Amorphis

                                                                                                                                       Title:Under The Red Cloud

                                                                                                                                       Label :Nuclear Blast

                                                                                                                                       Release Date:4 September 2015

Finnish Metal Masters Amorphis return with their 12th Album “Under The Blood Red Cloud” and its an album I couldn’t wait to listen to, having seen the band perform ,( blowing everyone away at the PPM Festival Last year in Belgium ) and being a fan of their more recent work , “Under The Blood Red Cloud “ is here and sees the band continue to step up the gears in releasing possibly one of their best albums to date. Featuring guest appearances from Martin Lopez (ex Opeth) , Aleh Stanbridge (Trees of Eternity) and  Chrige Glanz Mann (Eluevitie) you get an album full to bursting with a Melancholic / Folky/ Death/ Progressive amalgamation that’s a heavenly delight to this reviewers ears.

 

Its one of those albums where I find difficult to get past each track with out   replaying them again , and again.

The title track opens proceedings with a symphonic build up that see's vocalist Tomi Joutsen deliver some of the best vocals in this genre of Metal, and it gave me a huge grin on my face as soon as I heard this song, Amorphis are Back! Drummer Jan Rechbereger blasts and beats his drums to the edge of their life as “The Four Wise Ones” opens and a deathly growl emanates that makes your skin prickle and envelops your very being, its ethereal effects penetrate your consciousness.  Niclas Etelavuouri thunders on Bass , and Esa Holopainen accompanied by Tomi Kovusaari crush everything in their way with pulverising , harmonius abandonment .

Favourite track for me ? really  hard to choose , but “Bad Blood” ticks all the boxes and sees Santeri Kallio working his magic on the keys with sublime effect of gratifying proportions, this is  a track that’s sure to become a favourite with the Amorphis faithful, The growls are outstanding ,and the chorus works its Magic ,the vocals soar this really is a superb song.

 

“The Skull” bashs into your noggin with its enchanting , slightly Middle Eastern vibe which continues onto the simply outstanding “Death of a King” with its Indian ambiance which sees guests Chrigi Glanzmanns flute coming to the fore as he weaves his magic and Martin Lopez plays percussion on this one, it’s a highlight , simply captivating. Only song that I found difficult to really get into is “Sacrifice” while a stellar tune it is for me the weakest link on here and the one track I didn’t keep returning to. “Dark Path” with the piano ,the growls and deafening guitars batters your senses and sees you banging your head in sheer delight. “Enemy at The Gates” continues the middle eastern/Indian atmosphere which is pretty much prevelant throughhout the album which isn’t a bad thing , the flute work and guitars work so well together  making this like nearly all the tracks on here, an absorbing piece especially when the guitars duel and the sinister growls from Joutsen embed themselves in your .

 

“Tree of Ages” makes you wanna dance and bang your head as the flute and guitars wash  over you  kind of brings into your minds eye a mosh pit to dive into and just damn well party  into the night. Final track “White Night”  sees Aleah fully strut her stuff its an emotional finish with her stirring vocals combined with Joutsens growls its simply an awesome track to finish  an awesome album.

Simply put I love this band!! Many years ago I was too narrow minded to even give this band the time of day, that’s something I am correcting, it’s a hell of a Mystical Folk/Death/Doom inspired Journey of 50 minutes plus on “Under a Blood Red Cloud”   

 

 

Review: Seb Di Gatto          Score: 9.8/10

 

Tracklisting:

01. Under The Red Cloud

02. The Four Wise Ones

03. Bad Blood

04. The Skull

05. Death Of A King

06. Sacrifice

07. Dark Path

08. Enemy At The Gates

09. Tree Of Ages

10. White Night

 

 Members: Tomi Joutsen ,Esa Holopainen, Tomi Koivusaari, Niclas Etelävuori, Santeri Kallio, Jan Rechberger

 

Facebook   Website