MOONSORROW

Ok, an e.p...e.p. with a 30 minute song. Wow, this is something new . And there are extra tracks including 2 recorded songs and 2 covers...and they are all near or at least over 10 minutes.

Yea, Moonsorrow always go over the top...and this is no exception...and did it work, definetly.

Yea, in this review I will only really talk about the title track, cause thats the main attraction.

Yea, Tulimyrsky, is probabbly the most epic thing ever. Seriously, it is just powerfull beyond expectations. Yes, it is bombastic, epic, powerfull, just use a thesaurus, any word can be used to describe it.

The lyrics, again in Finnish, tell an epic tale about Vikings and fire...basically. But yes, there is alot to offer in this half hour of theatrics and mythology.

The vocals have been bettered than there debut album, and even the music is better written.

At the start, there is a slow atmospheric lead up with sound effects and narration. Then the epic blasts begin, and black metal riffs take over that would leave Immortall crying. After that, early Enslaved passages take over and would make the listener cry.

Then after all the epic Emperor esque passages, it slows down again, leading into jaunty folk tunes with moutharp (bingy bongie). After that, a jauntier tune takes over.

Then at about 20 minutes into the song, the black metal like riffs are heard again, and then more epic sounding blasts (reminds me of the recapitulations in classical sonatas). Then at about 25 minutes, it slows down again, and a very beautiful melodic passage takes over, and that leads into the last few verse, with an epic choir. The choir beautifully sings battle chants and ends on a diminished major 7th chord. Hair falls out after listening.

For Whom The Bell Tolls betters Metallicas version, anyday...thats how good this band are.

CONCLUSION: Out of all the e.p's I've heard of any band, this suceeds them all. Epic as hell and hair raising. Battle metal at it's finest.

Battle Metal is a hard genre to get in to. Recently there have been Battle Metal bands springing up from holes in the ground like smurfs, some do actually make some great music (Alestorm's new album rules), but then again, some can just annoy you, they take the spirit of Battle Metal and just ruin it with songs about geting drunk and having their way with anicent women who have been dead for thousands of years (that sounds a bit necro).

But then we have the great Battle Metal bands, who, rather than drink themselves into George Best airport, actually mean what they right, and sing about great epic battles and mythology, and seeing the drinking as reward, rather than a lifestyle. I felt that Koripiklanni have kind of seen themselves becoming too obsessive with drinking (listen to Vodka and Bring Us Pints Of Beer).

Moonsorrow are definelty one of if not the best Battle Metal band ever. Instead of waddling on about how drunk a man can get, they make pieces of music that are longer and more epic than a Lord Of The Rings movie. With extended instumental passages with folky breakdowns, and weird black metal influences, they definelty are in line for the Battle Metal throne that Bathory left so long ago.

Suden Uni is an epic leviathan that is full of emotion, bombastic sounds and Finish mythology. There lyrics (even though in Finnish, thats what translations are for) are poetry none the less, explaining enough to put the Kalevala to shame;

1. Ukkosenjumalan Poika - Extremely epic, a great first song. Really grabs the listeners attention. I love how Moonspell don't need alot of vocals in their songs and rely more on the quality and the vastness of the music itself. The vocals are not that bad, they remind me of early Children Of Bodom. The blastbeats at the end are heart stopping.

2. Köyliönjärven Jäällä (Pakanavedet II) - I love the use of mouth harp (or as the keyboardist of my band Eternia would say...bingy bongie), reminds me of Fintroll. The extended passages remind me of Enslaved & Opeth, where they can keep a listener intrested without putting them to sleep.

3. Kuin Ikuinen - This song is alot like the first, where the folk is replaced with symphonic styles. I love the sound effects, they really add texture and atmospher to the extended passages, and really give us the impression of a battle scene.

4. Tuulen Koti, Aaltojen Koti - The ocean sounds add more to the jaunty folky tune. The flute parts remind me of Jethro Tull, and the harmonies created are beautiful. A more solemn moment in this wonder.

5. Pakanajuhla - Sounds like an Irish jig that i would have played ages ago. Very Fintroll again, with the use of a jaunty beat. I also love the thrash metal riff before the blast beats...if thats not Prog, i don't know what is.

6. 1065: Aika -You can tell this is gonna be epic.A slow into with an epic climax. For some reason it's very doomy, and reminds me of My Dying Bride. The scream after the spoken word passage is very epic indeed. The epic Emperor choir moments are hair raising. It's less folky and more metal.

7. Suden Uni - A Pain Of Salvation like piano ending with bingy bongie. An amazing end to an epic album.

8. Tulkaapa Äijät! - A good drinking song, not all about how much someone can love beer. It reminds me of that song Mickey, for some reason. Finn's love their drink.

CONCLUSION: This is one of the milestones of Battle Metal. If you are intrested in Battle Metal, then buy this one, it's just a great album, and really makes people proud to believe in this once great genre. Now excuse me, I've got a keg with my name on it...

This may be one of the grandest metal albums in the last decade, and certainly one of the most epic in the folk/viking metal genre. With two lengthy compositions on this album, Viides Luku - Hävitetty, Moonsorrow creates a doomy metal atmosphere giving the impression of a vast expansive landscape full of foreboding elements and harsh textures.

Beginning the album is a moody synth chord in the background, with a large cracking sound groaning across the soundscape, perhaps a melting glacier or shifting earth adding to the doomy texture of the album. Clean, melancholy guitar begins a solemn intro, and the journey begins. The build up is almost post-rock like, with things really finally picking up to speed about ten minutes into the composition. At this point there is heavy metal guitar assaulting the listener with crushing riffs, along with driving drums and a longing synthesized choir in the background. The vocals, like in many folk-metal albums, are very black metal-esque and add enormous amounts to the bleakness of the record. By the end of the first piece, one will be taken aback at the spectacle they have witnessed, but certainly won't be worn out for the second half of the journey.

The second song, "Tuleen Ajettu Maa", is distinctly more folk-oriented. As the tectonic cracking returns, a faint drum crescendoes into the piece in a driving 5/4 rhythm. Folky acoustic guitar drops in with a mouth harp, showcasing the traditional roots of the band. A couple minutes in and the epic metal instrumentation makes a second appearance, and in contrast with the lighter instruments sounds far more agressive and emotional than the first time around. As the composition builds in intensity, the genres switch from the metal sound back and forth to folk music several times, before the band continues in the more straightforward doom metal vein for the rest of the song. The epic nature of the rest of the composition is excellent as well, and the music fades away, back into the sounds of the harsh landscape from which the album came.

A great album, especially for fans of doom, viking, and folk metal.

I really wish it were out of 10 instead of out of 5, because it deserves a 9/10, which is a 4.5 out of five. But To give it a 5 would be like calling it Dark Side of the Moon, or In the Court of the Crimson King.

But this album is truly amazing, it has very epic sounding music on it, more in a black metal style, but it lessens the folk elements a little bit. It has a very memorable tune in it, at least the first song, and you will constantly have that tune in your head after listening to it.

Two perfect pieces of progressive metal suites, definitely!

Moonsorrow is essentially a Folk Metal band, but while aiming for an epic sound they morphed into a Progressive Metal band...with strong folk elements. Verisäkeet is not their most progressive album. However, it is something of a fan favourite. For the more progressive I would recommend V: Hävittety and for the slightly less progressive but lighter sound I would recommend Kivenkantaja. Verisäkeet is very, very dark. If this appeals to you, please, read on!

As stated before, they are influenced by Metal and Progressive music. However, their music doesn't seem to be written to show off so much as to achieve a certain sound. This album in particular is closer to Black Metal, with the occasional unmistakable Burzum sound being integrated into the many layers. This album makes use of some very interesting folk instruments, including some of the instruments commonly used in Folk Metal, like fiddles and tin whistles. A couple of typically Finnish instruments are played on this record - the jouhikko and kantele. All of these instruments contribute to the massive sound with hidden complexities that allow the listener to hear something new every time.

The instruments themselves allow Moonsorrow to have a rather unique sound, but I feel the compositional style is also very distinctive. They make use of riffs that sometimes sound like those of typical metal bands, but each section of music morphs seamlessly into the next. Even the tracks themselves morph into the next, making the album truly feel like a journey. Clean vocals, choral vocals, and screams are all used. Unlike many bands, these screams make sense within the music and are not often too prominent. All the vocal styles work well and contribute to the overall feel in such a way that even someone who is not a fan of metal vocals can appreciate it. All the lyrics on this album are in Finnish, and I believe this is true of all their work apart from some of the Tulimyrsky EP. The beauty of the language lends itself to the music, which generally evokes images of dark Finnish landscapes. The words need not be understood for the listener to understand the music.

Repetition is definitely used, but not in a tiresome way. Sections morph before getting tiresome and appear again at suitable intervals, sometimes with variations. The mix hides many complexities, not all of which are entirely musical. Birdsong, wind, and battle sounds are all used in the mix, slightly predictably, but work fairly well by adding to the already bleak atmosphere. As the tracks fade out there is often a lot still going on and not necessarily in a repeat 'till fade way. In fact, new musical ideas are often subtly brought in very near the end.

The highlight of the album for me is Pimeä. Ville Sorvali's vocal performance is fantastic. I feel it is even more heart-felt and mournful than on any of the other tracks. There are clean vocals for what could be the chorus. The harmonies rise above the guitar's distortion beautifully. This choral style is used at various points throughout the album using primitive, yet effective harmonies. The guitar solo on Pimeä is also nicely understated and allows the music to flow on without disturbance.

The album then gets a little gentler and the Folk influence becomes more prominent. Jotunheim is a wistful and desolate track which ends on a more triumphant note, quite like the music on the previous album, Kivenkantaja. The last track is acoustic and comparatively simple, yet a necessary end to the album.

I give this album 4 stars because it isn't truly essential, but extremely enjoyable. I recommend this to anyone open to Extreme Progressive Metal. Be warned though- the progressive side of it is not incredibly strong.

Voimasta Ja Kunniasta is the debut album from Moonsorrow. Moonsorrow is a folk/ Viking metal band from Finland. The album was released in 2001.

The music on Voimasta Ja Kunniasta is pretty basic mid paced heavy metal with lots of nordic ethnic folk influences. The vocals are excellent IMO. Ville Seponpoika Sorvali has a great aggressive rasp ( black metal style). The best thing is his Infernal screams which there is a good example of in the begining of Sankarihauta but they appear now and again to my great joy. The lyrics are in their native finnish language so I don´t know what they are about, but my guess would be the Viking culture. Besides the raspy vocals from Ville Seponpoika Sorvali there are also some grand choir sections which at times remind me of Rhapsody and at times give Voimasta Ja Kunniasta a power metal feel. I can´t help also thinking about Amorphis when I listen to the album. There is something in the folky parts that reminds me of Tales From the Thousand Lakes or Elegy from that particular band.

The musicianship is great on this album. It´s not unique and most of what´s played has been heard before a thousand times but sometimes it´s not what you play but the way you play it that matters. Note the mouth harp which appears in some songs. A really fun feature.

The production is good.

Moonsorrow has been a pleasant surprise for me even though I can´t claim to be a big fan of this genre. I´ll definitely be checking out the rest of their discography though. I think 3 stars are well deserved for this album. It´s not excellent by any means but certainly very good. Fans of folky/ viking metal will probably love this one.

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!

Just like that other memorable (and by now classic) EP made by that important prog metal band (what´s their name again...?) Moonsorrow´s Tulimyrsky in packed with one monstrous epic (30 min long!!!) and some other songs which pale in comparison making this reviewer having to lower the rate of what could have been a perfect score. For it is a shame Moonsorrow did not release this epic as a single song like Meshuggah did with their marvellous I, but instead filled this EP with another extra 40 min of music, making this release even longer than their previous albums! Whether it was their choice or the choice of the record company is allusive to my knowledge, but who ever took that decision made a mistake in my book.

Now, on to the music. Tulimyrsky, the song, as mentioned earlier is a 30 min epic piece of music. And when I say epic I mean it. If I had to discrive Moonsorrow I would say they are Epic folk metal (with some pinch of viking) so you know they are epic... and when they write a 30 min song, well... you get the idea. Following the style of the rhapsodias presented in V: Hevitteti from 2007, Tulimyrsky opens with atmospheric keys and soft acoustic guitars while it crescends on to one of the most brutal entrys to a metal song. Now you know Moonsorrow will take no prisioners, from there on the music is hard, brutal yet sophisticaded and at times beautiful. Probably more melodic than their previous side long songs and definitly more symphonic (not in the prog way, but in the classical music way), specially in the outro, Tulimyrsky holds up against Moonsorrow´s previous work V: Hevitteti and shows us that these guys did not rest their heads, but instead wrote another masterpiece! And while Tulimyrsky may not have an absolute unique moment of music-heaven like Jäästä Syntynyt / Varjojen Virta´s chorus like riff around the tenth minute, which is one of metal´s finest moments in history, the whole thing is as solid as you can get, never letting go, never letting down and only a close second to the already mentioned Jäästä Syntynyt / Varjojen Virta.

The rest of the album as said already is pretty much 40 minutes of fillers. More hardcore fans of the band might find them interesting, particulary their cover of Metallica´s classic For whom the bells tolls, but I must say I don´t really find anything of interest in here. You might... but I don´t, either way, you have been warned! Get this only for the epic, you´ll be greatful!

Ravaged I glance upon this bruised land

I was walking through the burned out terrain; no one in sight, only scavenging birds picking at the remains of bodies from the last battle that went on here. The fire is seen from afar; the heat from it reaching despite the distance; its sound carried on the mild wind. All starts slowly and calmly. Then start the beating of the drums, the guitar gently playing. As if to lure me into their midst, promising nothing will harm me now after the storm. The chanting vocals of the choir speak of coldness and despair (with a possibility of hope that would later turn out futile); now we realize the storm shall start yet again with a big bang. The electro-acoustic guitar prepares us, giving the intro, joined by the bass. Then it starts. slowly bursting powerfully from its shell the riffs sear through the landscape. All of a sudden it accelerates and the main theme starts. This theme will lead the first part and will reappear in the later parts of this thirty minute track. We are now soaring through the darkened battle-field, overhead. The music, as mentioned, is curled around the main theme, developed and deconstructed through it, brought around and about it, always returning, and constantly bumping away from it. One would think that half an hour of one track is too much for this sort of music; but it's not. The musical ideas are well exploited, well developed and well played. It is intense, powerful and even mesmerizing. Dark and foreboding, the music is mysterious and the art-work fits it perfectly. There is a sense of doom in the air, as if we are about to lose our souls. The music portrays this very well. At about the half point of the track, comes the complementing second theme, which is a swirling riff with a climatic alternate end point. Moonsorrow manages to pull me through this journey, hypnotizing me, making me follow them on those sound-wings, looking beneath me at the scorched ground. It is extreme metal befitting extreme situation. The music seems to fit glacial scenery, a stormy winter night; however, I am filled with great warmth as I listen to their music.

Though the band has shifted in their direction, there are all the recognizable elements of their black metal and Viking metal roots. Though it is less melodic and accessible than prior efforts, it is much more experimental, explorative and progressive. They develop less musical ideas but to a greater extent. Here they show how far they have gone from the days of Suden Uni. This album represents a superb progression of the band from albums which are good example of having progressive tendencies themselves. They have toned down some of their viking metal characteristics (though not completely but relatively) and have emphasized the aggressive and extreme metal side. It would seem that the band is now interested in focusing on creating metallic sceneries, focusing more on development and exploration of distinct and few musical schemes; they seem to like creating a flowing and coherent wall of riffs and blasts. I can only imagine how their next album will sound if I judge by what has been done here.

I won't go into the second track, as there is a similar pattern there as well with regards to developing and exploring a musical theme. All that was said about the first track applies here as well. I'll only say that it is even more extreme and aggressive, while also having somewhat more melodic touches to it. This album has a big scope; not only in the sense that that tracks are so long, but also in that the sound of the album sounds big; it conjures up in my mind images of a huge landscape; the music itself has a big volume if that makes sense. All of these make this album become a life-size experience, a voyage to a place far away from my everyday life. This is exactly what I want from the music I listen to; to carry me away.

Being a longtime fan of the band, I wasn't sure at first what they were aiming at; it took several listens to realize all that I wrote above. Now after many listens, I'm so happy with this album, that I like it as much as my other favourite album by them, Voimasta Ja Kunniasta. If you liked Moonsorrow's previous efforts, then you should get this as well! For fans of extreme metal, black metal, Viking metal etc. this is highly recommended.

Ok, so you want epic, right? You want Moonsorrow!

Moonsorrow must be right now one, if not THE, most respected, critical aclaimed and probably succesful band in the Viking metal scene. Yes, the fisrt thing I thought too is "Viking metal? That can´t sound good!", well, I have to hand it to you, just as about anyhting in metal, the majority of bands in the genre actually quite... suck. But there are two or three bands that actually sound quite good and one that sounds like a mountain, and that´s Moonsorrow.

If you aren´t familiar with Moonsorrow and/or the Viking metal scene and want to get an idea of how it must sound... well, take Opeth´s long compositions, add the epicness of ...In the Woods, pour some Braveheard (yes, the movie) into the mix and you´ll have a pretty good idea of how it sounds. Ah, and put a lot of testosterone and stinking sweat... yes, Viking stinks! If there ever was a manly metal, this is it!

Now, of course this all sounds pretty stupid and not many progheads will find this interesting and (sadly?) it´s not that far away from the truth. Still, in Moonsorrow´s case, even though it all fits the description, it´s just a part of what they are, for, even if there is stinking sweat, the band, and specially in this case, sound extremly polished and refined. It is really surprising how they can pull off all that rawness and make it sound sophisticated. And, again, never have they achieved that better than in V: Hävitetty.

The album starts with Jäästä Syntynyt/ Varjojen Virta, a 30:10 min piece of metal music. From the soft and Pink Floyd inspired keys and arpegios guitars and the grandiloquent and slightly pompous choruses we are sumerged into the cold woods of Finland. This intro (Jäästä Syntynyt) lasts seven and a half minutes, but it´s impressive how this guys arrange to make time past bye so fast you actually get surprised the intro didn´t last 3 minutes, and that´s the secret of Moonsoroow in this album, they make time pass by as if it were air. Of course the song starts to get even better when the distorted guitars kick in, but it´s not until Ville Sorvali´s cry of war that the adrenaline pumps in and we are taken to the middle of the march of ferocious horses and their knights ready to kick some scandinavians butts. From this point on the song only get´s better and better, progresing, almost unnoticed, with riffs coming in and out, but never relying too much on repetitions, the key here is to march forward! Even though, as said before, the song just keeps getting better and better, nothing tops the monster guitar riff around the 12 th min. The first time it´s presented, for it will come up two more times, I literally get goosebumps every single time I hear it, it´s in my opinion one of metal´s best riffs ever, yet it´s quite simple, don´t expect much technicallity here, it´s simple, but ever so effective. The end (or near the end) melody, the climax sort to speak, around the 24th min is another highpoint, I don´t think we can go any more epic than that melody, really well crafted, and, again, the progression until this point in the song is remarkable, it really feels like the 24 min of music before were a way to get to this point, and not one second is wasted, a really perfect epic if there is such thing, I hold it just as high as Meshuggah´s I, which many times I have said is the best epic in metal ever... well, this is number two by a very, very slim margin.

The second, and last, song, Tuleen Ajettu Maa, although more varied and just as brutal and sophisticated at the same time, is not up par with Jäästä Syntynyt/ Varjojen Virta, but it´s by no means a weak track. Again we are presented with some excellent build ups, the progression of the song through out it´s 26:19 min feels natural as well, even though some parts might be too long, played (maybe) a few times too much, and some of the choruses might be a bit too pompous for their own sake, but more than that I have no reproach. Some parts of the song, specially Sorvali´s voice remainds me of some of Devin Townsend best moments, due also to the atmospheric feel the guitars have.

All in all this album is excellent, but as there are only two song, one of which is superb and one of which is just very good, I can´t give it 5 stars. If it would be possible I would rate it 4.5/5, but I can´t, and I think this time the rating must go to 4 more than to 5. Now, before I finish my review, I will let you in a little secret. You know what makes Moonsorrow, and specially this album, so good, whats the secret for their 30 min epics were every second is incredible? The rythmical section! The bass/drums work, it might not be virtuoso, they might not leave 4/4 for too long, but they work wonders, almost unnoticed, I have come to this conclusion very recently after having heard this album a 100 times already, and I think I´m on to something. Even Sorvali´s vocals, which are far more rythmical than melodic add up to make that progression and that going somewhere seem so natural and right. And if you lay on top some atmospheric distorted guitars and some sweat, you have the perfect metal band.