MARCH 2010

DARK TRANQUILITY

We Are Void

(Century Media, 2010)

90/100

Dark Tranqulity is the band that is truly classic and it never stops to be good.
„We Are The Void“ is the album which is really continuing the sotry of what happened on „Fiction“ and „Character“, but more rafinated and finer. All on this album sounds unbeliveable and puts up usual, chatchy and breaking riff. In general, album sounds really nice.
It in nothing special, but it will make you head bang and scream with Mikael's vocals. Songs on this album have more keyboards sound and sound efects since „Heaven“ album. This gives to this gothic feeling in songs like „Dream Oblivion“ or „Fatalist“. This kills the monotony in some way.
When it is about musical basis of the band, Mikael Stanne is still lead vocal. His vocals are something that will be constant and decent for this band without dissapointments. Vocals that he produces have never been too high or too low. He always leads songs in the right way where they should lead the listener. They are perfectly clean as on their pervious album. They are never focus in the whole songand it always makes song more pleasent to listen with his baritone tones. As i already mentioned keyboards and gothic influence on this album, since 1998. is Martin Brandstorm. They add even bigger gothic feeling than the one on „Ficton“, which makes this album even darker. For killer riffs and tones on guitars are Niklas Sundin and Martin Henriksson responsible for. They added heavy and melodic influence as always. Making those riffs into ones to get into your ears immidiately, that is something that you can always expect from this band. For the first time on this album here are some incredible bass parts which are part, let's say, pretty new member of DT, because so far he didn't participate in making of any of their albums so far, and that is Daniel Antonsson which came to DT as ex Soilwork and Dimension Zero guitarist. For very catchy drums on this album took Anders Jivarp part.
One of the darkest songs on the album is definitelly „Arkhanglesk“. This song starts with melancholic piano melody and guitar riff, and when Mikael's vocal sailes in, comes more darker moment. Sound of this song is incredibly dark, but still controled chaos. General grade of this song would be „the best song on this album“. „Iridium“ goes with different touch. This song is more atmospheric than any other in the album. But it gets amazing move in melodic/doom metal with a bit of core. Constantly and always, this album won't dissapoint you. Any fan of good melodic death or gothic metal will enjoy in listening to this album. And of course nothing will make old DT listener go away.
As the only band who stayed to Gothenberg sound, last album that put some intrige up was „Damage Done“ and soon we are coming to 10 years of their release. What tells us that DT have come to the moment when they are very comfortable in their style looking to experimental part which is happening on „We Are The Void“.
Shortly: great melodic death metal with enough of experimenting with dark and gothic sounds. Very pleasent for listening because it will catch larger mass of fans of metal sounds and spread DT mania.

Official website: www.darktranquility.com

Review: Bojan Ulv Krnjajić