By Brandon Strader
Nightingale has released some of the most amazing rock albums you will ever hear. Alive Again was a masterpeice that would have been hard for even the band to top, yet they released another brilliant album in the following year, Invisible. Now they are working on the followup that will be entitled "White Darkness" and fans of the band (and frontman Dan Swanö) can barely contain themselves. Dag Swanö, formerly known as Tom Nouga, recently answered a few of our questions!
Hello, Dag! Is your real name Dag Swano or is it Tom Nouga? And who are the current members of Nightingale?
My real name is Dag Swanö, and I don't use Tom Nouga anymore. The members are the same as the last time: Dan, Me, Erik Oskarsson, and Tom Björn.
You guys have recently been working on a new album, right? How's it been going?
Very good. We are soon entering the mixing stage. Dan has a couple of vocals left.
What can we expect as far as the music and lyrics go?
Most of the music is mine and almost half of the lyrics is Erik and Tom so it's going to be different. No up-tempo songs like
Misery or heavy stuff like
Raincheck. More progressive and acoustic. I guess some die-hard metal fans won't like it but we don't give a....
Who will be making the artwork for "White Darkness" and what are the plans for it?
I don't know. Very white with handwritten stuff on it. That's one idea.
Are your musical influences similar to those of your brother, Dan Swanö? How do you both work on song writing together?
Two questions in one!
He is a child of the 80s and I of the 70s. We have some hardrock bands like
UFO, Judas Priest, and
Moxy in common and some progressive stuff like
Genesis and
Kansas. He likes
Marillion and
Arena and soft 80s music and that's not my style. For us to be in the same band 20 years ago would have been impossible when it Comes to musical taste. He was into hairbands and I played freeform jazz and funk.
We don't write songs eye-to-eye. Only time we done that is on "Still in the Dark" from
I. A song like "Eternal" was an old song I had (
listen to it on my homepage) and Dan added new sections to it. On the new album we have written two songs together. And in both cases, Dan has added sections to pieces from my pen. We work best that way.
Does Dan ever "take control" or is the whole musical process pretty free?
It's pretty democratic. He, sort of, has the final say when it comes to sound and stuff. We don't have ego problems. We are mature enough to do what's best of the band.
What do you do with the songs that don't quite fit in with the others, or have you had any of those at all?
Writing
Nightingale stuff doesn't come natural for me. Sometimes something shows up that sounds
Nightingale. and I make a demo of it. Dan works in the same way. If the song doesn't fit we know it at the demo stage. There are no outtakes from any
Nightingale sessions.
I remember hearing that there was an ongoing lyrical concept through the earlier albums that you guys ended with Invisible... What was the concept and why did you end it?
I know nothing about the concept and I'm glad we dropped it. It wasn't bad but very far away from my "lyrical taste". I'm not a ghost/sience fiction type of guy. That's why a song like "Stalingrad" had to wait until the last album. It had to be about the battle and not about some soul being reborn. Having "real" lyrics adds a great dimension to the music. "To the end" and "Wake" are great lyrics. The new albums have great lyrics as well. I have opinions but I don't write ém. I can't write in English, I feel strange.
What do you know about the upcoming Edge of Sanity compilation, and can you share any special details?
I think Dan is pretty satisfied with it despite the poor sound on many of them. I was never a fan of
Edge of Sanity or any other "Dan metal project" (apart from
Pan-Thy-Monium Of course) so I'm not the right person to ask.
Can you share a few details about your solo project and your own releases?
I'm a "do-it-yourself" kind of guy and release my stuff on my own. I have a new album in the making, My 7th one. I don't have a live band right now but I have plans for one.
Is there a release date set for "The White Darkness" and which label is signed on for this honor?
Early next year I think, on Black Mark.
What is keeping Nightingale from becoming a household name on a large scale?
Good question!
We don't have the money or time to support and expose ourselves enough. Being on Black Mark doesn't help. All they really care about is Dan releasing a new metal record (and they are not alone.)
Nightingale is very much second in their eyes. Dan isn't really a touring musician, and if you want a break today you have to tour much. I wouldn't mind (far better than driving a bus) but he likes it better in the studio. I could live without recording but never without performing music, but who knows! Maybe the next album will do something?
Thanks for your time, man! What will Nightingale be doing in support of the new release?
I don't know really. Some shows I guess, maybe a tour. We have talked about having a Release party in Germany!
UM's Review Of I
UM's Review Of Alive Again
Official Nightingale Website
Official Black Mark Website
