At the Gates are a Swedish melodic death metal band who are considered by many to have had a great influence upon the genre. Originally formed in 1990 after Grotesque broke up the band began as a traditional death metal band, but soon combined the speed and anger of thrash metal with the burgeoning death metal scene in Gothenburg, Sweden, crafting a unique sound. Their most famous album is Slaughter of the Soul, released in 1995. They are part of the Pioneering Swedish Metal Bands which includes bands such as In Flames, Dark Tranquillity, Hypocrisy and Soilwork among others. The band also influenced many modern American Metalcore acts, such as Darkest Hour, The Black Dahlia Murder, and Himsa.

When At the Gates broke up in 1996, drummer Adrian Erlandsson, bassist Jonas Björler and guitarist Anders Björler formed The Haunted while vocalist Tomas Lindberg bounced around between many groups including Skitsystem, Disfear, The Crown, Lock Up, Nightrage and The Great Deceiver. Adrian Erlandsson left The Haunted to join UK black metal outfit Cradle of Filth later on.

In october 2007 the band announced that they will be reuniting for selected festivals in 2008.