Building Blocks Of Mystique With MORTEN LOWE SORENSEN From AMARANTHE

Interview by Kris Peters
For 15 years now, Swedish metal trailblazers Amaranthe have been
pushing the boundaries of music with a unique blending of melodic
metal, electronic rock, razor-sharp pop and hard rock that many
traditionalists - to their disbelief - have found impossible to
resist.
It is a coming together of music and genres that defies the regular
status quo of such opposing forces, but time and time again over a
growing number of albums Amaranthe have emerged triumphant. And
that is only set to reap the spoils of adulation once more with the
arrival of their new album, The Catalyst, on February 23.
Already being touted by those with advance listens as the most
powerful and complete album of Amaranthe's career, The Catalyst is
set to emphatically stamp Amaranthe as rulers of their domain, and
with good reason.
HEAVY caught up with drummer Morten Løwe Sørensen to find out
more.
"We're very proud of this album," he began. "It's been a lot of
work. Not very hard work, (smiles) but a lot of work. It was a
rewarding and super creative process for all of us. We're a heavy,
heavy band at the moment and it's a great album. People seem to
already like it, which is positive."
We ask what this period is like, with the album finished and just
waiting for a release date.
"It's been a while," he agreed. "On the date, it's almost one year
since I recorded the drums. Of course, there's always something
that you could have changed or done in a different way, but that's
usually something that happens when we start playing the songs
live. Certain things will just happen - at least for me as a
drummer - I have a little bit more freedom and maybe change a few
things here and there. It might happen organically throughout a
tour, and you think 'ah, it should have been like this' and small
changes might start happening. It doesn't mean that it should have
been like that, but certain things sometimes work better live than
on an album. I'm super happy about the production and everybody's
playing… I love the album."
In the full interview, Morten talks about the musical side of The
Catalyst and what they were going for, the singles released and how
they represent the album, blending styles together and how they
make it work, new members, resisting the temptation to recycle the
successful formula of their previous album Manifest, touring plans
and more.