Review DARK TRANQUILLITY “Endtime Signals”

Melodic death metal veterans Dark Tranquillity have been a steady force in heavy metal for decades. Founded in 1991 and releasing their debut album in 1993, the band from Gothenburg is one of the pioneers of melodic death metal from Sweden’s west coast, as proven by numerous albums with a new effort ready to hit the shelves.

“Endtime Signals” is the 13th studio album from the Swedes following “Moment”, which was released in 2020.

Dark Tranquillity has always delivered quality. Driven by Mikael Stanne and Martin Brändström, the band grew into one of the icons of melodic death metal and now, with a new rhythm section in place, the latest release is another powerful example of the Swedish quintet’s class.

Christian Jansson and Joakim Strandberg-Nilsson joined Dark Tranquillity in 2022, and “Endtime Signals” is the first studio album to feature this new heartbeat-providing duo. When it comes to the sound of the new release, the band picks up where they left off with “Moment”. However, the new songs are a bit less layered than the ones on their previous release. Melodies are an important factor for this album, while Mikael Stanne with his harsh vocals provides some edges. The rougher vocals and the partly clean voice give a good mix and some extra tension that sometimes comes together in a single song – like “Not Nothing” which is one of the singles released before the album’s release.

An emotional moment on the album is called “One of Us Is Gone”. Stanne’s clean vocals add a lot of emotive impact to the song, which is the melancholic highlight of the album. In contrast to such a track, “Unforgivable” is one of the album’s heavier tracks. Equipped with a blistering speed, the song combines all the band’s trademarks as melody and aggressiveness blend in perfection.

“Our Disconnect” follows a similar songwriting approach as “One of Us Is Gone”, but is heavier than the latter. What both songs have in common is the dark and somber vibe with keyboards wrapping the tune in musical grayness.

Another riff attack is called “A Bleaker Sun” and it is the totality of the songs that shows the versatility of this album. Dark Tranquillity have created a record that is wild, ferocious and calm. It is melodic, yet heavy, and also offers a sense of hope. The band ties it all together and releases an album that is one of the most mature and varied releases in the band’s history. There’s no weak spot on the album and even though it’s sometimes hard to draw a line between Dark Tranquillity and The Halo Effect, another band with Stanne on vocals, Dark Tranquillity still have their own identity, which is perfectly reflected on “Endtime Signals”.