DARK TRANQUILLITY

Moment

CENTURY MEDIA

Melodic death metal underdogs make their case for superstardom

IF WE WERE TO make a list of metal’s most underappreciated acts, Dark Tranquillity would be very high on it. Along with In Flames and At The Gates, the sextet were part of 90s Gothenburg’s holy trinity, paramount in defining the melodic death metal genre. Yet, for whatever reason, Mikael Stanne and co rarely enjoy the same notice as their equally game-changing contemporaries. This is in spite of a 20-year-long career with no bad albums, and their development into a unique soundscape mixing melodeath with Paradise Lost-like gothic metal.

Created by men who seem as sick of their ‘B+’ popularity as their fans are, is a jugular-seizing demand for recognition. Rarely have its creators sounded as urgent as they do here, and establish a charming backbone, channelling melodeath mainstays with their simple, grunted hooks and heroic guitar leads.