Amaranthe have been without the services of co-vocalist and co-founder Jake E. since last fall when he took leave from the band, and it appears as though the break is now a permanent one. Shortly after Jake E. exited the lineup, the band pulled in Smash Into Pieces singer Chris Adams to keep their triple-vocalist approach intact.

In a new interview with Bravewords, Jake E. confirms his exit from the group, revealing that he felt like his role in the band had been reduced and that he had become superfluous. The singer states, "Me and Olof (Mörck / guitars) started the band seven or eight years ago, and everything took off in a way we couldn't have imagined. Amaranthe became a huge success and we toured the world, and we had a lot of fun doing that. The first two albums (self-titled debut and The Nexus) were exactly what I wanted the band to sound like; a mix between those Soilwork-like guitars and melodic Bon Jovi-type vocals combined with a female voice. Different elements combined, but the main thing in the music was the metal base."

He continues, "On the Massive Addictive album it started to change into something else that I didn't really control, and you can hear the songs that I was more involved in working on are very metal. When we started working on the Maximalism album I found that it wasn't the Amaranthe I had helped create at the start. It wasn't my vision at all and I realized that I had to be true to myself. That was back in March 2016. I love to tour, I love the fans, but I felt that if I wasn't true to myself."

"My idea from the beginning is that we were supposed to be six people in a band striving for the same goal," says Jake E. "Nobody had ever seen three singers in a metal band in that formation before, and that was my whole selling point for Amaranthe. We should be marketed as a band with three singers and it worked on the first two albums, but I felt that my place both on the albums and live was reduced; I felt like I was superfluous."

The vocalist concludes, "I know my potential as a singer and a songwriter, but over the last couple years I felt I wasn't reaching that potential. You can hardly hear me on the new Amaranthe album. I have a small part here and a small part there, so I started to feel more like a backing singer. I'm 35 years old, and I decided I have to continue with music that makes me happy. Meeting the fans makes me happy and touring is the best thing I've ever done, but I can't stand on stage not believing in what I'm doing. That's the main reason I left Amaranthe."

While Adams sat in for Jake E. during the band's 2016 touring, it is not known what the band will do to fill Jake E.'s parts in the music going forward.

Watch Amaranthe’s Elize Ryd + Jake E. Sing “A Whole New World” From ‘Aladdin – Loudwire Karaoke

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