Atreyu: We invented metalcore

Atreyu frontman Alex Varkatzas says it was his band that invented metalcore.

The vocalist was speaking with Rocksound when he was asked to describe their place in the music world in 2018.

Varkatzas replies: “I don’t know where we fit in any scene and I don’t think that any scene knows where we fit. I think that’s just part of us. 

“This is going to sound a little cocky but I’m a singer in a band. I don’t think we fit into any genre. I think we are hard to pin down. 

“When we first started it was a little easier. We were a metallic hardcore band with singing parts. There wasn’t anyone else like that when we were doing it. 

“People get confused and say, ‘You’re a metalcore band’ but we invented metalcore. That may sound cocky but I don’t care. 

“We pre-date Poison The Well and Killswitch Engage and all those bands. I’ve been doing this since I was literally 12 years old.” 

Varkatzas continues: “So throughout that I still don’t know where we fit, and I think our fans know that. This is the place to be you. This is our driving force and heartbeat. This is the place we go to express ourselves. 

“I think our fan base and the people who like our band are like that too. They like music and we play music.”

Atreyu have just released their new studio album In Our Wake which was preceded by the singles The Time Is Now and Anger Left Behind.

They’ll head back out on tour across the US from next month, kicking off the run of 28 dates in Phoenix on November 9.

Atreyu- In Our Wake

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US outfit Atreyu return with their first album since 2015's Long Live – featuring the lead singles In Our Wake and Anger Left Behind. It's out now so what are you waiting for?

Scott Munro
Louder e-commerce editor

Scott has spent more than 30 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in the summer of 2014 before moving to the e-commerce team in 2020. Scott maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, scouts out the best deals for music fans and reviews headphones, speakers, books and more. He's written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog and has previous written for publications including IGN, the Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, Marillion and Rush.