Late last year it was revealed that Amaranthe vocalist/co-founding member Jake E would take a break from the group. Since then, the band recruited Smash Into Pieces vocalist Chris Adams to step in during Jake E’s absence. Recently, Bravewords had an exclusive interview with Jake E and it looks like his break is permanent.
He stated the following:
“Me and Olof (Mörck / guitars) started the band seven or eight years ago, and everything took off in a way we couldn’t have imagined, Amaranthe became a huge success and we toured the world, and we had a lot of fun doing that. The first two albums (self-titled debut and The Nexus) were exactly what I wanted the band to sound like; a mix between those Soilwork-like guitars and melodic Bon Jovi-type vocals combined with a female voice. Different elements combined, but the main thing in the music was the metal base. On the Massive Addictive album it started to change into something else that I didn’t really control, and you can hear the songs that I was more involved in working on are very metal. When we started working on the Maximalism album I found that it wasn’t the Amaranthe I had helped create at the start. It wasn’t my vision at all and I realized that I had to be true to myself. That was back in March 2016. I love to tour, I love the fans, but I felt that if I wasn’t true to myself.”
He continued:
“My idea from the beginning is that we were supposed to be six people in a band striving for the same goal. Nobody had ever seen three singers in a metal band in that formation before, and that was my whole selling point for Amaranthe. We should be marketed as a band with three singers and it worked on the first two albums, but I felt that my place both on the albums and live was reduced; I felt like I was superfluous. I know my potential as a singer and a songwriter, but over the last couple years I felt I wasn’t reaching that potential. You can hardly hear me on the new Amaranthe album. I have a small part here and a small part there, so I started to feel more like a backing singer. I’m 35 years old, and I decided I have to continue with music that makes me happy. Meeting the fans makes me happy and touring is the best thing I’ve ever done, but I can’t stand on stage not believing in what I’m doing. That’s the main reason I left Amaranthe.”
In addition to his interview with Bravewords, Jake E made his an official statement confirming his exit:
“After eight years and four albums, I have decided to leave Amaranthe. I am extremely proud of the band and what we’ve accomplished together. Amaranthe have the most AMAZING fans and they have given me so much during the years, which I am extremely grateful for. I want to thank them all for always supporting me during the highs and the lows. Thank you for these years and I hope to meet you again soon.”
It is no secret that the latest Maximalism took more of a pop meets metal approach, leaving fans with mixed reviews. With that said, the band released the music video for their song “Boomerang.” For all it’s poppiness, the song was a big hit live hit at 70000tons of Metal this past weekend.
You can see the video here:
Here are a few fan clips of the song at 70000tons of Metal:
Amaranthe kicks off their North American tour this Friday (10) in Houston, Texas with supporting acts Failure Anthem, Citizen Zero, Cypher 16, and Smash Into Pieces.
Check out the tour dates:
2/10: Houston, TX @ Scout Bar
2/11: Dallas, TX @ Gas Monkey Bar N’ Grill
2/12: San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger
2/14: Englewood, CO @ Gothic Theatre
2/15: Salt Lake City, UT @ In the Venue
2/16: Tempe, AZ @ The Marquee
2/18: Las Vegas, NV @ Vinyl
2/19: San Francisco, CA @ Social Hall SF
2/20: Los Angeles, CA @ The Belasco Theater
2/22: Seattle, WA @ Studio Seven
2/23: Spokane, WA @ Knitting Factory
2/24: Boise, ID @ Knitting Factory
2/26: Calgary, AB @ Marquee Beer Market & Stage
2/27: Edmonton, AB @ Starlite Room
3/1: Minneapolis, MN @ Cabooze
3/2: Arlington Heights, IL @ Home Bar
3/3: Ft. Wayne, IN @ The Hub
3/4: Pittsburgh, PA @ Rex Theater
3/5: Toronto, ON @ The Opera House
3/7: Montreal, QC @ Corona Theater
3/8: New York, NY @ Webster Hall – Marlin Room
3/9: Baltimore, MD @ Baltimore Soundstage
3/10: Asbury Park, NJ @ House of Independents
3/11: Reading, PA @ Reverb
