On August 15, the band ‘Slaughter of the Soul’ announced via social media that Lindberg had been hospitalized since May after being diagnosed with cancer in the mouth and palate at the end of 2023.
At the time, Lindberg expressed satisfaction at having recorded vocals for a new album just before undergoing surgery to remove the affected part.
“So, the vocals were recorded BEFORE the rest of the album… A bit different, but it was good to have managed it. We’ve now decided not to wait any longer to release this album. We had planned to wait to see if and when I would be able to sing again, so we could release the album with concerts,” wrote the musician, a critical figure in extreme music during the 1990s and turn of the century, through bands such as Disfear, Lock Up, The Crown, and Skitsystem.
In the same message, Tomas Lindberg wrote: “Please respect that we don’t want to make this a big deal, and I will not answer interviews about the cancer, treatment, or recovery. We wanted this out there because we wanted to explain to fans why we had been silent for so long.”
“I hope you are all well. Take care of yourselves, your loved ones, and the time you have on this earth,” concluded the social studies teacher.
Since the announcement of Lindberg’s death, reactions have multiplied from bands to music industry professionals.
The director of the specialist magazine Decibel, Albert Mudrian, wrote that the Swedish vocalist “was an advocate for new artists and often undervalued bands, always ready to share an album that excited him.”
“He was always available to help us, too, whether flying from Sweden to participate in person in our issue 100 concert or, remotely, to record a video during the pandemic,” wrote Mudrian, who described Lindberg as a family member and, consequently, member of the family of all readers.
On social media, artists like Japan’s Mono, Britain’s Nick Holmes (of Paradise Lost), and labels Peaceville and 20 Buck Spin lamented the passing of a person who left an “indelible mark” on the genre.
Despite his involvement in various projects, Tomas Lindberg will be particularly remembered for the albums released by At The Gates in the 1990s, notably ‘Slaughter of The Soul,’ released by Britain’s Earache in 1995 and repeatedly listed since then among the best metal albums of all time.
The opening track, ‘Blinded By Fear,’ was featured in a video on MTV.
