by Cosmo Lee

2004 saw American metal bands hand over fist aping the “Gothenburg sound,” the mid-‘90’s Swedish death metal style featuring melodic guitar harmonies and guttural vocals. After past experiments with clean vocals and gothic electronics, Gothenburg pioneers Dark Tranquillity have returned in “Character” to show the kids how it’s done. The clean vocals and pianos are gone in favor of tight, hard-edged arrangements with clear, powerful production. Unlike American imitations, “Character” has a distinctly Euro feel, with no emo lyrics or hardcore breakdowns. Growled but intelligible vocals, epic guitars, and tasteful electronics form this soundtrack for storming futuristic citadels. Think “The Lord of the Rings” meets “The Matrix”; the album’s stunning artwork (by the band’s guitarist Niklas Sundin) reinforces the techno-Viking vibe. Highlights include “Out of Nothing” with its odd meter grooves and the video for “Lost to Apathy.” Catch Dark Tranquillity on tour in the US this spring with Soilwork, Hypocrisy, and Mnemic.

Guitarist Niklas Sundin gives us his take on their regions sound:

How do you feel about so many American bands imitating the Swedish sound?
Well, imitation is the highest form of flattery, isn’t it? It’s hard to have much of an opinion on it, but of course it’s good to know that our little scene has made some sort of difference. That said, it does feel weird to listen to so many new US bands, that supposedly are doing something ‘new wave’, where many riffs sounds like something we did ten years ago. But it’s cool, and some of those bands are very good. In my ears it’s not about copycatting either, as the added hardcore elements make it something different. There are lots of European bands playing in the ‘The gallery’ style without changing the original formula so much, but the US bands are injecting something of their own as well.

In December in London, you played a one-off show with Arch Enemy, The Haunted, and Nightrage. How was the show, and how was the English audience?
The gig was excellent, and it was really neat to see that almost 2000 people came out for an evening of Swedish metal. London, and the UK in general, is getting way better in terms of crowd response and general interest. That show really underlined how things have changed since the last time we played there. Everyone had a good time and it was something of a special occasion. We played some of the “Character” songs live for the first time so it was a memorable event.

The artwork and liner notes for “Character” are incredible. What was the concept behind the artwork, and can Niklas Sundin’s graphic talents be seen anywhere else?
Thanks. I work as a graphic designer, and have done album covers for a lot of bands (In Flames, Arch Enemy, Sentenced). It’s always a plus if someone from within the band is able to take care of the visuals, as it all gets more genuine and authentic than if you’d commission someone from the outside for the job. As for the concept, I just focused on the lyrics and music and tried to present my own interpretation of the ideas therein. “Character” is not a conceptual album, but there’s something of an underlying theme that I needed to represent without making it too obvious. Most songs deal with different responses to different situations and the cityscape on the front cover is a good visual metaphor for this.

Have you or any of your fellow Swedish bands been able to give up your day jobs? Does Sweden’s government provide support for artists or funding for cultural exchanges?
No, that’s not possible at the moment. If anything, a lot of musicians have learned to abuse the Swedish social welfare system more than anything else! (laughs). There’s still a big misconception that playing in a signed band gives you any money to speak of, but I don’t know of any band that makes their living solely from their music, unless they’re touring for 11 months a year. When people aren’t on the road, they need to support themselves by regular work. The whole thing isn’t as glamorous that people want it to be.

Many Europeans are fluent in English to some degree. However, why do most bands sing in English instead of their native languages, especially when music such as the Gothenburg sound has such a regional character?
Well, since most people from here speak English as good as any native speaker, there’s no need to exclude a lot of people by limiting ourselves to singing in Swedish. It’s a matter of being able to communicate with as many as possible, and if we were to write lyrics in our mother tongue, 95% of our current audience wouldn’t understand a thing which would alienate them from the experience. There are bands - mainly Norwegian or Finnish I guess - that do sing in their native language, but then it’s more a case of trying to achieve some archaic, “ancient” vibe, and that’s not really what D.T. is about.

www.darktranquillity.com

2005 “Character” (Century Media)
2004 “Lost to Apathy EP” (Century Media)
2004 “Exposures” (Century Media)
2002 “Damage Done” (Century Media)
2000 “Haven” (Century Media)
1999 “Projector” (Century Media)
1997 “The Mind’s I” (Osmose)
1996 “Enter Suicidal Angels” (Osmose)
1995 “The Gallery” (Osmose)
1995 “Of Chaos and Eternal Night” (Spinefarm)
1993 “Skydancer” (Spinefarm)