Early years (2001–2009) Singer
Michael Poulsen's first band was
death metal act,
Dominus. In 2000, Poulsen became fed up with the death metal music scene, causing Dominus to break up. The line-up for the album consisted of Michael Poulsen (vocals), Jon Larsen (drums), Franz Gottschalk (guitar) and Anders Kjølholm (bass). Critics were generally positive towards
The Strength / The Sound / The Songs. The German
hard rock magazine RockHard gave it 10/10 in a review.
The Strength / The Sound / The Songs also received a handful of awards, including Best Album in the Danish Metal Musik Awards in 2005. Volbeat was praised for its
live performances. Their concert at
Roskilde Festival 2006 received a 6/6 stars review in the Danish newspaper
BT. 2014 The band released their second album,
Rock the Rebel/Metal the Devil, in week 8 of 2007; it debuted as No. 1 in the Danish Top 40 for CD-sales. They opened the
Roskilde Festival in 2007 and also supported
Metallica together with
Mnemic at their concert in Denmark 13 July of that year. In 2009, Volbeat supported the symphonic metal band
Nightwish on their U.S. tour in May. On 31 May 2009 they were on the main stage of the
Pinkpop Festival. They also supported Metallica on the North American leg of Metallica's
World Magnetic Tour from October to December 2009. In 2009 the band played at the biggest open-air festival in Europe (400,000–500,000 rock fans every year),
Przystanek Woodstock in Poland.
Line-up changes (2010–2015) 2014 In June 2010, Volbeat performed at
Download Festival . and also joined
Metallica,
Megadeth,
Anthrax,
Slayer and others in the "Big Four" show at Sonisphere Switzerland. The new album,
Beyond Hell/Above Heaven was released on 10 September 2010. Poulsen said the title "refers to the overall theme of the album, and it continues the storyline from where
Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood left off...". The album was supported by a tour in November. Volbeat's 2011 Grand Summer Tour across North America began in Toronto, Ontario on 24 July at Heavy T.O., and concluded with a two-night stand on 3 & 4 September at the House of Blues in Anaheim, CA. Volbeat co-headlined this tour with rock powerhouse
Cold on all US dates, but not in Canada. On 28 November 2011, Bredahl departed the band. Volbeat committed to playing all 2011–2012 as scheduled either as a trio, or with a replacement guitarist. On 26 January 2012, Volbeat joined
Megadeth,
Motörhead, and
Lacuna Coil on
Gigantour. The tour started in Camden, New Jersey, and culminated on 28 February 2012 in Denver, Colorado, at The Fillmore Auditorium. On the tour, Hank Shermann (
Mercyful Fate) filled in as the guitarist for Volbeat. On their North American Summer tour, which began in June 2012,
Iced Earth and
Hellyeah were the supporting acts. The tour included dates in Baltimore, Toronto, Detroit, Billings, Boston, Tempe, San Francisco, and Weyburn and Lazerfest in Boone, Iowa, and in June, Orion Music Festival, headlined by Metallica, at Bader Field in Atlantic City, New Jersey. In February 2013, Rob Caggiano, formerly of
Anthrax, joined the band as second guitarist. He had been producing and recording guest solos on the band's upcoming album,
Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies, before being asked to join as a full-time member. Singer and guitarist
Michael Poulsen called the collaboration between Caggiano and the rest of the band "so inspiring and in good spirit that we the decided to keep him. Basically we went into the studio as a three piece and came out as a whole band!" The album,
Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies, was released in April 2013. In 2015, the band worked on a new album, with a new song demoed throughout "The Devil's Bleeding Crown" tour. In November 2015, Kjølholm left Volbeat on, as both sides emphasised, good terms with the band.
Recent works (2016–present) In April 2016, "The Devil's Bleeding Crown" was released as the first single from the upcoming album, ''Seal the Deal and Let's Boogie''. A second single, "For Evigt" (Forever), and an English version, "The Bliss", were released 29 April. The album was released on 3 June 2016. For Evigt has become a fan favourite for the
Danish national handball teams, starting at the
2019 World Men's Handball Championship. Kaspar Boye Larsen joined the band as the new bassist on 13 May 2016. The band toured the United Kingdom in 2016 with
Alter Bridge,
Gojira, and
Like a Storm. The band was an opening act on
Metallica's
WorldWired Tour 2017 stadium tour in the US, alongside
Avenged Sevenfold. In summer 2019 Volbeat were one of several supporting acts for
Slipknot's Knotfest Roadshow North American tour. On 10 May 2019, Volbeat released a 40-second song, "Parasite". In anticipation of their, seventh studio album,
Rewind, Replay, Rebound, the band released the singles "Leviathan" (15 May), "
Last Day Under the Sun" (13 June 2019), "Cheapside Sloggers" (18 July), featuring
Gary Holt of
Slayer and "Pelvis on Fire" (26 July). The album was released on 2 August. On 2 June 2021, the band released two singles, "
Wait a Minute My Girl" and "Dagen Før", the latter featuring
Alphabeat's Stine Bramsen. "Wait a Minute My Girl" earned the band their ninth No. 1 on
Billboards Mainstream Rock Airplay chart dated for 21 August 2021. The band is now tied for the 10th-most No. 1s in the chart's 40-year history. The band contributed a cover of the Metallica song "
Don't Tread on Me" to the charity tribute album
The Metallica Blacklist, released in September 2021. Ahead of their upcoming eight studio album, the band released the singles "
Shotgun Blues" on 23 September 2021, and "Becoming" on 28 October 2021. The album,
Servant of the Mind, was released on 3 December 2021. When the band's drummer,
Jon Larsen, was tested positive for
COVID-19 in January 2022, the band had to cancel one show but continued the tour, with
Slayer's former drummer,
Jon Dette, filling in as a touring drummer until Larsen's return. On 13 April 2022, the band released a music video for the song "Temple of Ekur". On 5 June 2023, Volbeat parted ways with lead guitarist Rob Caggiano. For the band's Summer 2023 tour, the lead guitarist position was filled by Flemming C. Lund of The Arcane Order. In 2024, the band members spent time at home and also worked on a new album, scheduled for release in 2025. Michael Poulsen also went on tour with his new death metal band, Asinhell. 2025 saw the release of the singles "
By a Monster's Hand" (6 March), "In the Barn of the Goat Giving Birth to Satan's Spawn in a Dying World of Doom" (4 April), "
Time Will Heal" (16 May) ahead of their ninth studio album,
God of Angels Trust, released on 6 June 2025. ==Recognition==