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
Dryad of the Woods
Pain of Salvation Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A dryad of the woods
With a sing over her door saying
If you enter
You must forgive me everything!
With a heart too big and brave
To let me dissapear
And still I hear
And so she went over my fence
And reached out a hand
That I had to take
That I just had to take
Love
Never let me
Lose that love
Never let me
Lose that love
Never let me
Lose that love
Never
Sometimes, forgiving will
Just take you one step too far
And you find yourself on remedy lane
Sometimes forgiving is too much
Like self abuse
Sometimes forgiving leaves
Too much sear tissue behind
Even if I could one day learn
To forgive you everything
Could I learn to forgive myself?
Probably
I simply
Didn't
Understand
The full
Notion of
The world
Forgive
The lyrics to Pain of Salvation's song Dryad of the Woods tell a story of a girl who is like a spirit of the forest, a dryad. She has a sign that reads "If you enter, you must forgive me everything!" indicating that she has a past that people may not be able to forgive. Despite this, a narrator comes in and the dryad shows him kindness and acceptance. The singer expresses gratitude but also questions if he can truly forgive himself. The chorus emphasizes that love should never be lost, and the song ends with the singer reflecting on the concept of forgiveness.
The lyrics are metaphorical, using the dryad as a symbol of someone who has faced difficulties in the past that they may feel guilty about. The singer's experience of being shown kindness despite their past seems to be a call for empathy and acceptance. The chorus emphasizes the importance of holding onto love even in difficult situations.
The verses also touch on the concept of forgiveness, questioning whether it is always possible or even beneficial. The line "Sometimes, forgiving will just take you one step too far" suggests that forgiveness can involve sacrificing too much of oneself. The final question of whether the singer can forgive themselves shows that the theme of forgiveness is not just about one's relationship with others but also with oneself.
Line by Line Meaning
Then came a girl
A female person arrived
A dryad of the woods
A tree spirit who lived in the forest
With a sing over her door saying
She had an inscription above her entrance
If you enter
On entering her space
You must forgive me everything!
You are required to pardon all my actions
With a heart too big and brave
A courageous and compassionate soul
To let me disappear
Would not let me go easily
And still I hear
I can still hear her voice
May I sleep at your feet?
Can I rest by your side?
And so she went over my fence
She crossed my boundary
And reached out a hand
She extended an arm to me
That I had to take
I had no choice but to accept
Love
The emotion of affection
Never let me
Don't allow me to
Lose that love
Surrender that feeling
Sometimes, forgiving will
At times, absolution might
Just take you one step too far
Push you beyond a limit
And you find yourself on remedy lane
You might end up seeking a cure
Sometimes forgiving is too much
Pardoning might be excessive
Like self-abuse
Similar to harming oneself
Sometimes forgiving leaves
At times, absolving results in
Too much sear tissue behind
Too many scars and wounds
Even if I could one day learn
Even if I were able to acquire knowledge later on
To forgive you everything
To pardon you for all your actions
Could I learn to forgive myself?
Would I be capable of forgiving myself?
Probably
It's possible
I simply
I only
Didn't
Did not
Understand
Comprehend the full scope of
The full
The complete
Notion of
Concept of
The world
The universe and everything in it
Forgive
Grant absolution or pardon someone for their actions
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: DANIEL GILDENLOEW, PAIN OF SALVATION
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mal Bredova
"Then came a girl
A dryad of the woods
with a sing over her door saying
"If you enter
You must forgive me everything!"
With a heart too big and brave
To let me dissapear
And still I hear
"May I sleep at your feet?"
And so she went over my fence
And reached out a hand
That I had to take
That I just had to take
...love
never let me
lose that love
never let me
lose that love
never let me
lose that love
never...
Sometimes, forgiving will
just take you one step too far
and you find yourself on Remedy Lane
Sometimes forgiving is too much
like self abuse
Sometimes forgiving leaves
too much sear tissue behind
Even if I could one day learn
to forgive you everything
Could I learn to forgive myself?
probably
I simply
didn't
understand
the full
notion of
the world
forgive"
Guillaume Bres
Amazing composition / song writing skills they have, this is pure inspiration.
Kristoffer is such a master of the fretless bass, it's a shame he is so under the radar.
Moldovan Dorin
this music is really unbelievably beautiful. no words could describe it
Astro Pillars Astrology
The change at the end is superb
Monica Campbell
i enjoy the calmness as it is motivating and peaceful. It makes me feel lighten in my spirit. thanks
César HF
Y por qué no bailar ésta noche entre sueños? Me agrada esa lluvia de pétalos en mi mente mientras acaricio tu piel como si todavía fuera mía... Tu aroma...
I know Tony Pope
Thrilling, yet peaceful.
I know Tony Pope
*and
Mogan
Melhor som
Mal Bredova
"Then came a girl
A dryad of the woods
with a sing over her door saying
"If you enter
You must forgive me everything!"
With a heart too big and brave
To let me dissapear
And still I hear
"May I sleep at your feet?"
And so she went over my fence
And reached out a hand
That I had to take
That I just had to take
...love
never let me
lose that love
never let me
lose that love
never let me
lose that love
never...
Sometimes, forgiving will
just take you one step too far
and you find yourself on Remedy Lane
Sometimes forgiving is too much
like self abuse
Sometimes forgiving leaves
too much sear tissue behind
Even if I could one day learn
to forgive you everything
Could I learn to forgive myself?
probably
I simply
didn't
understand
the full
notion of
the world
forgive"
Shane
Beautiful!