SHINING Reveals History Behind New Video Storyline

September 4, 2012

"Tillsammans Är Vi Allt", the new video from Swedish extreme metallers SHINING, can be seen below.

Contrary to how the video has been interpreted by both some press and fans alike, who have mistaken it for a simple glossy music video, there is, in fact, a symbolism behind it, one which both SHINING frontman Niklas Kvarforth, and guest vocalist Håkan "Nordman" Hemlin, are all too familiar with. Taking as its theme a wedding between a dominant and corrupting groom, portrayed by Kvarforth, and a desirable and deceptively innocent bride, portrayed by Swedish model December Wiklund, the video uses their marriage to symbolize the insidious effects of substance abuse. By the end of the video, the roles have been reversed, with the bride having complete control over the groom, in the same way that substance abuse becomes a marriage between the drug and the user, subtly taking over and destroying the addict's life, and leaving him unable to give up the very thing that is destroying him.

The "Tillsammans Är Vi Allt" video is more than a trite music video replete with the mandatory titillation of sex and blood. It is Kvarforth's vision of a life-consuming obsession depicted through imagery, as opposed to simply music and lyrics. Both Kvarforth and Hemlin, who appears in live footage throughout the video, have experienced the effects of substance abuse in the past. They have survived the obsession that has destroyed others and come through to the other side with more control of their lives, but their performance both live and on the album itself clearly shows that re-living that past brought a sense of anguish to their interpretation.

Live footage for the "Tillsammans Är Vi Allt" video was filmed during SHINING's appearance at the Club Nosturi in Helsinki, Finland, in October of last year. The concept itself was created by Kvarforth, working together with director Martin Strandberg, who was behind SHINING's first video, "Förtvivlan, Min Arvedel", and with photographer Martin Eriksson of Hill Fifty and producer Jussi Hyttinen of FLC 415, to bring to life the blood-infused, disturbing vision of addiction and obsession that anyone who has been there will recognize.

SHINING is currently preparing for the release of its eighth album, "Redefining Darkness", due out on October 29 through Spinefarm Records.

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