Unlike their neighbors to the west, Finnish scene evolved late and also in relative isolation. Quite like how they took their own time for economic industrialization, Finnish metallers were also sort of late to the planet’s extreme metal feast. Finns do come across as one wary lot. But, circa 1990, evolution took a huge leap. They seamlessly adapted their classic metal roots into a Black Sabbath influenced death/doom, and accomplished it within an absolutely meager time. Not surprising why Amorphis developed such distinct signatures — they never did follow that conventional trajectory.

Now, after twenty five years of folk and melodic metal, you would think they won’t have much to say. Go with that expectation and get ready to be mowed, by some quirky progressions and subtle rich melodies.

Moments where you get to experience glimpses of their glorious past are frequent. Creative folksy hooks and abrupt bursts into melodic death segments – guaranteed to overwhelm even their ardent listeners. Undoubtedly, Under the Red Cloud forges more than quite a few steps, onto a distinct path carved over the past two decades.

By Cecil (Own work) [GFDL, CC-BY-SA-3.0 or CC BY-SA 2.5-2.0-1.0], via Wikimedia Commons