The Haunted (Swedish band)

Lore & Background

The Haunted formed on 27 July 1996, when Patrik Jensen co-created the band with Adrian Erlandsson, who had just left At the Gates after that band's split. They released a demo in 1997 and signed to Earache Records, releasing their self-titled debut album in 1998. The album earned them Newcomer of the Year honors and was named Album of the Year by Terrorizer Magazine. They toured the UK with Napalm Death. In 1999, vocalist Peter Dolving and drummer Adrian Erlandsson left; Dolving pursued a solo career and Erlandsson joined Cradle of Filth. Their replacements were Marco Aro and Per Möller Jensen.

Reader's Guide

The Haunted's second album, Made Me Do It (2000), was more melodic and won a Swedish Grammy for Best Hard Rock Album. It topped the CMJ Loud Rock Radio Chart for four weeks. The band toured with Entombed, Nile, and In Flames. After guitarist Anders Björler briefly left in 2001, he returned for the third album, One Kill Wonder (2003), which broke the band's own record by charting at number one on the CMJ chart for five weeks. Alternative Press named The Haunted one of metal's 25 most important bands. Vocalist Marco Aro left in 2003, leading to Peter Dolving's return. The band signed to Century Media and released Revolver (2004), touring extensively including a spot at Ozzfest 2005. Subsequent albums The Dead Eye (2006) and Versus (2008) continued their success. After Dolving quit in 2012 and two other members left, the band went on hiatus. In 2014, Marco Aro and Adrian Erlandsson rejoined, with Ola Englund on lead guitar, and the band resumed activity.

Did You Know?

• The band's debut album was named Album of the Year by Terrorizer Magazine.
• Made Me Do It won a Swedish Grammy for Best Hard Rock Album.
• The song D.O.A. from the album Revolver (2004) was made available for download in March 2008 for the video game Rock Band.
• Marco Aro initially hesitated to rejoin the band in 2013 due to his commitment to his family and his job as a firefighter.

Roots in the Gothenburg Underground

The Haunted emerged from the fertile soil of Gothenburg's metal community in 1996, born directly from the dissolution of At the Gates. On July 27, 1996, just one day after that seminal melodic death metal outfit split, Patrik Jensen and Adrian Erlandsson co-founded the new project. The connection to At the Gates was deeply embedded in the band's DNA—both Anders and Jonas Björler, along with Erlandsson, had been part of that pioneering force in the Swedish death metal scene. This lineage gave The Haunted an immediate pedigree; they entered the world not as outsiders but as veterans of a band that had helped shape an entire genre. Their early work, including the 1997 Demo '97, reflected this heritage before they carved out a distinct identity. The original lineup also featured Peter Dolving on vocals. This Gothenburg origin and the At the Gates connection meant The Haunted carried the weight and expectations of a community that had already defined a sound, and they rose to meet that challenge from the very first note.

Critical Breakthrough and Chart Dominance

The Haunted's self-titled debut, released in 1998 on Earache Records, arrived with extraordinary critical momentum. Multiple magazines named them Newcomer of the Year, and Terrorizer Magazine crowned the record Album of the Year. This was no modest entry into the metal landscape. Their second album, Made Me Do It (2000), shifted toward a more melodic Gothenburg sound and earned a Swedish Grammy for Best Hard Rock Album, while its title track held the top spot on the CMJ Loud Rock Radio Chart for four consecutive weeks. One Kill Wonder (2003) broke their own record, sitting at number one on that same chart for five weeks. Alternative Press recognized the band as one of metal's twenty-five most important acts. The album's track D.O.A. later found a second life as downloadable content for the Rock Band video game on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. This trajectory—from instant critical darling to chart-dominating force—established The Haunted as a defining voice of the new millennium's heavy metal scene.

The Revolving Door of Voices

No aspect of The Haunted's story is more defining than the constant churn at their vocal throne. Peter Dolving departed in 1999 to pursue a solo path, replaced by Marco Aro, who in turn left abruptly in late 2003. This opened the door for Dolving's return, and the pair recorded Revolver (2004) on Century Media, a record the band described as conveying their musical evolution. Yet the cycle repeated: Dolving quit a second time in February 2012, prompting the band to publicly solicit vocalist auditions through their Facebook page, asking serious applicants to submit two songs from the Haunted back catalogue along with a self-description and performance video links. Adrian Erlandsson's own 1999 exit—driven by dissatisfaction with the Earache Records deal—added another layer to this pattern of personnel flux. Through each departure and return, the band's core identity persisted, anchored by the Björler brothers, Jensen, and Erlandsson, even as the voice carrying their songs kept changing hands.

A Global Stage and Lasting Footprint

The Haunted's touring footprint stretched across nearly every continent, a testament to their international appeal. They shared stages with Napalm Death in the UK, toured Japan with In Flames, and played alongside Entombed and Nile across Europe. Their festival appearances included Wacken Open Air in Germany, Graspop in Belgium, and Hultsfred in Sweden, while One Kill Wonder's success brought them to Australia and South Africa for the first time. They secured a second-stage slot at Ozzfest 2005 and later supported Slayer on their 2010 tour. Their music also crossed into gaming culture, with tracks appearing in Rock Band and the 2010 Splatterhouse remake soundtrack for Namco Bandai. The live albums Live Rounds in Tokyo and Road Kill (2010) captured their stage presence for wider audiences. From the Swedish underground to global festivals and video game soundtracks, The Haunted built a career that transcended genre boundaries and geographic borders, cementing their place as one of the most internationally recognized acts to emerge from the Gothenburg metal scene.