Mercenary parts way with drummer, singer and keyboardist

[AMBR]

Statement from the band:

"Well, well, changes that have been underway for a long time can sometimes come about in the blink of an eye. Last week, Mike told us that he wanted to leave the band permanently. The rest of us did some serious thinking and soul-searching, sat down and had ‘the big talk’ and came to the agreement that the only way to continue the band was to part ways with Mikkel and Morten as well. During the last year we have been working on a new album and it has become clear that we no longer share the same vision and enthusiasm about the direction and the future of the band. Martin, Rene, Mike and I wanted to play faster, heavier and more modern (yet old school) material, but for the band as a whole this evidently didn't work out."

More here.

Damn, one of my favorite PP bands. Hope the new version is just as dynamic and edgy. I really hope modern doesn't mean appealing to current American metal market scene.

 

[Cheiron]

That blows. Their recent album is stellar.

 

[dcowboys311]

Well this just sucks. Mercenary is one of my favorite bands.

 

[The Invisible Guest]

For me things just have not been right since Krall left the band. I've liked each release a little less .. really to the point where I was indifferent to Mercenary any longer. For me 11 Dreams was the highwater mark, and I didn't see how they would ever surpass that one.

Maybe somehow .. Krall gets back in with one of these two camps .. perhaps the Mikkel, Morten, and Mike camp.

As far as for hanging out and chatting with bands it didn't get much better than the Mercenary guys ... very fun to talk with. I particularly was fond of Morten, and Mike. Mike is just off the wall crazy ... he was a riot.


Britt

 

[nailz]

That really saddens me. Mercenary was never the same without Kral. Rene is a great guy, very cool, but he's not Kral. The Hours That Remain was one of the best albums of its year, AoL was ...forgettable. While I love Mikkel to death, his recent death vox work was just ... not good. Too high and sounded unnatural. He is still one of my favorite "clean" singers though. Mike is a fantastic drummer, Morten's a great guy/songwriter, and gods know I love Jakob, so I hope he and Rene and Martin piece something back together. It will be interesting to see what direction they take.

and I can't WAIT to see what Mikkel has up his sleeve.

 

[longshot9]

Wow... what a shitty way to start the day. While I wasn't as enthused with AoL as I was with THTR, mainly cause I don't think Rene's death vocals improved the band at all, this is a real bummer. One of my favorite bands that hopefully won't take a turn for the worst.

 

[eppst1]

For me things just have not been right since Krall left the band. I've liked each release a little less .. really to the point where I was indifferent to Mercenary any longer. For me 11 Dreams was the highwater mark, and I didn't see how they would ever surpass that one.

*snip*

Britt

I am in complete agreement and feel the same exact way. I didn't even buy their latest.

 

[guardian26]

damnit!

 

[J-Man]

This sucks big time!!

 

[Reverend Su]

The Su is of the sad

 

[Magius]

For me things just have not been right since Krall left the band. I've liked each release a little less .. really to the point where I was indifferent to Mercenary any longer. For me 11 Dreams was the highwater mark, and I didn't see how they would ever surpass that one...

Britt

I am in complete agreement and feel the same exact way. I didn't even buy their latest.

Same.

 

[Havermout]

Sad, very sad.....


their last gig as a band was the ProgPower Europe gig in October, when i posted the pics from that gig Mikkel said in the forum that the pics where more special than i knew......today i found out what he meant


the PP pics



H.

 

[AeonicSlumber]

Sucks huge balls. Love this band. I actually own the same green "year of the plague" shirt as Glenn haha.

 

[Kaosaur]

Ruined muh day. But at the same time, there's a silver lining in this cloud.

The last four albums were just SO strong. I'm hard pressed to find any other band with a similar track record.

 

[nailz]

the PP pics

H.

On the up side, those are some stellar shots!

 

[AMBR]

For me things just have not been right since Krall left the band. I've liked each release a little less .. really to the point where I was indifferent to Mercenary any longer. For me 11 Dreams was the highwater mark, and I didn't see how they would ever surpass that one.

Maybe somehow .. Krall gets back in with one of these two camps .. perhaps the Mikkel, Morten, and Mike camp.

As far as for hanging out and chatting with bands it didn't get much better than the Mercenary guys ... very fun to talk with. I particularly was fond of Morten, and Mike. Mike is just off the wall crazy ... he was a riot.


Britt

Eh, I thought 11 Dreams was awesome, until I heard The Hours That Remain. That is now my all time favorite Mercenary album. Architect Of Lies was good, but not on par with those two, so while I'm initially disappointed with this news, perhaps it was time to shake it up and get the edginess back. As for Kral returning, highly doubt it.

Oh, and yea, they are one uber fun band to hang out with. Watching Rene work the bar and the ladies in Helsinki was impressive.

 

[Diamond45]

Ugh....Mercenary is/was one of my favorite bands.. :zombie:

 

[Palabra de Dios]

Shit sandwich. Mikkel was one of the best things about this band. Is voice is just....awesome. Damn.

 

[Pellaz]

* sigh *

 

[Braxil]

Well, it was a cool band while it lasted.

I wanted to play faster, heavier and more modern (yet old school) material

Isn't this the reason every band breaks up?