Trademarks include concept albums focusing on social, environmental, philosophical, and emotional issues as well as songs that incorporate complex rhythms and time changes but retain flowing melodies.
The band was formed by Gildenlöw in 1984 under the name Reality. The band used to participate in many music contests in their homeland of Sweden. The first EP, Hereafter, was recorded in 1996 under the monicker Pain of Salvation, which has been the name of the band since 1991. The Lineup of the band was the same for their first official full length album, Entropia(1997).
After the departure of Daniel Magdic for continuing disagreements with the others over committing to the increasing demands of the band, the band recorded One Hour By The Concrete Lake(1999), a concept album about the issues of nuclear power/waste, disposition of indigenous peoples,industry and human discovery. The band began to receive more attention from critics and magazines all around the world. In 1999 they also played at the famous ProgPower festival in The Netherlands.
Their third and most famous album, The Perfect Element I was released in 2000 and received a great response from the crowd and critics, making them the second most famous Progressive Metal band over the world: a success confirmed by their fourth album, Remedy Lane (2002), a semi-autobiographical album written by Daniel Gildenlöw about loss, love, and life.
2004 saw the release of two different albums, an acoustic live show recorded at Eskilstuna called 12:5 where the band played most of their old famous songs rearranged, and the epic concept album about the origin of humanity and God called BE: It was the first album to divide the fan base in opinion, due to its musically experimental and philosophical nature; and perhaps also its lack of cohesive progressive metal pieces.
BE album was also released in a special DVD edition called BE: The Original Stage Production (2005). With a live CD recorded during the 2003 presentation of the album and a DVD rappresentation from the same dates.
On 21 February 2006, Kristoffer Gildenlöw was asked to leave the band due to him not being able to attend rehearsals, since he lived in Holland and the band lived in Sweden. Kristoffer has a solo album planned for the future, as well as a side project called Dial.
The new album, Scarsick, was released on January 22, 2007. It is more band oriented than BE, with Daniel Gildenlöw playing bass in the studio. Recent interviews with Daniel have revealed that Scarsick is, in fact, the second part of The Perfect Element, confirming the speculation of many fans.
A European tour to support the new album has been announced (it started February 17, 2007). The band will be playing with Simon Andersson, a new replacement bassist on this tour. On the 10th of March, after the Copenhagen show, Simon Andersson was welcomed into Pain of Salvation as a full member. The band issued this message on their website:
He (Simon Andersson) did an outstanding job on the tour and we are looking forward to the coming years with great anticipation. Since his girlfriend is a huge Pain of Salvation fan, we happily expect to see this decision put a little silver lining on their sex life as well, since she can now all of a sudden go to bed with a member of the band :-) Congratulations Simon, and welcome to the family!
In May 2007 it was announced that drummer Johan Langell had decided to leave the band to spend more time with his family.
For Progressive Nation 2009 Tour the band took a new bass guitar player - Per Schelander.
According to their website, there is a new EP "Linoleum" due in November 2009, while a double album "Road Salt", consisting of two parts (Ivory and Ebony) is recorded and to be released in 2010, 2011.
Current lineup:
Daniel Gildenlöw – vocals, guitar
Johan Hallgren – lead guitar, backing vocals
Léo Margarit - drums
Gustaf Hielm - bass guitar, double bass, vocals (1992–1994, 2011–present)
Daniel "D2" Karlsson – keyboards, percussion, backing vocals
Former members:
Daniel Magdic – guitar, backing vocals
Kristoffer Gildenlöw – bass guitar, double bass, backing vocals
Johan Langell – drums, percussion, backing vocals
Magnus Johansson - bass guitar (1990)
Joakim Strandberg - bass guitar (1984–1990)
Mikael Pettersson - drums (1984–1990)
Fredrik Hermansson – keyboards
Simon Andersson - bass guitar, backing vocals (2007-2008)
Per Schelander - bass guitar, backing vocals
Ragnar Zolberg - guitar, vocals, mandolin
06. Her Voice
Pain of Salvation Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Through all these years, just waiting
It all catches up to you when you slow down
I'm back in that yard, tasting that shame
Of pushing her down, Of kids and her games
Their strongholds
I guess I never fully realized then
What she lost when I cut that loss
So she filled the void with unearthly friends
Voices of hers, greater than us
We had a bigger world, we had a better view
I wish she'd never told us about her voices
We were strong, we were much too strong
Never forgive, never forget
We picked and pierced, we ripped and we tore
We hit and we scratched to make in her a hole
Glares and eyes, whispers and notes
Attached to her every pose
We fed her shouts
For the collection of her voices
I was too weak to collect
But so, it turned out, was she
Both paid in soul for the cutting of that loss
Their ugly truth
Outnumbered by far her beautiful dream
And I closed my eyes
Were her eyes in yours already when we met?
Am I still paying debts to recover Life?
Now I can see she proved to be right
As she was called down
It's sad though
That I turned out to be one of her voices.
The lyrics of Pain of Salvation's song 06. Her Voice depict the guilt and regret of the singer, reflecting on their mistreatment of a girl in their younger years. The singer sees the girl's face in the person they're currently looking at and it brings back memories of the shame they felt from their past behavior towards her. The girl had been different, with her own set of "unearthly friends" who were the voices in her head that gave her comfort, but the singer and their friends had ridiculed her for it. As they reminisce, the singer acknowledges that at the time they never fully realized or cared about what they were doing to her, and can now see that they tore her down to fill a void in themselves. The song ends with the sad realization that the girl was right to turn away and that the singer is now one of the many voices that had haunted her.
The tone of the lyrics is contemplative, with the singer examining their thoughts and emotions in hindsight. It's a reflection on the cyclical nature of hurt, the impact of bullying and the weight of regret. Pain of Salvation's use of imagery and metaphor creates a vivid visualization of the situation and engages the listener to empathize with the girl and the singer's remorse.
Line by Line Meaning
Looking at you I see her face
The person speaking sees someone who reminds them of a person from their past.
Through all these years, just waiting
The person thinks about this person from their past often and has been waiting for an opportunity to reconcile.
It all catches up to you when you slow down
When you slow down and take time to reflect, past events and feelings can catch up to you.
I'm back in that yard, tasting that shame
The person is transported back to a moment in their past where they felt shame and regret.
Of pushing her down, Of kids and her games
The person remembers pushing someone down during childhood, likely due to pressure from other children.
Their strongholds
The people around the person had an influence on their actions and attitudes.
We had a bigger world, we had a better view
When younger, the person had a more optimistic and idealistic outlook on life.
I guess I never fully realized then
The person did not fully understand the implications of their actions.
What she lost when I cut that loss
The person's actions had a significant negative effect on the other person involved.
So she filled the void with unearthly friends
The person turned to imaginary or supernatural companions to fill a void left by the other person.
Voices of hers, greater than us
The imaginary companions and the other person's inner voice became more important than their relationships with others.
We wish she'd never told us about her voices
The person thinks that knowing about the other person's inner voice only made things worse.
We were strong, we were much too strong
The person and those around them were too aggressive and oppressive towards the other person.
Never forgive, never forget
The person has not forgiven themselves or forgotten what they did to the other person.
We picked and pierced, we ripped and we tore
The person and their peers bullied and insulted the other person.
We fed her shouts
The person and their peers fueled the other person's inner voice which was not based in reality.
For the collection of her voices
The person and their peers were more interested in their own feelings and ideas than in the well-being of the other person.
I was too weak to collect
The person did not realize the other person was struggling or was too afraid to speak up on their behalf.
But so, it turned out, was she
The other person was also too weak to stand up for themselves or heal from the pain they endured.
Both paid in soul for the cutting of that loss
Both the person and the other person suffered emotionally due to the loss of their relationship and the actions taken.
Their ugly truth
The person's actions toward the other person were cruel and unjustified.
Outnumbered by far her beautiful dream
The other person's positive inner voice and hopes were defeated by the harsh reality of what happened to them.
And I closed my eyes
The person avoids facing the reality of what they did and the lasting impact it had.
Were her eyes in yours already when we met?
The person wonders if something about the other person's personality or experiences was present in this new person they met.
Am I still paying debts to recover Life?
The person still feels guilt and shame over what happened and wonders if they will ever be able to move on from it.
Now I can see she proved to be right
The other person's inner voice and warnings were accurate and the person now realizes this.
As she was called down
The other person was criticized and punished for their behavior or actions.
It's sad though
The person feels regret and sadness over what happened and wishes it could have been different.
That I turned out to be one of her voices.
The person realizes that their actions contributed to the other person's inner voice and subsequent pain.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: DANIEL GILDENLOEW, FREDRIK HERMANSSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Roccdrummer
Dream Theater - greatest musicianship band ever Pain of Salvation - greatest songwriting band ever
CompulsiveDesigns
I turn up my bass really loud for the beginning, those chords are so physically relaxing on the bones. It's hard to believe a song as amazing as this isn't my favorite off the album. Such a good album. So good.
Drjackdanielz
The transition to violins at 6:15 sends shivers down my spine
aggelosmor
this song has one of the most beautiful outros of music history
JoroJojoro
I do agree. The "Entropia - Be" era of Pain of Salvation was simply amazing. Scarsick was... different. And the Road Salt albums? They have some pretty damn awesome songs. Sisters, To The Shoreline and The Deeper Cut are just some examples.
gixeco
they're back with A passing day of light
LiuKhai
There's something with that key intro. It's like a magnet to me. Once the song starts I can't skip it.
ISI Ser
always I love it ❤
Omair Sheikh
I actually used the instrumental section as background music for a funny skit that my friends and I performed on stage during undergrad over 10 years ago
eric vil
20 ans....toujours aussi bon!