Volbeat are a Danish rock band formed in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan a ...

in 2001. They play a fusion of

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm ...

, heavy metal, and

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western musical styles such as country with that of rhythm and b ...

. Their current line-up consists of vocalist and guitarist Michael Poulsen, guitarist Rob Caggiano, drummer Jon Larsen and bassist Kaspar Boye Larsen. The band is signed to Dutch label Mascot Records and has released eight studio albums and one DVD. Their second album '' Rock the Rebel/Metal the Devil'' received platinum status, and their 2010 release ''

Beyond Hell/Above Heaven ''Beyond Hell/Above Heaven'' is the fourth studio album by Danish rock band Volbeat. The album was released on 10 September 2010 on EMI in Denmark, on Vertigo in the rest of Europe, and on Republic in the United States. The title refers to t ...

'' was subject to widespread international critical acclaim, receiving triple platinum in Denmark and Austria, double platinum in Sweden, platinum in Canada, 5x Gold in Germany, and gold in Finland and the United States. Volbeat's seventh album, '' Rewind, Replay, Rebound'', was released on 2 August 2019. Their eighth album, '' Servant of the Mind'', was released on 3 December 2021.

History

Early years (2001–2009)

Singer Michael Poulsen's first band was

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, fe ...

act, Dominus. In 2000, Poulsen became fed up with the death metal music scene, causing Dominus to break up. In 2001, Poulsen went on to form a new band with some friends and other former Dominus members. This was the beginning of Volbeat. The band name "Volbeat" was derived from Dominus's third album name, ''Vol.Beat'' (read as: Volume Beat). After selling 1,000 copies of their ''Beat the Meat'' demo tape, Volbeat was signed to a record deal by Rebel Monster Records, a sub-label of Mascot Records. Volbeat released their first album, '' The Strength/The Sound/The Songs'' in 2005. The line-up for the album consisted of Michael Poulsen (vocals), Jon Larsen (drums), Franz Gottschalk (guitar) and Anders Kjølholm (bass). The album was a huge success in Denmark achieving a spot at No. 18 in the charts. Critics were generally positive towards ''The Strength / The Sound / The Songs''. The German

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest ha ...

magazine RockHard gave it 10/10 in a review. ''The Strength / The Sound / The Songs'' also received a handful of awards, including Best Album in the Danish Metal Musik Awards in 2005. Volbeat was praised for its live performances. Their concert at

Roskilde Festival The Roskilde Festival is a Danish music festival held annually south of Roskilde. It is one of the largest music festivals in Europe and the largest in the Nordic countries. It was created in 1971 by two high school students and a promoter. In 1 ...

2006 received a 6/6 stars review in the Danish newspaper BT. 20140613-067-Nova Rock 2014-Volbeat-Anders Kjølholm

The band, featuring the same line-up as their first album, released their second album, '' Rock the Rebel/Metal the Devil'', in week 8 of 2007, where it debuted as No. 1 in the Danish Top 40 for CD-sales. They opened the

in 2007 and also supported

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

together with Mnemic at their concert in Denmark 13 July of that year. They were to support

Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wit ...

in Finland and in their home town,

, and to make a few festival appearances mid-2008. They hired

Thomas Bredahl Thomas Bredahl (born 2 November 1980) is a Danish music manager, former guitarist and singer. He was lead guitarist of Volbeat and is now the guitarist of Gob Squad. Bredahl joined Volbeat in 2006, and the band announced his departure on November ...

following the recording of ''Rock the Rebel / Metal the Devil'' as a replacement for Gottschalk on guitar. In 2008, Volbeat released their third album, ''

Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood ''Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood'' is the third studio album by Danish rock band Volbeat, released on 1 September 2008. It reached the #1 position on both the Danish and Finnish album charts, staying on the former for 35 consecutive weeks, wh ...

'' featuring guitarist Thomas Bredahl. It topped the Finnish Album Chart straight after its publication. In 2009, Volbeat supported the symphonic metal band

Nightwish Nightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Kitee. The band was formed in 1996 by lead songwriter and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and former lead singer Tarja Turunen. The band soon picked up drummer Jukka N ...

on their U.S tour in May. On 31 May 2009 they were on the main stage of the

Pinkpop Festival The Pinkpop Festival is an annual music festival held at Landgraaf, Netherlands. It is usually held on the Pentecost weekend (''Pinksteren'' in Dutch, hence the name). If Pentecost falls on an early date in May, the festival is held later in Ju ...

. They also supported Metallica on the North American leg of Metallica's

World Magnetic Tour The World Magnetic Tour was a 2008–2010 concert tour by American heavy metal band Metallica in support of the band's ninth studio album, ''Death Magnetic'', which was released on September 12, 2008. The tour officially kicked off in October ...

from October to December 2009. In 2009 the band played at the biggest open-air festival in Europe (400,000–500,000 rock fans every year),

Przystanek Woodstock Pol'and'Rock Festival, formerly known as Woodstock Festival Poland, (Polish: ''Przystanek Woodstock''; "Woodstock Station"; English-language materials often referred to it simply to the ''Woodstock Festival Poland'') is an annual free rock music ...

in Poland.

Line-up changes (2010–2015)

Poulsen stated about ''

'', "The album title refers to the overall theme of the album, and it continues the storyline from where ''Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood'' left off...". On 25 January 2010, it was confirmed that Volbeat would be performing at

Download Festival Download Festival is a British-created rock festival created by Terrance Gough, held annually at the Donington Park motorsport circuit in Leicestershire, England (since 2003); in Paris, France (since 2016); at Parramatta Park, Sydney (since 2 ...

in June 2010. It was also confirmed that Volbeat were to join

Anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis''. It can occur in four forms: skin, lungs, intestinal, and injection. Symptom onset occurs between one day and more than two months after the infection is contracted. The s ...

Slayer Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical styl ...

and others in the "Big Four" show at Sonisphere Switzerland. It was also announced that the new album, ''Beyond Hell/Above Heaven'' was to be released on 10 September 2010. The band also announced their "Beyond Hell/Above Heaven Live 2010" tour. In 2011, Volbeat announced their Grand Summer Tour across North America. The tour began in Toronto, Ontario on 24 July at Heavy T.O., and concluded with a two-night stand on 3 & 4 September at the House of Blues in Anaheim, CA. Volbeat co-headlined this tour with rock powerhouse Cold on all US dates, but not in Canada. On 28 November 2011, Volbeat announced the departure of Bredahl via their website. Volbeat committed to playing all 2011-2012 as scheduled either as a trio, or with a replacement guitarist. On 26 January 2012, Volbeat joined

Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a prec ...

, and

Lacuna Coil Lacuna Coil is an Italian gothic metal band from Milan. Since their formation in 1994, the group has had two name changes, being previously known as Sleep of Right and Ethereal, and they have recorded nine studio albums, two extended plays, two ...

Gigantour Gigantour was a sporadically organised traveling heavy metal music festival organized by Dave Mustaine of Megadeth. The tour was founded in 2005 with dates across North America (see also Gigantour 2005), and the 2006 and 2007 line-ups also t ...

. The tour started in Camden, New Jersey, and culminated on 28 February 2012 in Denver, Colorado, at The Fillmore Auditorium. On the tour, Hank Shermann ( Mercyful Fate) filled in as the guitarist for Volbeat. On their North American Summer tour, which began in June 2012, Iced Earth and Hellyeah were the supporting acts. The tour included dates in Baltimore, Toronto, Detroit, Billings, Boston, Tempe, San Francisco, and Weyburn and Lazerfest in Boone, Iowa, and in June, Orion Music Festival, headlined by Metallica, at Bader Field in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Volbeat 2013

Volbeat were confirmed to be playing Download festival June 2013. Volbeat announced in December that their new album would be released during 2013. A spring tour with Danko Jones and Spoken was announced in December. In January 2013, Volbeat revealed the name of the new album, '' Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies'', and that was released in the spring of 2013. On 4 February 2013, it was announced that Rob Caggiano, formerly of

, had officially joined the band as second guitarist. He had been producing and recording guest solos on the band's upcoming album, ''Outlaw Gentlemen and Shady Ladies'', which the band also announced will be released on 8 April 2013 (GSA on 5 April and US on 9 April), before being asked to join as a full-time member. Singer and guitarist Michael Poulsen said of the chemistry between Caggiano and the rest of the band "The collaboration with Rob in the studio was so inspiring and in good spirit that we the decided to keep him. Basically we went into the studio as a three piece and came out as a whole band!" Michael Poulsen confirmed during the band's 2015 tour with

and Crobot, that a new album was in the works, hinting that it would be released in 2016, and demoed a new song throughout "The Devil's Bleeding Crown" tour. In April 2015, singer Poulsen revealed that he had so far written seven songs for the next album. In November 2015, the band announced that Kjølholm would leave Volbeat. They emphasised, that he left in good terms with the band. Poulsen and Larsen said that "Anders has been a loyal friend and bandmate since 2001. ... We're very thankful for this and wish Anders all the best in the future." Kjølholm likewise wished all the best for the rest of the band.

Recent works (2016–present)

On 3 April 2016, Volbeat posted a teaser for their upcoming album on YouTube, hinting it would be released soon. On 7 April 2016, they revealed ''Seal the Deal and Let's Boogie'' to be released on 3 June 2016. The album's first single was "The Devil's Bleeding Crown". The official music video for this song was released on 13 May 2016. The second single, released 29 April 2016, was "For Evigt" (Forever), and an English version, "The Bliss". Kaspar Boye Larsen was announced as the band's new bassist on 13 May 2016. The band toured the United Kingdom in 2016 with Alter Bridge,

Gojira Gojira (ゴジラ) is the original Japanese name for Godzilla, a giant monster at the center of a media franchise. It may also refer to: Films * ''Godzilla'' franchise, known as ''ゴジラ'' (''Gojira'') in Japan ** ''Godzilla'' (1954 film), rel ...

, and Like a Storm. The band was an opening act on

's WorldWired Tour 2017 stadium tour in the US, alongside

Avenged Sevenfold Avenged Sevenfold (abbreviated as A7X) is an American heavy metal band from Huntington Beach, California, formed in 1999. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist M. Shadows, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Zacky Vengeance, ...

. In 2018, Volbeat announced plans for a seventh album. On 4 March 2019 Volbeat were announced, along with

and

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 ...

, as supporting acts for Slipknot's Knotfest Roadshow North American tour On 10 May 2019, Volbeat released a 40-second song, "Parasite", and on 15 May, they released the second single, "Leviathan", from their seventh studio album, '' Rewind, Replay, Rebound'' while announcing the 14-song tracklist and a release date of 2 August 2019. They released the third single off the album, "Last Day Under the Sun" on 13 June 2019. On 18 July 2019, the band released the fourth single, "Cheapside Sloggers", featuring Gary Holt of

. On 26 July 2019, the band released the fifth single, "Pelvis on Fire". On 4 November 2019, the band released "Die to Live", featuring Neil Fallon of

Clutch A clutch is a mechanical device that engages and disengages power transmission, especially from a drive shaft to a driven shaft. In the simplest application, clutches connect and disconnect two rotating shafts (drive shafts or line shafts). ...

as the sixth single. On 2 June 2021, the band released two singles, "Wait a Minute My Girl" and "Dagen Før", the latter featuring

Alphabeat Alphabeat were a Danish pop band from Silkeborg, fronted by singers Stine Bramsen and Anders Stig Gehrt Nielsen. Their single " Fascination" was a major hit in Denmark during the summer of 2007, as well as the United Kingdom in 2008. Follow-up ...

's Stine Bramsen. "Wait a Minute My Girl" earned the band their ninth No. 1 on ''Billboard''s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart dated for 21 August 2021. The band is now tied for the 10th-most No. 1s in the chart's 40-year history. The band contributed a cover of the Metallica song " Don't Tread on Me" to the charity tribute album '' The Metallica Blacklist'', released in September 2021. On 23 September 2021, the band released a new song "Shotgun Blues". Along with the release, the band confirmed the release of their eighth studio album '' Servant of the Mind'' for 3 December 2021. In September 2021, the band announced a 2022 co-headline with

Ghost A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to re ...

. On 28 October 2021, the band released the fourth single from their new album, "Becoming". On 11 November 2021, the band released a music video for the song "Shotgun Blues". On 28 January 2022, it was announced that the band's drummer, Jon Larsen, tested positive for COVID-19. As a result, the band had to cancel one show. The band also announced that they would continue with their tour with Ghost, and the former drummer of

Jon Dette Jon Dette (born April 19, 1970) is an American heavy metal drummer best known for his time in Slayer and Testament. Over the years, he has also been chosen to fill-in with Anthrax, Heathen, and Iced Earth. Dette also played with Evildead and I ...

would fill in as a touring drummer until Larsen's return. On 13 April 2022, the band released a music video for the song "Temple Of Ekur".

Recognition

*''The Strength / The Sound / The Songs'' won the award for the best debut album at the Danish Metal Music Awards 2005. *Volbeat won the award Steppeulven for hope of the year 2006. *Volbeat won the award for the best live band at the Danish Metal Music Awards 2006 voted by fans. *''Rock the Rebel / Metal the Devil'' won the award for best album at the Danish Metal Music Awards 2007. *Volbeat won the Danish radio award for P3 listener hit at the P3 Guld-show voted by listeners of P3. *Volbeat were nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance for "Room 24".

Musical style and influences

The band's musical style has been described as heavy metal,

psychobilly Psychobilly is a rock music fusion genre that fuses elements of rockabilly and punk rock. It's been defined as "loud frantic rockabilly music", it has also been said that it "takes the traditional countrified rock style known as rockabilly, ram ...

groove metal Groove metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that began in the early 1990s. The genre achieved success in the 1990s and continued having success in the 2000s. Inspired by thrash metal and traditional heavy metal, groove metal features rasp ...

, and

. Chris True of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

stated, " he band'ssound weds hard rock, classic metal, glam, punk, and rockabilly." Some of the band's influences include

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his c ...

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. The band helped def ...

Obituary An obituary ( obit for short) is an article about a recently deceased person. Newspapers often publish obituaries as news articles. Although obituaries tend to focus on positive aspects of the subject's life, this is not always the case. Ac ...

, Mercyful Fate,

Darkthrone Darkthrone is a Norwegian extreme metal band from Kolbotn, Akershus. Formed in 1986 as a death metal band named Black Death, in 1991 Darkthrone embraced a black metal style influenced by Bathory and Celtic Frost and became one of the leading ...

Mayhem Mayhem most commonly refers to: * Mayhem (crime), a type of crime Mayhem may also refer to: People * Monica Mayhem (born 1978), Australian pornographic actress * Jason "Mayhem" Miller, American mixed martial arts fighter * Mayhem Miller (dr ...

, King Diamond, Dio, Iced Earth,

Death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

Armored Saint Armored Saint is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1982. Since 1990, the band has consisted of John Bush on lead vocals, Joey Vera on bass, Jeff Duncan on rhythm guitar and the Sandoval brothers (Gonzo and Ph ...

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 Harr ...

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...

Accept Accept may refer to: * Acceptance, a person's assent to the reality of a situation etc. * Accept (band), a German heavy metal band ** ''Accept'' (Accept album), their debut album from 1979 * ''Accept'' (Chicken Shack album), 1970 * ACCEPT (org ...

Cannibal Corpse Cannibal Corpse is an American death metal band formed in Buffalo, New York in 1988, now based out of Tampa, Florida. The band has released fifteen studio albums, two box sets, four video albums, and two live albums. The band has had little radi ...

Manowar Manowar is an American heavy metal band from Auburn, New York. Formed in 1980, the group is known for lyrics based on fantasy (particularly sword and sorcery) and mythology (particularly Norse mythology and Greco-Roman mythology), as well as ...

AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and heavy metal, but the band calls it ...

, and Social Distortion.

Band members

Current members * Michael Poulsen – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (2001–present), lead guitar (2011–2013) * Jon Larsen – drums (2001–present) * Rob Caggiano – lead guitar, backing vocals (2013–present), bass (2016) * Kaspar Boye Larsen – bass, backing vocals (2016–present) Former members * Anders Kjølholm – bass, backing vocals (2001–2015) * Teddy Vang – lead guitar (2001–2002) * Franz "Hellboss" Gottschalk – lead guitar, backing vocals (2002–2006) *

– lead guitar, backing vocals (2006–2011) Touring musicians *

– drums (2022) Timeline

Discography

* '' The Strength/The Sound/The Songs'' (2005) * '' Rock the Rebel/Metal the Devil'' (2007) * ''

'' (2008) * ''

'' (2010) * '' Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies'' (2013) * ''

Seal the Deal & Let's Boogie ''Seal the Deal & Let's Boogie'' is the sixth studio album by Danish rock band Volbeat. The album was released on 3 June 2016. It is the first album not to feature Anders Kjølholm who left in November the previous year.Rewind, Replay, Rebound'' (2019) * '' Servant of the Mind'' (2021)

Videography

* ''Live: Sold Out'' (2008) * ''Live from Beyond Hell/Above Heaven'' (2011) * ''Let's Boogie! Live from Telia Parken'' (2018)

Tours

* '' Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood Tour'' (2008-2009) * '' Beyond Hell/Above Heaven Tour'' (2010-2012) * '' Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies Tour'' (2013-2015) * '' Seal The Deal & Let's Boogie Tour'' (2016-2017) * '' Rewind, Replay, Rebound Tour'' (2019) * ''

Servant Of The Road ''Servant of the Mind'' is the eighth studio album by Danish rock band Volbeat. The album was released on 3 December 2021 through Vertigo, Republic, and Universal Records. The album was preceded by four singles: "Wait a Minute My Girl", "Dagen F� ...

'' (2022)

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Alternative metal musical groups Danish hard rock musical groups Danish heavy metal musical groups Danish thrash metal musical groups Groove metal musical groups Musical groups established in 2001 Musical quartets Rockabilly music groups