(photo taken from Metal Library)

Niklas Sundin shreds for Dark Tranquillity, as well as a band called Laethora. He’s also a talented graphic designer – you can see his work at Cabin Fever Media. Some of his work splices this interview. Century Media was gracious enough to hook up an interview with him in lieu of the forthcoming Dark Tranquillity EP.

Ilia Badrov from The Fading wrote many of these questions – The Fading is considered to be the next Israeli band that’s going to break internationally, so consider yourselves warned.

MI: Which bands inspired you in the early days, and who inspires you now?

NS: When we started out, we all listened to the usual underground bands at that time: Nihilist, Merciless, Morbid Angel, Fatal, Dr. Shrinker, Carcass, Grotesque, Paradise Lost and so forth. We also were heavily into speed/power metal such as early Helloween, Scanner, S.D.I., Warrant (Germany) as well as thrash bands like Sabbat (UK), Tankard, Kreator and Testament. Some us were also fans of classical and traditional music, which definitely can be heard in our earliest releases. These days, everyone has their own music taste, and between us we probably cover every genre there is. If there is quality in the music it can be inspirational, no matter it it’s metal, pop, electronica or whatever.

MI: Why did you change your style so dramatically with Haven?

NS: For every album we basically do what feels natural. At the time of writing the “Haven” songs, we had just had our first line-up change in five years, and the two new members brought a lot of new inspiration and motivation to the band. Therefore, the material turned out to be pretty upbeat and “bouncy”. Since it was our first release with a full-time keyboardist, there are a lot of electronics in the mix as well. I don’t agree that “Haven” was such a dramatic change though. “Projector” was way more shocking to most of our fans.

MI: What made you decide to return to your more brutal roots?

NS: Again, it’s usually a case of wanting to do something different for every album. After having spent some years exploring the slower side of the band with “Projector” and “Haven”, it suddenly felt very rewarding and challenging to start bringing in some faster stuff again, so “Damage Done” and “Character” showcased some back-to-the-roots-tendencies while still being modern in terms of the song structures and playing.

MI: What direction have you taken with the new album? From the Youtube preview it seems awesome. What are we in for?

NS: As a whole, it’s more diverse and features bigger variation between the songs than – for example – “Character”, but there’s no point in elaborating too much as you all can hear it pretty soon. Also, it’s hard be objective about our own work; once a recording is finished you’re usually so fed up with the songs that you don’t want to think of them, let alone try to describe how they sound. I’m not sure if all the songs you can hear on the Youtube preview will actually be featured on the album or if they’ll be saved for B-sides.

MI: Why don’t you use Mikael’s clean vocals again? At least in some of the songs.

NS: When we started having clear male vocals, on the “Skydancer” album in 1993, it was something drastically new that no band in our genre had tried before. Same thing with “Projector”. 1-2 years after it was released, tons of other Swedish bands – and eventually American bands as well – began using clear vocals in choruses, albeit in a more streamlined and catchy manner. There’s no point in doing what everyone else is doing, and the music of the last few albums haven’t really been suited to normal singing either. If we were to include clear vocals just to please the fans, we’d be total sellouts. I’m sure we’ll have Mikael’s singing voice again in the future, but then it really has to suit the music and feel right.

MI: If you had an offer to tour with Britney Spears, would you say yes?

NS: Heh…hard to give a good reply since such a thing never ever would happen. If it did, I’m sure we could spend all that money in better ways (support bands have to pay, you know), so…nope!

MI: Do you ever feel that DT is work for you and not your main passion like it was when you just started?

NS: Of course motivation comes and goes, but if there wouldn’t be any passion left, we’d just quit. We were 15-16 years old when we formed the band, and now we’re twice as old, so obviously most things are radically different now, but as long as we feel that we have something to say with our music we’ll continue for sure. And from a practical viewpoint, things are way better now than – say – ten years ago, as everything is more professional. And we still have full time day jobs, so the band isn’t “work” in that respect, which I think is a good thing.

MI: Who are your best friends from all the bands you toured with?

NS: We usually got along with anyone. Most metal musicians – with a few exceptions – are down to earth people without any big rockstar egos, so it’s no problem.

MI: Have you heard some Israeli bands? Betzefer for example, who worked with Tue Madsen as well.

NS: I’ve only heard Salem and Orphaned land from your country, both good bands in my opinion. Melechesh are great, are they still considered an Israeli band?

MI: When you enter the DT website, it says “Blind at Heart.” What does that mean?

NS: It’s a title of one of the faster songs from the upcoming album. We played it live during a few festivals last summer, and I think there are some bootleg clips available on the net as well. We’ve re-arranged the track a bit since then, so the album version is a bit different.

MI: Your lyrics are excellent. Better than excellent. What are you guys reading? What inspires Mikael to write like that?

NS: Thanks! Mikael is a good lyricst for sure. Not sure what his reading preferences are at the moment, but he’s a bookworm with broad tastes. Life and experiences in general are the biggest inspirational sources. Anything that affects you in some way can be inspiring; be it a movie, a night out or whatever.

MI: I tried contacting your booking agency quite a few times in order to bring you guys to Israel, with no response. Would you guys play in Israel? Is it up to you, or to the booking agency?

NS: We’re willing to play everywhere as long as the conditions are decent and the timing works out. We don’t have any input in these matters, though – it’s totally up to the booking agents and the management, and we stay out of it all since it’s a messy and dirty business that is better left to the professionals. Usually, we never even hear about show offers until they’re confirmed.

MI: Is a European or North American tour on the immediate horizon?

NS: I’m sure that there will be a lot of touring for the new album, but it’s a bit early to have any confirmed plans right now. The CD will most likely be out in April, so I’m guessing that we’ll do a US tour shortly after that, play the summer festivals and then make a European trek in the autumn. But it’s just speculation at this point. Within a couple of weeks, the schedule for the next year will be much clearer.

MI: I would ask you what you think of what’s going on in the world on a political level right now, especially in Israel, but it’s a complicated question. If you have some thought that you do want to share, please feel free.

NS: I’m sorry, but I have the policy of not discussing these issues in band interviews. Whatever I would say wouldn’t be representative for the band, since we’re all individuals with different opinions on things. D.T. is about the musical experience, everything else is irrelevant. Most of us don’t even care enough about politics to even have an opinion.

MI: Thanks so much for your time and we can’t wait to hear the new album.

NS: Thanks for the interview!