
Former members
Alf Svensson Jesper Jarold

At the Gates is a melodic death metal band from Gothenburg, Sweden. They are a progenitor of the Gothenburg sound of heavy metal along with other bands of the Gothenburg metal scene such as Dark Tranquillity and In Flames.

History

Early career

The band was formed in 1990 after the break-up of the pioneering death/black metal band Grotesque. The group recorded a rehearsal on 26 August, 1991, containing a rough version of "Souls of the Evil Departed".

They went on to record a debut EP, Gardens of Grief for the Dolores record label, and sold cassettes, vinyls, and XL t-shirts to promote the recording.

The EP led to seminal metal label Peaceville Records signing the band, and releasing their debut LP The Red in the Sky Is Ours in 1991.

A sea of changing tempos, Alf's atonal riffs flowing into Anders' neoclassical melodies, and unconventional song structures committed to tape in typically thin Sunlight Studios production made The Red in the Sky Is Ours a pioneering album. This eclectic sound was compounded by then-violinist Jesper Jarold , who contributed a neoclassical arrangement to the title track, as well as a climactic string solo in “Within,” among other tracks.

A demo containing early takes on “The Architects” and “Ever-Opening Flower” was distributed at some point between albums. These tracks are available on the Peaceville’s remastered pressings of With Fear I Kiss the Burning Darkness and The Red in the Sky is Ours, respectively, as well as the Suicidal Final Art compilation.

After the recording of their sophomore album, With Fear I Kiss the Burning Darkness, founding member and guitarist Alf Svensson departed the band to pursue tattoo artistry, comic illustration and his solo electronic-opera-Black Metal project Oxiplegatz.

He was soon replaced by former House of Usher axeman Martin Larsson, whom the band got to know during their early tours. The band continued touring Europe, and were filmed for a Headbangers Ball special featuring a tour date in the UK.

Success and breakthrough

In 1994, they released Terminal Spirit Disease, which was hailed as a breakthrough album. It contained only six new songs, but showed that the band's sound had progressed immensely in only one year, in terms of playing and production^[1][2] This would be the last album on Peaceville, as they were signed by one of the largest metal labels, Earache Records. The band continued touring and in 1995 they took yet another step forward releasing their most commercially and critically successful album, Slaughter of the Soul. This album firmly rooted the band as one of the leaders of the Swedish metal scene, and is considered a benchmark album in the Gothenburg sound.^[3][4] The band received international attention for the album, gaining them a U.S. tour and heavy rotation of the music video for "Blinded by Fear" on MTV in America. Despite the success and acclaim the band had garnered, the Björler brothers departed in 1996. The remaining members decided it would be impossible to continue without them, so the band was broken up.^[5]

Post-breakup and influence

When At the Gates broke up in 1996, drummer Adrian Erlandsson, bassist Jonas Björler and guitarist Anders Björler formed The Haunted. Tomas Lindberg has worked with many bands including Skitsystem, The Crown, Lock Up, and Nightrage and is currently in The Great Deceiver and Disfear. Adrian Erlandsson left The Haunted to join Cradle of Filth. In 2001, Peaceville Records released a career retrospective called Suicidal Final Art.

The band's legacy is far reaching because of their influence on the metalcore and melodic death metal genres. Many bands such as Darkest Hour, The Black Dahlia Murder, and Killswitch Engage were influenced by their sound.^[6][7]

Reunion

On October 18, 2007, At the Gates announced several reunion shows for mid-2008 including Getafe Electric Festival, Roskilde Festival, Ruisrock, Wacken Open Air, Graspop Metal Meeting, Sweden Rock Festival, Gods of Metal, Hellfest, Castle Festival, and Bloodstock Open Air,^[8] as well as touring Japan with The Dillinger Escape Plan, Into Eternity, Pig Destroyer, and Mayhem in May 2008.^[9]

Anders' comments on the reunion:

"Well, it felt like the timing was right for once. We have been talking about a possible reunion for years now, but this was the first time everything fell into place. For me personally, it feels like getting closure. The break-up over ten years ago was abrupt and left a bad vibe between us that took years to get over. We have a better relationship today and a more relaxed approach to who we are and what we do. The time is right to get together and play some shows. Try to catch us live in the summer 2008. It could be your last chance"

When asked in October 2007 if the band was planning on writing a new album, Lindberg replied:

On the official band's website Q&A Anders declared that "it would be pointless to release something more than ten years after Slaughter of the Soul" and "would just disappoint people."^[11]

Recently, they announced that along with Darkest Hour and Municipal Waste they will tour all around the U.S. for the "Suicidal Final Tour".^[12]

Awards

At the Gates were nominated for the Swedish Grammy Awards for Slaughter of the Soul in 1995 along with Fireside's Do Not Tailgate, Meshuggah's Destroy Erase Improve, and Yngwie Malmsteen's Magnum Opus.

Trivia

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (June 2008)

"Blinded by Fear" is available as downloadable content on the video game Rock Band, and is available currently on Xbox 360, and the Playstation 3. "Slaughter of The Soul" is featured on Tony Hawks Proving Ground.^[13]

During their 2008 shows at New York's Irving Plaza, front man Lindberg gave some clues to the meaning of their songs:

- The song "The Beautiful Wound" is "the closest they ever came to a love song"

- The song "Suicide Nation" is about Sweden

- The song "Windows" is about insanity

Line-up

Current line-up

• Tomas Lindberg − vocals (1990–1996, 2007–present)
• Anders Björler − guitar (1990–1996, 2007–present)
• Martin Larsson − guitar (1993–1996, 2007–present)
• Jonas Björler − bass guitar (1990–1992, 1993–1996, 2007–present)
• Adrian Erlandsson − drums (1990–1996, 2007–present)

Former members

• Alf Svensson − guitar (1990–1993)

Touring members

• Tony Andersson − bass guitar (1992)

Discography

Full length

EP/Split

• Gardens of Grief (1991, EP)
• Cursed to Tour (1996, Split live EP with Napalm Death)
• Suicidal Final Art (2001, Compilation)

Singles

• Kingdom Gone (1992)
• The Burning Darkness (1993)
• Terminal Spirit Disease (1994)
• Blinded By Fear (1995)

References

External links

• Official website
• At the Gates at MySpace
• At the Gates at YouTube
• (Italian) Interview with Anders Bjorler
• Interview with Anders Bjorler @ Metalfan.ro