World Power

Their band members come from all over the globe and their latest album and single are tearing up charts and playlists like never before. From the looks of things, it’s clear that, after more than 20 years, this is ARCH ENEMY’s moment of triumph.

- Jon Wiederhorn

“Well, there’s a first time for everything, right?” says founding guitarist Michael Amott from his home near Gothenburg, Sweden, where he’s taking a few days to decompress before Arch Enemy meet up at their rehearsal space in Frankfurt, Germany. There, they’ll practice their summer festival set, which includes “The World Is Yours,” the first single from their new album Will to Power.

“You know, sometimes things don’t work out,” Amott says. “I don’t really want to elaborate on that. At the time, it was, of course, surprising. But I called my brother, [band co-founder] Christopher [Amott, who has been in and out throughout the group’s history] and he finished the tour with us. What’s really surprising is that we didn’t miss a show.”

When asked about the incident, Cordle had no comment. “Not interested in anything to do with them,” he texted.

Putting out fires and overcoming challenges has become a regular task for Arch Enemy. The band is currently on its third vocalist; 14-year screamer Angela Gossow quit in 2014 before Cordle left; she currently manages Arch Enemy from her home in Germany. When Christopher Amott wasn’t in the band, Fredrik Åkesson and Cordle played for two years each, the former from 2005 to 2007 before leaving to joining Opeth, and the latter from 2012 to 2014 before joining Sanctuary.