Interview: Cemetery Skyline – Goths from the North

Cemetery Skyline is a gothic metal group formed by members of notable metal bands from the cold North. Their debut album “Nordic Gothic” saw the darkness of the night in October 2024. Chaoszine sat down with them in a special interview after their very first show in 2024 and asked where it all began and how the gloomy journey will continue.

Supergroup. Probably one of stupidest words ever in music journalism. Anyway, it means a separate lineup, which is formed from musicians, who have already reached success as a solo artist or as members of another band. Cemetery Skyline is a collective formed from some of the biggest names of Finnish and Swedish metal music scene.

The funeral group includes the vocalist Mikael Stanne (Dark Tranquillity, The Halo Effect), the guitarist Markus Vanhala (Insomnium, Omnium Gatherum, I am the Night), the keyboardist Santeri “Sande” Kallio (Amorphis), the bassist Victor Brandt (Dimmu Borgir) and the drummer Vesa “Vesku” Ranta (The Abbey, KUUMET, ex-Sentenced).

Chaoszine met the band after their first show ever in John Smith Rock Festival, Laukaa, Finland, in July 2024. Only Brandt was not able to attend due to scheduling issues. The article was first published in Kaaoszine, the Finnish sister magazine of Chaoszine after the release of “Nordic Gothic”.

The dark tale began right before COVID-19-pandemic. The founder of Cemetery Skyline Markus Vanhala says, that the idea was ignited during 70 000 Tons of Metal -cruise somewhere deep in the Caribbean 2020.

Vanhala: “My friend Adrian Erlandsson jumped me from behind and started to strangle me. He said: ‘Dude, it’s s a high time for us to form a band together!’ He was frustrated, that no one was making any good gothic metal anymore. I answered, that I dig Type O Negative, Sisters of Mercy and Fields of Nephilim.”

Eventually Vanhala started to write songs and he sent a couple of demos to ex-Cradle of Filth and ex-At the Gates drummer Erlandsson. The Swedish guy got excited. Vanhala gathered more friends together from the bands he knew from previous joint tours. Stanne and Sande were the first persons that came up to his mind.

Stanne: “I’ve been friends with Markus for a long time. I really didn’t want to miss this opportunity.”

To everyone’s surprise, Erlandsson shockingly decided to abandon his drumsticks for good and focus on a totally different profession. Vanhala immediately thought of Ranta. He realized that actually Ranta would be the only real “90’s goth” in the group. Some people classify Sentenced in the category.

Vesku: “I’ve done videos for Insomnium. Vanhala sent me some of the songs for listening as a friend, even though there was a different drummer playing back then. I thought that it was good stuff! The demos didn’t have any vocals yet at that point. I said, if they ever needed anything, I’d be glad to help.”

Ranta has always had a place for gothic music in his heart of ever frost. He says laughingly that the others had asked his former band mate Janne Markus (The Man-Eating Tree, ex-The Abbey, ex-Poisonblack) if “Vesku is still capable to hold the drumsticks in his hands”. Kallio is guessing that it was him, who is most probably the guilty person to pop the question.

Kallio and Ranta are chuckling together. The situation is as funny as it is interesting. Back in the 90’s especially the fans created an enormous rivalry between Sentenced of the North and Amorphis of the South. As if the bands would have been some kind of enemies. Both men are smiling and affirming, that they fit in the same group just fine.

“A fateful wish, your heart’s desire”

Every member of the band was thrilled right away. Record label Century Media was instantly interested and the founder of John Smith Rock Festival Jonne “Mr. John Smith” Lehtonen announced the group that the first show of Cemetery Skyline must be at their event in Laukaa, Finland.

In Finland there is a saying “mennä perse edellä puuhun”. It means literally climbing up to a tree with one’s ass first. Basically doing things the wrong way. The English version would be “to put a cart before the horse”. Vanhala says that the whole band has been laughing, that it was exactly what happened.

Vanhala: “All of us thought that no one will show up in the audience. It might be that thanks to Jonne we became a real band. This is really cool and the album turned out to be so good, that it would be such a waste, if we didn’t play live shows.”

That was almost the case. At first the band didn’t even really think about playing gigs actively – not to mention touring. Their original plan was to make songs, film the music videos and most of all spend time with good friends, who see each other way too rarely.

Cemetery Skyline headed to John Smith in July 2024 without any idea what to expect. The result was that the queue to the signing session was so long that it had to be cut off and the merchandise shirts were pretty much sold out the very first day – even if the band had never played a single show and the debut album was not out yet.

Sande: “I was really confused. When we were done with the gig and went to the backstage area, people were applauding and everything! What a hype! I must admit, it was a bit hard to crush your own thoughts, when you were thinking about how everything goes and if people will dig our show.”

Vanhala: “The emotional charge was powerful. All of us have about a thousand gigs under our belts with our ‘day job bands’. We had a conversation that it’s been a while since we’ve been this nervous before the show. We started rehearsing together as early as Monday – the same week. The album was made completely remotely.”

All the members of Cemetery Skyline have performed internationally in front of large crowds. The drummer Ranta has kept a lower profile after Sentenced, but now the first show of the new band, the headline slot and thousands of fans brought back nostalgic memories.

Vesku: “It was a bit like coming back home. I threw some sticks into the crowd and people were actually glad to grab them. We really rehearsed only two days together as a whole group before the show. Although, we played around the clock. We were very thorough with the preparations. Screwing up was not an option. Everything is filmed nowadays. Back in the Sentenced-times phones didn’t even have any damn cameras.”

According to Vanhala the band had played so little together, that they were wondering, at what point they will mess up and how bad it will be. Fortunately there was only one blooper, and the audience did not even notice it. He says that in the music industry it is really important to know how to “fake it”. Everything went smoothly in the end.

Vanhala: “My wife was there as well. She told me that it was the first time ever, when she has cried during my concert. She has seen at close range how we’ve built this band piece by piece during the last four years. She has seen the whole journey.”

Stanne points out that the group had made only a couple of videos at that point. Filming sessions were the only times, when the whole band was at the same space – or graveyard. He was nervous, because Cemetery Skyline was very different kind of music compared to his other projects.

Stanne: “At the same time it was awesome! We knew that we need to do this. It felt like people accepted us and our music. We did 80’s and 90’s inspired gothic music and took the stage after Behemoth. It was kinda weird, but it worked and it was fantastic!”

“In darkness and out of control”

One of the reasons for Stanne’s anxiety was that he actually had to sing. First in the recording sessions and then in front of the audience. The man is indeed a Gothenburg metal legend, but he is mostly known for screaming and growling vocals.

Stanne: “I had never sung two songs in a row on stage without screaming parts. Actually I had never thought of doing anything else than what Dark Tranquillity is doing. The band is pretty much open to anything. I have always felt that I don’t need a side project.”

Stanne says that the hardest thing was to find the right tone and the state of mind. Lyrics, chords and melodies were ready. The singer thought during the pandemic, that it is pretty much up to him, if Cemetery Skyline will be a serious band or will it be a parody of the seriousness of gothic music. Or something completely different.

Stanne: “In a way I love poppish choruses. They are very different compared to my earlier material. This is about trying new things.”

Vanhala: “It was really easy to make this album, even though it took four years. It’s the longest time I’ve ever worked on one album. Mikael was grateful that we took our time. He said that he learned to sing in two years. If we would have stepped into the studio in 2022, the album would’ve turned out very different.”

Kallio is laughing. He reminds that Stanne has released bunch of albums and toured around the world pretty much his whole life. Now he had to sing clean vocals for the first time and just the thought of it made the man lose his sleep at night. The keyboardist tried to cheer up his band mate.

Sande: “One day I will play a grand piano and Stanne will sing Frank Sinatra -style!”

Ranta says that Stanne has incredibly good clean voice. The drummer admits, that he has occasionally wondered, why Dark Tranquillity has not taken advantage of it more often. Kallio highlights that he is proud of Stannes vocals and lyrics. One summer day he sat down on a porch and listened to the whole album thoroughly and read all the Nordic Gothic lyrics through.

Sande: “I was like goddammit! It really wasn’t some blah blah -stuff. Many of the songs could’ve easily been for example about my own life. Huge respect! He’s not singing anything like ‘well I went to a bar and hooked up with a girl”’. The context is very deep and thought through.”

Vesku: “The lyrics ain’t just something you need to fill the song up with. There’s gotta be a deeper message. Basic dragon tales are really not speaking to me.”

Sande: “Well, yeah. I really wouldn’t like to mix any pirate stories to this project. The way I see it, Stanne is singing about adult life, pain, experiences, problems and issues in human relationships, themes that will fiercely get the upper hand over the listener.”

Stanne states firmly that the band is making the music most of all for themselves. He has written the lyrics thinking about Vanhala, Ranta, Kallio, Brandt and of course himself. It is making things easier and at the same time the songs will have fascinating and interesting stories.

Stanne: “In this kind of music I can write lyrics that I wouldn’t be able to write in any other band. It’s one of the funniest things in this project. I’ve been asking: ‘Is this too cheesy?’ The guys have been like: ‘No! That’s perfect!’, ‘OK! We’ll go with this one then. Let’s make the next one even cheesier!'”

“There will be a raging violent storm”

If the fans are hoping to hear Stanne screaming in Cemetery Skyline as well, they might end up disappointed. The band has decided that there will be no growling vocals or blast beat drums. Kallio says that if it would be up to him, Ranta might as well sell his another bass drum and pedal.

Sande: “Stanne said, that he had been thinking about growling in one sentence. Then he just said: ‘Fuck it! I’m already growling in two bands. This ain’t gonna happen’. If he would’ve suggested it, I would have probably taken the idea down.”

Regardless of the gloomish mindset of the music and the dark appearance of the band, Cemetery Skyline has not hanged itself to one specific category. Nordic Gothic is a mixture of fast and catchy gothic rock pieces, low-speed or doomish slow songs and there is even a disco beat. Ranta is laughing and saying that he actually had to train for the last one.

Vesku: “It’s good to continue from here. I like when there are no limits.”

The composing duties are split equally between Vanhala and Kallio. The first more guitar-driven single “Violent Storm” is mostly Vanhala’s handwriting and the more keyboard based “In Darkness“Kallio’s.

Vanhala: “I think it’s never been this easy to write music with someone else. In Omnium Gatherum and Insomnium I pretty much finish my own songs completely before taking them to the others. We’ve found pretty good interaction in this band. We’re bouncing ideas back and forth even if it’s another one’s song we’re dealing with.”

Sande: “The artistic freedom is almost limitless in both of my bands. I think we’ve composed the last ten albums of Amorphis with Esa (Holopainen) half and half.”

According to Kallio Amorphis has kept moving on and on towards even more technical, heavier and more progressive metal expression. He says that it creates a certain kind of a box. If he feels that his song is too commercial, catchy or “disneyish” for Amorphis, he might bring it to the “Cemmers”.

Both of the main composers are aiming for a periodical working style. They are trying to write songs for one band at a time. When there is room in the calendar, the state of mind will drift towards a certain project. Kallio says that working for two bands simultaneously could mess up one’s thinking.

Sande: “I don’t think that there will ever be a situation where I would write songs for Amorphis and the Cemmers at the same time. I arrange a lot more all kinds of double bass drum beats and guitar riffs for Amorphis, because they are needed in those songs.”

Kallio says that as a musician, he is always trying to make his songs as good as possible. He analyzes on the way in which project they will eventually end up to. They might end up in trash as well – and according to him they often do.

Vanhala: “I, for one, always have a pretty clear vision in my head. All of my bands differ kinda lot from each other. People are probably thinking that you can just fart a song out of nowhere. Well, I can’t. The songs are always born through the pain. Sometimes it’s quite horrible, when you can’t get any sleep.”

“What we hear inside of the dark”

Mikael Stanne comes back to the essential message of Cemetery Skyline. He says that gothic music in general takes itself very seriously, but it has its own ridiculous levels as well. At first Stanne did not get Vanhala’s vision of making gothic music properly, but at the same time joking a little about the genre.

Stanne: “Great! But how can you joke about it? I didn’t get it. I thought that let’s just do this seriously. I’ll write about topics that I’d never normally write about. Emotions of course, human relationships, experiences of me or my friends. Big things that are affecting life.”

The singer reveals that the songs have occasionally had even goofy temporary working titles. The group wanted that the songs are worth of doing them. Stanne was been reading a lot about loneliness, which is tormenting both the Finnish and the Swedish people.

Stanne: “It hit me hard. People may live half of their life completely alone. The more I researched it, the more I thought that it doesn’t necessarily need to be a sad thing. Fuck, if you want to be alone then be alone. I think it’s beautiful in a way! You don’t need to be around friends and family all the time. I think a desire to be alone is just humane.”

Stanne mentions that he has been together with a Finnish lady for years. The Nordic melancholic mutual understanding between the couple is strong. Loneliness and heartaches are big issues and Stanne has met a lot of people along the way and heard a lot of curious stories. He has not written any songs about them before Cemetery Skyline.

Stanne: “Now I finally have a channel to do that. It’s been amazing! One of the songs in the album is about a story I heard. I told it to Markus who was driving. It took me two hours. He had to stop the car to fully digest it.”

According to the vocalist the texts are at the same time personal and universal. Stanne wants to grab a wider theme and review it from his own perspective. He is wondering why people are behaving like they do. Why so many of us are going to a wrong direction. How terrible endings love stories can have.

Stanne: “These songs are not about my life. One of them is about one of my best friend’s life and about his relationship, which ended up the most horrible way.”

Even though Stanne’s themes are dark, according to Vanhala the common dynamics between the Finnish and Swedish people is bringing its own little extra to the band. On the western side of the Baltic Sea people tend to have more positive attitude for… well, everything.

Vanhala: “The Swedish people sure are a bit more cheery than us Finns. Dealing with them is amusing. Our Finnish trio is more grim and straightforward. The Swedes are very bright people. Sometimes it feels like it’s really hard to get an honest opinion out of them. You have to ask it with a private message.”

“In the lasting flames of love”

Cemetery Skyline has announced bunch of new shows, and they are planning to release new material at some point. Santeri Kallio says that even an idiot realizes that the band is not a one album miracle. He adds that he is not interested in an idea of “laughing, making one album playing American cover songs in German language and wearing funny costumes.”

Sande: “The point was to make the album as good as possible with friends. It’d be crazy, if we didn’t take this opportunity. Every guy in the band is excited, likes the music and the audience seems to dig as well. Of course there will be more music coming!”

Vesa Ranta has filmed music videos for many bands. He has affected the visual side of Cemetery Skyline a bit, but mostly he has let the others to do the work this time. “Torn Away” music video is filmed partly at the first show in John Smith Rock Festival and partly at rehearsals.

Vesku: “Sometimes it’s better to stand back. Maybe my personal style is more photo-based? Now they wanted this futuristic fantasy stuff for the band. I’m totally fine with it. Who knows? Maybe someday there will be a Cemetery Skyline album, where I want to push my own art in.”

Mikael Stanne has the responsibility of writing lyrics, composing vocal melodies and he is a part of the arrangement team. He admits though that it is a bit distressing and challenging when he is dependent on what the others are doing.

Stanne: “I don’t compose. But it has felt natural also in Dark Tranquillity. We have to do what it takes to make it work, and this makes sense. The most challenging things are the most rewarding ones as well!”

Vanhala: “The members of this group have dragged themselves through the mud in the past. The guys are marinated and experienced, not only the Finns but the Swedes as well. Everybody knows how this is done. There are no whiners. Each and every one of us have enough kilometers under our belts.”

The success of Nordic Gothic among the fans and critics has ensured that there will be plenty of more kilometers for the members of the band. Cemetery Skyline may have a dark long journey ahead of them, but the band is smiling. Northern gothic spirit at its best.

The article was first released 11th October 2024 after the release of Nordic Gothic in Kaaoszine, the Finnish sister magazine of Chaoszine. The subheadings are quotes from the songs of Nordic Gothic.

After the first show Cemetery Skyline has played four sold-out concerts in Finland in the spring of 2025. They have played at various festivals in Finland, Hungary, Malta and Turkey during summer.