Dark Tranquillity - Moment (2020)

Unleashing one of the most expected releases of 2020, today we have Sweden’s Dark Tranquillity and their mesmerizing release “Moment”. Featuring over 41-minutes of superbly crafted Melodic Death Metal, the band continues to deliver their signature style music with a few additions courtesy of new guitarists Johan Reinholdz and Christopher Amott.

Opening the release with great style and energy, “Phantom Days” sets forth this aural journey with the futuristic keyboards of Martin Brändström alongside re-energized melodic guitar passages and exciting guitar leads. As both Amott and Reinholdz have integrated into the band, tracks like “Transient” and “Identical to None” change things up a bit and feel more energetic and engaging, with ripping solos and unparalleled guitar craftsmanship, to go alongside the band’s signature melody.

Tracks like “The Dark Unbroken” and “Remain in the Unknown” are nicely adorned with a mixture of clean and harsh vocals, which showcase Mikael Stanne evolving even further as a singer, and yet delivering those chills that classic songs like “ThereIn” evoke. Oozing melancholy and brilliantly balanced atmospheric, melodic, and aggressive sections, “Standstill”, “Ego Deception”, and “A Drawn out Exit”, showcase the band’s creativity while staying true to their core sound.

The band's quintessential style perfectly shines on crafty tracks like the "Empires Lost to Time" and the crafty "Failstate". As the melancholic clean vocals of “In Truth Divided” nicely complement the sweeping guitars, we are more than satisfied with Dark Tranquillity’s latest opus. Catering to their strengths and further refining some elements of their sound to play on their new members strengths, “Moment” is one of those releases that is near perfect in execution and composition. If you love the band’s earlier work, this is the perfect continuation to their storied career, if you never heard of them, you will become an instant fan.

Label: Century Media Records

Release: November 20th, 2020

Genre: Melodic Death Metal

Country: Sweden