Less than a year after his critically acclaimed debut album, former Dark Tranquillity guitarist and multi-instrumentalist, Niklas Sundin, returns with a new full-length offering from MITOCHONDRIAL SUN. “Sju Pulsarer” will be released on November 13, 2020 via the Italian label Argonauta Records.
While the core of the music still is electronic and instrumental, MITOCHONDRIAL SUN’s new album displays a very different and probably more “metal” aspect of the project. If the first album mainly consisted of quiet meditations on space and time, “Sju Pulsarer” (Swedish for “Seven pulsars”) throws the listener into the eye of a relentless cosmic storm, where layers of sound are shattered and rebuilt to the rhythm of ferocious percussion. As opposed to the first album, where every track had its own instrumentation and sonic signature, these songs are very uniform in style: Fast, urgent and chaotic, but still full of emotionally charged melodies and atmospheric soundscapes lurking beneath the surface.
Says Sundin: “The debut album was meticulously crafted, with a lot of time spent working on the instrumentation to make sure that each song would have its own distinct style and unique set of sounds. This time, I wanted to create something from the completely opposite vantage point. All songs – apart from the ambient outro – are all in a similar vein, performed with the same instruments, and read more like chapters in a book than separate entities. The intensity of the music and the repetitive and monotonous nature of the arrangements are meant to invoke a trance-like experience; all in all it’s a short and focused album that’s best suited for concentrated listening from the beginning to the end.”
Just exclusively premiered with Invisible Oranges, MITOCHONDRIAL SUN’s first single is now available for streaming on all digital platforms, watch the brand new music clip for the album opening track here:
After nearly three decades as a guitarist for Grammy nominated metal band Dark Tranquillity, the MITOCHONDRIAL SUN project is Niklas’ first public foray into different musical realms.
As with the debut album, released in February 2020 via Argonauta Records, “Sju Pulsarer” was mixed and mastered in the renowned Nacksving studio in Gothenburg with Anders Lagerfors at the helm.
The album tracklist reads as follows: 1. Pulsar 1 2. Pulsar 2 3. Pulsar 3 4. Pulsar 4 5. Pulsar 5 6. Pulsar 6 7. Pulsar 7 8. Noll Och Intet
“Sju Pulsarer” is slated for a digital release on November 13rd, with Vinyl and CD copies to follow in February ’21. The album pre-sale has just started at THIS LOCATION!
MITOCHONDRIAL SUN, the electronic project of former Dark Tranquillity guitarist Niklas Sundin, has released a new single called “Arsia Mons”. The song is taken from an upcoming EP entitled “Bodies and Gold”, which will be released in July.
Watch the video here:
Niklas Sundin on new single: “‘Arsia Mons’ offers a slightly warmer and more accessible sound than the previous MITOCHONDRIAL SUN songs, though the general style is similar. It’s a short and melancholic tune that’s indicative of the material on the upcoming EP. Enjoy!”
MITOCHONDRIAL SUN’s self titled debut album was released on February 14 via Argonauta records and features ten diverse songs of atmospheric and darkly cinematic music. It was mixed and mastered in the acclaimed Nacksving Studio in Gothenburg, Sweden with Anders Lagerfors at the helm and features a host of guest musicians.
MITOCHONDRIAL SUN, the electronic project of former Dark Tranquillity guitarist Niklas Sundin, has published a video for the track “The Void Begets” from the recently released debut album.
Watch the video here:
Niklas on the new song: “´The void begets´ is a calm and minimalistic song designed for reflection, so the accompanying video is also very basic. I wanted to convey a sense of wonder and exploration and maybe open a small window of escapism among the chaos of the current world situation.”
MITOCHONDRIAL SUN’s self titled debut album was released on February 14th via Argonauta records and features ten diverse songs of atmospheric and darkly cinematic music. It was mixed and mastered in the acclaimed Nacksving Studio in Gothenburg, Sweden with Anders Lagerfors at the helm and features a host of guest musicians.
From Dead can dance-like tribal atmospheres to futuristic sci-fi soundscapes, from lush and cinematic passages to a harsh distortion and massive futuristic soundscapes, the founding member and guitarist of Swedish metal masters Dark Tranquillity, Niklas Sundin, has not feared any musical borders with his first public foray into his solo-project, Mitochondrial Sun. The self-titled debut album will be seeing the light of day on February 14th 2020 with Argonauta Records, and is a diverse offering of songs Sundin has been working on for years, and sounds that differ wildly in expression and sonic aesthetics. Today Mitochondrial Sun is sharing with us a final video before the album drops, watch The Great FilterHERE!
“This is the third and last single before the Mitochondrial Sun debut album will be released on the 14th of February.“ Sundin comments. “The Great Filter is the album’s closing track, and it shows a side of the project that best can be described as “distorted ambient”. The general vibe is harsh and confrontative, being the soundtrack to a world in its final stages of dissolution, but after a while the noise takes on an almost meditative form. Underneath the layers of distortion, more hopeful melodies are floating around. As with the whole album, the song benefits from focused headphone listening since there are a lot of small nuances that otherwise might lost. Hope that you’ll like it!“
Album Tracklisting:
1. Ur Tehom
2. Chronotopes
3. Braying Cells
4. Stars Beneath The Sea
5. Nyaga
6. Celestial Animal
7. Arkadia
8. The Void Begets
9. Entropy’s Gift
10. The Great Filter
After 15 albums and 30 years as a metal guitarist, and with the support from the Swedish Arts Council, Sundin’s first solo- album is largely instrumental and features songs with lots of stylistic differences. Among the guest musicians appearing are Dark Tranquillity‘s Martin Brändström and renowned cello player Annika Blomfeldt, Mitochondrial Sunwas mixed and mastered by Anders Lagerfors (who also contributed grand piano to some tracks) at Nacksving Studio in Gothenburg, Sweden.
According to Sundin, the record is based around evolution and the passing of time. Juxtaposing electronic and decidedly synthetic elements with organic sound textures and the presence of real cello and grand piano, Mitochondrial Sun is an exploration of contrasts. Some songs have a traditional feel, invoking ghosts and patterns from our distant past, some are urban and desolate and some glance outward towards a future among the stars. Dive into the sound worlds of Mitochondrial Sun and check out Sundin’s earlier video singles for Celestial AnimalHERE, as well as the cosmic track NyagaHERE!This album is by no means an easy listen, or one designed for instant gratification – but the patient listener will be rewarded!
Set to be released on February 14th via Argonauta Records, the pre-sale is available at THIS LOCATION!
Known as a founding member and guitarist of Grammy nominated, Swedish metal masters DARK TRANQUILITY, Niklas Sundin is set to release his first solo album ever! After 15 albums and 30 years as a metal guitarist, MITOCHONDRIAL SUN is Sundin’s first public foray into different musical realms: Created with support from the Swedish Arts Council, the self-titled debut album is a diverse offering of atmospheric and darkly cinematic music where the songs differ wildly in expression and sonic aesthetics. The album will be seeing the light of day on February 14th 2020 on Italy’s renowned powerhouse label Argonauta Records. In addition to being a musician, Niklas is also a prolific graphic designer. This visual emphasis is transfered over to the Mitochondrial Sun project, where each song will be accompanied by an animated video further enhancing the experience and providing context. After the recent premiere of the cosmic track Nyaga ( watch the video HERE ), today Mitochondrial Sun is sharing with us another track from the upcoming record!
Says multi-talent Niklas Sundin: “Celestial Animal” is a more organic song than the tech-y first single “Nyaga”, starting off with grand piano, cello and vocal synthesizers before transforming into a more rhythmical piece that seeks to invoke a sense of “futuristic nostalgia” – a retro vision of the future if you will.
The music has a lot of processed field recordings and samples, and I wanted a similar “layered” approach for the video, which features lots of lo-fi footage with little ambition to appear slick or polished. The imagery is often distorted and repurposed, and the general idea is to use symbol laden visuals that trigger the imagination of the viewer rather than presenting a clear storyline.
I’m very grateful to the crew of contributing musicians: The drum programming was handled by Dark Tranquillity keyboard wizard Martin Brändström and the string arrangements and playing were done by Annika Blomfeldt. Anders Lagerfors added another layer of atmosphere with his careful mixing and mastering work.“
Just exclusively premiered with Decibel Magazine, you can now watch the brand new video for Celestial AnimalHERE!
Mitochondrial Sun‘s self-titled album is largely instrumental and features everything from Dead can dance-like tribal atmospheres to futuristic sci-fi soundscapes. “The project has been a couple of years in the making and started out as a way of staying musically creative while on parental leave from Dark Tranquillity. I had recently acquired some new gear for my home studio, and had been thinking about creating “electronic” music for a while, so this was a good opportunity to actually make it happen.“ Sundin recently said.
The album tracklist reads as follows:
1. Ur Tehom
2. Chronotopes
3. Braying Cells
4. Stars Beneath The Sea
5. Nyaga
6. Celestial Animal
7. Arkadia
8. The Void Begets
9. Entropy’s Gift
10. The Great Filter
The record is based around evolution and the passing of time. Juxtaposing electronic and decid-edly synthetic elements with organic sound textures and the presence of real cello and grand piano, Mitochondrial Sun is an exploration of contrasts. Lush and cinematic passages collide with harsh distortion and massive futuristic soundscapes. Some songs have a traditional feel, invoking ghosts and patterns from our distant past, some are urban and desolate and some glance outward towards a future among the stars.
Sundin continues:“Writing the album was a process of musical archeology; I dug up some of my favourite old riffs and melodies that never seemed to fit within the D.T. context and gave them new life with different instrumentation. As with most musicians that have been playing for a while, I had a “treasure chest” (well, old cassettes and CD-R’s) of ideas I’ve always felt a strong connection to but that wouldn’t necessarily work in any previous band or project. Of course there was a lot of material that hadn’t aged very well, but going through the old tapes was a nice starting point, and a lot of the old riffs gave birth to new ideas. Most of the songs on the album ended up being are a combination of both, with the oldest melody dating back to 1992 (the piano theme of the opening track “Ur Tehom”).
I aimed for every song on the album to have its own style, the idea was for the the production and general atmosphere to be the common denominator and the songs themselves wildly different – a bit like how movie soundtracks often are structured.“
Featuring ten songs with lots of stylistic differences, Mitochondrial Sun’s debut album is by no means an easy listen, or one designed for instant gratification – but the patient listener will be rewarded! Coming out February 14th via Argonauta Records on LP, CD and in digital formats, the album pre-sale is now available at THIS LOCATION!
Known as a founding member and guitarist of Grammy nominated, Swedish metal masters DARK TRANQUILITY, Niklas Sundin, has revealed the hotly anticipated details for his upcoming, first solo album ever!
After 15 albums and 30 years as a metal guitarist, MITOCHONDRIAL SUN is Sundin’s first public foray into different musical realms: Created with support from the Swedish Arts Council, the self-titled debut album is a diverse offering of atmospheric and darkly cinematic music where the songs differ wildly in expression and sonic aesthetics. Coming out on February 14th 2020 via Argonauta Records, today Sundin is sharing with us not only the stunning artwork, album tracklist and pre-sale start, but also a first single to the mesmerizing track and music video ‘Nyaga‘! Though Sundin’s solo-project dives into electronic affairs, the song just got exclusively premiered by Invisible Oranges, who describe Mitochondrial Sun‘s sound as “loud, rife with distorted square waves and signals which appear to emanate from alien satellites“; get your ears and eyes on it and check out the brand new video right HERE!
“I’m very happy to premiere the first video/single from the upcoming Mitochondrial Sun album. The project has been a couple of years in the making and started out as a way of staying musically creative while on parental leave from Dark tranquillity. I had recently acquired some new gear for my home studio, and had been thinking about creating “electronic” music for a while, so this was a good opportunity to actually make it happen.“ Sundin comments.
“Writing the album was a process of musical archeology; I dug up some of my favourite old riffs and melodies that never seemed to fit within the D.T. context and gave them new life with different instrumentation. As with most musicians that have been playing for a while, I had a “treasure chest” (well, old cassettes and CD-R’s) of ideas I’ve always felt a strong connection to but that wouldn’t necessarily work in any previous band or project. Of course there was a lot of material that hadn’t aged very well, but going through the old tapes was a nice starting point, and a lot of the old riffs gave birth to new ideas. Most of the songs on the album ended up being are a combination of both, with the oldest melody dating back to 1992 (the piano theme of the opening track “Ur Tehom”).
The title “Nyaga” is a tribute to the late Swedish astronomer Peter Nilson and his 1996 book of the same name. Nilson was among my very favourite authors during the time that most of these musical ideas stem from, with a magnificent talent for fusing science and humanities to convey a sense of visionary wonder – much like a Swedish Carl Sagan, but primary focusing on storytelling rather than education. Nyaga has been likened to Harry Martinsson’s Aniara as well as Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series, so it’s an essential read for any sci-fi aficionado. Since I already had decided that the Mitochondrial Sun album would have an overarching theme around evolution and the passing of time, I thought that the title would be a nice little nod to someone whose musings around these topics resonated with me as a youngster as well as being somewhat predictive of the current discourse regarding AI and the future of humanity. D.T. fans would find traces of these themes on some “The mind’s I” songs; both me and Mikael were big Peter Nilson fans back then.
I aimed for every song on the album to have its own style, so none of the other tracks sound much like “Nyaga”, which can be good or bad news depending on if you like it or not. The idea was for the the production and general atmosphere to be the common denominator and the songs themselves wildly different – a bit like how movie soundtracks often are structured. A lot of credit for actually making this work and giving the album a strong sonic signature goes to Anders Lagerfors at Nacksving studios and his penchant for old vintage equipment.
Well, that’s about it for this little premiere. Despite this probably being a bit of a vanity project in that it was made primary for my own enjoyment, I hope that there’s universal appeal and that people will enjoy the music. The album will be out in February next year. Thanks for listening“
Mitochondrial Sun Tracklisting:
1. Ur Tehom
2. Chronotopes
3. Braying Cells
4. Stars Beneath The Sea
5. Nyaga
6. Celestial Animal
7. Arkadia
8. The Void Begets
9. Entropy’s Gift
10. The Great Filter
Mitochondrial Sun‘s self-titled album is largely instrumental and features everything from Dead can dance-like tribal atmospheres to futuristic sci-fi soundscapes. Among the guest musicians appearing are Dark Tranquillity‘s Martin Brändström and renowned cello player Annika Blomfeldt. The album was mixed and mastered by Anders Lagerfors (who also contributed grand piano to some tracks) at Nacksving Studio in Gothenburg, Sweden.
The record is based around evolution and the passing of time. Juxtaposing electronic and decid-edly synthetic elements with organic sound textures and the presence of real cello and grand piano, Mitochondrial Sun is an exploration of contrasts. Lush and cinematic passages collide with harsh distortion and massive futuristic soundscapes. Some songs have a traditional feel, invoking ghosts and patterns from our distant past, some are urban and desolate and some glance outward towards a future among the stars. In addition to being a musician, Niklas is also a prolific graphic designer. This visual emphasis is transfered over to the Mitochondrial Sun project, where each song will be accompanied by an animated video further enhancing the experience and providing context. More singles will be released before the full length album arrives in February 2020. Featuring ten songs with lots of stylistic differences, Mitochondrial Sun’s debut album is by no means an easy listen, or one designed for instant gratification – but the patient listener will be rewarded!
The album pre-sale has just begun via the Argonauta Records store at THIS LOCATION!
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