The Defaced

The Defaced

The Defaced are a Swedish group from Helsingborg, active since 1995. They work in groove metal and thrash metal, and their line-up includes Henry Ranta. The band begins in late 1999, when members from several local acts come together to write new material and record a demo for labels.

Formation and early line-up

The original writing line-up includes Henrik Sjöwall, Mattias Svensson, Klas Ideberg, Jörgen Löfberg and Henry Ranta. Ideberg is also associated with Darkane and Terror 2000, Löfberg with Darkane, and Ranta with Soilwork. The group records four demo tracks and sends the demo to Scarlet, which signs the band immediately.

Recordings and releases

The Defaced record their debut album, Domination Commence, in February 2001 at Hit-Parade Studios in Örkelljunga, Sweden. It is issued in September 2001 in Europe and Japan and in February 2002 in American territories through Nuclear Blast America. The album draws strong reviews and helps build the band’s reputation, while their live performances also strengthen their profile at home and abroad.

In August 2002 the band begins work on a second album. The material shows a change in musical direction and sound during pre-production, and the recording sessions take place at Queenstreet Recording and Darkane Studio. The album is completed in October 2002 and titled Karma in Black. A video is also made for the track “Once in Between”.