One of the architects of ‘The Gothenburg Sound’ Dark Tranquillity will storm Australian shores this month for the first time in over a decade, delivering three exclusive shows in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane!
Masters of melodic death metal, Dark Tranquillity emerged from Sweden’s west coast in the early ’90s, alongside titans like In Flames, At The Gates, and Soilwork. Known for their genre-defining mix of razor-sharp riffs, icy keyboards, and Mikael Stanne’s haunting vocals, the band melds death metal intensity with gothic and progressive experimentation. Through 13 albums, including iconic releases The Gallery, Character, and their latest, 2024’s Endgame Signals, Dark Tranquillity has forged a sound that is as melancholic and thought provoking as it is ferocious.
Now their frontman, Mikael Stanne, has sat down with our very own Dave Griffiths for a chat about the tour.
“We are so angry at ourselves for not coming back sooner,” jokes Mikael when I mention that it has been a decade since they played here. “The last time we were though didn’t end well. The shows were fantastic and the crowds were amazing but there was some issues with the promoter and stuff like that. That is the reason why we haven’t been able to come back.”
“But this time we start in Australia,” he says continuing. “Then we head off to Thailand and a bunch of other places that we have never been to so it is going to be amazing. Our new album dropped last August and we have been pretty much touring since then so we are very, very prepared for these Australian shows… it is going to be fantastic.”
What he has just told me leads me to ask Mikael a question that I have never asked a musician before. How difficult is it to bounce back when something happens behind the scenes, such as issues with a promoter, on tour.
“It is difficult for sure,” he says after thinking for a moment. “Back in the day it would often happen to you in South America and it has happened to us in China as well. Most of the time you can avoid it by talking to other bands and they will warn you about a certain promoter or something like that. So it doesn’t happen too often now days but it is difficult when it does happen.”
As our chat goes on Mikael begins to talk about how their set list has changed since the release of Endgame Signals.
“It was funny,” he explains. “We were playing a show on the night that it came out. So we played all these older songs and then as soon as the clock hit midnight we started to play the newer tracks. Being able to play new songs the very minute that it was released was very, very exciting. Since then we have played around with our repertoire and that has been fantastic.”
“We had our US tour and then we had an European run,” he continues. “I think those tours have been some of the best that we have ever done. That was just the first part, we do the rest of that run when we get back from China… but what we have done so far has been incredible. The band feels incredibly strong at the moment and it feels like we could play absolutely anything right now. We play some of the old songs and of course the new stuff and I feel confident with it all. This is the line-up we have ever had heading into this tour.”
So what makes Mikael feel that this is the best tour that the band have ever done?
“I think it’s coming back from the pandemic,” he said. “I think that made us very hungry. We did tour a lot three years ago but I think we have really upped the production value of the show. We also have a new guitarist who is amazing, but it is also a case that we are really just all in tune with each other. It sounds amazing and it has made us feel that we can do anything. We can do old stuff, we can do deep cuts, we can play the newer tracks. It feels amazing! There maybe some surprise tracks that we haven’t played for a long, long time in Australia has well.”
The fact that the band has also just celebrated its 30th Anniversary has had Mikael going back over the band’s catalogue and he mentions that they might lead to a special tour some time later in the year as well, but it has also left him feeling very nostalgic.
“It feels funny because really this band was never supposed to be anything else other than some friends hanging out,” he says with a laugh. “For some reason we just kept going which led to something fantastic. I think we have lasted because we are always looking at what we can do next and what we can improve on… we are always ask how can we do that better. But really it comes back to the fact that we have always enjoyed what we are doing. We love hanging out together and we love touring. We started this when we were 17 and 18 and really it shaped our futures straightaway. I get emotional thinking about it sometimes.”
