Amorphis-The Beginning of Times (2011)

Today I am looking at an album that I gave a lukewarm reception to immediately upon its release.  This album is the latest by Finnish band Amorphis. 

Amorphis formed in 1990 and has since slowly changed sound style.  I was a big fan of the band from their previous releases, "Eclipse" and "Skyforger".  When I first heard back in 2011 that Amorphis would be releasing a new album, I was excited.  After I heard the first track released my excitement was dimmed.  I still have not purchased their latest record, "The Beginning of Times," but decided today that I would give it the closer look it deserves.

Often compared to Opeth, Amorphis plays strongly melodic metal leaning to the progressive end of the spectrum.  The sound is chunky and somewhat rooted in Finnish folklore, with driving lead guitars dueling ahead of the heavy riffing.  This style is indicative of much of Amorphis' latest work.  What really defines this band, however, is the vocal work of Tomi Joutsen.  Joutsen performs all of the band's vocals, flawlessly shifting from uplifting clean singing to guttural roars.  Few metal vocalists can pull off this feat as well as Joutsen. 

The two songs I have heard from "The Beginning of Times" contrast.  You I Need focuses on more somber, reflective material, whereas My Enemy starts off with deep growls before shifting into the glorious cleans.  Both songs are progressive and memorably melodic.  This is a disc I may add to my ever-growing list of albums to purchase.  It somehow slipped through the cracks in 2011, but Amorphis is still perhaps one of the best metal bands to ever originate from Finland, and this is a country that churns out high numbers of metal bands per capita. 

If you are into metal with progressive and melodic roots, you may want to check out Amorphis if you have not yet.  Here are the two tracks I have heard.  Thanks for reading and enjoy!

In Mourning-The Weight of Oceans

Hello, readers!  Today I wanted to take a brief look at a new album that came out earlier this year from Sweden's In Mourning. 

Progressive metal rarely suffers from a lack of originality.  Many interesting bands offer a diverse array of progressive-themed metal.  The Weight of Oceans is In Mourning's third album and is an effective followup to Monolith, released in 2010. 

In Mourning's mix consists of heavy, stomping guitar riffs played over a background of progressive-sounding keyboards.  Vocals are mostly in the harsh, roaring category, and fill the foreground of the music with energetic metal vocals.  At a few moments sparsly littered accross the album, the band breaks down into a slow section reminiscent of Opeth's vintage songs, when they introduce warming clean vocals. 

If you are into progressive metal music, you should enjoy In Mourning.  If you don't like metal music at all, you won't like this.  I thoroughly enjoyed Monolith and was excited when The Weight of Oceans came out.  I'm happy to announce that I remain a fan of In Mourning.  The Weight of Oceans floats ashore with 4.6/5 stars.  Take a look at the album's opener, Colossus below.  Enjoy and thank you for reading.