Candlemass is a Swedish epic doom metal band established in Upplands Väsby, a suburb of Stockholm in 1984 by bassist, songwriter and bandleader Leif Edling and drummer Matz Ekström. The band had a defining influence on doom metal. Along with Pentagram, Saint Vitus and Trouble, Candlemass has been referred to as one of the "big four of doom metal".
Michael Amott is a Swedish guitarist, founding member of the metal bands Arch Enemy, Spiritual Beggars and Carnage, as well as a former member of Carcass. He is the older brother of Christopher Amott.
Leif Edling is a Swedish musician, best known as the bassist, main songwriter and one of the founding members of the epic doom metal band Candlemass. He is the only constant member of the band since its inception to the present day. Nevertheless, since the band's second reunion in 2002 Edling has been backed up again by founding rhythm guitarist Mats Björkman, who had been absent from 1997 to 2002 and was replaced by Michael Amott.
Jan-Håkan "Ian" Haugland is the drummer in the Swedish rock band Europe. When he was eight months old, he and his family moved to the Stockholm suburb of Märsta, Sweden. He joined Europe in the summer of 1984, replacing Tony Reno. Previously Haugland had played in a number of bands, including Trilogy, where Candlemass bassist Leif Edling sang, and Yngwie J. Malmsteen's band Rising Force.
Mats Levén is a Swedish singer. Some of his most notable collaborations have been with guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, symphonic metallers Therion and doom metallers Candlemass. In 2011, due to family issues on the part of Firewind's lead singer Apollo, Levén was called in to substitute for the rest of their European tour. He also started touring with Trans-Siberian Orchestra in 2016. In 2019, he released his first solo album under the name Skyblood. In 2022, he became a member of Vandenberg which is led by the well known guitarist, Adrian Vandenberg.
Mike Wead is a Swedish guitarist who lives in Stockholm. Wead contributed to heavy metal bands such as Hexenhaus, Memento Mori, Abstrakt Algebra, The Haunted, Edge of Sanity, Candlemass, The Project Hate. Currently Wead is the guitarist of Mercyful Fate, King Diamond, and bibleblack.
Epicus Doomicus Metallicus is the debut album of the Swedish doom metal band Candlemass. It was released June 10, 1986 on Black Dragon Records. On its release, the album had a significantly different sound than other European heavy metal bands of the time, because of their use of operatic vocals mixed over slow and heavy guitar riffs. The album did not sell well on its initial release, which led to the group being dropped from the label during the same year. Since then, the album has been re-issued in several different formats. The album title Epicus Doomicus Metallicus is a dog latin translation rendering of Epic Doom Metal — the genre which the band helped pioneer and with which it is most commonly identified. Although he was actually a guest musician at the time of its recording, this was the only Candlemass album to feature vocalist Johan Längqvist until he joined the band, officially, in 2018.
Nightfall is the second studio album by the Swedish doom metal band Candlemass, released on 9 November 1987 through Axis Records. After being dropped from the label Black Dragon Records, Candlemass were the first band signed to Axis. The group had a new line-up from their previous album including vocalist Messiah Marcolin, whose decisions became instrumental during the production and release stages of the album.
Ancient Dreams is the third album of Swedish doom metal band Candlemass, released in 1988 and reissued in 2001 by Powerline Records with a bonus CD. The cover art of the album is a painting made by Thomas Cole, second in his series, "The Voyage of Life", entitled "Youth". Ancient Dreams was the first Candlemass album to chart in the US, debuting at No. 174 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
Chapter VI is the fifth studio album by Swedish doom metal band Candlemass released in 1992. This was the first Candlemass album not to feature Messiah Marcolin on vocals since 1986's Epicus Doomicus Metallicus. On this one, Thomas Vikström took his place. After poor sales of the album, Candlemass subsequently disbanded in early 1994, only to reform three years later.
Robert Lowe is an American singer.
Dactylis Glomerata is the sixth studio album by Swedish doom metal band Candlemass, released in 1998. This was their first album released since their split in 1994.
From the 13th Sun is the seventh studio album by Swedish doom metal band Candlemass, released in 1999. The CD liner notes say it is "dedicated to the greatest band of all time: Black Sabbath".
King of the Grey Islands is the ninth studio album by Swedish doom metal band Candlemass, released on 22 June 2007. It is the first album recorded following the departure of vocalist Messiah Marcolin, who left the band during the pre-production phase of the album. He was replaced by Robert Lowe, who would stay with the band until his departure in June 2012.
Death Magic Doom is the tenth studio album by the Swedish epic doom metal band Candlemass.
Lucifer Rising is an expanded EP by Swedish doom metal band Candlemass, released in 2008 via Nuclear Blast. Candlemass recorded two new tracks, "Lucifer Rising" and "White God", and re-recorded "Demons Gate" for this release. The collection is also primarily composed of a series of 9 live tracks recorded in Athens, Greece on their 2007 tour. Recording on the new material was completed in April 2008. The title track, "Lucifer Rising", is included as a bonus song on the digipak edition of the full-length album Death Magic Doom, which was released six months after the EP.
Psalms for the Dead is the eleventh studio album by the Swedish doom metal band Candlemass, released on 8 June 2012. At the time of its release, the band stated that this would be their final album, though bassist and founding member Leif Edling has since retracted this claim. Psalms for the Dead is, however, the last Candlemass album recorded with singer Robert Lowe, who left the band just six days before its release.
Avatarium is a Swedish doom metal band from Stockholm, founded by Candlemass member Leif Edling in 2013.
"Solitude" is a song by the Swedish doom metal band Candlemass. It is the opening track on the band's debut studio album, Epicus Doomicus Metallicus, released in June 1986. It is one of the band's signature songs, and has been a feature of all the band's live setlists since the release of the album.
