Katatonia - Nightmares as Extensions of the Waking State (2025)

As the first Katatonia release without Anders Nyström, “Nightmares as Extensions of the Walking State” continues the band’s moody and melancholic journey with ten emotional songs. While losing Anders was a big blow to the band, Jonas Renkse and company compensate by creating a very dreamy and crafty release that weaves back and forth between bleakness and heaviness, but at the end of the day, still feels as just a continuation of their efforts from the last few years.

The release starts heavy with powerful riffs that very quickly dissolve into the band’s weepy style. New guitarists Nico Elgstrand (ex Entombed) and Sebastian Svalland (ex In Mourning), are definitely capable musicians and imprint some of their personal styles on tracks like “The Liquid Eye”, “Lilac”, and “Departure Trails”, they still mimic some of the older ‘Katatonia-style’ riffs and arrive at a very familiar and traditional sound, which is not band for people expecting more of the same, but it does now grow the band’s musical range.

Do not get us wrong, there are still some pretty solid songs like “Temporal”, “Lilac”, and our favorite, the Doomy “In the Event of”, and there are some more ‘experimental’ ones like “Efter Solen”, this release still feels very familiar and safe. We don’t advocate for any drastic change or anything, but sometimes more of the same is just not enough, even if the album is still pretty good. We just expected a bit more with the new members and their trajectories.

As a whole, “Nightmares as Extensions of the Waking State” is not a bad release, as it is a very quintessential Katatonia album, but it is also nothing more than that. Jonas Renkse has mastered bleakness, moodiness, and crafty instrumentation to deliver that vibe, and the album reflects this with polished and stylish tracks, however, it feels very familiar to their previous releases and does not bring anything else new to the table. If looking for more of the same, this is a release to not miss for any fan of the band and their (later) style of music.

Label: Napalm Records

Release: June 6th, 2025

Genre: Gothic/Alternative/Progressive Rock/Metal

Country: Sweden