ARCH ENEMY's DANIEL ERLANDSSON On New Singer LAUREN HART: 'From The First Show, The Fans Really Embraced Her And Liked Her'

In an interview with Germany's EMP Backstage Club Area conducted at this year's Summer Breeze festival, ARCH ENEMY guitarist Michael Amott and drummer Daniel Erlandsson spoke about the addition of singer Lauren Hart as the replacement for Alissa White-Gluz, who exited the group late last year. Regarding how Hart as been received by the ARCH ENEMY fans so far, Daniel said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "From the moment we started — we started out [in March 2026] in China, actually, started doing some shows in China, and then in Japan, and from the first show, it seemed like the fans really embraced her and liked her. And it's been going on over here as well in Europe." Michael chimed in: "She's a very natural person, very likable, and she's a big ARCH ENEMY fan and she fits right in. She knew all the songs already, and it was kind of an easy thing in a way."

Asked if Lauren was ARCH ENEMY's first and only choice for the new singer or if the band held auditions with other vocalists as well, Michael said: "Everything happened really quickly. It was really fast. We had festivals confirmed. We thought maybe we'd get a singer just for the summer and see how things go. But then we started talking to Lauren. We knew of her before. And, basically, she sent some recordings of her singing ARCH ENEMY stuff, and it sounded amazing immediately, and we were, like, 'Yeah, okay.' And then we actually went into the studio and cut a new song, which is 'To The Last Breath', which has been out for a few months. So everything was super fast, which kind of made us ... It was cool. It made us feel happy, but also a little bit nervous: 'What are we doing? We're moving too fast into a new relationship.' But it worked out so far."

Regarding whether ARCH ENEMY is already working on more new material with Lauren, Michael said: "Yeah, well, me and Daniel are constantly working on new material. We've always had this flow that we never really stop making new music. It's just something that we're always doing. So it's not like we record an album, go on tour for two years, and then we take some time off, and then we start thinking about writing new material. That's not how we do it. We're just always writing and doing little demo sessions and writing sessions in between things. So, yeah, we got this workflow that's pretty cool, actually."

After the interviewer noted that Lauren "comes pretty close" to sounding like former ARCH ENEMY singer Angela Gossow, Michael said: "We've had some great singers in this band, but I do believe that Lauren brought her own boots. She's walking on her own path, and this is the next era of ARCH ENEMY. And, yeah, for sure, there's some likenesses to Angela, but she really covers all the bases. She does all the eras of the band very well."

Amott also shot down rumors that emerged earlier this year that Angela was at one point considering a return to ARCH ENEMY. He said: "I understand that's fan mentality. These rumors start because they already knew her from the past. But no, it wasn't really an option. No."

As for ARCH ENEMY's plans for the coming months, including work on more new music, Daniel said: "Yeah. We're going to have a little break in September, and continue touring in the U.S., October, November. The plan is to basically continue working on some demos that we have lying around and probably enter a studio pretty soon, start building new material."

This past July, Lauren reflected on the experience of playing her first show with ARCH ENEMY, which took place on March 27, 2026 in Beijing, China. She told Germany's Metal Hammer magazine: "It was a dream come true for me and the start of a new future. And it somehow connected with the child in me that loved ARCH ENEMY from [2001's] 'Wages Of Sin' [album]. And it was just all that going on in my mind and yet none of it as well because I was so in the moment. And it was so overwhelming, and the crowd response was amazing. I was on another planet. I was so happy."

Regarding how she has been received by the ARCH ENEMY fans so far, Lauren said: "I received a lot of love from everyone, and I was really taken aback by that. I think in my mind I thought it would take a while to really... I thought I'd have to really work and earn that, as it's really difficult when changes are made. But I feel like the reception immediately right away was so positive and everyone was so welcoming and wam in the audience. And I was very happy — very happy, and a little surprised, actually. It was instantly amazing."

Asked if she remembers the first time she heard ARCH ENEMY's music, Lauren said: "It was when 'Wages Of Sin' came out. I was hanging around my usual group of friends who were showing me metal and all that, and they were all guitar players. And when they put on the CD, I'm, like, 'God, he sounds... That singer, he sounds great.' [And they told me], 'That's not a guy. That's a girl.' … I had no idea women could scream — no idea at that time. And they had a band at the time, and they were just jamming their stuff, and I would beg them to let me try. And that's eventually how I started screaming."

After 13 years as ARCH ENEMY's vocalist, German-born Angela Gossow shocked the heavy metal world in 2014 with the sudden announcement of her retirement from the band. While she is no longer performing with them, she has remained closely involved with ARCH ENEMY as their business manager.

When Gossow officially announced her departure from ARCH ENEMY in 2014, she said that she was "passing the torch to the super talented Alissa White-Gluz, whom I've known as a dear friend and a superb vocalist for many years."

ARCH ENEMY recorded three albums with vocalist Johan Liiva — "Black Earth" (1996),"Stigmata" (1998) and "Burning Bridges" (1999) — before Liiva was replaced by Gossow.

Gossow appeared on all ARCH ENEMY albums from 2001's "Wages Of Sin" through 2011's "Khaos Legions".

ARCH ENEMY released four studio albums with White-Gluz on vocals: "War Eternal" (2014),"Will To Power" (2017),"Deceivers" (2022) and "Blood Dynasty" (2025).

ARCH ENEMY 2026 is:

Lauren Hart - Vocals
Michael Amott - Guitars
Joey Concepcion - Guitars
Sharlee D'Angelo - Bass
Daniel Erlandsson - Drums

Photo credit: Patric Ullaeus