It’s said that from tiny acorns might oaks grow, and if you need proof look no further than Sweden metallers Katatonia. Formed by Jonas Renkse and Anders Nyström as a studio-only project in 1991, they’ve evolved from their death/doom metal roots into a progressive metal band that has devoured the world. An unstoppable force, their latest album Nightmares As Extensions Of The Waking State, will be their first without founding member Nyström and finds the band forging forwards to release a record that stands as a career highlight.
If Katatonia can be called “progressive” it is only in its truest definition; they are the kind of band in constant regeneration and have no two albums in their discography which sound the same. That can sometimes be annoying for fans who want a continuity, but for those prepared to travel with the band, it has taken them on an amazing journey. Opening with a drum roll that peels back the curtain that separates this world from the next, first track ‘Thrice’ becomes a vivid soundscape which pulls the listener into the band’s world and perfectly encapsulates that magical moment somewhere betwixt wake and sleep.
Along with a desire to progress, another constant in the Katatonia world has been the dark aesthetic that has hung over their work. This album is no exception (as the title implies) and there’s a ritualistic nature to songs such as ‘Wind Of No Change’ that would make them the perfect soundtrack to a Satanic meet-up. Likewise, you might expect an album’s lead single to have a commercial edge, something with crossover appeal, but no so with Katatonia; you get the feeling that this album has been written with the intention of pleasing no one but themselves, and in doing so they’re sure to please their legions of fans, too.
Listening to this album is very much like being on a roller coaster; the band take you to some heady heights where we breathe some rarefied air before dropping us to some lows where the sound weighs heavy, as if the ocean bearing down upon a shipwreck. The album is produced by vocalist Jonas Renske, and it can be a risky move when an artist is so invested in the work, yet he’s given the album a crystalline production which fits the record’s aesthetic perfectly and subsequently we can look right into the inner workings of songs such as ‘The Light Which I Bleed’ as if we are looking deep into a person’s soul.
‘In The Event Of’ makes for a rather ominous closer and one that suggests there’s much more to come from this crew, and for a band rapidly approaching their thirty-fifth anniversary, that’s something special.
- Nightmares As Extensions Of The Waking State is released via Napalm Records on 6th June 2026.
- Official Website
Track List:
1. Thrice
2. The Liquid Eye
3. Wind of no Change
4. Lilac
5. Temporal
6. Departure Trails
7. Warden
8. The Light Which I Bleed
9. Efter Solen
10. In the Event of
