The avant-garde metal band will the taking the Main Stage at Pol'and'Rock Festival

Avatar joins Pol'and'Rock line-up

29 January 2019

We have a real treat for all fans of the Swedish brand fo metal music! Avatar is an avant-garde metal band established in Gothenburg in 2001. The band is known for their spectacular live shows and captivating stage persona which sets them apart in the highly competitive world of heavy metal music.

Seven studio albums serve as a testament to the band's lasting power and show the process of creative evolution of the band hailing from the cradle of melodic death metal - Gothenburg. Last year our audience had an opportunity to sample the best that Swedish melodic death metal has to offer: we enjoyed the shows from the precursors of the genre, In Flames and see one of the biggest names in metal - Arch Enemy.

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Avatar launched their career with melodic death metal sound. Even though the band's frontman, the charismatic Johannes Eckerstrom cites In Flames and Dark Tranquility as major influences, the artists soon came up with their own, unique music style combining melodic death metal with groove metal, thrash and nu metal elements. Their sound is best described as eclectic, avant-garde and experimental. The musicians keep exploring different creative avenues. For instance, when you listen to their most recent release, the highly conceptual album 'Avatar Country' you can detect country and even classical music influences! The 2018 release is an exercise in creative commitment to the idea - the album should be perceived as a tale of a mythical kingdom ruled by a legendary king. The tour promoting this release comes complete with a throne for the King of the Avatar Country and stage sets and energy to match.

Where there is silence, there shall be sound, and it shall be LOUD!- He took his axe and held it high in the air.- Where there is a sky, there shall be thunder, and it shall be LOUD!

'Avatar Country' press release

Avatar's experimental sound is inextricably linked with their stage persona. Their image verges on macabre and grotesque, while their live shows are a combination of their undeniable musical prowess and showmanship skills. The band resembles a wild pack of freaky circus clowns lead by the ultimate clown roadie himself - made-up to look like a demented Harlequin, Eckerstrom is joined by the remaining four band-members: drummer John Alfredsson, guitarists Jonas Jarlsby and Tim Öhrström, and bassist Henrik Sandelin.

When I look like this I can do other stuff that I couldn’t do when I was standing there in a Judas Priest shirt trying to look pissed off. This opens up the doors. It undressed me. If you are going to look like a clown you can’t just hide behind sunglasses and pretend to be a rock star. It opened the floodgates. It was the key to us figuring out visually what we had created musically.

frontman of the band Johannes Ekerstrom

Despite the fact that their faces are hidden by make-up and their lyrics are full of imaginary stories, the key to their work is creative honesty. The frontman explains their creative process as follows:

The best riffs are always the ones which give me ambition. It comes from an angle of artistic reflection. The only real agenda is honesty, sincerity and things we are passionate about.

Johannes Eckerstrom