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
People Passing By
Pain of Salvation Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A September sun emerges through clouds, chasing across the sky.
Thoughts are evoked behind detached eyes but people are just passing by:
With smiles for protection.
Unable to see
behind the creature that he seems to be.
Once he was a child with burning desires
with hopes and dreams of what was to come.
deep inside that he must drench to numb.
If we could try to share some of his wounds just for a while.
But we're all just people passing by!
[Midday:]
He's searching through crowds for one that is gone.
Rejecting the facts one more day.
Talking too loud to silence the glow. Coldness becoming his way.
Empathy can't reach through all that blame!
Smiles now forgotten, locked in their frames!
Now he's counting time in beggings and bottles
fading away beneath old news.
So he lost a war: "will I be dead very long?"
He can still hear his voice through the coldness!
If we could try to ease some of his pain just for a while.
But we're all just people passing by!
Part last: nightfall]
Once he was strong, and filled with visions.
With life ahead he set his aims.
Then things went wrong.
Now his ambitions have turned to smiles conserved in frames.
Still could be strong could be a prophet!
He would teach truth to every man!
He'd see the light through every shadow, but Entropia denies he can!
He's sitting numb while dusk is falling. Alone he whispers his "goodnight"
Turning away, when sleep is calling, from all the people passing by
The song People Passing By by Pain of Salvation is a commentary on the pace and detachment of modern society. The lyrics are divided into three parts: daybreak, midday, and nightfall, showing the passing of time and how the subject's life gradually disintegrates. In the first verse, the September sun represents a new beginning, but despite this glimmer, the subject's past haunts him. People around him are unknown, passing by with fake smiles to hide their own pain. The subject was once a child with hopes and dreams, but life took its toll, and now he's lost some faith. However, there are still fires burning within him that he tries to numb, and this can apply to anyone who's trying to cope with their own struggles in life.
In the second part, the subject is looking for someone but refuses to accept that they're gone, which mirrors their denial of reality. They talk too loud to silence their own thoughts, and all the empathy they could have received from others is useless. Everyone has become numb, locked in their own frames of reference, and the subject is now counting down their days, lost in their own despair. They lost a battle they fought, and the song poses the question, "will I be dead very long?" This poignant line reveals the fear of death and the unknown that clouds people's minds.
In the final part, the subject remembers a time when they were strong and filled with vision, but their ambitions have turned to smiles conserved in frames, representing a past they can never relive. They still have the potential to inspire others, but entropy denies them. They're now numb and alone, whispering goodnight to the people passing by. The song is a reminder to listen to others and try to share their pain, even if only for a moment, as we're all just passing by in this world.
Line by Line Meaning
A September sun emerges through clouds, chasing across the sky.
The sun rises up amidst the clouds, moving swiftly across the sky in September.
Thoughts are evoked behind detached eyes but people are just passing by:
Although thoughts are running through his head, others fail to perceive what he's really thinking as everyone else is just moving along with their own lives.
With smiles for protection.
Putting on an outward smile as a safeguard to contain feelings and emotions.
Unable to see behind the creature that he seems to be.
People are unable to comprehend his true persona and what he has been through.
Once he was a child with burning desires with hopes and dreams of what was to come.
Once he was a child who had yearnings and aspirations of making his dreams come true.
So he's lost some faith but still there are fires deep inside that he must drench to numb.
Although he has lost hope, there are still some augmenting emotions inside him that he tries to subdue.
If we could try to share some of his wounds just for a while.
If only people could understand and empathize with him, it can make a difference even for a brief period of time.
But we're all just people passing by!
However, everyone is busy with their own life journey, just moving ahead and not taking a moment to stop and understand others.
He's searching through crowds for one that is gone.
He is constantly searching in the crowd, hoping to come across someone from his past who he has lost.
Rejecting the facts one more day.
He refuses to accept the realities of life, clinging onto a mere hope that what he longs for is still out there somewhere.
Talking too loud to silence the glow.
In an effort to negate the pain and emotions within him, he speaks louder than usual to overshadow them.
Coldness becoming his way.
As a result, he's turning cold towards others.
Empathy can't reach through all that blame!
No one can feel his pain and emotions, as he keeps blaming others for his current predicament.
Smiles now forgotten, locked in their frames!
The smiles he once had are now a distant memory, trapped in photographs.
Now he's counting time in beggings and bottles fading away beneath old news.
He spends his days collecting coins and bottles while numbing his pain with alcohol and wasting away while caught up with the past.
So he lost a war: "will I be dead very long?" He can still hear his voice through the coldness!
He lost a battle in life, and wonders whether his death will soon arrive, as he still holds onto his inner voice, despite the surrounding aloofness.
If we could try to ease some of his pain just for a while.
If only someone could offer comfort and alleviate some of his pain even for a short time.
Once he was strong, and filled with visions.
In the past, he was resolute and ambitious, with a clear vision of his future ahead.
With life ahead he set his aims.
He had goals set for his life, looking forward to a prosperous tomorrow.
Then things went wrong.
However, things went awry, leading him towards a life filled with despair.
Now his ambitions have turned to smiles conserved in frames.
His life plans have now been reduced to photos of his past smiles.
Still could be strong could be a prophet!
Although he has lost hope, he still could become a powerful inspiration to others.
He would teach truth to every man! He'd see the light through every shadow, but Entropia denies he can!
He would enlighten and inspire everyone, no matter what the circumstances. However, the universe doesn't seem to allow him to achieve it.
He's sitting numb while dusk is falling. Alone he whispers his "goodnight"
Sitting alone as the dusk is settling, he is resigned to accepting the condition he is in, bidding farewell to a world filled with chaos.
Turning away, when sleep is calling, from all the people passing by
He is turning away as sleep approaches, separating himself from everyone, as life moves on without him.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind