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
Handful Of Nothing
Pain of Salvation Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'In time of war the first casualty is truth.' 'What broke in a man when he
Could bring himself to kill another?'
We've seen it before but safe on our suburb screens
Now I am here in the flesh
A witness of war in this godforsaken scene
See children with guns hatred and fear in their eyes
They shoot to release their pain
A conflict to solve no matter if someone dies
Protecting our interests...
Look around, soon there'll be but ruins to be found
Winner will be the last that stands
Lethal moves in a game of chess for the depraved
King or Pawn? Are you worth to save?
(What is the prize for this game we play?)
(And who are the ones that finally pay?)
If we eat more we'll get a handful of nothing
We'll be swallowing dirt
If we push more we'll get a fistful of enough
We'll be swallowing blood
They told me that we could actually save human lives
That armies would preserve the peace
And my work would save, solve and build bonds
Only lies!
And I fed their wallets...
It's strange how we speak of civilised views
While we buy that media warface they sell
A makeup for "Them" so we can decide who's to die
Cause we love it easy:
Here they are - take a good look at the beasts of war!
Let the rain wash that paint away:
Deep inside everyone's a mothers little child
Longing home, lost and led astray
And we prey on this decay!
If we eat more we'll get a handful of nothing
We'll be left with the dirt
If we push more we'll get a fistful of enough
I leave this machine...
I left my life to ease my pain
But I cannot find that cleansing rain...
Look around soon there'll be but ruins to be found
We can change - it's all in our minds...
[-D. Gildenlow]
Step by step hate controls every heart every soul
Every gun pointed at those we paint as Enemies
We provide what they need to let the game proceed
Stuck in machines somewhere we build the cross they bear
Arm to solve, kill to save... God I've felt how it smells!
"My land's my home" - we're blind!
I'm sick of the blood I find!
Step by step greed controls every heart every soul
Arm to kill, kill to live - God how could I believe...
The opening lines of the song, "In time of war the first casualty is truth", and "What broke in a man when he could bring himself to kill another?" immediately set the tone for the rest of the lyrics. Pain of Salvation's "Handful Of Nothing" is about the senselessness of war, and the deep contradictions faced by soldiers who are expected to kill for their country while witnessing the pain, anger, and suffering of those they are killing. The lyrics are a reflection of the band's belief that war is a self-destructive game in which there are no winners, only losers.
The song's first verse describes the horrors of war, the violence, the death, the destruction; things that we usually see on our screens, but now the singer is witnessing it all in the flesh. He sees children with guns, fueled by hatred and fear, shooting to release their pain, solving a conflict at any cost, even if it means someone has to die. The chorus is about the consequence of aggressive behavior, which only leads to an empty, hollow victory where nothing is gained. The song speaks about the propaganda and false promises made by those in power to justify the war, the greedy intentions of those feeding off war, and how it's all too easy to paint one side as the enemy.
The second verse of the song speaks about how hate and greed control every heart, every soul, how soldiers are stuck in machines, building the crosses they bear. The singer is sick of the bloodshed; he cannot find the cleansing rain to end his pain. The conflicting ideals of killing for the sake of saving and arm to kill, kill to live, are highlighted in the concluding lines of the song. The song is a powerful message on the irrationality, foolishness, and senselessness of war.
Line by Line Meaning
In time of war the first casualty is truth.
In a war, people tend to hide the truth and promote propaganda to serve their interests.
What broke in a man when he could bring himself to kill another?
Killing another person takes a significant emotional toll on a human being, and it changes them forever.
We've seen it before but safe on our suburb screens
We've seen images of war before, but we've always watched them from the safety of our homes in the suburbs.
Now I am here in the flesh, a witness of war in this godforsaken scene
I'm now witnessing war firsthand in this desolate place.
Far from those grey walls
Far from the safety and seclusion of our comfortable homes and everyday life.
See children with guns hatred and fear in their eyes
I see children holding guns with a look of hatred and fear in their eyes.
They shoot to release their pain
These children shoot their guns to help cope with their pain.
A conflict to solve no matter if someone dies, protecting our interests...
War is often waged as a means of resolving a conflict, even if it comes at the cost of lives lost, with people fighting for interests they consider valuable.
Look around, soon there'll be but ruins to be found, winner will be the last that stands
In the end, the only thing that will be left behind is a trail of destruction, and the side that emerges victorious will be the only one left standing.
Lethal moves in a game of chess for the depraved, king or pawn? Are you worth to save?
War can often become a game for those who participate in it, with people being positioned as either a king or a pawn, and the value of their worth determined by whether they survive or not.
(What is the prize for this game we play?)
What do we stand to gain from participating in a destructive game like war?
(And who are the ones that finally pay?)
Ultimately, it's always the innocent who have to pay the price for wars waged by others.
If we eat more we'll get a handful of nothing, we'll be swallowing dirt
If we take more than what we need, we'll end up with nothing, in fact, we'll only end up with dirt.
If we push more we'll get a fistful of enough, we'll be swallowing blood
If we take more than what we need, it will lead to violence and bloodshed.
They told me that we could actually save human lives, that armies would preserve the peace, and my work would save, solve and build bonds, only lies! And I fed their wallets...
We're often sold lies about the noble intentions of military leadership, but in reality, it benefits those who profit off of war.
It's strange how we speak of civilised views, while we buy that media warface they sell, a makeup for "Them" so we can decide who's to die
We consider ourselves civilized, while at the same time, we consume the media's war propaganda, allowing us to decide who lives and who dies.
Cause we love it easy:
We prefer to take the easy route, even if it comes at the expense of others' well-being.
Here they are - take a good look at the beasts of war! Let the rain wash that paint away:
We should take a closer look at the true face of war, and let the reality of it wash away the facade presented to us.
Deep inside everyone's a mothers little child, longing home, lost and led astray, and we prey on this decay!
Everyone has an inner child longing for the comfort of home, yet we exploit and take advantage of their vulnerability.
I left my life to ease my pain, but I cannot find that cleansing rain...
Sometimes we make drastic choices to escape our pain, yet it's not always easy to find the peace we seek.
We can change - it's all in our minds...
We have the power to make a difference, but it all starts with changing the way we think.
Step by step hate controls every heart every soul, every gun pointed at those we paint as Enemies, we provide what they need to let the game proceed, stuck in machines somewhere we build the cross they bear, arm to solve, kill to save... God I've felt how it smells!
Hatred takes control of our hearts, influencing our weapons of destruction to those we've designated as enemies, providing what's needed to fuel the war machine. We build the tools that propagate the cross our warriors bear, we use weapons to solve problems and kill to preserve life - I know all too well the smell of war.
"My land's my home" - we're blind!
We're often blinded by a sense of patriotism that keeps us from questioning the morality of war, making us more likely to perpetuate it.
I'm sick of the blood I find!
Witnessing the carnage of war has taken a toll on me, and I'm sick of it all.
Step by step greed controls every heart every soul, arm to kill, kill to live - God how could I believe...
Greed takes hold of our hearts and souls, driving us to kill to stay alive. It's painful to realize how easy it was for me to believe this lie.
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: DANIEL GILDENLOEW, PAIN OF SALVATION
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind