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
13. Leaving Entropia
Pain of Salvation Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
walk with me
And see the world I see
It is our home
It's where we all belong
life is flair
A fleeting sigh
But though pointless it may seem...
Live as death were but a dream
you don't have to walk their way
You don't have to watch the show
You don't have to play their game
And you don't have to die to leave entropia
all remains...
Forgotten smiles in frames
Two fleeting lives cut down to pocket-size
walk with me
And change the world we see
We'll cease to be
Just people passing by
Home is where we all get by
you don't have to cry for more
You don't have to have it all
You don't have to win a war
If death is but a dream
Then don't let me...
...fall asleep
The song, "Leaving Entropia" by Pain of Salvation, is a contemplative piece about the transience of life, the futility of materialistic pursuits, and the role of individual choice in finding meaning and purpose. The first verse invites the listener into the artist's world and expresses a sense of belonging and shared humanity. The second verse describes life as a transient, fragile thing that can be lived with purpose and meaning in spite of its seeming senselessness. The chorus reinforces the message of self-determination and emphasizes the freedom of choice that comes with it. The final verses reflect on the inevitability of death and the impermanence of the things we hold dear. The song ends with a plea not to fall asleep and to keep fighting to find meaning in life.
Line by Line Meaning
walk with me
Come with me on a journey
And see the world I see
Experience the same things I do
It is our home
The world we live in is where we belong
It's where we all belong
Everyone is a part of this world
life is flair
Life is a temporary, delicate thing
A brittle dress we wear
Our bodies are fragile and can easily break down
A fleeting sigh
Life passes by quickly and is over before we know it
But though pointless it may seem...
Even though life may seem meaningless
Live as death were but a dream
Live life to the fullest as if death isn't real
you don't have to walk their way
You don't have to conform to society's expectations
You don't have to watch the show
You don't have to be a spectator of other's lives
You don't have to play their game
You don't have to follow the rules that others set for you
And you don't have to die to leave entropia
You don't have to accept the chaos of the world
all remains...
All we have left are memories
Forgotten smiles in frames
The good times are captured in photos, but eventually forgotten
Two fleeting lives cut down to pocket-size
The people in the photos are now gone and reduced to small keepsakes
And change the world we see
Let's work together to make the world a better place
We'll cease to be
Eventually, we all die
Just people passing by
In the grand scheme of things, our lives are temporary
Home is where we all get by
Despite the difficulties, home is where we find comfort
you don't have to cry for more
You don't have to constantly strive for more than what you have
You don't have to have it all
You don't need to possess everything to be happy
You don't have to win a war
You don't have to participate in conflicts to feel powerful
If death is but a dream
If death isn't real
Then don't let me...
Then help me stay awake and alive
...fall asleep
Don't let me die
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Daniel Gildenloew
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind