Bloodbath is a Swedish death metal supergroup from Stockholm formed in 1999.

History

A year after being formed, the band, then consisting of Mikael Åkerfeldt (Opeth) on vocals, Dan Swanö (Edge of Sanity, Nightingale, etc.) on drums, Anders "Blakkheim" Nyström (Katatonia, Diabolical Masquerade) on guitar, and Jonas Renkse (Katatonia, October Tide) on bass, released their EP Breeding Death, followed two years later by their debut album Resurrection through Carnage.

In 2004, singer Mikael Åkerfeldt left Bloodbath to free up more time for his primary band Opeth. To replace him, Bloodbath brought in Peter Tägtgren (Hypocrisy). The lineup changed further, with Dan Swanö switching to play the guitar instead of drums. Martin Axenrot (Witchery, Satanic Slaughter and now Opeth) took his place and the band was now bigger and more serious, no longer just a secondary project. The band's second full release, Nightmares Made Flesh, was released in Europe in September 2004.

In February 2005, Tägtgren left the band due to "conflicting schedules." That same year, Mikael Åkerfeldt rejoined the band for a single live show at Germany's Wacken Open Air on August 5. Prior to the show, the band commented on the Wacken show: "Not only the first, but also the last gig for Bloodbath (with Mikael Åkerfeldt on vocals)"; later it also turned out to be the last one with Dan Swanö. In September of 2005, Bloodbath started searching for a new lead singer.

In August 2006, the band announced the departure of Dan Swanö from their ranks due to musical differences, as well as Swanö's being busy with other projects. They simultaneously closed the vocal auditions, announcing that no suitable singer had been found.

On 27 March 2007 the band announced that a new line-up would shortly be unveiled, along with news that they were producing new material, to be released on a mini-CD towards the end of summer. In August 2007, band member Jonas Renkse wrote a message on the band's official discussion forum which suggested that work was in progress On 30 January 2008, it was announced via the Bloodbath website that Mikael Åkerfeldt would be rejoining the line-up on vocals, along with new member Per Eriksson (ex-21 Lucifers, ex-Genocrush Ferox) on guitar. Then, in March 2008, the new EP, Unblessing the Purity, was released. Also released in 2008 was the long awaited Wacken live CD/DVD The Wacken Carnage.

Bloodbath released their third full length album, The Fathomless Mastery, in October 2008.

Members

• Mikael Åkerfeldt - vocals (1999 - 2004, 2005, 2008 - present)
• Anders "Blakkheim" Nyström - guitar (1999 - present)
• Per "Sodomizer" Eriksson - guitar (2008 - present)
• Jonas Renkse - bass (1999 - present)
• Martin "Axe" Axenrot - drums (2004 - present)

Former members

• Peter Tägtgren - vocals (2004 - 2005)
• Dan Swanö - drums (1999 - 2004), guitar (2004 - 2006)

Discography

Studio albums

• Resurrection Through Carnage (2002)
• Nightmares Made Flesh (2005)
• The Fathomless Mastery (2008)

EPs

• Breeding Death (2000)
• Unblessing the Purity (2008)

Live

• The Wacken Carnage (2008)