Katatonia consists of Anders Nyström, Daniel Liljekvist (drums), Fredrik Norrman (guitars), Jonas Renkse (vocals), Mattias Norrman (bass).
Katatonia should not be confused with Catatonia, a Welsh indie-rock band
Katatonia is a Swedish heavy metal band formed in Avesta, Sweden in 1991 by Jonas Renkse (formerly Lord Seth) and Anders Nyström (formerly Blackheim). Katatonia is noted for the overall melancholy of its sound, often giving them the classification of doom metal or depressive rock. Many critics note a progression in sound from the former to the latter as the band's career has progressed.
The early releases of the band feature mostly harsh vocals and can stylistically be considered as a mixture of doom and death metal. Opeth's Mikael Åkerfeldt performed the harsh vocals on Brave Murder Day and Sounds of Decay after regular Katatonia singer (and then drummer) Jonas Renkse became unable to scream properly. Katatonia moved to a lighter sound with clean vocals beginning with 1998's Discouraged Ones. Another shift was seen with Viva Emptiness in 2003 in which the music became more vocally oriented than ever before.
Katatonia has released two compilations. Brave Yester Days (the title being a play on their album Brave Murder Day) is a double-disc release including all cuts from EP's up to Saw You Drown, selected cuts from full-length albums Brave Murder Day and Dance of December Souls, and two tracks from a compilation. The Black Sessions is a limited release that documents later releases and includes a live DVD.
On 11/30/ 2005, Katatonia released a sample on their website from their upcoming album, EP " My Twin". The same song will also be found on their album " The Great Cold Distance". Both are due to be released in 2006.
Jonas Renkse (aka Lord Seth) - Vocals (1991 -) Anders Nyström (aka Blackheim or Blakkheim) - Guitar (1991 -) Fred Norrman - Guitar (1994 -) Mattias Norrman - Bass guitar (1999 -) Daniel Liljekvist - Drums (1999 -)
