9 Successful Bands That Changed Their Vocalist

Legends in the genre of metalcore, Killswitch Engage burst onto the scene in 1999. Formed in Westfield, Massachusetts, they came together following the demise of separate metalcore bands Aftershock and Overcast. Releasing their debut album in 2000, the five-piece became trailblazers in their genre, helped in no small part by the inclusion of frontman Jesse Leach.

Leach’s heavy and rough vocals provided the perfect front for the bold and intense style the band was running with. Leach unfortunately had to leave the group in 2002 due to issues with depression, and this turn of events lead Killswitch in search for a new vocalist. After a short search, they decided that Howard Jones was the right man for the job.

Sceptical of the metalcore sound at first, Jones quickly grew to love the Killswitch style, and the 2004 album The End of Heartache shot the band into new heights of stardom. Jones’ deep and soothing clean-vocal tones provided a much more melodic feel to the bands' overall sound, and opened a gateway for a wider audience. Jones’ tenure with the band came to an end in 2012, leaving to manage his type-2 diabetes, which had previously left the frontman in a comatose state.

This opened doors for another change in vocalist, and rumours ran rampant on who the new frontman would be - until it was announced that original vocalist Jesse Leach would be re-joining the group. Armed with new determination, and a considerably improved vocal range, Leach recorded on the 2013 album Disarm The Descent, which was a critical and financial success.

Leach continues to tour and record with Killswitch Engage to this day, and improves with each release.