Allegaeon

Originating in Colorado, Allegaeon blend brutal death-metal guitar work with wide-ranging lyrics that steer clear of typical genre obsessions, yielding a distinctive brand of cerebral yet ferocious heavy metal. The group surfaced in 2010 via the well-received Fragments of Form and Function and kept sharpening their melody-focused technical death metal approach across later highlights that include 2014’s Elements of the Infinite, 2019’s Apoptosis, and 2022’s Damnum.

Guitarists Ryan Glisan and Greg Burgess joined forces with bassist Corey Archuleta and vocalist Ezra Haynes to launch the band in 2008; their four-track self-titled EP quickly secured a Metal Blade contract the following year. The full-length debut Fragments of Form and Function arrived in 2010 and drew widespread critical notice for its intricate yet melodic character. Seeking fresh compositional directions, Allegaeon traveled to Lambesis Studios to develop new songs alongside Daniel Castleman, resulting in the 2012 Metal Blade release Formshifter. In 2013 the lineup stabilized when Brandon Park joined as permanent drummer and Michael Stancel replaced Glisan, who exited that same year. The newcomers supplied added creative momentum for the third album, Elements of the Infinite, which let the band move beyond Gothenburg influences to establish an independent voice within melodic death metal.

The much-anticipated fourth studio album, Proponent for Sentience, surfaced in 2016. Working with producer Dave Otero (Cattle Decapitation), the band described the ambitious concept record as having “a lyrical arc rooted in science fiction, yet uncomfortably encroaching upon the reality of the present.” Following their inaugural European tour, the musicians returned to the studio for a fifth full-length; Apoptosis emerged in spring 2019 and climbed to number two on the Billboard Heatseekers chart. The punishing single “Into Embers” appeared in 2021 and later featured on the sixth album. Titled Damnum—a Latin term meaning “loss”—the 2022 release introduced drummer Jeff Saltzman and reflected the collective input of all five members throughout the songwriting process.