Century Media
1995
The Gallery [Deluxe Edition]
About This Album
1995 was certainly a definitive year for the "New Wave of Swedish Death Metal." At the Gates' Slaughter of the Soul and In Flames' The Jester Race were released that year, both albums seamlessly meshing the melodic ambition of old-schoolers Iron Maiden and Judas Priest with the aggression of '90s death metal; boasting instrumental chops and gifted songwriting, those two bands helped define the face of Scandinavian metal for years to come. But one must not overlook Dark Tranquillity's contributions to the genre, specifically The Gallery, which may not be rightfully recognized as the bona fide classic that it is. While these Swedes' debut, Skydancer, was an ambitious and disjointed affair exhibiting more promise than solid tunes, sophomore platter The Gallery fulfilled that promise -- and then some. Gone were Anders Fridén's awkward growls and the stiff production and arrangements, replaced by the confident mid-range rasp of Mikael Stanne and the much-hailed engineering expertise of Fredrik Nordström and Studio Fredman. The busy, melodic guitar work of Niklas Sundin and Fredrik Johansson is still prevalent, but rhythmically The Gallery is an entirely different beast, the songs given breathing room by the bass and drums, which hold down the fort while Sundin and Johansson unleash a frenzy of complex riffs and tasteful, controlled histrionics.
Track List (try tracks 2,5,8,10,12 and 13)

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.