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Fleshgod Apocalypse | |
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 Fleshgod Apocalypse at Metal Frenzy 2017 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Perugia, Italy |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Labels |
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| Members | Francesco Paoli Francesco Ferrini Veronica Bordacchini Fabio Bartoletti Eugene Ryabchenko |
| Past members | Francesco Struglia Tommaso Riccardi Cristiano Trionfera Paolo Rossi |
| Website | www |
Fleshgod Apocalypse is an Italiansymphonic death metal band. Formed in 2007, the group resides inPerugia and are currently signed toNuclear Blast.
Fleshgod Apocalypse was formed in April 2007 by Francesco Paoli (formerly frontman of the bandHour of Penance). They recorded their first demo,Promo '07, at 16th Cellar Studio, in Rome, with producer Stefano "Saul" Morabito, releasing it shortly after. The demo was re-released the following year on a split CD with fellow Italian bands Septycal Gorge, Modus Delicti and Onirik. Fleshgod Apocalypse then signed toNeurotic Records. In early 2008 the band toured Europe, supporting bands likeBehemoth,Origin,Dying Fetus,Hate Eternal,Suffocation,Napalm Death and many more.
In May 2008, the band recorded its first full-length album,Oracles. In December of that year the band decided to part ways with Neurotic Records and signed with Willowtip Records, who releasedOracles in 2009. Shortly thereafter, new member, Tommaso Riccardi took over vocals and rhythm guitar, which were previously handled by Francesco Paoli, and Paoli took over the drums, replacing session drummer Francesco Struglia.[3]
In 2010, theMafia EP was recorded, again at 16th Cellar Studios, and was released via Willowtip Records. It includes four new tracks and a cover of the track "Blinded by Fear" byAt the Gates. The band embarked on another European tour shortly after the end of theMafia recording sessions, supportingSuffocation. Following this tour was a headlining tour of Russia.
Until 2010, band founder Francesco Paoli was simultaneously in his former bandHour of Penance doing vocals, as well as drumming in Fleshgod Apocalypse. He quit Hour of Penance to focus on Fleshgod Apocalypse full-time as drummer and songwriter. In November 2010, the band signed a worldwide deal with record label Extreme Management Group, Inc. and began writing for the second full-length album. In May 2011 the band signed a worldwide deal withNuclear Blast Records and began wrapping up work on their second album. During this time, another new member, Francesco Ferrini, the pianist and orchestrator ofOracles andMafia, was added to the band as the full-time pianist and orchestrator. This addition honed Fleshgod Apocalypse's sound on their upcoming album.
The band released their second album,Agony, on 9 August 2011 in North America and 19 August 2011 in Europe.[4] TheiTunes version ofAgony also includes a cover of the track "Heartwork" byCarcass.
Fleshgod Apocalypse took part in the 2011Summer Slaughter Tour in North America, alongside co-headlinersWhitechapel andThe Black Dahlia Murder. The band toured the US withDecapitated in late 2011. In January 2012, they toured the UK with The Black Dahlia Murder andSkeletonwitch. During March 2012, Fleshgod Apocalypse toured South Africa, supported by local death metal acts.
On 22 December 2012, the band released a music video for "The Forsaking" from the albumAgony.[5]
Fleshgod Apocalypse's third album is entitledLabyrinth, and was released on 16 August 2013, in Europe, and on 20 August 2013, in North America, by Nuclear Blast.[6]Labyrinth was recorded with Stefano Morabito at 16th Cellar Studio. It features guest contributions, and is a concept album about the myth ofLabyrinth of Knossos and its analogies to modern times.[7]
Fleshgod Apocalypse's fourth album entitledKing was released on 5 February 2016. The work was an important success, peaking at #27 in theBillboard Chart.
On 10 October 2017 the band announced that Tommaso Riccardi had left the band.[8] He was replaced by drummer Francesco Paoli who returned to lead vocals and rhythm guitar, while guitarist Fabio Bartoletti from Deceptionist joined the band on lead guitar (replacing Cristiano Trionfera, who had departed without an announcement from himself or the band). The band tapped David Folchitto as their live touring drummer, who stayed with the band for two years.[9]
In 2019 Fleshgod Apocalypse released their fifth album,Veleno. The album continued and expanded on the style they had honed withKing,[10] and was accompanied by the release of two music videos directed by Giovanni Bucci for the songs "Sugar" and "Monnalisa".Loudwire named it one of the 50 best metal albums of 2019[11] andMetal Hammer ranked it 11th in their 2021 list of 25 best symphonic metal album of all time.[12] In April 2019, it was announced that the band would be touring withHypocrisy[13] in North America with a string quartet.
In February 2020, Eugene Ryabchenko fromVital Remains became the band's new live drummer.[14] Fleshgod Apocalypse was supposed to do another round of American shows withThe Agonist in 2020, but this tour was for the most part cancelled due tothe COVID-19 pandemic. The band has resorted to streaming onYouTube to hostQ&A sessions with fans, as well as livestreaming a virtual concert at Bloom Studio inRome in August.[15] A video for an acoustic version of "The Day We'll Be Gone" was released on 23 October 2020, whereupon it was announced that soprano Veronica Bordacchini, guitarist Fabio Bartoletti and drummer Eugene Ryabchenko had officially joined the band.
On 18 December 2020, the band released a new EP titledNo along with a new music video for the title track. In January 2021, they released a cover ofBlue (Da Ba Dee).
Founding bassist Paolo Rossi went on a hiatus from touring in 2023. After initially usingDelain bassist Ludovico Cioffi as a touring replacement, the band continued as a quintet with Paoli playing bass, Bordacchini handling all clean vocals and Bartoletti handling all live guitar duties. In February 2024, the band confirmed on their Facebook page that Rossi had left the band. They explained further that he would not be replaced, and that Paoli would remain the band's bassist (although he would continue to perform rhythm guitar in the studio).
In March 2024, the band released a new single, "Pendulum". The song chronicles Paoli's fall while mountain climbing in August 2021 that caused the band to go on hiatus.[16]
On 15 June 2024, a second single "Bloodclock" was released along with the announcement of their sixth studio album,Opera.[17]
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| Album | Vocals | Rhythm Guitar | Lead Guitar | Bass | Clean Vocals | Drums | Piano |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Promo '07 | Francesco Paoli | Cristiano Trionfera | Paolo Rossi | Francesco Struglia | none | ||
| Oracles | Mauro Mercurio | Francesco Ferrini | |||||
| Mafia | Tommaso Riccardi | Francesco Paoli | |||||
| Agony | |||||||
| Labyrinth | Paolo Rossi | Paolo Rossi / Veronica Bordacchini | |||||
| King | |||||||
| Veleno | Francesco Paoli | Fabio Bartoletti | David Folchitto | ||||
| Opera | Francesco Paoli | Veronica Bordacchini | Eugene Ryabchenko | ||||
| International | |
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| Artists | |
