KIVENKANTAJA

Well seeing that there are such few reviews of this great prog metal band I would have to review each album i have by this band starting with one of may favorites.

Kivenkantaja wich in english means Stonebearer is really a great album, the first one to feature keyboardist Markus Eurén, and their best for a long time. The music can be described as viking/black/epic/progressive metal, because this isn't a normal nordic metal album, is maybe the best folk inspired viking metal since Bathory, and is definetly one of the greatest records of the first decade of the 21 century in the prog metal scene.

The guitars play an important rol in this record but the keyboards are the ones that make this record outstanding and impressive, they are beautifull sometimes and other they create such an epic texture that makes you enter in a world of vikings and epic trips and wars; if Moonsorrow are unique for something is for tranport the listener into the vikings age by using folk elements in their music that only they could make sound this amzing in a black/viking metal record.

Another element that makes this viking trip more enjoyable are the epic choruses, when they use the choir to make incredible epic and very very enjoyable choruses such as the one of Jumalten Kaupunki/Tuhatvuotinen Perintö or my personal favourite the one in Unohduksen Lapsi, this takes you in an ultimate trip to scandinavia and makes this album a really amazing extreme prog metal one.

Raunioilla: starts very quite with the sound of bells but then you can hear the first riff that is a very epic one too. The synths start to show with a very beautifull melody I think also with some accordion that is another great element of this band; the use of folk instruments that mke this band a really unique one. The song flows with incredible clean vocals by the band members accompained by the chorus and then the growls of Ville shows up. This great epic transpots us to the ruins as the translation of the title is At the Ruins, and is really a beautifull trip with many great riffs and some amazing solos, but the song turns a little bit repetitive at some point, until the great epilogue section that features some great keys and acustic guitar; the song ends with,again, the sound of bells. Amazing song even if not the best of the album! 8.5/10

Unohduksen Lapsi: This is what I was talking about! My personal favourite song from the album and for me the most progy song on the record. This song starts with the bells of the last song and a great brutal riff, wich leads us to one of the greatest vocal performances of Ville Sorvali. This song is definetly my favorite song of Moonsorrow not including the great epics! The chorus to this song is the best I've heard in a long time, and also it has some really epic keyboard sections and brutal and beautifull black metal riffs. The harmonies between guitars and the musicianship of this band really shows up in this song, making it one of the greatest metal bands I've heard since Opeth. The song ends in a pretty epic way after featuring some first class riffs the chorus shows up one more time and then the song ends with some gentle accordion accompained by some keys and then silence and dust.... 9.5/10

Jumalten Kaupunki/Tuhatvuotinen Perintö: ....that leads us to another amazing song! This is somewhat of a fan-favourite between Moonsorrow fans and I can see why! This song sumarise what Moonsorrow is all about, this songng has almost everything this band is known for. It starts with a man talking and then is a great riff after another, and also some good keyboard lead and even some synth solos here and there. The chorus even if not better than the one in the previous song is really of epic proportions and shows the talent of the people of the chorus that really do a great job making this record a lot more enjoyable. The song progresses into metalmadness until there some peace but not for long because then a great growl provided by Sorvalli leads us to the final instrumental part that is real guitar madness until the en in wich the song fades out again with an accordion/keyboard solo. 9/10

Kivenkantaja: This song is again another great one even if it's not as epic as the first three. It starts with acustic guitar and accordion, and then you enter in a world of brutal violent growls until the end, no epic beautifull choruses here, this is the heaviest song on the album but it also has some great instrumental parts, even some short clean vocals interludes, and it also features great keyboards in almost all the song. Ville's voice is at it's top in this song and in the final part when he growls and the chorus sings Kivenkantaja!!! you can hear the great musicianship between the band and the chorus. Even if not the best song on the album it's a really good one and if not as epic as the others, is without a doubt the most brutal one! 8.5/10

Tuulen Tytär/Soturin Tie: This is an almost all instrumental song that showcase the folk talent of this band, they use all the instrumentation that they are known for and do a pretty good folk song well at least the first part. The second part transforms this in another great metal song after a piano interlude that leads our trip to unknown prog territory, this is one of the proggiest songs on the record and is really a relief after so much brutal viking metal. The part where the chorus sings is simply epic and beautiful, and then some gentle noises, when you think the song is about to end the drums lead you to The Way of the Warrior and the guitar shows up one more time and for the last time in this incredible record. 8/10

Matkan Lopussa: The last song on the album is a beautifull ballad showing guest vocalist Petra Lindberg, I think this song works as a farewell, saying goodbye to us all who have already expirienced this incredible record, is very beautifull and ends the album with a predominat element of it, because all the beautiful instrumentation and female vocals and the chorus makes this farewell really EPIC!!! a very good closing song really wich shows that this band can also do gentle, quite songs. 7.5/10

All in all this is an outstanding record that shows the talent this band has and has developed to an extent that now they have done a masterpiece of prog metal that is Viides Luku - Hävitetty their latest album. I recomend this to any fan of prog metal that can stand growls and also to any prog fan but again be aware of the growls, they used it a lot in this record so if you can't stand them this may be not the record for you.

If you want to like this band you better buy first some Opeth records as Watershed that doesn't have too much growls because if you can't stand them you definetly won't appreciate this record as the great album it is. Train your ears first!