1. Finntroll – ‘‘Vredesvävd’
55 out of 60 points, well well, that’s a winner for sure. The whole team had the latest Finntroll album in their top 3! Their last album dated all the way back to 2013, but what a hell of a comeback they made.
Albums like Ur Jordens Djup and Nifelvind remain in my regular rotation, soon to be joined by Vredesvavd. Singles like Mask and Ormfolk could easily nestle in either, despite being conceived a decade apart. Ever familiar entrances, interchanges and melodic aura help to forget the passage of time with supporting gang hymns teleporting to forbidden Forrest soirées.
It should also go without saying that Mathias “Vreth” Lillmåns continues to excel as frontman and vocal expert of the harsh persuasion that only gets better with time, like a yummy spicy whiskey. Not overshadowing the arrangement expertise of keyboardist-composer Henri “Trollhorn” Sorvali. Their latest creation thoroughly satisfies every expectation and scratches all folk metal itches, in complete blackened humpa abandonment.
Tag Archives: Ensiferum
Ensiferum – ‘Thalassic’ (2020)
Rating: 8.5/10 Release: 10 July 2020 Label: Metal Blade Records Ensiferum-”Thalassic” (8.5)Every band has eras in their existence, and I feel that most will draw lines of separation in Ensiferum’s timeline. Is it Emmi or post-Emmi? Is it Jari or Petri era? Or maybe early albums or Metal Blade albums? … Continue reading →
Ensiferum ‘Path to Glory’ tour
20 January 2019 Metro Operahouse Oakland By: Assia Rating: 8.9 To be honest, I recently kinda fell out of love with Ensiferum. Perhaps to my detriment, because Two Paths just screams OG Ensiferum in many aspects once you really listen to it. The albums prior, which I shall not mention, … Continue reading →
Ensiferum @ Bogota
Ensiferum & Skyclad @ Luxor
Date: 28 September 2017Venue: Luxor Live, Arnhem (NL) With a somewhat small tour though Europe, Ensiferum present their new album Two Paths. My colleague Jeff is right in stating that this album will bring the band new fans, where some of the old fans might struggle to like the increase … Continue reading →
Ensiferum – ‘Two Paths’ (2017)
Rating: 9/10 Release: 15 September 2017 Label: Metal Blade Records Name the top 5 biggest names in folk metal and Ensiferum would be on the list I would think. After releasing nothing but killer stuff from day one, I would say their previous effort (“One Man Army”) for new label … Continue reading →
Ensiferum & Heidra @ Rotterdam
Venue: Maassilo, Rotterdam, The Netherlands Date: 2 April 2016 On the second day of the “Return of the one man army” tour, Finnish folk metal gods Ensiferum played in the almost fully packed ‘Maassilo’ in Rotterdam. Of course I wanted to see them, since they are one of my favourite … Continue reading →
Ensiferum – ‘Two Decades of Greatest Sword Hits’ (2016)
Rating: 9.9/10 Release: 1 April 2016 Label: Spinefarm Records “Two Decades of Greatest Sword Hits” is the best of the victorious and powerful career of Ensiferum. Is not only a huddle of tracks, but I felt that the songs were carefully chosen (…and this wasn’t an easy task, because the … Continue reading →
Trollfest, Korpiklaani and Ensiferum, USA tour
Theatre of Living Arts; Philadelphia, USA 28 May 2015 TROLLFEST/KORPIKLAANI/ENSIFERUM Phil and I are made are way down to the venue which was over 80 miles away so we left at 5 o’clock or so to get there….luckily traffic cooperated and we were at the venue right before 7PM finding … Continue reading →
Ensiferum – One Man Army Tour
Hedon, Zwolle The Netherlands 26-03-2015 By: Yvette Photography: Metalshots.com Tonight we travel to Zwolle for a very special concert featuring some of our favorite bands from Finland, the Ensiferum, Insomnium and Omnium Gatherum concert! Long have we anticipated this concert, and as we approach the venue I cannot help but … Continue reading →