DARKANE

Emerging from the remains of Agretator, the progressive-leaning outfit modeled after groups like Watchtower, the Swedish death metal band Darkane took shape when guitarist Christofer Malmström and drummer Peter Wildoer—Wildoer having previously served in Armageddon and Arch Enemy—enlisted guitarist Klas Ideberg and bassist Jorgen Löfberg to cut a pair of compilation tracks. Although the resulting sound retained certain progressive traits akin to Meshuggah, it favored a Gothenburg-style death metal direction overall.

Bringing ex-Forcefeed vocalist Lawrence Mackrory aboard, Darkane turned its attention to the debut album Rusted Angel, issued in late 1998 and distributed in the U.S. the following year by Relapse Records. Once Mackrory stepped away, the band brought in Andreas Sydow, whose first appearance came on the next release, Insanity, which arrived in early 2001 via Century Media.