ENTROPIA

Pain of Salvation is a Swedish progressive metal band led by Daniel Gildenlöw, who is the band's main songwriter, lyricist, guitarist, and vocalist. Every album from Pain of Salvation is in some way, shape, or form a concept album. Daniel Gildenlöw formed the band at the age of 11 in 1984 under the name "Reality." He renamed the band "Pain of Salvation" in 1991, after having allegedly conceived the name during math class. In 1996, Pain of Salvation (which consisted of Daniel Gildenlöw, Daniel's younger brother Kristoffer Gildenlöw on bass, Daniel Magdic on guitar and vocals, and Johan Langell on drums and vocals) entered a local studio and recorded the 'Hereafter' demo. Fredrik Hermansson discovered the band through the 'Hereafter' demo and successfully auditioned to become the band's keyboardist.

Pain of Salvation's debut album, 'Entropia,' was released in 1997. Many songs on 'Entropia' were taken from the 'Hereafter' demo, including "! (Foreword)," "Revival," "Nightmist," "To the End," "People Passing By," and "Plains of Dawn." 'Entropia' is structured like a novel. "! (Foreword)" is the prologue and "Leaving Entropia" the epilogue. Sandwiched in between are three chapters. Chapter 1 contains "Welcome to Entropia," "Winning a War," "People Passing By," and "Oblivion Ocean." Chapter 2 contains "Stress," "Revival," "Void of Her," and "To the End." Chapter 3 contains "Circles," "Nightmist," and "Plains of Dawn."

The name 'Entropia' is a combination of the words "entropy" and "utopia," and is the name of a fictional society that Daniel Gildenlöw devised, which this album is based on. Despite the fact that this is a fantasy world, there are uncanny parallels to Entropia and our world. Conceptually, 'Entropia' is about the war industry, which has plagued humanity since the dawn of time.

The prologue, "! (Foreword)," sets the stage beautifully. Daniel Gildenlöw's words are being sung directly to the listener, the individual. Gildenlöw explains how he is the same as me and you. He uses pathos to convey his message that the world is in our hands and we can make a change. The raw music accompanies Gildenlöw's theatrical vocals which ebbs and flows from loud to soft and everything in between. "! (Foreword)" could essentially be the prologue to all Pain of Salvation albums, which is why it is the perfect opener to their debut album.

Chapter 1 opens with an interlude entitled "Welcome to Entropia," which contains a hip-hop drumbeat and unsettling, ambient noises. This bleeds into "Winning a War," which describes the effect war has on families, particularly on children and their fathers. The line "all armies are only fathers and sons" crystallizes the theme of "Winning a War." The only people who want war are the government who capitalize on it. Nobody wants war; we want peace. "Winning a War" also explains how nobody is a winner when a war ends. The son character in "Winning a War" is in a catch-22; he is neglected by his father, but his father is merely following orders. "People Passing By" is divided into three parts, each one representing a different time of the day. A slap bass riff from Kristoffer Gildenlöw opens the song. The time signature and tempo shifting on "People Passing By" captures the genius of Daniel Gildenlöw's compositions. Lyrically, the child, who misses the absence of his father, falls into destitution. The nightfall lyric reveals that the son dies. On "Oblivion Ocean," the news is broken to his father. He pleads to God and moves to West Entropia, where he can start over and lead a new life as a family man. "Oblivion Ocean" is a ballad that evokes great sadness within me, and it's one of my favorite Pain of Salvation songs. Daniel Gildenlöw is living what he's singing on this track.

As the title suggests, "Stress" is about the PTSD the soldier experiences in West Entropia. Musically, the polyrhythmic nature of "Stress" perfectly reflects the frenetic lyrics. "Revival" deals with lyrical themes of vicarious atonement. The instrumental interlude "Void of Her" starts with a reprise of "People Passing By." The soldier's wife dies on "To the End." The vocals switch back and forth between backing vocals and Daniel Gildenlöw's lead vocals during the verse, creating an interesting dichotomy.

Kristoffer Gildenlöw opens the interlude "Circles" with a beautiful bass arpeggio. There is a short, quiet reprise of "People Passing By" again that transitions into "Nightmist." Lyrically, the soldier commits suicide in this song. The father and son meet again in the afterlife on "Plains of Dawn," but they must part ways one last time, for reasons I'm not sure of. The closing track, "Leaving Entropia (Epilogue)," is a beautiful acoustic piece with thought-provoking lyrics.

In conclusion, 'Entropia' is a strong debut album that I revisit frequently. There is a rawness about 'Entropia' that isn't apparent on other Pain of Salvation albums, with the exception of 'Road Salt One' and 'Road Salt Two.' While I do feel that the second half of the album isn't as strong as the first, that's only a minor criticism. While 'Entropia' is certainly progressive, it leans more on the metal side. What I love about Pain of Salvation is that each of their albums are different from each other. They never repeat themselves, and the only time they may have repeated themselves would've been with 'The Perfect Element, Pt. 1' and 'Remedy Lane,' which are my two favorite albums from the band. Despite my love for those albums, I appreciate that Pain of Salvation are constantly reinventing themselves with each release of theirs.