Sabaton’s bassist Pär Sundström explained why the band will not write about the war in Ukraine, saying the group only addresses conflicts that have become history, not events still unfolding. He made the comments in an interview with Metal Pilgrim.
Sabaton has built much of its catalog around wars and battles from the past. The bassist was asked to explain why the band draws a line at current events, even when conflicts have ended.
“For us to talk about something, it needs to be history. That’s a clear, like, starting point. And something that is going on right now, it’s obviously not history; it’s a current event or something,” the bassist said.
“So there is a line. And then I think it needs to be far … further back in time as well. There is no exact time, like timespan, but it definitely needs to have slipped into history.”
When asked directly about Ukraine, he continued, “Those are current events. So we don’t want to touch them.”
“Well, it is not history. And that’s why we are kind of … just simply we decided that’s not for us.”
The bassist made clear that Sabaton has set boundaries around the subjects it explores in its music. The band’s approach means some conflicts remain off limits until enough time has passed.
Sabaton, a Swedish power metal band founded in 1999, built their early albums on songs about wars and famous historical battles, especially from World War II. In their early years, the band covered more recent conflicts, including the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the War on Terror, but this approach changed over time.
Bassist Pär Sundström explained the reasoning behind this shift. He said that history is complete and settled, and it has shaped the world today. Sundström stated that the band does not want to talk much about the future or what it will bring, which is why they focus on what has already been decided and cannot be changed.
After their 2019 album The Great War about World War I and their 2022 album The War to End All Wars, Sabaton moved further away from modern warfare topics. Their most recent album, Legends, released in October 2025, features songs about legendary historical figures like Joan of Arc, Napoleon Bonaparte, Julius Caesar, and sword-master Miyamoto Musashi. This shift shows the band’s commitment to exploring only what history has already written.
