One of Sweden’s premier metal exports, Arch Enemy are led by guitarist Michael Amott, who combines his love for classical motifs alongside ferocious heavy metal thunder on the band’s new album Deceivers. He tells TG how he was influenced by Michael Schenker and Dave Mustaine, and how modern technology has given him more flexibility in the studio.
The new album’s opening track Handshake With Hell starts with some neoclassical tapping and also features some baroque-style chord movements.
Those chord progressions are a very Bach thing to do. Sequences like that mean you can bring in the harmonic minor scale – ultimately, they’re melodic and help break you out
