정규 7집으로 레이블 [CENTURY MEDIA]와 3장의 정규앨범을 추가 계약한 후 선보이는 이 앨범은 마치 작품을 새로 받을 때마다 변신을 꾀하는 배우의 연기력을 보여주듯, 모든 트랙에서 예측이 어려울 정도로 기복이 심한 리듬과 사방으로 흘러 넘치는 그루브, 그전까지의 토속적 멜로디과 고딕적 접근을 뛰어넘어 국적의 경계마저 무너뜨리는 아방가르드한 멜로디들로 가득하다. 모든 곡에서 한 번 이상의 변칙적인 전개를 넣고 있으면서도, 끊김이나 지루함은커녕 사이코 드라마의 등장인물처럼 예측할 수 없다.
그리고 이공간에 속한 무중력 상태의 스트링과 변칙적인 헤비메틀 리프에 섞여, 밴드의 연주와 청자 사이에 아무 것도 없는 듯한 집중력도 생긴다. 새 앨범은 2004년 2월 FREDMAN 스튜디오에서 녹음에 들어가 일 주일도 안되어 <OOEN THOUGHT>, <LOST TO APATHY>, <MIND MATTERS>를 공개했고 이때 붙은 이름이 정규 앨범에도 그대로 들어간다. 이번 앨범은 제작 기간만 2년 이상 들인 만큼 작년부터 제작 결과물이 몇 번 공개되었다. EP 발매와 투어를 전후해 이탈리아 및 2004년 여름의 한국 공연에서 신보 수록곡을 맛보기 형식으로 연주한 것. DAMAGE DONE과 HAVEN의 차디찬 그루브감을 더욱 강조한 EP인 <LOST TO APATHY>의 동명 타이틀곡은 발매되자마자 스웨덴 싱글차트 47위에 올랐으며, <THE HAUNTED>, <IIN FLAMES>의 비디오를 만들었던 ROGER JOHANSSON가 감독한 뮤직비디오로 완성되었다. 이 곡은 정식 신보의 발매를 앞두고 CHRISTIAN SLATER가 출연하는 영화 [ALONE IN THE DARK]의 사운드트랙에도 들어간다. 멤버 한 사람마다 강한 개성과 자부심으로 뭉친 DARK TRANQUILLITY는 1996년부터 원하지 않는 것들을 앨범 속에 넣으려는 스텝들과 부딪쳐 가면서까지 자신들의 뜻을 이루는 것으로 알려진다. 그리하여 이번 앨범도 앨범을 듣는 사람들 각각의 상황에 따라 수많은 반응을 얻어낼 수 있도록, 원초적인 인간의 마음을 파고들고 있다.
A human force stronger than logic Beyond the focus and the grander ideas One microcosmos in this wretched piece of hell Distant memories of what empathy we felt No revolution in what they must overthrow In on a secret we all know The need that is our enemy
I don't even want to see you Doing all the same things as me Don't ever let this be you Knowing what it is that drives me
It's all in the future Said with one foot in the grave All in the plan of what we never could achieve No satisfaction We excuse ourselves from progress by post-altering our motives Stories set to match whatever beat that drives the impulse
Whatever tune that carries through What's in a soul that rattles empty In this one reality, too few
Our reach is never wider than the depth of what we grasp A vicious curse on all that we partake in/side the conflict Where no one is the wiser A space invaded A face evaded My space invaded Selfish dosn't begin to cover the sense In this utopia of one to escape the argument To put another filter on
Turn of the century lies Not within the others Turn on the wretchful eye The blindness ends tonight Shelter for the shattered In unison we strive Dare to disassociate And cut the blinds that tie Abstractualize further To the ends of fact and foe Will it out of meaning As silence speaks the truth
I want to hear you scream I want to see you stand Atop the Pantheon of fiction and your failure Grasping for a hiding place Among indifferent stones
A brief reflection It sets the soul apart No selection It tears our world apart These walls are protecting us Burn them to the ground This haven of refuge Burn it to the ground So smudge the lens a little Muffle the voice Phase out of sound a while And let it go
Citizens of choice In a twilight world of your design Left to our devices We stumble on
I want to hear you scream I want to hear you scream
Burn it to the ground No firewall will save you Burn it to the ground Take me to the keep And bare the darkest void Thousandfold the agony Of silenced screams alone Tune right out of static Exorcise the dark How else can we move on
Make enemies of truth and reason In that a rage is born Start out a promise and a venture Where direction was never the goal
How does it feel To run out of nothing Where do you go When you run out?
Never you mind The grand perspective Other forces kept at bay As you narrow the field of vision To retain a sense of control Your focus will remain unfixed In the haze of a world unhinged
Create a sense of purpose Around which you base your faith The doubt that haunts your skin An itch that will linger on Forever
How does it feel To run out of nothing Where do you go When you run out?
You wave off Critique as an offender Never question Where your motives lie As a part of the greatest fable The beast all had forgotten Instincts in a dead end rampage Destruction as a saving grace
You run out of nothing
How does it feel To run out of nothing Where do you go When you run out?
How does it feel To run out of nothing Where do you go? Where do you go?
You try to hide The fact hidden from yourself Your own favourite entertainer Is none other than The one we call you And you need the others To fortify your disgust For the worst of us, to the rest of us
Entertain the thought that We are still alive Entertain the notion Of impending doom Entertain our worst suspicions And our fears Just pull us in And take us down
I hear a mighty cheer Your faith could not be any stronger In your head the stage is set A product of what we're being fed Oblivious by design Not susceptible to any mind
Entertain the thought that We are still alive Entertain the notion Of impending doom Entertain our worst suspicions And our fears Just pull us in And take us down
I can take What's being given I can down Whatever comes I will do What you deem necessary
My fear compels me My fear compels me No more fictitious needs I will not be made a mockery No more chaos seed I am not what you're supposed to see Without a sense of danger Everything is lost In the name of entertainment We are doomed
Entertain the thought that We are still alive Entertain the notion Of impending doom Entertain our worst suspicions And our fears Just pull us in And take us down
The unsaid tone of weak despair Fail to resonate Frayed end of our binding threads Will disintegrate By the laws our physics stage Failure to communicate None too sentient Hear no, see no worthless magic Against all function Ongoing choices the trials will end Filter the nonsense and laugh at what's left Indecision/nonvision what matters taken away
Look at the shell that is you Empty, fragile, weak Soon the battle is over Lost to apathy
So overcome with pointless tears To test pain receptors Nothing matters ever here Put up a nonreaction These eyes will never see Covered up from reality
Look at the shell that is you Empty, fragile, weak Soon the battle is over Lost to apathy
The unknown world that you deny No priority Cannot fail if you never start How predictable I want to know where For madness to start Always the sceptic never be part Introvertive/indescriptive It matters not, not
Look at the shell that is you Empty, fragile, weak
Look at the shell that is you Empty, fragile, weak Soon the battle is over Lost to apathy
The shell that is you Empty, fragile, weak Now the battle is over Lost to apathy
You are all that matters In my private demonology Those who fear** us now The sons of wishes The bastard child of dream Enemies of hope Let it be gone It's all pretend
Mind matters, matters not
Never again In perfect clarity See the day in childlike vision Where does it lead from here On without that guidance Disaster Role model without a part Our search is wider
Cast off those wide-eyed hopes and dreams
Mind matters, matters not
No need to see you there The path we made is clear Just stay ahead of me This is not for me to see
Mind matters, matters not
This time a prayer onto nothing Project again Direct oppose to action All across the board Shortcoming close to call Let it be gone It's all pretend
Insufficient facts Make up for a frail foundation Breeding the obscene For the opinion Customized Is the insight null and substance void upon these wheels Our world will roll Let it be decided Let it be decided who will take the blame Another soul to drain What is it that we see? What is it that we see?
One thought bringing it down Original sinners One thought bringing it down Switch it off
Has it come to this? Enjoying things by proxy Live through others Die just like the rest We all end up screaming A little louder To cover up Another piece of silence Just scream a little louder Punch another hole through media Turn it off
One thought bringing it down Original sinners One thought bringing it down Switch it off
Brace for impact To once a greater vision Our lives now stand to fall
Tyranny of fear A stranglehold on us Stronger day by day It's time to turn it off
One thought bringing it down Original sinners One thought bringing it down Switch it off
It comes from all we're giving In seemingly endless supply As signals cross defiantly Into this volatile mix we charge And the stubborn mind repeats The errors to challenge our grounds Either soar above or the detour takes you right Back down To where no one wants to see Misgivings in this starry nightlight Fill in the blanks That one will fall To the haunts and horrors To the haunts and horrors
There is nothing left A mere shadow When adrenaline runs dry There is nothing there An empty prop When adrenaline runs dry
It gets you deep Down low now As they told you of the blazing heights The stage from which the world is viewed Is the mirror to shatter the image The crypt he kept for hiding Retreat from another attack Painlessly forgiving A refuge in deceptive black
It works within the system And they won't understand A lesser known deceiver Will fool you even more
Now, now, now Now taunt the wasted It's all about nothing What to squeeze within the span of attention Brought to ground Let the chaos pass That one will fail By the screams and terrors By the screams and terrors
There is nothing left A mere shadow When adrenaline runs dry There is nothing there An empty prop When adrenaline runs dry
I grant to you no privilage of person no sense of self denial of choice its wants out so from all the little bits and pieces a simple case of lost and found a wicked new beginning i don't ever want to see it's the oldest trick in the book just like everything you always knew turned upon its very end there's nothing left to be half a mind to say all the things that bother me today you better check if it's me in that coffin of yours or just the one, the one you thought you knew
I am one, Who am I? No character to be lost inside
A mind is hard to please so wander aimlessly
Hands clenched in fists of rage concealed in frustration there's a part of me that cannot deal with the character I am forced to be a thinly veiled plan to lay your world afoot lost in community blind in belonging is there really nothing more than this? the emptiness remains so put on your brave face and take the plunge again
Riddled by the trappings Of words that makes the edges blur Here on the outskirts Of sincerity and pride Stretched as far as words can reach By the lure of higher meaning There's something out there Lost behind the power lines It's all the same to me It's all the same to me Lost all faith in promises And deadlines closing in Tired of deciphering the wayward Stands of truth
I don't care 'Cause I can't feel I don't know Anymore
Sure we've had a good run With vowels, nouns and letters But within its very nature The ability to distort There's nothing in the words I hear That makes me want to take a stand It has gone on for far too long I chose to disengage It's all the same to me It's all the same to me The ends of our conditioning To swallow, take and like it Rather keep me in the dark Than look me in the eye
I don't care 'Cause I can't feel I don't know Anymore
It's all these same things pulling us down To senses gone I cheer It's all these same things making us blind There's nothing here for me
Hear it coming Heading for you now
I can't even stand the tone of arrogance And denial on display Here you are listless Left for deaf Thinking about what standards we set In times of weary tongues And ears that hear no end to it Unwilling or unable The difference left for times Judgement It's all the same to me It's all the same to me It passes on from wicked mouths As victim takes on another role New bold oppressor Our teacher's product Now stands tall
I don't care 'Cause I can't feel I don't know Anymore
It's all these same things pulling us down To senses gone I cheer It's all these same things making us blind There's nothing here for me
It's all this reeking ego craves The sun to never set Why do threads of anger never linger? Why does the ember turn to stone? To where the longing goes In with the sins of old A face of nothing, to never see As blind as free
Everything I want Is in at the end of this Everything I need Will be at the end of me
My negation How will you know my name And sense the danger coming? My negation How can you see my face? What's to become of me?
The art of reduction Stripped down through What seems defendable Scaled to bare revisions To stop making sense Levelling pillars of towering fear Rational instincts and insight to spare End of falseness, end of grace
Everything I fear Is in this failing Nothing of what I am Is in this end
My negation How will you know my name And sense the danger coming? My negation How can you see my face? What's to become of me?
Went inside the caves of seven wolves Felt of the forces that lend themselves to speed those final words to fracture the very structure can't stand this glacial pace the damage done
It seems these days are getting shorter derails my train of thought
What said in hand was done chased unforgiveness down these corridors locked down the basis for the willing form a trail far from strayed the damage done
Set aside from eyes of others Our frail structures can't keep up with the pace
Brought out for all to see the damage done face contradicting needs
We bring our cages home for none to see in vain to lessen responsibility the damage done
이상한 일이다. 다크 트랭퀼리티(Dark Tranquillity)는 매 앨범에 계속성과 차별성을 동시에 부여해왔으며, 창의력과 표현력이 정체된 적이 없다. 이러한 일관됨은 십 수년의 역사를 가진 밴드에게선 좀처럼 찾기 힘들고, 메틀 중에서도 스피드를 중시하는 분파에 속하는 다크 트랭퀼리티의 거친 음악이 서늘하고 음울한 파란색을 띄었다는 것 또한 그렇다. 음악을 폭넓고 깊게 들은, 또는 듣는 이가 만드는 음악과 그렇지 않은 이의 음악엔 차이가 있는데, 다크 트랭퀼리티는 전자의 경우였다. 그렇게 열려있었기에 [Projector](1999)와 같은 혁신이 가능했고, [The Gallery](1995)와 함께 비문(碑文)으로 깊게 새겨질 문구 하나를 보탤 수 있었다.유럽 언더그라운드에서 새로운 바람이 일 무렵, 음...