REMEDY LANE

'Remedy Lane' is the fourth album by Pain of Salvation, released in January 2002. It is a concept album about focusing on a character's search for self-discovery. 'Remedy Lane,' written by Daniel Gildenlöw, is semi-autobiographical in nature. I view 'Remedy Lane' and its predecessor, 'The Perfect Element - Part 1' as companion albums. Sonically, both albums are similar. However, there are still aspects of 'Remedy Lane' that make it a unique album in the Pain of Salvation discography. I find that I can listen to many of the songs on 'Remedy Lane' in isolation, which I can't say for most songs on 'The Perfect Element - Part 1.' 'Remedy Lane' is structured the same as 'One Hour by the Concrete Lake." The album is divided into three chapters, and "Of Two Beginnings" is the prologue. Chapter 1 consists of the tracks "Ending Theme," "Fandango," "A Trace of Blood," and "This Heart of Mine (I Pledge)." Chapter 2 consists of "Undertow," "Rope Ends," "Chain Sling," and "Dryad of the Woods." Chapter 3 consists of the title track, "Waking Every God," "Second Love," and "Beyond the Pale."

The opening track, "Of Two Beginnings," lulls the listener by starting atmospheric and tentative. Then, the music sucker punches the listener with an explosion of music. This transitions nicely into "Ending Theme." I love the irony of the title. "Ending Theme" captures Daniel Gildenlöw's broad vocal range. Gildenlöw raps during the bridge. "Ending Theme" is a fairly accessible song. The lyric, "to be honest, I don't know what I'm looking for" is Gildenlöw's mantra of life. A drop-D guitar riff in 5/4 opens "Fandango." The vocal melody is idiosyncratic, but after numerous listens it makes sense why this melody was chosen. Like the vocal melody to "Morning on Earth," there are unusual intervalic jumps, but Daniel Gildenlöw sings it well. I like the dichotomy between the unsettling verse and the harmonious chorus, which uses a 5:4 polyrhythm. There's an interesting back-and-forth vocal effect during the "All his life..." lyric, which is discombobulating. Gildenlöw sings high, reinforced falsetto notes during the final "Watch them dance" lyric, which is the climax of "Fandango." A stripped down chorus at the end featuring just piano and vocals ends "Fandango," and transitions into "A Trace of Blood." The first minute of "A Trace of Blood" reminds me of Fish-era Marillion. Especially Fredrik Hermansson's piano, which reminds me of Mark Kelly's playing. The lyrics are heart-wrenching as Gildenlöw vividly describes his wife's miscarriage, which occurred during the recording sessions for 'One Hour by the Concrete Lake.' The line, "Now I will always fear to hope again," resonates with me. The guitar tapping towards the end and the accompanying music reminds me of music from Mortal Kombat. "A Trace of Blood," like "Fandango," ends with a stripped-down, melancholic chorus. "This Heart of Mine (I Pledge)" is a beautiful song filled with major seventh chords; something you don't hear much in a Pain of Salvation song. The second half takes on a darker mood and is the climax of the song. "This Heart of Mine (I Pledge)" is one of the happier moments on 'Remedy Lane,' which is an aspect that makes this album different from 'The Perfect Element - Part 1.'

"Undertow" is one of the most popular Pain of Salvation songs and one of my personal favorites. "Undertow" begins with a beautifully dark guitar melody. The song gradually crescendos to the climax, which is a highlight on 'Remedy Lane.' "Rope Ends" has one of the strangest syncopated rhythms I've heard in a song, but it works and isn't overused. "Rope Ends" has an excellent instrumental section, similar to "Her Voices" from the previous album. This section contains a shred guitar solo that is melodically interesting. Pain of Salvation are known for writing lyrical music, but they also provide a satisfying balance of vocal bits and instrumental bits, as demonstrated on "Rope Ends." The music of "Chain Sling" has a Celtic quality and reminds me of music from Lord of the Rings. "Dryad of the Woods" is an instrumental piece. The beginning of "Dryad of the Woods" is driven by guitar, and then the music builds into a piano-led chorus. The syncopated ending is pleasant.

The title track is an electronic instrumental that reprises themes from throughout the album, including "Fandango," "Rope Ends," and "Ending Theme." Despite only being two minutes, the title track augments the gravitas of 'Remedy Lane.' "Waking Every God" has a groovy hemiola and contains slap bass from Kristoffer Gildenlöw. I love the pairing of the delicate piano and the distorted guitars. "Second Love" was an old song that Daniel Gildenlöw wrote in his adolescence. It's the simplest song on 'Remedy Lane,' but one of my favorites. "Second Love" has an element of country music, making it accessible and radio-friendly. Nevertheless, the emotion is still felt on this song. The final song, "Beyond the Pale," is a classic Pain of Salvation song, and is one of Daniel Gildenlöw's best vocal performances. "Beyond the Pale" is the grand finale of 'Remedy Lane.' In terms of structure, "Beyond the Pale" is fairly simple. A harshly raked guitar ostinato starts "Beyond the Pale." This time, there is a polymeter between the guitar riff, bass and the rest of the instrumentation. The main theme of "Beyond the Pale" was introduced in "Chain Sling," giving 'Remedy Lane' a sense of cohesion. Daniel Gildenlöw growls during the "Come and drown with me" lyric, which leads into two guitar solos. The final lyric of the album, "We will always be so much more human than we wish to be," is essentially the theme of 'Remedy Lane.'

In conclusion, 'Remedy Lane' is another masterpiece from Pain of Salvation. If there was one album I had to recommend to someone who wanted to listen to Pain of Salvation, it would be 'Remedy Lane.' I think that 'Remedy Lane' is a fairly accessible album that didn't take me a long time to audibly digest.