I had an awesome and very relaxed chat with Jonas Renkse from Sweden’s KATATONIA ahead of their Australia / NZ tour. We chatted about the effects of flying on his voice, his early musical inspiration, his favourite venues, the album experience we had growing up, and what a time it was to be alive and into Metal. You name it, we covered it. Check it out below. Audio only.
Swedish masters of dark melody KATATONIA return to Australia and New Zealand in 2026, bringing songs from their haunting new album Nightmares as Extensions of the Waking State to life on stage, plus major milestones from the band’s extensive catalogue of astounding albums.
‘Stagnation’ is not a word in the Katatonia dictionary. Since breaking through as masters of death/doom, Stockholm’s freethinkers have transcended genre, consolidating goth, shoegaze and prog into bleak, melodic songs.
“It’s hard to say what the highlights of Katatonia’s performance were because my notes on every song are something along the lines of “killer riff”, “solid crowd engagement”, “killer face melting solo” or something to that effect.” – Everyday Metal
After three decades of invention and reinvention, Nightmares as Extensions of the Waking State marks another bold leap – not to mention singer, founder and lead songwriter Jonas Renkse’s most personal effort to date.
Drawing from such albums such as the powerful The Great Cold Distance and Dead End Kings, Katatonia’s live concerts deliver a fan’s feast of dazzling experimentation which is astonishingly more metal than ever without holding back on the anthems. The dark hooks and tender vocals remain, yet the band also drive in unpredictable directions while delivering their hardest riffs in years.
Rejoice! It’s time to bring KATATONIA’s haunting brilliance and signature vibrant darkness back to stages across Australia & NZ.
LIMITED VIP MEET & GREET EXPERIENCES AVAILABLE
VIP MEET & GREET PACKAGE INCLUDES:
VIP Entry (no need to queue)
Exclusive Meet & Greet with KATATONIA
Commemorative VIP Laminate
One pre-signed KATATONIA tour poster
A photo with KATATONIA on your personal camera
Ticket link below.
