Kristoffer Gildenlöw (born in 1978) is a Swedish musician and songwriter, best known as the bassist of

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

band

Pain of Salvation Pain of Salvation is a Swedish progressive metal band led by Daniel Gildenlöw, who is the band's main songwriter, lyricist, guitarist, and vocalist. Pain of Salvation's sound is characterised by riff-oriented guitar work, a broad vocal range, o ...

Early life and education

Gildenlöw was born in

Eskilstuna Eskilstuna () is a Urban areas in Sweden, city and the seat of Eskilstuna Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden. The city of Eskilstuna had 69,948 inhabitants in 2020, with a total population of 107,806 inhabitants in Eskilstuna municipality ...

, Sweden. He studied piano for six years until stopping at the age of 13. He changed over to drums and bass guitar and started taking bass lessons at the age of 14. He went on to study electric bass, classical vocals,

double bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

, and music design.

Career

Pain of Salvation 1994–2006

In 1994, at the age of 16 years, Gildenlöw joined Pain of Salvation as a new bass player and became a member of the band. This line-up of the Gildenlöw brothers (Kristoffer and Daniel), Johan Langell, and Daniel Magdic recorded a demo called ''Hereafter'', which the band sent out to record companies. They were signed by Avalon (Japan) for their first album Entropia and by

InsideOut Music Inside Out Music is a German progressive rock record label originally based in Kleve, North Rhine-Westphalia, and dedicated to the publication of progressive rock, progressive metal and related styles. In 2009, it formed a partnership with Centu ...

(DE) in 1998. Kristoffer Gildenlöw performed on the following Pain of Salvation studio albums: '' Entropia'' (1997), ''

One Hour by the Concrete Lake ''One Hour by the Concrete Lake'' is Pain of Salvation's second studio album. It is a concept album focusing on the issues of nuclear power and waste, displacement of indigenous peoples, the firearm industry, and human discovery. Release history ...

'' (1998), ''

The Perfect Element, Part I ''The Perfect Element, Part I'' is Pain of Salvation's third studio album, released in October 2000. It is a concept album that focuses on the forming of the individual, particularly on the events from one's childhood and adolescence. It is th ...

'' (2000), ''

Remedy Lane ''Remedy Lane'' is the fourth album by Swedish progressive rock band Pain of Salvation, released in January 2002. It is a concept album focusing on a character's search for self-discovery. It was described by Allmusic as Pain of Salvation's brea ...

'' (2002), '' BE'' (2004). In addition to the albums, Gildenlöw performed on the live albums '' 12:5'' (2003) and '' BE Live'' (2004), as well as the single "Ashes" (2000). There were several demos and unofficial releases of Pain of Salvation that also featured Gildenlöw's bass play: ''Hereafter'' (demo, 1996), ''The Painful Chronicles'' (magazine compilation album), and ''Live in Barcelona'' (fan club release).

Session musician and side projects: 2006–present

In 2003, Gildenlöw left Sweden and moved to The Netherlands. In 2006 he left Pain of Salvation. The next six years were focused on creating his first solo album, but he also remained active in the music scene recording bass for various artists. In addition to studio recordings, Gildenlöw worked as a session musician for live performances and touring. He's been recording and touring with international artists such as Neal Morse, Damian Wilson, Lana Lane, Bert Herink, Lesoir, Kingfisher Sky, Mr. Fastfinger and many more. Se
discography
One of Gildenlöw's side projects is the progressive rock band Dial, founded in late 2003 by Liselotte Hegt, Rommert van der Meer and Gildenlöw. In the summer 2006, the band recorded their debut album ''Synchronized'' together with producer Devon Graves (of Deadsoul Tribe and Psychotic Waltz). The album was released in May 2007 through ProgRock Records. In 2017, Gildenlöw joined the renowned prog band

Kayak ] A kayak is a small, narrow human-powered watercraft typically propelled by means of a long, double-bladed paddle. The word ''kayak'' originates from the Inuktitut word '' qajaq'' (). In British English, the kayak is also considered to be ...

for the recording and touring of their new album 17. Gildenlöw continued to record and play with Kayak until the band finally stopped in 2025, with the release of their last live album/DVD ''Back To Shore''. The album was filmed and recorded during their 2022 farewell tour.

Solo artist: 2012–present

Gildenlöw's solo career as a singer-songwriter took flight with the release of his debut album ''Rust'' (2012), which he had been working on for six years. It featured a wide range of guest musicians, including Ruud Jolie (

Within Temptation Within Temptation is a Dutch symphonic metal band founded in April 1996 by vocalist Sharon den Adel and guitarist Robert Westerholt. They have been classified by critics as gothic metal and symphonic metal, although each album contains other infl ...

), Fredrik Hermansson (ex-Pain of Salvation), Ola Hedén (ex- The Flower Kings). Gildenlöw's second solo album, ''The Rain'', was released in 2016. It features Fredrik Hermansson (ex-Pain of Salvation), Lars Erik Asp (Gazpacho) on drums and percussion, Paul Coenradie (Valentine) on guitar, Anne Bakker ( Blaze Bayley) on violins and viola, and Maaike Peterse (

Ayreon Ayreon is a musical project by Dutch songwriter, singer, musician and record producer Arjen Anthony Lucassen. Ayreon's music is described as progressive rock, progressive metal and power metal sometimes combined with genres such as folk music, f ...

, Kingfisher Sky and Kovacs) on cello. Third album ''Homebound'' (2020) came out just at the eve of the Covid pandemic. Again, the album had several established guest musicians joining. During the pandemic Gildenlöw recorded the album ''Let Me Be A Ghost'' (2021). A dark album, dealing with different aspects of depression. In 2024, Gildenlöw's fifth solo album ''Empty'' was finally released. It was supposed to be released in 2020, as a quick followup to the Homebound-album, but due to the pandemic and ruling curfews, he wasn't able to finish recordings with all guest musicians. Empty looks at humans and humanity through different perspectives: humans, human race and humanity.

Discography

Solo

*''Rust'' (2012) *''The Rain'' (2016) *''Homebound'' (2020) *''Let Me Be A Ghost'' (2021) *''Empty'' (2024)

Pain of Salvation

*''Hereafter'' (1996) (demo) *'' Entropia'' (1997) *''

'' (1998) *''

'' (2000) *''

'' (2002) *'' 12:5'' (2003, live album) *'' BE'' (2004) *'' BE Live'' (2004, live album) *'' Ending Themes (On the Two Deaths of Pain of Salvation)'' (2009, DVD) *''Remedy Lane Re:Visited'' (2016) *''Remedy Lane Re:Mixed'' (2016)

Kayak

*''Seventeen'' (2018) *''Live'' (2020) * ''Out of This World'' (2021) * Back to Shore (2025)

Breaking the Chains

*''We Are Breaking the Chains'' (2018)

References

External links

*http://www.kristoffergildenlow.com/bio.html
Full discography
*http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=102244 *http://cultuurpodiumboerderij.nl/programma/antimatter-kristoffer-gildenlow/ *http://www.headbangerslifestyle.com/interviews/129/kristoffer-gildenl%C3%B6w-shelters-from-the-rain-while-recording-his-second-solo-album
Interview with Kristoffer Gildenlöw
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gildenlow, Kristoffer 1978 births Living people Swedish heavy metal bass guitarists Pain of Salvation members 21st-century Swedish bass guitarists Kayak (band) members People from Eskilstuna