Dark Tranquility - "Phantom Days"

Photo credit: https://www.facebook.com/dtofficial/photos/a.420686500747/10157231912075748/?type=3&theater

         Dark Tranquility dropped a new track titled "Phantom Days" through Century Media Records on Friday, September 11th, 2020. This new track comes from a new album that's set to drop on November 20th, 2020, titled Moment. This will be their first release since 2016's Atoma. If you're into heavy metal than this name shouldn't be unfamiliar as they've been writing since 1989, and are an integral part of the Gothenburg metal scene. If you're new to this band and/or this genre than you're in for a treat! Melodic Death Metal is a subgenre built on a foundation of melodic riffs while still working with the general structure of standard Death Metal. It's fast, it's got amazing melodies, and some of the best-growled vocals in the Metal genre. 

        Honestly, after all is said and done, it's a pretty great track. It starts with a faded in ambiance before kicking in with a harmonized lick that transitions into the chorus riff which is quite catchy. Mikael Stanne's infamous vocals kick in with the line "It doesn't make it any less real once you feel it, rage with the fire of insight, these are the days that favor the emotional, an amplified belief." It segues to a pre-chorus moment that feels quite like power metal before kicking into the chorus riff again. The solo is pretty great too. I greatly enjoy how the verse/chorus lines blend in and out of each other, though I have to counter that statement with my dislike for how little variety there is in the lyrics. Over 50% of the lyrics are the ones written above, and the song comes in just under four minutes in length. 

        I have my issues with the lyrics, but I've just concluded my sixth and seventh time through the track while writing this piece and will be going in for an 8th once I'm done writing, and honestly, the music sounds so good that the lyrics don't much matter. My gut tells me the lyrics in this song will have more importance in the context of the larger album, but time will have to tell on that one. If you are interested in pre-ordering the album, you can do so here!