On the occasion of the release 'We Are The Void', we contacted Niklas Sundin, guitarist of Sweden's DAR TRANQUILLITY. This is what he told us:

- HoM: Hello Niklas, how is everything? I guess you are looking forward to the releasing of your "We Are The Void".

- Niklas: Absolutely! I can't wait to get it out there and let people devour in its entirety. I'm usually pretty tired of an album after having recorded it, but "We are the void" is on constant spin here, so I'm really enthusiastic.

- HoM: What's behind this new album? The lyrics are usually written by Mikael, but I suppose you can still explain us what are them about.

- Niklas: Honestly - not really, ha ha! I have the "ritual" of not wanting to delve too deep into the lyrics before the real CD is out and I can sit and listen to it while reading the booklet and really absorbing everything. When working in the studio, you get to hear some words here and there, and when helping out with the vocal tracking, one tends to focus more on the rhythms and sounds of the voice instead of the actual words. The biggest different from our previous lyrics is that they're actually based around the most generic metal topic of them all - death! We've always been avoiding the subject since it can get very predictable, but I think that Mikael has the skills to make something unique out of it.

- HoM: "Fiction" and "Character" were similar works. However, the new work shows a shift away from "Damage Done" sound. You sound darker and even more melodic. Did you need a change of style?

- Niklas: In my view, definitely. The last few albums were all very solid, but it probably was time to do something a bit different, both for us and the audience. It's no secret that I personally prefer the more edgy and adventurous stuff, so I'm very satisfied with how the new album turned out.

- HoM: You didn't want to create a "Fiction 2", right? I suppose so because you created something different but with your characteristic sound

- Niklas: Yes, exactly. The D.T. sound will always be there to some degree. It happens that we work on a new song in the rehearsal room and think that it sounds completely different from what we're usually doing, but when all of us have contributed with our parts and Mikael adds the vocals; it ends up sounding like us anyway, which is a great thing. Even if we have a lot of different "styles" when it comes to riffs and arrangements, there still is the D.T. character shining through.

- HoM: In "In My Absence" the keyboards plays a special role, as well as in "The Grandest Accusation" and "Her Silent Language", where you get into more melodic sounds like the ones you tested in "Haven" or "Projector". Was the initial idea making an album so varied?

- Niklas: Hard to say. It all came naturally. We've never sat down beforehand and decided about the direction for an upcoming album; we start writing songs and see where the process takes us. It probably felt motivating for all of us to expand the borders a bit, and one result of this is that Martin's keyboards branched out in some new directions.

- HoM: Do you consider the new album to be one of the most experimental you have done since "Projector"?

- Niklas: In a way, yes. The music is very different from "Projector" most of the time, but the general vibe and lust for experimentation is similar. But every listener probably has his own opinions about this.

- HoM: Do you have any favorite song from the new album? I think that the guitar melody on "The Fatalist" stands out above all. It is certainly the best you have done in time.

- Niklas: Thanks! "The fatalist" turned out cool; especially the chorus really stood out after the vocals were added. However, "Arkhangelsk" and "Iridium" are the standout tracks for me right now since they're so different from how we usually sound. Once we've started playing the material live, I'm sure that this will change.

- HoM: I suppose that the so compact and direct sound is as result of recording on the studio that your bass player has. Was it easier than usually?

- Niklas: Well, we recorded in both Daniel's and Martin's studios, which was very convenient. Making an album is always hard work, but the process actually gets easier the more experience you get. The biggest advantage of doing everything in our own studios is that there's no stress. We can take all the time needed, whereas on some of the previous albums things we've had a certain number of days booked and things have been really rushed at the end of the recording.

- HoM: I personally believe that you are one of the few Swedish bands from the "melodic death" movement that steel remains true to its sound. How do you feel about this? I guess proud.

- Niklas: Well, believe it or not, but the feelings are mixed. I know that people usually mean it as a compliment, but we were never about "staying true" to a particular sound or style, so to me it partly means that we could have been more experimental and adventurous during all these years. It's great if people think that we've stayed consistently relevant throughout the years, but it was never our ambition to be stuck in the past.

- HoM: For me, you are the true creators of the Gothenburg sound and the only survivors. Did many people tell you this?

- Niklas: People say it all the time, and it's flattering and all, but it's impossible for us to think in that way or even relate to it. It's just about making the music that we like and not about comparing bands on some "trueness" scale. Saying that we're the only survivors is a bit over-dramatic, but sure - we appreciate that people are into what we're doing.

- HoM: Is it hard not to be tempted to move to more commercial lands, even though you could sell more albums? Others did.

- Niklas: We're kind of stubborn I guess. There have been plenty of chances to sell more albums, but mass appeal was never the main goal for D.T. It might sound noble and everything, but we just couldn't be spending all this time and effort into the band if we didn't make the music first and foremost for ourselves, and once you start making music for the masses you become more of an entertainer than an artist. Nothing wrong with that, but it's not how we work.

- HoM: The truth is that the wait has been long, 3 years is a long time. What did you spend your time on, a part of rehearsing and touring?

- Niklas: Most of the time has been spent touring. "Fiction" took us to a lot of places we hadn't visited before. The songwriting process for "We are the void" took about a year, but apart from that we've kept ourselves busy on the road.

- HoM: Niklas, a part of musician, you are a renowned cover artist. How are you doing with Cabin Fever Media? Are you currently working on something new?

- Niklas: I'm actually having a bit of a break at the moment. Things are so busy with the band, and I've also started working on some film/animation projects as well as some personal pieces, so the time for making album covers is very limited. I'm booked for a handful of them for 2010, but it's really time for a change and I'm very enthusiastic about seeing what I can do with moving pictures.

- HoM: Do you have any other hobby a part of drawing and graphic design?

- Niklas: Not really. I have lots of interest, but already have close to zero spare time, so the music and artwork takes up most of my life. When I retire, it's time to think about some hobbies, ha ha!

- HoM: Many guitar players and fanatics of this instrument read us; for sure they would like to know what the equipment you typically use is.

- Niklas: I have a variety of Gibson guitars, and vary the exact model depending on what I want to use at the time. For most of the "Fiction" touring, I played on a Flying V, but my impression is that my Explorer or SG works better for the newer songs. Amps are usually Peavey or Engl, but we use V-amps (yes, really!) live since we have a pretty intricate midi control system allowing all our sound changes to be made automatically. I'm not that much of a guitar connoisseur though – most musicians are way pickier about their equipment than me.

- HoM: As we all know and thanks to the internet, the users are able to listen to the bands for free. Do you know Spotify? What do you think about the fact that anyone can listen to your albums for free? I personally believe that with LastFM was enough for the user. Anyway, for sure the discography has its benefits with this.

- Niklas: Wow, this is a very complex subject, and one could fill entire books with the pros and cons of the "digital revolution". In short, I think Spotify is great for the listener and I use it a lot myself. They're doing everything legit and have agreements with the record labels and rights collection agencies. This is good. However, the compensation going out to the artists is incredibly small, to the degree that it's almost non-existent, so this model has some huge problems if artists still should be able to put food on their table from the time they spend on creating the music. At this point people usually argue that there is a lot of money to be made on playing live and selling shirts as well, but this is only partially true and definitely not valid for all bands. Touring on a professional level is expensive as hell with payments for the crew, work visas, artist taxes, bus rental, travel and shipping expenses and so forth.

- HoM: Do you have any plans for the short-term future? I understand you are going to America, and then, will you pass through Spain? You know you are a very dear band in this country.

- Niklas: Absolutely! Spain is always great to play. We're heading for the US in two weeks and after that there will be festivals and a European tour later in the year. Not sure exactly when, but we'll know for sure in the near future.

- HoM: Now is your turn, what do you want to say to the HallOfMetal readers?

- Niklas: Thanks for reading this and feel to check out the new album!

- HoM: Thanks a lot Niklas. Greetings!

Elaborated by: Juan Carlos García
Translated by:Sandra Bertolin

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