Mats Levén
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Mats Levén (born in Gothenburg, Sweden) is a prolific singer who has worked during the years with big names of the Swedish musical industry. His most notable recent collaborations have been with symphonic metal masters Therion and German heavy metallers At Vance. He is considered to be one of the best voices in Sweden and in the world of metal. Levén is also an accomplished songwriter. He is preparing a solo album that should be released some time in the next couple of years.
[edit] Biography
Mats Levén started his career back in 1986 with a small band of friends, called Capricorn. Three years later, he joined chart-toppers Swedish Erotica, releasing an album and several singles.
The year 1992, found him collaborating with another Swedish well-known band, Treat with which he also released an album as lead vocalist and a single. In the mid 1990's he worked with Abstrakt Algebra (project band of Candlemass' bassist and composer Leif Edling) and did backing vocals for the band Lion's Share. He also joined an AC/DC cover band, called AB/CD, with which he keeps performing up to the present. In 1997, he teamed up with Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, recording the album Facing the Animal and doing the promotional world tour for the named album, world tour which led to the release in 1998 of the album Live!!, featuring recordings from the shows. 1998 also found Levén collaborating with the project band Southpaw.
In 1999 came out yet another collaboration, this time with Pontus Norgren. A year later followed another project band called Dogface with which he released two albums. 2002 teamed him up again with Edling for a doom metal project entitled Krux. Another prominent collaboration followed next year when German guitarist Olaf Lenk asked Levén to join his band At Vance, as lead vocalist. He released two successful albums with At Vance, The Evil in You (2003) and Chained (2005). He also found time for recording an album with yet another project band, Sabbtail. The end of 2003 brought Mats Levén his most challenging offer ever, when Europe's biggest symphonic metal act, Therion, asked him to join them for the recording of their double album, Lemuria / Sirius B and also the one-year-and-a-half world tour to follow. Due to the successful collaboration between him and Therion the band has asked him to do lead vocals on their next album and world tour as well. The second half of 2005 has seen Levén working on a collaboration with drummer Snowy Shaw (Dream Evil, King Diamond, Mercyful Fate, Notre Dame) and doing backing vocals for the new album of Swedish neo-classical metallers Narnia.
The first months of 2006 brought new perspectives for Levén: a special 5-song appearance on the Reflections of the Obscure album by Essence of Sorrow (new project band of guitarist Jani Stefanovic of Divinefire), lead vocals in another new project entitled Fatal Force (featuring Danish guitarist Torben Enevoldsen and drummer Daniel Flores with whom he will be releasing a self-titled album in April, and backing vocals for Swedish hard rock band The Poodles on their "Night of Passion" song, with which they won 4th place in the Swedish final qualifying round for the Eurovision song contest. He has also finished recording for the new Krux album which was released on October 18th 2006 and the new Therion album, entitled Gothic Kabbalah which will come to light on January 16th 2007. On December 9th 2006, Levén joined Therion in a special concert in Bucharest, Romania. It featured a full orchestra and choir as well as classical stars from Vienna. The setlist included both Therion songs and famous classical pieces in Therion manner. Starting from the next Therion tour, Mats will share vocal duties with Snowy Shaw and two female vocalists. One of them is Katarina Lilja who has also done vocals for the new album and the other one has recently been announced by the band as being Lori Lewis, vocalist of American band Aesma Daeva.
[edit] Discography
- Swedish Erotica - Swedish Erotica (1989)
- Treat - Treat (1992)
- Abstrakt Algebra - Abstrakt Algebra (1995)
- AB/CD - Cut the Crap (1995)
- Yngwie Malmsteen - Facing the Animal (1997)
- Southpaw - Southpaw (1998)
- Yngwie Malmsteen - Live!! (1998)
- Pontus Norgren - Damage Done (1999)
- Dogface - Unleashed (2000)
- Dogface - In Control (2002)
- Krux - Krux (2002)
- At Vance - Evil in You (2003)
- Therion - Lemuria / Sirius B (2004)
- Sabbtail - Nightchurch (2004)
- At Vance - Chained (2005)
- Swedish Erotica - Too Daze Gone (2005)
- Fatal Force - Fatal Force (2006)
- Therion - Celebrators of Becoming (DVD/CD: live in Mexico City 2004 - released in 2006)
- Krux - II (2006)
- Therion - Gothic Kabbalah (2007)
