Two years ago, Alkaline Trio singer and guitarist Matt Skiba suggested in an interview that even if he became considerably happier with his life, his songs would continue to have the dark themes that have become his trademark.

Sunday at Showbox, 1426 First Ave., Seattle. Sold out.

“There are things that I have in me that aren’t going to go away anytime soon,” Skiba said in 2003. “So there’s always something to write about. There are things in my life that I’m really happy about. There are things in my life that I’ll never be happy about.”

Skiba obviously knew what he was talking about. The new Alkaline Trio CD, “Crimson,” comes at a point where the singer and guitarist has more reasons than ever to be content. But one wouldn’t know it by listening.

“There are stories on this record that are coming directly from my experiences, but (also) how other experiences have affected me,” Skiba said in a recent phone interview. “Before, we were kind of writing a lot about make-believe horror. On this record we’re writing more about real-life horror. I think it’s the darkest record we’ve ever written. I think at least for us, because we know what we’re talking about, it’s the saddest and darkest record. I like it.”

A sense of turmoil, harm and doom pervades many of the songs on “Crimson” including “Burn” (This impending doom is left deep inside/And it’s haunting you each and every night”); “I Was a Prayer” (“Had a nice grip on life ‘til you twisted my arm”); and “Dethbed” (“Calling all cars all coroners we’ve got a dead one here”).

Real life, however, seems to be treating Skiba and his bandmates – bassist and singer Dan Andriano and drummer Derek Grant – well. The three are all experiencing welcome romantic stability with Andriano having gotten married and Skiba and Grant having steady girlfriends. Meanwhile Skiba noted that he is living a less destructive life.

“I’ve just been taking better care of myself,” he said. “I’ve kind of cut back on the drinking and the drugging. I just kind of pick my battles these days. We still like to have a good time, but the older you get, the harder it gets to maintain that lifestyle, and I just kind of took a step away from it and realized it was a smart move. Making a record when you’re not hung over is awesome.”

From all indications, the sessions for “Crimson” were particularly smooth, once they began.

The band had to postpone recording when Skiba broke his wrist in a skateboarding accident. An avid skateboarder since he was a kid, Skiba had never before been injured while boarding. When Skiba got back on his skateboard in January after the record was finished, it took him all of 15 minutes to take another tumble, this time breaking his other arm. The injury forced Alkaline Trio to delay the release of “Crimson” and the start of touring behind the CD.

Skiba is now back pretty much to full health, although he has retired from skateboarding for the time being.

“I’m good,” Skiba said. “I had to do some physical therapy and stuff, but I got the cast off, and we pretty much went right out on tour. It’s been great. It’s a little sore, but I’m back to playing and lifting some weights to get the arm back.”

The initial wrist injury may have helped to sharpen the “Crimson” CD by giving the band a little extra time to work on material for the CD.

“We wrote these songs, and we had a long time to work on them and a lot of time to record them, more than we’ve ever had,” Skiba said. “It really gave us a chance to explore the songs and play them in different ways and kind of help them find their homes, for lack of a better term. You know, I think we did just put more into this record than we ever have before.”