Episode 10: Sharlee D'Angelo (Arch Enemy, ex-Mercyful Fate)

When Swedish melodic death metal legends Arch Enemy were about to enter to studio to record Burning Bridges in 1999, which would become one of their most iconic releases, they were facing a bit of an issue: they needed a bassist.  The group had just returned from playing tour dates in Japan and, according to lead guitarist and band leader Michael Amott, things were not working out with their current lineup.  That’s when Amott decided to give Sharlee D’Angelo, who he’d known since he was still playing in Carcass, a recruiting call. D’Angelo had joined Mercyful Fate in the early ‘90s and recorded four albums with them, but the future of the band seemed uncertain at the time as their metal icon frontman King Diamond was focused on his solo work.   As Sharlee remembers it, Michael called him on a Thursday, and by that Monday they were in the studio recording one of the seminal albums to emerge from the Gothenburg scene.  And neither have looked back since.

Now a little more than a quarter century later, Arch Enemy are on the precipice of releasing their twelfth studio album, Blood Dynasty, on March 28th through Century Media Records.  It will be Sharlee’s tenth record with the group.  Through various lineup changes over the band’s three-decade history, including three different vocalists and several guitarists, the core of Amott, D’Angelo, and drummer Daniel Erlandsson have remained the driving force behind Arch Enemy’s iconic sound they’ve crafted that permeates from each release in their catalog. Blood Dynasty is no exception to this rule, as the group has once again delivered an excellent offering to the melodic death metal world they helped to create and popularize. 

Ahead of the release ofBlood Dynasty, I had a chance to speak with Sharlee about several highlights from his career, including:

• the writing process forBlood Dynasty, the reaction to the new singles Arch Enemy have played live so far, and the addition of Joey Concepcion on guitar after the departure of Jeff Loomis (Nevermore).
• what fans can expect from the rest of the record outside of the singles, Alissa White-Gluz’s incredible vocal range and how it opens new avenues musically for the group, and the upcoming North American tour with Fit for an Autopsy.
• Sharlee’s influences on his bass playing, making up excuses to hang out with the boys, and honoring classic rock inThe Night Flight Orchestra with Speed Strid (Soilwork).
• how he came to join Mercyful Fate in the early 1990s as his first pro gig, the transition to Arch Enemy and that fortuitous phone call with Amott, and memories of playing withJesper Strömblad (In Flames) and Alexi Laiho (Children of Bodom) on the first Sinergy record, and memories ofAlexi.
• reflections on Arch Enemy’s 30th anniversary as a band and the keys to their success and longevity. 

It was wonderful having the opportunity to talk with Sharlee about all of these topics from his truly unique career playing with most of the legendary metal musicians throughout Scandinavia and beyond.   In addition to the tremendous list above, he’s also played with a number of other bands which haven’t been mentioned, including Spiritual Beggars, Dismember, Witchery, IllWill, and Facelift.  The pure volume of his work and his lengthy successful career speaks to his playing ability and makes it hard not to think he’s one of, if not the go-to bassist in the Swedish metal scene – which is probably what Michael Amott was thinking when he called him back in 1999.