A CULT metal band has had a major lineup change after a founding member has announced they’ve quit.
Swedish outfit Katatonia, who rose to prominence in the 90s, have had a revolving lineup of members over the years, but founders Jonas Renkse and Anders Nyström have always been mainstays.
Anders Nyström, left, was increasingly frustrated by the band’s live setlists[/caption]
However, that’s now come to an end after 34 years with Renkse issuing a statement on Instagram that read: “Anders Nyström and I are going our separate ways.
“A decision not taken lightly, but for everyone to thrive and move forward with their own creative preferences as well as personal schedules this has become the realistic option.
“Anders and I started the band in 1991 and his impact on the band’s trademark sound is undeniable. As bleak as this sounds, and is, it’s further evidence of life getting in the way of our preferred plans. I wish Anders all the best for the future.”
Nyström followed it with a statement of his own confirming the news but revealed he’d rather Renkse retired the band name to honour their joint legacy.
He also spoke of a rift between the members over the material they played live, revealing he was unhappy at earlier songs being neglected.
“To each our own, we may all have our own preferences and different levels of appreciation for either the early, mid or later Katatonia eras,” wrote Nyström.
“But it seems like any willingness to embrace them all, in order to honor our history through live activities, has unfortunately failed to sustain.
“Needless to say, I still love ALL our albums, but with the early stuff being neglected for so many years, a feeling of having ‘unfinished business‘ with a style that goes far back to our roots has just grown stronger and stronger.
“I can’t help feeling adamant that songs from our early-mid discography deserve to be equally acknowledged and likewise targeted for our live show repertoire, the essential medium where the past should always be alive! Unfortunately, that door has been kept shut and left everything we did pre-millennium in a void.”
Despite disagreeing with the direction Renske is taking, Nyström was full of class and gratitude as he signed off.
He wrote: “Come what may, I’d like to thank Jonas and the rest of my ex-colleagues for the incredible ride we shared through four compelling decades. Blessed be!”
The band has released 12 studio albums beginning with 1993’s Dance of December Souls and the latest, Sky Void of Stars, came out in 2023.
In the early 1990s Opeth’s Mikael Åkerfeldt was a member and maintained a good relationship with the band even after his exit working on a number of their records.
Later in the decade, the band’s sound softened somewhat, vocally at least, after Renske had issues with his vocal cords that forced him to change his approach.
The band’s sound changed in the late 90s after Renkse had issues with his vocal cords[/caption]
