Lars-Göran Petrov (17 February 1972 – 7 March 2021), often abbreviated as L-G or LG Petrov, was a Swedish singer. He is best known for his work with death metal band Entombed.

Career

Petrov's musical career began with his playing drums in

Morbid A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism, and that is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that a ...

, a Swedish extreme metal band which featured Mayhem vocalist Per Yngve "Dead" Ohlin in its original lineup. He soon joined the band

Nihilist Nihilism (; ) is a philosophy, or family of views within philosophy, that rejects generally accepted or fundamental aspects of human existence, such as objective truth, knowledge, morality, values, or meaning. The term was popularized by Ivan ...

, the precursor to Entombed. In 1991, Petrov was forced to quit Entombed, due to his "making an ill-advised pass" at the girlfriend of Entombed drummer

Nicke Andersson Nicke Andersson (born 1 August 1972), also known as Nick Royale, is a Swedish musician best known for his work as the singer and guitarist for the rock band The Hellacopters and drummer for the death metal band Entombed. He was also briefly th ...

. In 1992, he returned to Entombed. Also in that year he contributed vocals to fellow Swedish death metal band

Comecon The Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (, ; English abbreviation COMECON, CMEA, CEMA, or CAME) was an economic organization from 1949 to 1991 under the leadership of the Soviet Union that comprised the countries of the Eastern Bloc#List of s ...

's debut album '' Megatrends in Brutality''. In 2014, Petrov, along with Olle Dahlstedt, Nico Elgstrand, and Victor Brandt, formed

Entombed A.D. Entombed A.D. was a Swedish death metal band formed in 2014, composed of former members of Entombed after their breakup. They released their debut album, ''Back to the Front'', the same year. The band's final lineup consisted of Olle Dahlstedt ...

after a legal dispute with founding guitarist Alex Hellid over the name ''Entombed''. From 2012 until his death he also served as lead vocalist of

Firespawn Firespawn is a Swedish death metal band from Stockholm, formed in 2012 by Alex Impaler of Necrophobic, Lars-Göran Petrov and Victor Brandt, both of Entombed A.D. Originally called Fireborn, the group "wanted to play faster and harder death me ...

, a death metal supergroup featuring Victor Brandt and members of

Necrophobic Necrophobic is a Swedish blackened death metal band. History The band was formed in 1989 by drummer Joakim Sterner and now-deceased guitarist David Parland. It is believed that the band named themselves after a Slayer song from the 1986 semi ...

Unleashed Unleashed may refer to: Art and entertainment Film and television * ''Unleashed'' (2001 film), a film featuring Jeff Anderson * ''Unleashed'' (2005 film), a 2005 martial arts film starring Jet Li * ''Unleashed'' (2016 film), a film starring ...

and

Dark Funeral Dark Funeral is a Swedish black metal band from Stockholm, founded by guitarists Blackmoon and Lord Ahriman in 1993. They emerged during the second wave of black metal. Their lyrical themes have traditionally pertained to Satanism and anti-C ...

Style and influences

Petrov was known for his brutal and aggressive death metal delivery, but on occasion showcased a controlled clean baritone, such as on the tracks "Bitter Loss" from Entombed's debut album, ''Left Hand Path'', and on "Death by Impalement" from the Firespawn album ''The Reprobate''.

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 ...

described Petrov's voice as an "utterly unmistakable, glass gargling, slurring belch" as well as "throat shredding".

Jesse Leach Jesse David Leach (born July 3, 1978) is an American musician from Providence, Rhode Island, and is the lead vocalist of the metalcore band Killswitch Engage. He is also a vocalist for Times of Grace and The Weapon. Leach co-founded Killswitch En ...

Killswitch Engage Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbanding of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Jesse Leach, guitarists Joel Stroetzel an ...

described Petrov's voice as "raw unrefined brutality". Petrov has talked about an early admiration for British heavy metal such as

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

black metal Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, a shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, raw (lo-fi) recording, unconventional song structures, and an emp ...

such as Bathory and

Mercyful Fate Mercyful Fate is a Danish heavy metal band from Copenhagen, formed in 1981 by vocalist King Diamond and guitarist Hank Shermann. Influenced by progressive rock and hard rock, and with lyrics dealing with Satan and the occult, Mercyful Fat ...

, and

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...

such as Voivod.

Personal life and death

Petrov was of Macedonian descent through his mother and

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

descent through his father, Toivo Taivalmäki, who was from

Virrat Virrat (; sv, Virdois) is a town and municipality of Finland. It is part of the Pirkanmaa region, and it is located north of Tampere and west of Jyväskylä. The distance between Virrat and Helsinki is . The town has a population of ...

, Finland. He is especially well remembered among fellow musicians and fans in the death metal world for his friendly personality, enthusiastic performance, and propensity to smile. On 9 August 2020, Petrov publicly announced on his

GoFundMe GoFundMe is an American for-profit crowdfunding platform that allows people to raise money for events ranging from life events such as celebrations and graduations to challenging circumstances like accidents and illnesses. From 2010 to the be ...

page that he was battling an incurable form of

bile duct cancer Cholangiocarcinoma, also known as bile duct cancer, is a type of cancer that forms in the bile ducts. Symptoms of cholangiocarcinoma may include abdominal pain, yellowish skin, weight loss, generalized itching, and fever. Light colored stool ...

. On 8 March 2021, Entombed A.D. announced via their

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...

page that Petrov had died.

Legacy

When reporting on his death several music publications noted Petrov's influence on metal music. Loudwire called Petrov "legendary" and stated that he "influenced generations of metal singers". Metal music website ''Metal Injection'' also hailed Petrov as "legendary" and a "highly influential vocalist".

Decibel magazine ''Decibel'' is a monthly heavy metal magazine published by the Philadelphia-based Red Flag Media since October 2004. Its sections include Upfront, Features, Reviews, Guest Columns and the Decibel Hall of Fame. The magazine's tag-line is currentl ...

named Petrov a "death metal legend". Nick Ruskell of

Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication ''Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one- ...

recognized Petrov as a "death metal master", declaring that "the legacy of LG Petrov is enormous". On social media, numerous metal bands took notice of Petrov's death and praised his work, among them Opeth,

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and Amon Amarth.

Discography

;Entombed * ''

Left Hand Path In Western esotericism the left-hand path and right-hand path are the dichotomy between two opposing approaches to magic. This terminology is used in various groups involved in the occult and ceremonial magic. In some definitions, the Left-Ha ...

'' (1990) * ''

Wolverine Blues ''Wolverine Blues'' is the third studio album by Swedish death metal band Entombed, released on 4 October 1993 by Earache Records. The album displays a completely different sound from previous releases, combining elements of hard rock, heav ...

'' (1993) * '' DCLXVI: To Ride Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth'' (1997) * ''

Same Difference Same Difference were an English bubblegum pop duo from Portsmouth, England, made up of siblings Sean Smith and Sarah Smith. They came to prominence in 2007 when they finished third in the fourth series of the ITV talent show, ''The X Factor'' ...

'' (1998) * ''

Uprising Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

'' (2000) * '' Morning Star'' (2001) * ''

Inferno Inferno may refer to: * Hell, an afterlife place of suffering * Conflagration, a large uncontrolled fire Film * ''L'Inferno'', a 1911 Italian film * Inferno (1953 film), ''Inferno'' (1953 film), a film noir by Roy Ward Baker * Inferno (1973 fi ...

'' (2003) * '' Serpent Saints – The Ten Amendments'' (2007) ;Entombed A.D. * ''Back to the Front'' (2014) * ''

Dead Dawn ''Dead Dawn'' is the second studio album by Swedish death metal band Entombed A.D. It was released on 16 February 2016 through Century Media Records. Track listing Personnel Entombed A.D. *Nico Elgstrand - Guitars, Vocals *Olle Dahlstedt - ...

'' (2016) * ''Bowels of Earth'' (2019) ;Firespawn * ''Shadow Realms'' (2015) * ''The Reprobate'' (2017) * ''Abominate'' (2019) ;Allegiance * ''Sick World'' (1989) ;Comecon * ''Merciless/Comecon'' (split) (1991) * '' Megatrends in Brutality'' (1992) * ''The Worms of God'' (compilation) (2008) ;Morbid * ''Rehearsal 7 August 1987'' (demo, 1987) * '' December Moon'' (demo, 1987) * ''Last Supper'' (demo, 1988) * ''December Moon'' (EP, 1994) * ''Death Execution'' (compilation, 1995) * ''Live in Stockholm'' ( LP, Reaper, 2000) * ''Death Execution III'' ( 7", Reaper, 2001) * ''Year of the

Goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...

'' (compilation,

Century Media A century is a period of 100 years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c. A centennial or ...

, 2011) ;Nihilist * ''Premature Autopsy'' - Demo (1988) * ''Only Shreds Remain'' - Demo (1989) * ''Drowned'' - Demo (1989) * ''Drowned'' - 7" Single (1989) * ''Nihilist (1987-1989)'' - (2005) ; E-Type * ''

Loud Pipes Save Lives ''Loud Pipes Save Lives'' is the fifth studio album by Swedish singer-songwriter E-Type, which was released in 2004. It is the last E-Type album to feature vocalist Nana Hedin. E-Type participated with "Paradise" in Melodifestivalen 2004, ending ...

'' - (2004)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Petrov, Lars-Goran 1972 births 2021 deaths Deaths from cholangiocarcinoma Swedish people of Finnish descent Swedish people of Macedonian descent Swedish heavy metal singers Place of birth missing Place of death missing Death metal musicians Deaths from cancer in Sweden 21st-century Swedish singers 21st-century Swedish male singers Entombed (band) members