Wolverine returned after a ten year gap with their Anomalies album, available through Music Theories Recordings/Artone. The band’s most recent single is ‘Nightfall’, accompanied by an official video. At just under six minutes long, the number takes you on a euphoric journey. Talking about the song, vocalist Stefan Zell said, “Wolverine goes pop! Seriously, a catchy song that I love. The lyrics do, however, deal with a significantly less catchy topic: death anxiety.”
It’s Wolverine at their most contrasting. Beautiful, sweeping hooks, but something darker lies beneath. The upliftingly bright melodies of ‘Nightfall’ represent one of the most immediate and catchiest songs the band has ever recorded. Yet the brightness of the music is offset by some unremittingly bleak lyrics.
“That one is, lyrically, from my really darkest period, where I had death anxiety every night when I went to bed,” Zell admitted. “It felt like someone stomping on my chest. Just wanting the night to be over. I was not in a good place in life. But I found the contrast between the music and the lyrics quite tempting in a way. You can almost dance to it once it gets going.”
The road to Anomalies had not been an easy one. It’s been a decade since the Söderhamn quintet last released a full album, 2016’s Machina Viva, and four years since their last EP, 2021’s A Darkened Sun, raised hopes that the Swedish prog metallers were back with a vengeance.
“Life got in the way,” Zell sighed when talking about what they’d been up to in the ensuing years. “We released Still in 2006, that’s 20 years ago now! Up until then, we were really focused on the band. With Still, we thought we had the album, but everything just went quiet; it just didn’t take off.”
“We have always prided ourselves on creating albums that we feel proud of. We want to really feel like this is something we can stand by.”
Producer Oliver Philips, who’s worked with the Swedes since 2001’s debut The Window Purpose, was instrumental in getting things moving. His own band, Everon, made their first new studio album in 17 years in 2025 for Music Theories Recordings.
“When we started writing for this album, we again wanted to work with Oliver,” Zell said. “He’s produced albums before for us, and I wanted to record vocals with him again. And he helped us get in touch with (Music Theories Recordings founder) Ed van Zijl, and one thing led to another. It ignited our spark again. I’m also 20 years older now than when I recorded Still. To think I have a sober look at it now, I’m really happy to be able to release this album.”
Read more about Wolverine and Anomalies at RAMzine.
