Swedish progressive metal veterans EVERGREY have confirmed the departure of longtime guitarist Henrik Danhage, with frontman Tom S. Englund opening up about the circumstances surrounding the split in a candid new interview.
Danhage had been a fixture in EVERGREY's lineup since 2001's "In Search Of Truth," contributing to the band's discography through 2022's "A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament)" — a tenure of more than two decades, interrupted only by a brief hiatus in 2008. His exit, however, came under strained circumstances.
"He hasn't told us why he chose to do what he did," Englund said, confirming that the band had been left without explanation. The situation came to a head during the recording of the band's fifteenth studio album "Architects Of A New Weave," due June 5 via Napalm Records. When the band needed guitar solos before mixing could proceed and could not establish communication with Danhage, they made the difficult decision to move forward without him.
Rather than bring in an outside session guitarist, the band devised a creative solution. Englund himself stepped in to handle rhythm guitars while bassist Johan Niemann contributed half of the guitar solos. Englund praised the approach: "Since Johan and I wrote most of the music anyway, he knows the music."
It is worth noting that Englund and Niemann were responsible for the bulk of the compositional work regardless, making their contributions to the guitar parts a natural extension of an existing workflow rather than a last-minute scramble.
Filling Danhage's live role is Stephen Platt, who had already been touring with the band during the fall 2025 run with KATATONIA.
"Architects Of A New Weave" arrives on June 5, 2026 via Napalm Records. With one of metal's most emotionally charged vocalists at the helm and a tight, focused lineup intact, EVERGREY appear ready to continue their remarkable run of critically acclaimed records.