Mats Levén

Mats Leven is a singer, songwriter and producer. Some of his most notable collaborations have been with guitar legend Yngwie Malmsteen, symphonic metallers Therion and doom metallers Candlemass.

Mats Levén
Background information
Birth nameMats Göran Levén
BornMölndal, Gothenburg on the west coast of Sweden
GenresHeavy metal, Hard rock
Occupation(s)Musician
InstrumentsVocals, keyboards, guitar, bass guitar, drums
Years active1986–present
LabelsNapalm Records
Associated actsSkyblood, Gus G, Candlemass, Apocalyptica, Yngwie Malmsteen, Therion, Krux, Swedish Erotica, Treat, Abstrakt Algebra, Dogface, Pontus Norgren, Fatal Force, AB/CD, At Vance, Sabbtail, Southpaw, Amaseffer, Revertigo, Hollow Haze
WebsiteMatsLeven.com

Mats also started touring with Trans-Siberian Orchestra in 2016.

In 2019 Mats releases his first solo album under the name Skyblood.

Biography

Levén began his career 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.

In 1991, Leven joined Swedish band Treat and in 1992 they released the album Treat before they disbanded in 1993.

In the mid-1990s 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, a world tour that led to the release in 1998 of the album and DVD Live!!, featuring recordings from the shows. 1998 also found Levén collaborating with Opeth guitarist Fredrik Åkesson and Europe bass player John Leven in the band Southpaw. Around this time, both Leven & Åkesson participated in the project Sabbtail.

In 1999 came another collaboration, this time with Pontus Norgren from HammerFall and his solo album Damage Done.

A year later followed another project called Dogface with which he released three albums. In 2002 Leven once again teamed up with Edling for a doom metal project entitled Krux. Another prominent collaboration came the following year when German guitarist Olaf Lenk asked Levén to join his band At Vance as lead vocalist. Leven released two successful albums with At Vance, The Evil in You (2003) and Chained (2005). Around the end of 2003, Swedish symphonic metal act Therion asked Levén to join them for the recording of their albums Lemuria and 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 asked him to do lead vocals on their next album and world tour as well.

The first months of 2006 brought new perspectives for Levén: a 5-song appearance on the Reflections of the Obscure album by Essence of Sorrow (project band of guitarist Jani Stefanovic of Divinefire), lead vocals in another project entitled Fatal Force (featuring Danish guitarist Torben Enevoldsen and drummer Daniel Flores) with whom he released a self-titled album in April 2006, 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 also finished recording the Krux II album which was released on 18 October 2006 and the new Therion album, entitled Gothic Kabbalah which was released on 12 January 2007. On 16 June 2007, Levén joined Therion in a special concert in Miskolc, Hungary. It featured a full orchestra and choir as well as classical stars from Europe. The setlist included both Therion songs and famous classical pieces in Therion manner.

Starting from 2007, Mats shared vocal duties in Therion with Snowy Shaw and two female vocalists. After Graspop and Hellfest in June 2007, Mats ceased his collaboration with Therion to focus on his new projects. Mats recorded backing vocals for Apocalyptica's Worlds Collide album. He also appears on the Nuclear Blast 20-year anniversary compilation Into the Light, singing on the track Death is Alive. Currently Levén involved himself in projects: lead vocals for the trilogy album based on the Tanakh by Israeli metal band Amaseffer and collaborations with Carl Westholm's project, Jupiter Society. He toured with the French symphonic progressive metal band Adagio in 2010 as a replacement for their previous singer, Christian Palin, who was fired in February 2010.[1]

In 2011, due to family issues on the part of Firewind's lead singer Apollo, Mats was called in to substitute for the rest of their European tour.[2]

In June 2012 he joined Candlemass as their singer for the remaining booked shows in 2012 (Candlemass fired Robert Lowe in June 2012).

In 2014 Mats teamed up with his friend from Firewind, Gus G. Gus recorded his first solo album I Am the Fire and Mats sang/co-wrote 4 songs and also co-wrote the track Redemption sung by Michael Starr from Steel Panther. With Mats, Gus did a tour in EU with Marty Friedman and a tour in Greece with Uli Jon Roth. Gus and Mats also did an acoustic tour in Greece. In 2015, Mats sang & co-wrote 3 tracks on Gus 2nd solo album Brand New Revolution.

Mats continued doing shows with Candlemass and in 2015, Mats was officially presented as the new Candlemass singer and a 4-track EP was recorded – Death Thy Lover. In early 2018 another EP was released, House of Doom.

In May 2018, Mats sang a medley for his friends in Europe when they were inducted into the Swedish Music Hall Of Fame and in June, Candlemass played at the Polar Music Prize together with Ghost and Vargas and Lagola when Metallica got the prize.

In the spring of 2018, a new Candlemass album was recorded with Mats on vocals – The Door to Doom. During the mixing of the album the band and Mats split up and soon the new singer Johan Längquist re-recorded the vocals.

A few weeks later, Mats went into discussions with Napalm Records regarding his solo material under the name Skyblood.

Skyblood was released worldwide on 22 November 2019. Mats wrote & produced the whole album.

The first single was released on 20 September 2019, The Voice.[3]

Discography

Bands/Projects/Guest vocals on whole album
  • 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 – Double Live! (1998)
  • Treat – Muscle in Motion (1999 – bootleg)
  • Pontus Norgren – Damage Done (2000)
  • Dogface – Unleashed (2000)
  • Dogface – In Control (2002)
  • Krux – Krux (2002)
  • At Vance – The Evil in You (2003)
  • Sabbtail – Nightchurch (2004)
  • Therion – Lemuria / Sirius B (2004)
  • At Vance – Chained (2005)
  • Swedish Erotica – Too Daze Gone (2005)
  • Fatal Force – Fatal Force (2006)
  • Krux – II (2006)
  • Abstrakt Algebra – II (unfinished recording from 1997 – released 2006 as Bonus CD with the re-release of Candlemass album Dactylis Glomerata)
  • Therion – Gothic Kabbalah (2007)
  • Amaseffer – Slaves for Life (2008)
  • Radiance – The Burning Sun[4]
  • Krux – He Who Sleeps Amongst the Stars (2012)
  • Opera Diabolicus – 1614 (2012)
  • Ludor – 777 – The New 666 (2013)
  • Everdome – Afterbirth (2013)
  • Dogface – Back on the Streets (2013)
  • Naski Corelo – The One (2014)
  • Ludor – Black X-Mas (2014)
  • Hollow Haze – Memories of an Ancient Time (2013)
  • Candlemass – Death Thy Lover (EP) (2016)
  • Revertigo- Revertigo (2018)[5]
  • Candlemass – House of Doom (EP) (2018)

Guest Vocals/Tributes
  • Various Artists – A Salute to AC/DC (1999 – with AB/CD on Riff Raff)
  • Various Artists – Power From the North (1999 – vocals with Southpaw on Disciples of Hell)
  • Various Artists – The Spirit of the Black Rose (2001 – vocals with Dogface on Suicide)
  • Various Artists – Bajen Forever (2001 – vocals with AB/CD on Victory)
  • Various Artists – Blackmore's Castle (2003 – vocals with Torben Enevoldsen on Space Truckin)
  • Svullo – För fet för ett omslag (2003 – vocals on 2 songs)
  • Leif Edling – The Black Heart of Candlemass (2003 – vocals on 6 Abstrakt Algebra demos including White Heat Red Hot)
  • Various Artists – The Sweet According to Sweden (2004 – vocals on Sweet Fanny Adams)
  • Audiovision – The Calling (2005 – lead and backing vocals)
  • The Bear Quartet – Eternity Now (2006 – vocals on 2 songs)
  • Essence Of Sorrow – Reflections of the Obscure (2007 – vocals on 5 songs)
  • Nuclear Blast Allstars – Into The Light (2007 – vocals on Death Is Alive)
  • Jupiter Society – First Contact // Last Warning (2008 – vocals & guitar on Cold, Rigid and Remote, vocals & drums on Solitude Unites Us, drums on 8511, vocals on Presumed Dying)
  • Crucified Barbara – Til Death Do Us Party (2009 – vocals on Jennyfer and backing vocals)
  • Crash The System – The Crowning (2009)
  • Jupiter Society – Terraform (2009 – vocals on New Universe, Into The Dark, Siren's Song/Black Hole; guitar on Cranial Implant)
  • Wisdom – Judas (2011 – vocals on Judas[6])
  • Snowy Shaw – Snowy Shaw Is Alive! (2011 – vocals on To Mega Therion)
  • Cem Köksal – Vigilante Episode One (2011 – vocals on Awakened One, Don Quixote, Stalkers in the Night)
  • CrownLess – Dark Evolution (2011 – vocals on Thorns[7])
  • Assignment – Inside of the Machine (2012)[8]
  • Nubian Rose – Mountain (2012 – vocals on Close My Eyes Forever and backing vocals)
  • Jupiter Society – From Endangered To Extinct (2013 – vocals on Invaders, No Survivors, Defeat)
  • Gus G – I Am the Fire (2014 – vocals on My Will Be Done, End of the Line, Blame It on Me, Eyes Wide Open)[9]
  • Dawn of Destiny – Forgotten, Enslaved, Admired, Released (2014)
  • Full Nothing – Full Nothing (2015)
  • Gus G – Brand New Revolution (2015 – vocals on Come Hell or High Water, If It Ends Today, The Demon Inside)[9]
  • Evil Masquerade – The Outcast Hall of Fame (2016 – vocals on Darkness (I Need You), On No Way to Broadway)
  • Full Nothing – Somewhere and Nowhere (2018)

Backing Vocals
  • Lion's Share – Lion's Share (1995)
  • Conny Bloom's Titanic Truth – Titanic Truth (1996)
  • Lion's Share – Two (1997)
  • Vildsvin – Iskallt begär (1997)
  • Zifa – The Last Dog (1997)
  • John Norum – Slipped into Tomorrow (1999)
  • Various Artists – A Tribute to Grand Funk Railroad (2000 – backing vocals on Upsetter)
  • Jessica Folcker – Dino (2000)
  • Alfonzetti – Ready (2000)
  • Little Chris – At Last... (2002)
  • Adam Thompson – Reconnected (2004)
  • Gypsy Rose – Gypsy Rose (2005)
  • Narnia – Enter the Gate (2006)
  • Shineth – 11 of 10 (2006)
  • Lion's Share – Emotional Coma (2007)
  • Apocalyptica – Worlds Collide (2007)
  • Malison Rogue – Malison Rogue (2011)
  • Crazy Lixx – Crazy Lixx (2014)
  • Nubian Rose – Mental Revolution (2014)
  • HammerFall – (r)Evolution (2014)
  • HammerFall – Built To Last (2016)
  • HammerFall – Dominion (2019)

DVD/Video

Tours
  • Treat – 1992 German tour
  • Adagio – 2010 European tour[10]
  • Cem Köksal – 2011 Turkey tour

Producer
  • Malison Rogue – Malison Rogue (2011)[11]

References
  1. Myspace.com blogs Archived 7 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  2. http://www.centurymedia.com/newsdetailed.aspx?IdNews=10265&IdCompany=3
  3. "The Voice" – via YouTube.
  4. Radiance.fi
  5. "ReVertigo Album".
  6. "Wisdom – Judas (feat. Mats Levén)". 8 January 2014. Retrieved 14 October 2019 – via YouTube.
  7. "CrownLess.- Thorns [Dark Evolution] guest vocalist Mats Levén". 6 September 2012. Retrieved 14 October 2019 – via YouTube.
  8. "Former Therion, Jaded Heart, Angel Dust Singers Guest On Third Assignment Album". Blabbermouth. 22 March 2012. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  9. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 13 June 2017. Retrieved 19 July 2017.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. "Adagio Taps former Yngwie/Therion singer Mats Levén for Kamelot tour". Blabbermouth. 20 February 2010. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  11. "Malison Rogue signs with Inner Wound Recordings". Blabbermouth. 21 January 2011. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
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