Musings on Katatonia: "Night is the New Day" (2009, Peaceville Records)

This is so far the latest (year 2009) album by the Swedish melancholic doom masters Katatonia, and in my personal opinion, this stuff is pure brilliance. There is not a single weak song on this album, there is no meaningless song. Trying to put Katatonia into a music genre would do no justice; their style is so varied and diverse that they may deserve a completely separate “box”. They have transferred from the early era death metal growls to something completely and utterly different in the beginning of 2000s („Last Fair Deal Gone Down“ 2001, „Viva Emptiness“ 2003) and back to heavier and more progressive/alternative metallic/melancholic moods („The Great Cold Distance“ 2006, „Night is the New Day“ 2009). It can be difficult to grasp that songs like „Murder“ (1996), “We Must Bury You” (2001) „Omerta (2003) and „Liberation“ (2009) are from the one and the same bunch of guys.

Jonas Renkse is an extremely gifted vocalist (and songwriter), and the rest of the orchestra is not slacking far behind. Katatonia is all about angst and (hidden) hope. Renkse is capable of expressing the whole range of emotions through his very unique, distinctive, “monotonous” (characteristic to the later period) singing style, which crawls right under your skin (under mine, anyway). Lyrics are very important; there would be no music without.

So where does this piece of melodic art take the listener?
From the raging and depressive „Forsaker“ [The dark will rise / abandon your freedom / give up the right to find your true self] to brilliantly atmospheric „The Longest Year“, with lyrics presented in the techinque of opposites, where heat feels cold and light feels dark [How cold is the flame of our uncompromising future? / How cold is the sun?] [The city lights fading still / the coming sky so white / and I am the dark of this our new day / this is my way]. „Idle Blood“ follows with pleasant contradiction between the noticeably carefree tunes and dark message [These wounds kill time / my struggle sublime / idle the blood, black state of mind / all dreams left behind]. „Onward Into Battle“ shines with restless, groovy basslines while „Liberation“ flirts with generally heavier grounds and glimpses back to the sounds of „The Great Cold Distance“ [Our thoughts entwined / you speak and I hear other words behind]. „The Promise of Deceit“ peaks with heavy, angsty, accusing lines of poetry [So when did you come to think / that you would tell me that I have no one?], „Nephilim“ is a slow-paced ode of Nephilim coming down from the skies [Loving mother / he has come / to take your son]. „New Night“ sways between heavy guitars and more melancholic tunes, once again taking us back to what I remember and would call „summer sombre“ from their previous album, specifically in the dry, painfully burning song „July“ [Though summer unwinds now / I have no reason to follow] (cmpr „July“ – [I see the bright lights / it’s the month of July / it’s violent here / why have you left me]). In gloomy and wisely worded „Inheritance“ [Our graves above the timberline / our names chalked / treasure or wealth no longer found], Jonas Renkse’s vocals jump from light accent to dark and suggestive territories, and then back again. „Day and Then the Shade“ was made into a single (and has a quite disturbing video for my personal taste) and continues with gloomy and (slightly?) suicidal themes, the constant struggle [Every waking hour is part of the lie]. The end track „Departer“ completes the chapter, wandering in the midst of ghostly and vile summer atmosphere [I’m so slow compared to you departer / it’s the month of July].

Lyrics, which cut through my skin like a scalpel.
From "Night is the New Day"


You have lost, no-one has won.
From "The Great Cold Distance"


The most beautiful, gentle, tragic song.
From "Viva Emptiness"


Probably their shortest song of 2:50 minutes.
From "Last Fair Deal Gone Down"

I will be able to see the band live here in Helsinki in the middle of December. Hope the show will be good :)