Alissa White-Gluz

Alissa White-Gluz (; born 31 July 1985) is a Canadian singer, best known as the lead vocalist of the Swedish melodic death metal band Arch Enemy, and former lead vocalist and founding member of the Canadian metalcore band the Agonist. Her vocal style includes both growling and clean vocals (singing). Although primarily associated with melodic death metal and metalcore, she has appeared as a guest vocalist for power metal, symphonic metal and deathcore bands, notably Kamelot, Delain, Carnifex and Powerwolf, and has performed live with Nightwish and Tarja Turunen.

Early life

White-Gluz was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, as the second of three children. Her grandparents were prisoners in concentration camps during World War II and managed to escape. Their experiences in the camps would go on to inspire the Arch Enemy song, "First Day in Hell". She is the younger sister of Jasamine White-Gluz who leads the Montreal-based shoegaze band No Joy.

Career

The Agonist (2004–2014)

In 2004, White-Gluz formed the Agonist (then known as "Tempest") with fellow band members Danny Marino and Chris Kells in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She released three albums with them as their lead vocalist. White-Gluz left the Agonist in the spring of 2014 after she was offered the role as vocalist for Arch Enemy.

In April 2017, White-Gluz revealed detailed the circumstances of her departure and how she considered it the "biggest betrayal" she'd ever felt in her life. The Agonist later released their own public statement disputing her account, citing unprofessional behavior and a lack of respect for fans and band mates as the reason for her departure, and that the band is "breathing a lot easier" in her absence.

Arch Enemy (2014–present)

On 17 March 2014, Arch Enemy announced via press release that Alissa would be replacing their former vocalist Angela Gossow. With Arch Enemy, she has released three studio albums ('' War Eternal'', ''Will to Power'' and '' Deceivers'') and two live albums (''As the Stages Burn!'' and ''Live Power'').

Solo career

White-Gluz signed a deal with Napalm Records in 2016, with an intention to release a solo album entitled ''Alissa''. In a 2017 interview with Duke TV, she announced that her album would feature collaborations with Kamelot members, and said that the sound of the album would be "pretty different" from that of Arch Enemy.

Guest vocal work

White-Gluz has recorded guest vocals for Blackguard's 2008 EP ''Another Round'', as well as for Slaves on Dope's 2012 album ''Over the Influence''.

White-Gluz has worked with Kamelot on a number of occasions. In September and October 2012, she was a guest vocalist for Kamelot when they were the supporting act for Nightwish's North American tour. In February 2015, Kamelot announced that she would contribute guest vocals to their '' Haven'' album.

At the Denver show on 28 September 2012, White-Gluz and Elize Ryd performed the Nightwish lead vocals live on stage with minimal preparation after Anette Olzon was taken ill. White-Gluz, Ryd and Tommy Karevik later joined Nightwish (now fronted by Floor Jansen) on stage again to sing the final song of the tour, "Last Ride of the Day", in Orlando on 14 October 2012. Arch Enemy, with White-Gluz as lead vocalist, joined Nightwish as a supporting act on their 2015 European tour.

In February 2014, the Dutch symphonic metal band Delain announced that White-Gluz would be contributing guest vocals to their fourth studio album ''The Human Contradiction''. White-Gluz made a second guest appearance with Delain in 2016 on "Hands of Gold", the opening track of their fifth studio album ''Moonbathers''.

In 2017, White-Gluz recorded guest vocals for Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein's band, DOYLE. She appears on the band's second album, ''DOYLE II'', on the track "Kiss Me As We Die", providing background vocals. White-Gluz and Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein have been in a relationship since 2014.

In 2018, White-Gluz recorded guest vocals for Angra's album '' Omni'', which was released in February 2018. She appears on the third track "Black Widow's Web" alongside Brazilian singer Sandy. She also contributed to Dee Snider's album ''For The Love of Metal'' on the track ''Dead Hearts Love Thy Enemy'' and Kane Robert's/Alice Cooper's ''Beginning of the End''. She provided guest vocals for Soilwork on the song "Stålfågel", which is part of their eleventh studio album ''Verkligheten''. The album was released on 11 January 2019.

White-Gluz recorded guests vocals for the American deathcore act, Carnifex on the song "No Light Shall Save Us", which is on the band's seventh studio album, World War X, which was released on 2 August 2019 through Nuclear Blast Records.

In 2019, White-Gluz appeared on the album Anesthetic by Mark Morton ( Lamb of God) as a guest vocalist on the song "The Truth Is Dead" along with Randy Blythe (Lamb of God). The song was also released as a single in 2018.

In June 2021, Powerwolf released a remix of their famous "Demons Are a Girl's Best Friend" with White-Gluz as the lead vocalist.

In 2022, White-Gluz recorded guest vocals for the video game '' Metal: Hellsinger''.

Other media

White-Gluz is appearing in visual companion content to American Murder Song as Pretty Lavinia. Her character was first revealed at Steampunk World's Fair and has since been released on American Murder Song's YouTube channel.

In addition to her music career, White-Gluz also had a voice acting stint where she voiced the Swarm Hunters in ''Gears 5''.

Personal life

White-Gluz has been in a relationship with Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein since 2014, the guitarist of American horror punk band Misfits.

She was raised in a family of vegetarians, and has been a vegan since 1998. She follows a straight-edge lifestyle. She identifies as an atheist and considers herself opposed to religion, though she noted that "it doesn’t mean he hatesreligious people or sopposed to them".

Interests

White-Gluz is a fan of classical music as well as rock music. She enjoys 1990s grunge music such as Nirvana, Stone Temple Pilots, and Soundgarden. "I know a lot of people hate it but I love the simplicity, the stripped-down, honest songs and the mistakes. On Nirvana’s live album for example I love hearing the fuck-ups, out-of-tune guitars and the cracks in the voice", White-Gluz said in an interview with ''Metal Hammer''.

Activism

In a 2018 interview with ''Metal Hammer'', White-Gluz said she had been "vegan for about 18 years", but that she had engaged in animal rights activism since childhood. She received a Libby award from PETA for her work in an international campaign advocating against the hunting of Canadian seals.

Discography

The Agonist

*2007 – ''Once Only Imagined''
*2009 – '' Lullabies for the Dormant Mind''
*2011 – ''The Escape'' (EP)
*2012 – ''Prisoners''

Arch Enemy

*2014 – '' War Eternal''
*2017 – ''As the Stages Burn!''
*2017 – ''Will to Power''
*2019 – ''Covered in Blood''
*2022 – ''Deceivers''

Guest appearances

*Never More Than Less – on track "So Beautiful" – Album ''Relentless'' (2008, Le Collectif Artcore)
*(the) Plasmarifle – on track "From The Trail of Ashes..." – Album ''While You Were Sleeping The World Changed in an Instant'' (October 2008 Siege of Amida Records)
* Blackguard – on track "The Sword" – Album '' Profugus Mortis'' (April 2009 Sumerian Records – on track "Sacrimony (Angel of Afterlife)" – Album ''Silverthorn'' (October 2012 SPV/ Steamhammer, King)
*Delain – on track "The Tragedy Of The Commons" – Album ''The Human Contradiction'' (April 2014 Napalm Records)
*Kamelot – on tracks "Liar Liar (Wasteland Monarchy)" and "Revolution" – Album '' Haven'' (February 2015 Napalm Records)
*Metal Allegiance – guest vocals on "We Rock" – Album ''Metal Allegiance'' (2015, Nuclear Blast)
* Karmaflow – as the Muse in "The Muse and the Conductor" (2015)
*Caliban – on track "The Ocean's Heart" – Album ''Gravity'' (March 2016, Century Media)
*And Then She Came – on track "Five Billion Lies" – Album ''And Then She Came'' (June 2016 DME Music Napalm Records)
*Tarja Turunen – on track " Demons in You" – Album ''The Shadow Self'' (August 2016, earMUSIC)
*Delain – guest vocals on "Hands of Gold" – Album ''Moonbathers'' (August 2016 Napalm Records)
*Metal Allegiance – guest vocals on "Life in the Fast Lane" – Album ''Fallen Heroes'' (2016, Nuclear Blast)
*Evesdroppers – guest vocals on "God's Ocean" – Album ''Empty Vessel'', (2016, Casual Madness)
*American Murder Song – as Pretty Lavinia (2016)
*Aurelio Voltaire – on track "Leaves In The Stream" – Album ''Heart-Shaped Wound'', (2017)
* Angra – on track "Black Widow's Web" – Album ØMNI (2018)
* Dee Snider – on track "Dead Hearts (Love Thy Enemy)" – Album ''For the Love of Metal'' (2018, Napalm Records)
* Soilwork – on track "Stålfågel" – Album ''Verkligheten'' (2019, Nuclear Blast)
* Mark Morton – on track "The Truth Is Dead" (w/ Randy Blythe of Lamb of God) – Album ''Anesthetic'' (2019, Spinefarm)
* Carnifex – on track "No Light Shall Save Us" – Album ''World War X'' (2019, Nuclear Blast)
*Kane Roberts – on track "Beginning of the End" – Album ''The New Normal'', (2019, Frontiers Records)
*Babymetal – on track "Distortion" – Album '' Metal Galaxy'' (2019)
*Kamelot – on live album " I Am the Empire – Live from the 013" (2020, Napalm Records)
*Charlotte Wessels – on single "Lizzie" (2020, collaboration)
*Me and That Man - on track "Goodbye" - Album ''New Man, New Songs, Same Shit, Vol.2'' (2021, Napalm Records)

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:White-Gluz, Alissa
1985 births
Living people
Activists from Montreal
Anglophone Quebec people
Canadian atheists
Canadian women environmentalists
Canadian expatriates in Sweden
Canadian women heavy metal singers
Canadian human rights activists
Women human rights activists
Canadian people of Lithuanian descent
Canadian people of Jewish descent
Canadian women singer-songwriters
Jewish Canadian musicians
Arch Enemy members
LGBT rights activists from Canada
Singers from Montreal
Jewish atheists
Jewish heavy metal musicians
21st-century Canadian women singers
Women in metal