Death Organ
Encyclopedia
Death Organ is a Swedish
progressive rock
/death metal
band led by keyboardist
Per Wiberg
, who also played keyboards for the Swedish
progressive death metal band Opeth
and for Michael Amott
's stoner metal band Spiritual Beggars
. The band's sound is unusual for the heavy metal music
genre, as they use no guitars: the band's main instrument is the Hammond organ
, played through a guitar amplifier and distortion effects. The vocal style is a mix between clean vocals and death growl
s.
Their first album, 9 to 5, was produced by Peter Tägtgren
, one of Sweden's best-known metal musicians and producers, and was given 3 out of 5 stars on Allmusic. Their second album, Universal Stripsearch, was listed by Piero Scaruffi as one of the "best progressive-rock albums of all times"; Swedish review site Rockguiden called the music a mix between Faith No More
and Atomic Rooster
. Mike Taylor, for the New Gibraltar Encyclopedia of Progressive Rock, rates the albums as 95 and 97 (out of 100), respectively.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
/death metal
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
band led by keyboardist
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
Per Wiberg
Per Wiberg
Per Jonas Wiberg is the former keyboardist of Swedish progressive death metal band Opeth, and a member of Michael Amott's stoner metal band Spiritual Beggars. Wiberg toured with Opeth from the 2003 Deliverance/Damnation tour onward, and joined Opeth officially in 2005. Wiberg provided backing...
, who also played keyboards for the Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
progressive death metal band Opeth
Opeth
Opeth is a Swedish heavy metal band from Stockholm, formed in 1990. Though the group has been through several personnel changes, singer, guitarist, and songwriter Mikael Åkerfeldt has remained Opeth's driving force throughout the years...
and for Michael Amott
Michael Amott
Michael Amott is a Swedish guitarist, songwriter, founding member of the bands Arch Enemy, Spiritual Beggars, and Carnage, as well as a member of the death metal band Carcass. He is the older brother of Christopher Amott...
's stoner metal band Spiritual Beggars
Spiritual Beggars
Spiritual Beggars is a hard rock/stoner metal band from Halmstad, Sweden, formed by Michael Amott, who is known from Arch Enemy, Carcass and Carnage.- Biography :...
. The band's sound is unusual for the heavy metal music
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
genre, as they use no guitars: the band's main instrument is the Hammond organ
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
, played through a guitar amplifier and distortion effects. The vocal style is a mix between clean vocals and death growl
Death growl
A death growl, also known as death metal vocals, guttural vocals, death grunts, and harsh vocals among other names, is a vocalisation style usually employed by vocalists of the death metal and black metal music genre, but also used in a variety of heavy metal and hardcore punk subgenres.Death...
s.
Their first album, 9 to 5, was produced by Peter Tägtgren
Peter Tägtgren
Alf Peter Tägtgren is a Swedish musician and producer. He is the founder, main songwriter, lead vocalist, and guitarist of the death metal band Hypocrisy as well as the industrial metal band PAIN in which he is the only member....
, one of Sweden's best-known metal musicians and producers, and was given 3 out of 5 stars on Allmusic. Their second album, Universal Stripsearch, was listed by Piero Scaruffi as one of the "best progressive-rock albums of all times"; Swedish review site Rockguiden called the music a mix between Faith No More
Faith No More
Faith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed originally as Faith No Man in 1981 by bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist Wade Worthington, vocalist Michael Morris and drummer Mike Bordin. A year later when Worthington was replaced by keyboardist Roddy Bottum, and Mike...
and Atomic Rooster
Atomic Rooster
Atomic Rooster were an English progressive rock band, composed of former members of the The Crazy World of Arthur Brown. Throughout their history, keyboardist Vincent Crane was the only constant member, and wrote the majority of their material. Their history is defined by two periods, in the early...
. Mike Taylor, for the New Gibraltar Encyclopedia of Progressive Rock, rates the albums as 95 and 97 (out of 100), respectively.
Members
- Klass Hägglund - bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Markus Källström - drums, vocals
- Per WibergPer WibergPer Jonas Wiberg is the former keyboardist of Swedish progressive death metal band Opeth, and a member of Michael Amott's stoner metal band Spiritual Beggars. Wiberg toured with Opeth from the 2003 Deliverance/Damnation tour onward, and joined Opeth officially in 2005. Wiberg provided backing...
- organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
, vocals - Patrik Schultz - vocals
- Jocke Sjöström - percussion
Discography
- 9 to 5 (Ad Perpetuam MemoriamAd Perpetuam MemoriamAd Perpetuam Memoriam was an independent record label based in Borlänge, Sweden.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, in the area of progressive rock and symphonic rock Artists on APM include Death Organ, Höyry-kone, Catweazle.-Discography:...
, 1995) - Universal Stripsearch (Ad Perpetuam MemoriamAd Perpetuam MemoriamAd Perpetuam Memoriam was an independent record label based in Borlänge, Sweden.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, in the area of progressive rock and symphonic rock Artists on APM include Death Organ, Höyry-kone, Catweazle.-Discography:...
, 1997)