Sweden’s Latest Exellent Retro Rock Export: Fans of the Dark

Weren’t we just saying that Sweden does retro rock better than anyone else?

But it’s not all feel-good party vibes, ala Crazy Lixx or The Night Flight Orchestra. Fans of the Dark, an outfit formed in 2020 — “one of the worst years in recent human history,” as the band describes it — are here with a dose of hardened reality, telling us in their latest single that “life kills, you will never control it.” Woof… ain’t that truth, though? Even if we’re hearing it through the filter of Skid Row riffs.

Drummer Freddie Allen, who started the band, explains of their latest single:

“‘Life Kills’ was written during one of the worst years in recent human history, 2020. A year of suffering and loss for many people around the world, it inspired us to view life as the gift it is….something you should truly enjoy and live to the fullest, even if it means you have to remind yourself that someday it ends to be able to push yourself forward. The song needed an insanely driven guitar riff to make such a statement work and I think we got it, together with Alex’s [Falk] brilliantly inspiring take on the vocals.”

Trigger warning: “Life Kills” is not only a heavy dose of reality, but catchy as hell.

The band’s self-titled debut album comes out on November 5 via Frontiers Music Srl; pre-order here.