tomi joutsen

Album Review: Amorphis — “Halo”

Chris1 Comment
Amorphis - Halo

Thirty years on from their groundbreaking debut The Karelian Isthmus Finnish death metal trailblazers Amorphis continue to show the rest of the world how it’s done. After the 1-2 punch of Under the Red Cloud and Queen of Time (forever known as Queen of Bee around these parts) I think we all expected a similar tone and weight with the new album, but having now sat with new album Halo for a few weeks I think the band have taken another leap forward. Heavier, proggier, and just a bit, well…more than what came before, this feels like a definitive statement from the band, pointing to more and more distant horizons.

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The Nine Circles Audio Thing: Amorphis was May 2018’s Album of the Month!

Dan5 Comments

We’re well into a new month, so that means we’re back with another chat about our favorite album from the old month! For this May-2018-edition of “old-month,” that album is Amorphis‘ spellbinding new set, Queen of Time. (Or, as one Chris Voss might refer to it, Queen of Bee.)

Whatever you call it, it’s the Finnish legends’ thirteenth album to date, and we here at the blog were all pretty taken with it. (This time out, “we here at the blog” translates to: Dan, Corey, Chris, Vince, Hera and Mark. Josh S. wanted to be here, too, but Google Hangouts had other ideas and wouldn’t let him in. SO MUCH FOR NOT BEING EVIL, AMIRITE?)

Anyway, we all got together this past Sunday to discuss the album and are thrilled to be bringing that conversation to you now. Jump on in and take a listen!

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Album Review: Hallatar – “No Stars Upon The Bridge”

Corey2 Comments

hallatar_cover

While Hallatar is a name that may ring unfamiliar and No Stars Upon The Bridge is technically a debut, the minds behind the project are highly respected veterans of their craft. Forged from the music and emotions of Juha Raivio in memory of Aleah Stanbridge, who passed April of last year, No Stars Upon The Bridge is an immense atmospheric doom metal experience inspired by collections of Aleah’s work. Working with Tomi Joutsen of Amorphis and former HIM drummer Gas Lipstick, every word and note resonates with personal meaning. As a result, No Stars Upon The Bridge delivers a multi-layered impact on a listener that few albums have managed to accomplish.

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Visions ov Hell: Hallatar – “Mirrors”

JoshLeave a comment

Hallatar - Mirrors

Welcome to Monday, let’s get our doom on, shall we? For this Visions ov Hell edition we are taking a look at Hallatar‘s first video “Mirrors” which is from their upcoming full length No Stars Upon the Bridge. It’s a video, and song, that matches the dark and heartbreaking story of the band’s creation and the need to highlight the life of a loved one and is some of the most heartfelt doom metal you’re likely to hear. Check it out after the jump. Continue reading →

The Nine Circles ov… Amorphis (The Tomi Joutsen Years)

CoreyLeave a comment

amorphis band

No, this isn’t the first time we have covered Amorphis in this particular series. But you will need to go way back to Q1 of 2014 (we were still Horns Up at that time) to find Dan’s list of his favorite Amorphis tracks. Approximately a year later, and a year that included the wildly successful Under The Red Cloud, Amorphis has once again projected their way to one of the most frequented bands in my library. As such, I felt it was time to share my personal favorites with you all. And don’t worry, there is only one track, exactly one, that overlaps.  Continue reading →