To start with, may I know what is music to you (first taking it as a
notion, and further getting closer to the subject this interview deals with, i.e. the band you take part in)?

- I guess that to me music is simply one form of expression among many, and it can be enjoyed and devoured on many levels. The music of D.T. demands more attention and devotion to truly like than many other artists, even if our songs have grown shorter and more basic in recent years.

Music is considered an inalienable part of so-called human art, however would you dare to say that we could easily divide art into major and minor kinds? Is this an everlasting phenomena, or, with entering new era and, consequently, the world of technological progress, human kind won't be associated with this notion anymore?

- It's all subjective anyway, so I don't think that art can be judged on some sort of independant quality notion. It all boils down to individual perception and preference in the end. I can't see this change with the rise of the information era of society either. Music and art is a basic need, be it in a stone age setting or a futuristic one.

I know, this is too hackneyed one, but anyway: would you like to make any comments on "Haven"? What about giving us your own review on this CD?

- I won't write my own review, but I can give some general info. Our aim with this album was to bring back some of the intensity and energy that was present on the older albums, but at the same time strive to get a modern and fresh sound. "Haven" is in no way a back-to-the-roots album, but lots of people have found it pretty similar to works like "The Gallery" in atmosphere, even if there are lots of differences. "Haven" is our first recording with a permanent keyboardist and we were eager to explore this new dimension of our sound.

What would you guys do, if you suddenly find out there's no sense in composing anything further since you've put out an ideal recording
already? In fact, do you consider attaining the perfection possible?

- We don't strive for perfection, since you'd probably lose all the nerve and motivation if you suddenly reach that perfect recording. I don't know if it's possible to make the perfect album. People change with with time, and so does their preferences. The only realistic goal is to make sure that a recording is a near-perfect rendition of what the musicans had in mind at the time. If you're equally satisfied 5 years later is another story.

Why have you added electronics to overall band's sound? In order to explore the new territories, thus revealing formerly undiscovered soundscapes, I assume?

- Right on the spot! We've always had the occasional keyboard part in the past, but they were of the one-finger variety and was played by our ourselves. Now, we have a classically trained keyboardist (the only one in D.T. with any sort of musical education at all, I may add) that is contributing heavily to the songs, and it's great to have this new playground of sounds to toy around with.

How has Mikael managed to sing in a "clean" voice that brilliantly? I
mean, his voice sounds incredible!

- He has always had a good singing voice, but before "Projector" there weren't much room for it in our music - excluding some short parts in "Shadow Duet" on the first album. When we were writing the material for "Projector", the instrumental parts got more laidback and introspective, which gave more room for vocal experimentation. His voice is very special, so it surprised us a bit that so many
people immediately liked it.

Furthermore, there aren't too much "clean" singing parts when it comes to "Haven". Why such an injustice?

- Belive it or not, but when "Projector" was released, we were determined that the next album should be slow and heavy and only contain clear vocals. We started out in that direction, writing 3-4 seven minute epics reeking with sparse notes and gloomy atmosphere. It all sounded good, but we grew tired of playing them. As a concequence, most of the songs got cropped and rearranged over and over again until they were much more energetic. Since the music had changed so much, the vocals couldn't remain the same either. When I listen to those early demos today, I hardly can recognize the songs. Imagine "Ego Drama" with only clean guitars and clear vocals played at half the speed of the album version...bizarre.

I have always enjoyed the lyrics of yours. At least, those "Skydancer" and "The Gallery" come with, are beyond any critics - and even if there're few drawbacks, I couldn't care less. Anyway, the question is: due to the fact I still haven't got myself acquainted with lyrical part of "Haven" (as well as "The Mind's I" and "Projector"), could you please enlighten me in regards to it's content? How do you see the metamorphosis your poetry has endured throughout years?
 
- The earlier albums contained a lot of pastoral and overblown lyrics
with lots of references to classical literature. I wrote most of the lyrics then, heavily influenced writers such as Shelley, Milton and so on. Just as the music has gotten more focused and basic over the years, the lyrics have followed a similar direction. Today, I don't see the point in using 17th century language in a metal band in the year of 2001, but back then it was much more about escapism, so it fitted perfectly. Mikael is writing all lyrics since 3-4 years back, and they have a lot more in common with Bukowski than Shakespeare, which I personally think is a move in the right direction.

What about composing few verses in Swedish? Have you ever discussed such a possibility?

- I think that we briefly discussed it back in the good old days, but it never happened. I don't feel singing in Swedish would add much to our music.

Would you like to say anything concerning that "Gothenburg movement"?
It's incredible how many bands emerge from this area - and not even the fact of their enormous number frightens me, but the music which is all the same! Do you have any explanation for that??

- It's really exaggregated. People from abroad usually think that Gothenburg is some sort of metal mecca, with bands lurking in every corner. The truth is that apart from the actual bands, there isn't much of a metal scene here. Of course I'm biased, but I don't think that the music of the bands sounds much similar at all. 5-6 years ago, us and IN FLAMES had much in common musically, but today all bands from here have found their own style. Your impression of all bands from here sounding the same probably has to do with the fact that journalists label all melodic death metal bands from Sweden "Gothenburg bands", even if they live 1500 kilometres from here.

Have you shot any new videos? I've seen only "Hedon" and one more off "The Mind's I" (don't remember which one exactly), however that was a long time ago…

- Did you like them? (yes and no - ED) The other song you saw was "Zodijackyl Light", which we shot at the same time as "Hedon". None of them are very good in my book. We did a video clip for "ThereIn" from "Projector", which turned out pretty OK, but it's really hard to get something decent made on the shoestring budget that you get for a metal video. There isn't much of a market for it, and it's generally very expensive even on low budget, so we didn't make any videos for "Haven".

Seems like you keep on recording at Herr Nordstrom's place. Wasn't you ever thinking of changing the studio in order to enrich or refresh the sound?

- We were actually pretty close to going to another studio this time, but in the end we chose to return to the Fredman quarters. They've recently moved to a new location and gotten lots of new equipment, so it was still a fresh experience for us. Needless to say, it'd be an interesting experience to try a new studio out, but it's hard to find good alternatives here. We can't really afford to travel somewhere for a month to get the job done either, and it'd be very risky to chose a Gothenburg studio without previous experince of metal bands. I very much like the idea of having an own studio in the rehearsal room in order to capture more spontanity during an album recording, but that isn't a realistic option right now or in the nearest future.

Could we fancy a bunch of short-haired individuals delivering the most extreme kind of metal a decade ago? "No" is my answer. However, as time's passing by, we behold as more and more bands reckoned to so-called death, black and what-the-hell-is-that metal genres shave their heads and stuff. No more leather jackets, no more spikes, no more long hair, no more barbarian-alike attitude. If you ask me, I'd say it's only for better… but it's you who should answer this questionnaire, hence go ahead. You guys also don't posses that "good 'ol metalhead" sort of appearance, heh heh.

- Ha ha, the hair question! I thought that it was only in Germany that people went "Why did you cut your hair? It was so long." It's a cliche, but you change with time. Twelve years ago it was important for me to maintain a metal appearance with long hair, bulletbelt and an unwashed VARATHRON t-shirt, but today I couldn't care less. I haven't looked the slightest bit metal since 1996 or something, and why should I? To each their own, I guess. That said, I wasn't very fond of discovering band members with short hair (usually the drummer) on my speed metal albums back in the heyday either. But who needs stereotypes?

While I was composing previous question, I've suddenly realized that it seems like metal music is getting more and more intellectual when it comes to every single thing - musical and lyrical canvases, image, EVERYTHING. Of course, all of those retro-thrash morons… sorry, lovers… would say this is "oh-so-goddamn-commercial", but I guess you're not of them, right?

- Nah... well, I'm pretty indifferent to the retro movement. It just shows that everything goes in cycles when it comes to music. The main point is that the music of these bands is nothing compared to the originals. If I want to hear raw thrash metal, I'd rather listen to an early KREATOR album than a current band trying to imitate them. I think it's hilarious with kids who are totally into HAMMERFALL or EDGUY but consider HELLOWEEN to be old farts...

By the way, if we got back in time with the previous question, let me ask you one more of a kind before we'll be getting back to the present days. If I'm not mistaken, "Skydancer" wasn't the CD you've made your debut with - more likely "A Moonclad Reflection" was the first one. Furthermore, there were few more items you have brought forth the light in early 90ties - and telling me (us) more on this subject would be more than much appreciated!

- "A Moonclad Reflection" wasn't a CD, but a two track 7" EP released by a German rip-off label. Our first release was the 1991 demo tape "Trail Of Life Decayed". As you probably know, it was very common for underground bands to release 7" EP's back then, and we were no exception. Apart from these two releases, there weren't anything before "Skydancer". Well, the "Trail.." demo was also released on an EP in late 1992. Also, we made a special cassette album, "Tranquillity", for the Eastern European market, which consisted of the demo and the EP.

When I gave a listen to "Skydancer" for the first time, back in 1994, I thought "wow, I've never heard such a melodic piece of black metal!". Actually, I was always reckoning DARK TRANQUILLITY to black metal, and even though I wouldn't say the same these days, let me wonder if you agree with me when I'm saying that D.T. has much in common with the BM movement (discounting DARKTHRONE and such, of course… "Melodic black / death" is what I mean, you see)?

- You're not the first to say that, but it still puzzles me. Apart from the screaming vocals, which were rooted in thrash bands such as KREATOR, MERCILESS and SABBAT (UK), I don't see much similarities with black metal. Perhaps some of the early lyrics contained the same sort of pastoral language often (mis)used in black metal, but apart from that...I don't know. We've never looked the slightest black metal-ish in photos or in interviews, and we've never had anything ideologically or rhetorically in common with whatever facet of the BM movement. So I disagree with you there.

Human mind is a weak one, as it was asserted thousand times before. If we once had exposed all of it's capabilities, will it set us free from various sorts of prejudices and superstitions - as well as fear of the supernatural, which in fact was the principal cause for the organized (and non-) religions' foundation?

- I'd definately wouldn't mind replacing religious superstition with the rational scientific thinking, but somehow it doesn't seem realistic. The need for deities is a fundamental part of the human psyche, and I can't see it changing. People are more prone to twist facts to make them fit into their worldview then to refine their mindset. Just look at a certain US president that happily claimed that the recent genome research makes us "understand the language that god used when he created us". In my view, DNA strongly supports the evolution theory which in turn makes the existence of a god unnecessary. Anyway, I don't really like going too much in depth on non-music related topics in band interviews...

Do you know anything regarding Russia? Any metal bands coming from the country of mine you've heard lately?

- I have to admit that I'm not too familar with your country. I actually heard a Russian band called SYMPHONY OF DARKNESS today, as their vocalist sent me an mp3 of a live recording of cover version of "Lethe", he he.

Ok, what's for the future? Musically, are you going to elaborate the same line as you came up with on "Haven"?

- I don't know... Every time we seem to surprise ourselves with the direction an album is taking, so it's too early to predict. Hopefully it'll be something fresh and new while still keeping in the D.T. tradition - whatever that might be. At the moment (March 2001) we've got loads of riffs and ideas that we've just began to arrange into songs. Nothing is really finished yet, and it'll probably take some time before we can sense some sort of direction. The material that we have covers the whole spectrum from the soft and mellow to the fast and intense, so a fair guess is that we have a diverse album in the pipeline. Hopefully we can enter the studio again before the end of the year at least. Other future plans include some festival gigs during the summer and a short tour in Japan, but apart from that we'll be focusing on the songwriting.

Sorry for stealing your time, Niklas! Whatever you'd like to add, this is very place to lay down your final words. Thank you for answering this intie!

- Well, thanks for sending the interview and sorry for testing your patience with the delay in replying.

DARK TRANQUILLITY contact -
Email: niklas@darktranquillity.com