Mikael Stanne

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Mikael Stanne
Dark Tranquillity Rockharz 2025 11 (cropped).jpg
Stanne in 2025
Background information
Birth nameBengt Mikael Stanne
Born1974 (age 5051)
Gothenburg, Sweden
Genres Melodic death metal
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Years active1989–present
Member of
Formerly of

Bengt Mikael Stanne [1] (born 1974) is a Swedish musician, best known as the vocalist, primary lyricist and a former guitarist for the melodic death metal band Dark Tranquillity. Since the departure of original drummer Anders Jivarp in 2021, Stanne is the only remaining original member of the band. Stanne is also the vocalist for bands Grand Cadaver, the Halo Effect and Cemetery Skyline, which formed in 2020, 2021 and 2023, respectively. He was also an ex-vocalist for HammerFall and In Flames.

Contents

Early life

Stanne spoke of his early musical influences, "I first got into extreme metal through trading tapes and reading fanzines. When I was fourteen, I went with one of my neighbours, Shamaatae, to sit in on a rehearsal with his new band. That band was Grotesque and seeing them rehearse was incredibly cool. The intensity and speed of the music being played at maximum volume impressed me like very little had up until that point. My favourite song quickly became 'Blood Runs From The Altar', from their second demo The Black Gate Is Closed. I was already a huge J.R.R. Tolkien fan, so this was just perfection to me." [2]

Career

Dark Tranquillity

Stanne with Dark Tranquillity at Rockharz Open Air 2022 in Germany Dark Tranquillity Rockharz 2022 02.jpg
Stanne with Dark Tranquillity at Rockharz Open Air 2022 in Germany

Stanne, along with Niklas Sundin, formed Dark Tranquillity because they were bored, along with interest in metal from their influences. He played guitar and performed clean backing vocals on Dark Tranquillity's first album, Skydancer , as well as on their early demos, including Enfeebled Earth released under the name Septic Broiler. In 1994, Anders Fridén, Dark Tranquillity's original vocalist, left the band to join In Flames. Stanne then became the new vocalist and discontinued playing guitar.

In addition to his usual growling vocals, Dark Tranquillity's 1999 album, Projector, showcased his operatic "clean" singing abilities. After Haven , however, the clean style was mostly abandoned until the release of Fiction in 2007.

Other projects

Stanne is the vocalist for death metal band Grand Cadaver (formed in 2020) and for gothic metal band Cemetery Skyline (formed in 2024).

Stanne was the original vocalist for HammerFall from 1993 until 1996, after which he was replaced because of his commitment to Dark Tranquillity.

Influences

Stanne was influenced by Florida death metal bands, such as Atheist, and Swedish death metal bands such as Grotesque. [3]

Personal life

Stanne has been married to Pipsa Piipari since 1999. [4] The couple have one daughter. [5]

Discography

With Dark Tranquillity
With Grand Cadaver
With the Halo Effect
With In Flames
With Cemetery Skyline

Guest appearances

References

  1. Hadusek, Jon (11 July 2025). "Heavy Song of the Week: Grand Cadaver's "Darkened Apathy" Is a Slab of Classic Death Metal". Consequence . Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  2. BraveWords (10 October 2024). "DARK TRANQUILLITY Frontman MIKAEL STANNE Names The 10 Death Metal Albums That Inspired Him". bravewords.com. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  3. BraveWords (10 October 2024). "DARK TRANQUILLITY Frontman MIKAEL STANNE Names The 10 Death Metal Albums That Inspired Him". bravewords.com. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  4. "Instagram".
  5. "Instagram".
  6. "DARK TRANQUILLITY's STANNE To Write Lyrics For SOLUTION.45 Debut". Roadrunnerrecords.com. Archived from the original on 11 June 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  7. "STARS & EMBERS, by ISON". ISON. Retrieved 2 December 2023.