“This album may be slightly different from previous ones, mainly because most of the songs started with me”: Evergrey’s Johan Niemann on his role in ‘Theories Of Emptiness’

Swedish progressive metal stalwarts Evergrey are set to release their fourteenth studio album, Theories Of Emptiness, on June 7 through Napalm Records. In this interview with Bass Empire, Johan Niemann, the band’s bassist, delves into the nuances of the bass elements that shape the auditory landscape of the band’s new offering.

Niemann’s choice of instrument, a signature bass from Solar Guitars – the AB1.4JN – is tailored to his exact needs. “It has an alder body with a flame maple veneer, maple neck, and ebony fingerboard. It also has EMG pickups and EMG BTS electronics, stainless steel frets, and something that I found to be indispensable on a dark stage – Luminlay dots on the side of the fingerboard,” he explains. “This bass is made to my specifications and it sounds exactly the way I want. Big low end, punchy mids, and cutting highs. I also have a custom fretless version of it, which I used for the last song on the album.”

For the recording of Theories Of Emptiness, Niemann employed a notably minimalist setup, focusing on direct input signals rather than traditional amplification. “I just ran my bass into my Darkglass Microtubes Infinity pedal and took two DI signals: one clean and one distorted. No amps. The Infinity has four distorted modes and one clean. I use the Vintage Microtubes multi-band mode, which allows you to split the signal into clean and dirty. You can set the crossover and process the signals independently, so you can get clean, compressed lows and distorted mids and highs. There’s also an IR feature where you can load five different impulse responses. I’ve been using a Mesa/Boogie 2×15 IR. Sounds amazing.”

Regarding the creation of the album’s bass lines, Niemann highlights a flexible and intuitive songwriting process. “Most of the songs on this record started with my song ideas, so I guess that process was different. I can’t really pinpoint how, though. When I write music, sometimes I start with a guitar idea, sometimes it’s a bass idea. My idea of a good bass part is the same, though: I try to find a middle ground between the drums and the guitars, while sneaking in some melodic ideas every now and then.”

Looking ahead to the audience’s reception, Niemann is particularly enthusiastic about certain tracks where the bass plays a pivotal role. “A big part of the sound of both the bass and the album is thanks to Adam ‘Nolly’ Getgood, who mixed the record. I love how the bass sits in his productions and had no apprehensions about his involvement. As far as specific bass moments, the title track has a nice fretless part. Misfortune has a nice verse part as well as some melodic fills in the choruses. There are a few nuggets here and there.”

With the release imminent, Niemann hopes that Theories Of Emptiness will resonate deeply within the metal community. “This album may be slightly different from previous ones, mainly because most of the songs started with me. However, Tom and Jonas put those ideas through the Evergrey filter, rearranged some parts, adjusted the tempos, and then, of course, Tom added his vocals, making it sound like Evergrey. I just hope as many people as possible will at least give it a chance. Judging by the response we’ve gotten so far, I think we’re off to a very good start. Hopefully, it will continue.”

Theories Of Emptiness by Evergrey is available for pre-order through Napalm Records.