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Fleshgod Apocalypse is an Italian
symphonic death metal Symphonic metal is a cross-generic style designation for the symphonic subsets of heavy metal music subgenres. It is used to denote any metal band that makes use of symphonic or orchestral elements. The style features the heavy drums and guitar ...
band. Formed in 2007, the group resides in
Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part ...
and are currently signed to
Nuclear Blast Nuclear Blast is a record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label mo ...
. They have released five full-length albums.


History


Formation and ''Oracles'' (2007–2009)

Fleshgod Apocalypse was formed in April 2007 by Francesco Paoli (formerly frontman of the band Hour of Penance). They recorded their first demo, ''Promo '07'', at 16th Cellar Studio, in Rome, with producer Stefano "Saul" Morabito, releasing it shortly after. The demo was re-released the following year on a split CD with fellow Italian bands Septycal Gorge, Modus Delicti and Onirik. Fleshgod Apocalypse then signed to Neurotic Records. In early 2008 the band toured Europe, supporting bands like
Behemoth Behemoth (; he, בְּהֵמוֹת, ''bəhēmōṯ'') is a beast from the biblical Book of Job, and is a form of the primeval chaos-monster created by God at the beginning of creation; he is paired with the other chaos-monster, Leviathan, and ...
,
Origin Origin(s) or The Origin may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics and manga * ''Origin'' (comics), a Wolverine comic book mini-series published by Marvel Comics in 2002 * ''The Origin'' (Buffy comic), a 1999 ''Buffy the Vampire Sl ...
,
Dying Fetus Dying Fetus is an American death metal band originally from Greater Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Formed in 1991, the group is known for their consistently hook-laden song structures, characterized by blast beats, complex riffing, slam riffs and h ...
,
Hate Eternal Hate Eternal is a death metal band from St. Petersburg, Florida. The band currently consists of founding guitarist/vocalist Erik Rutan and bassist J. J. Hrubovcak. To date, Hate Eternal has released seven studio albums: ''Conquering the Throne'' ...
,
Suffocation Asphyxia or asphyxiation is a condition of deficient supply of oxygen to the body which arises from abnormal breathing. Asphyxia causes generalized hypoxia, which affects primarily the tissues and organs. There are many circumstances that ca ...
,
Napalm Death Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in 1981 in Meriden, West Midlands. None of the band's original members has been in the group since 1986. But since '' Utopia Banished'' (1992), the lineup of bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mi ...
and many more. In May 2008, the band recorded its first full-length album, ''
Oracles An oracle is a person or agency considered to provide wise and insightful counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. As such, it is a form of divination. Description The word ' ...
''. In December of that year the band decided to part ways with Neurotic Records and signed with Willowtip Records, who released ''Oracles'' in 2009. Shortly thereafter, new member, Tommaso Riccardi took over vocals and rhythm guitar, which were previously handled by Francesco Paoli, and Paoli took over the drums, replacing session drummer Francesco Struglia.


''Mafia EP'' and ''Agony'' (2009–2012)

In 2010, the ''
Mafia "Mafia" is an informal term that is used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the original “Mafia”, the Sicilian Mafia and Italian Mafia. The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of d ...
'' EP was recorded, again at 16th Cellar Studios, and was released via Willowtip Records. It includes four new tracks and a cover of the track "Blinded by Fear" by
At the Gates At the Gates is a Swedish death metal band from Gothenburg, formed in 1990. The band was a major progenitor of Gothenburg-style melodic death metal alongside In Flames and Dark Tranquillity. Prior to their first disbandment in 1996, At the Ga ...
. The band embarked on another European tour shortly after the end of the ''Mafia'' recording sessions, supporting
Suffocation Asphyxia or asphyxiation is a condition of deficient supply of oxygen to the body which arises from abnormal breathing. Asphyxia causes generalized hypoxia, which affects primarily the tissues and organs. There are many circumstances that ca ...
. Following this tour was a headlining tour of Russia. Until 2010, band founder Francesco Paoli was simultaneously in his former band Hour of Penance doing vocals, as well as drumming in Fleshgod Apocalypse. He quit Hour of Penance to focus on Fleshgod Apocalypse full-time as drummer and song writer. In November 2010, the band signed a worldwide deal with record label Extreme Management Group, Inc. and began writing for the second full-length album. In May 2011 the band signed a worldwide deal with
Nuclear Blast Records Nuclear Blast is a record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label m ...
and began wrapping up work on their second album. During this time, another new member, Francesco Ferrini, the pianist and orchestrator of ''Oracles'' and ''Mafia'', was added to the band as the full-time pianist and orchestrator. This addition honed Fleshgod Apocalypse's sound on their upcoming album. The band released their second album, '' Agony'', on 9 August 2011 in North America and 19 August 2011 in Europe. The
iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mu ...
version of ''Agony'' also includes a cover of the track " Heartwork" by Carcass. Fleshgod Apocalypse took part in the 2011 Summer Slaughter Tour in North America, alongside co-headliners
Whitechapel Whitechapel is a district in East London and the future administrative centre of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a part of the East End of London, east of Charing Cross. Part of the historic county of Middlesex, the area formed a ...
and The Black Dahlia Murder. The band toured the US with
Decapitated Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the i ...
in late 2011. In January 2012, they toured the UK with The Black Dahlia Murder and Skeletonwitch. During March 2012, Fleshgod Apocalypse toured South Africa, supported by local death metal acts. On 22 December 2012, the band released a music video for "The Forsaking" from the album ''Agony''.


''Labyrinth'' (2012–2016)

Fleshgod Apocalypse's third album is entitled ''
Labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth (, ) was an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the ...
'', and was released on 16 August 2013, in Europe, and on 20 August 2013, in North America, by Nuclear Blast. ''Labyrinth'' was recorded with Stefano Morabito at 16th Cellar Studio. It features guest contributions, and is a concept album about the myth of Labyrinth of Knossos and its analogies to modern times.


''King'', Trionfera's departure, and Riccardi's departure (2016–2018)

Fleshgod Apocalypse's fourth album entitled ''
King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the t ...
'' was released on 5 February 2016. The work was an important success, peaking at #27 in th
Billboard Chart
On 10 October 2017 the band announced that Tommaso Riccardi had left the band. He was replaced by drummer Francesco Paoli who returned to lead vocals and rhythm guitar, while guitarist Fabio Bartoletti from Deceptionist joined the band on lead guitar. The band tapped David Folchitto as their live touring drummer, who stayed with the band for two years.


''Veleno'', official new members, and ''No'' (2019–present)

In 2019 Fleshgod Apocalypse released their fifth album, ''Veleno''. The album continued and expanded on the style they had honed with ''King,'' and was accompanied by the release of two music videos directed by Giovanni Bucci for the songs "Sugar" and "Monnalisa". ''
Loudwire ''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August of 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive ...
'' named it one of the 50 best metal albums of 2019 and ''
Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form a ...
'' ranked it 11th in their 2021 list of 25 best symphonic metal album of all time. In April 2019, it was announced that the band would be touring with
Hypocrisy Hypocrisy is the practice of engaging in the same behavior or activity for which one criticizes another or the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform. In moral psychology, it is th ...
in North America with a string quartet. In February 2020, Eugene Ryabchenko from
Vital Remains Vital Remains is an American death metal band from Providence, Rhode Island, formed in 1988. History Formation and early years Guitarist Paul Flynn formed Vital Remains in 1988. Vital Remains' first line-up included Paul Flynn on lead guitar, ...
became the band's new live drummer. Fleshgod Apocalypse was supposed to do another round of American shows with
The Agonist The Agonist is a Canadian melodic death metal band from Montreal, Quebec, formed in 2004. The current line up consists of lead guitarist Danny Marino, bassist Chris Kells, drummer Simon Mckay, rhythm guitarist Pascal "Paco" Jobin and lead vo ...
in 2020, but this tour was for the most part cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The band has resorted to streaming on
YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...
to host Q&A sessions with fans, as well as livestreaming a virtual concert at Bloom Studio in
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
in August. A video for an acoustic version of "The Day We'll Be Gone" was released on 23 October 2020, whereupon it was announced that soprano Veronica Bordacchini, guitarist Fabio Bartoletti and drummer Eugene Ryabchenko had officially joined the band. On 18 December 2020, the band released a new EP titled ''No'' along with a new music video for the title track. In January 2021, they released a cover of Blue (Da Ba Dee).


Members

;Current *Francesco Paoli – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (2007–2009, 2017–present), drums (2009–2020), backing vocals, additional guitars (2009–2017) *Paolo Rossi – bass, clean vocals (2007–present) *Francesco Ferrini – piano, string arrangements, orchestral effects (2010–present; session/touring 2009–2010) *Veronica Bordacchini – operatic vocals (2020–present; session/touring 2011–2020) *Fabio Bartoletti – lead guitar, backing vocals (2020–present; session/touring 2017–2020) *Eugene Ryabchenko – drums (2020–present; session/touring 2020) ;Session/Touring *Mauro Mercurio – drums (2009) *David Folchitto – drums (2017–2020) ;Former *Tommaso Riccardi – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (2009–2017; session/touring 2009) *Cristiano Trionfera – lead guitar, backing vocals (2007–2017) *Francesco Struglia – drums (2007–2009)


Timeline

Fleshgod Apocalypse Metal Frenzy 2017 03.jpg, Francesco Paoli Fleshgod Apocalypse Metal Frenzy 2017 06.jpg, Paolo Rossi Fleshgod Apocalypse Metal Frenzy 2017 05.jpg, Francesco Ferrini


Discography


Studio albums

*''
Oracles An oracle is a person or agency considered to provide wise and insightful counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. As such, it is a form of divination. Description The word ' ...
'' (2009) *'' Agony'' (2011) *''
Labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth (, ) was an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the ...
'' (2013) *''
King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the t ...
'' (2016) *''Veleno'' (2019)


Demo

*''Demo'' (2007)


Split

*''Da Vinci Death Code'' (2008)


EPs and singles

*''
Mafia "Mafia" is an informal term that is used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the original “Mafia”, the Sicilian Mafia and Italian Mafia. The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of d ...
'' (2010) *''The Fool'' (2016) *''Sugar'' (2019) *''Carnivorous Lamb'' (2019) *''Monnalisa'' (2019) *''The Day We'll Be Gone'' (2020) *''No'' (2020) *''Blue (Turns To Red)'' (2021)


Collaborations

*''The Great Tribulation'' ( Epica feat. Fleshgod Apocalypse) (2022) *''Hate Über Alles'' (
Kreator Kreator is a German thrash metal band from Essen, formed in 1982. Their current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Miland "Mille" Petrozza, drummer Jürgen "Ventor" Reil, lead guitarist Sami Yli-Sirniö, and bassist Fréd� ...
) (2022), on tracks 1 and 11.


References


External links


Official Merchstore
{{Authority control 2007 establishments in Italy Italian death metal musical groups Musical groups from Rome Nuclear Blast artists Italian symphonic metal musical groups Technical death metal musical groups