Category: Albums

Second album by the Finnish metal head bangers released again by Poko records.

After listening to Vivere, you cannot really say that there is anything wrong with it. The record is an acceptable collection of good heavy metal songs, with the female vocalist, Elina Iron, doing a decent job with clean and powerful vocal skills. The production has been taken care of by the omnipresent Hiili Hiilesmaa, so that is almost synonym of good quality.  But there is “something” missing here. There is no hit that can be highlighted as the definite one that could break the ice internationally. The sound is maybe a bit more aggressive than in their debut album, released a couple of years ago, (listen for example The beast), but there are so many similar bands nowadays in Finland (metal bands with female singers such as Nightwish, Amberian Dawn, Manzana, etc) that makes really complicated for a band to stand out unless they offer something really fresh.

All in all, a good album of metal, but after giving it a couple of tries, it can happen that you start to look for other new bands (or re-listen to the classics).

Rating 3/5

With a very brutal sound, here is the fourth album by Nicole released with their own label Biotech.

Well, I cannot say that Nicole´s new release is a bad album… as far as you are into hardcore metal. The point is that maybe I have started to feel a bit bored of bands whose lyrics are almost gibberish due to the screams of the singer. Do not misunderstand me, if you like Finnish bands like Diablo or even the English Napalm Death, you will probably enjoy this. The guitar riffs are sharp and fast, good work by Ketola and Laitala there, and the guys sound compact. But it does not really add anything much to the overpopulated genre.

If you need to unload some good doses of adrenaline while listening to tracks (only 9 shapes the album) like Delirium, Kuolemaan Asti Sinun or Syvä Vesi, this will do the trick. But for me, I am still looking for a little bit “more” than just power when I listen to a metal band.

Rating 3/5

One of the best Finnish rock releases of the year!

If White Flame would be an American band, we would be talking here about the new sensation of the international hard rock scene. But not…yet. The guys are from Tampere, (with permission of Helsinki, the semi “official rock” city not only of Finland but probably of the whole Europe). With a sound that drinks from the great American rock bands of the 80s, White Flame is able to combine the attitude and “dirty” touch of people like Mötley Crüe and an awesome work of composition in the lyrics like (the young) Bon Jovi or the best Guns & Roses.

Still not afraid of even making fun of themselves and all the rock star status, the truth is that they have created probably one of the best 5 hard rock albums of the last years. The guitar riffs sound like glory from the beginning, Vince on the vocals stands up doing a great job and tracks like Tall Thin In, Dancin`with her Sister or Frontrow Girl just give you an idea of the top quality level that the Finnish musicians can achieve.

A very very very good hard rock album. Hopefully there will be many others to follow!

Rating 5/5

One of the top international Finnish metal bands is back on the track after a twisted story with a new release and new record company…and without Timo Tolkki…

I have a weakness for Stratovarius since I was a teenager. They became one of my favourite bands ever and I remember with great emotion watching their concerts in Madrid. In one of them I was lucky enough to catch the set list when thrown to the audience, and ten minutes later a friend of a friend ripped in half the page…

In any case, that was many years ago, and many things have happened in the history of Stratovarius. I also had the chance to meet in person their ex-bass player Jari Kainulainen (his wife was working at my same company) but the biggest change they experienced has been undoubtedly the exit of guitarist Timo Tolkki. A few weeks ago we published the review of the new Tolkki´s Revolution Renaissance´s album, and now it is the turn for Polaris, the newest release of Stratovarius. FREE! Magazine has the good luck to bring you the first impressions about the new full-length a couple of weeks before the official release date.

It was not an easy task to release a new album with Tolkki gone. Apart from everything written about his mental state, the Finnish musician is still a magician with the six strings and an excellent composer who elevated Stratovarius to the top of metal music worldwide. But what is more surprising once you listen to Polaris is that actually the album sounds very “classic”, not mentioning that it is also the first one released with the new record company Edel, leaving Spinefarm after many years of collaboration together.

Kotipelto in the vocals and  Johansson in the keyboard are able to retain (if not all) part of the essence of those albums of more than a decade ago, Visions or Elements, and the album sounds really good, with great tracks like Falling Star or Winter Skies as my personal highlights. It is good to see the keyboard taking a bit more of action all over the album, while bass player Lauri Porra shows once more why he is considered to be maybe the best bassist in Finland nowadays.  The new guitarist Matias Kupiainen does really an excellent work, and you do not miss the riffs of Tolkki at all during the 11 tracks that compose this Polaris.

Do not expect this to be the best album in the discography of Stratovarius, but certainly it is one that could be ranked among the best four or five;  An excellent “comeback” without Tolkki that shows how the Finnish metal masters have still a lot of to say to the international audiences. Ah, and I almost forget to mention that the quality of the artwork keeps up with the excellent taste that Stratovarius has always had with every new release!

Rating 4/5

{mosimage}Blues is alive in North Europe! From North Karelia comes a duo that exhales pure genuine good old Blues! 

L.R. Phoenix is an English musician who decided not only to switch from playing heavy metal to Mississippi Blues, but also from living in the south of England to the East of Finland. Lately we have had the luck to review in FREE! Magazine a bunch of good records from independent artists that, although often forgotten by the mainstream media, are able to release records of excellent quality. We saw it with the Finnish artists Matti the Random Guy and recently we also reviewed the excellent last releases of the young Estonian blues magicians Bullfrog Brown, who also keep the tradition of Mississippi Blues alive in the neighbouring Baltic country.  

If you enjoy the music of Bullfrog Brown, probably you will also like what the duo Phoenix (guitar and vocals) – Mo'Hell (drums) has to offer:  a good collection of blues songs rooted in the old American tradition. But actually in some ways, this is even an easier album to listen than the ones produced by Bullfrog Brown: the voice of L.R. is clean, powerful and catchy while the guitar riffs are edgy but feel “light” at the same time. 

As some highlights in the album, listen for example to On The Run, Dark Clouds or My Leaving and be ready to enjoy. Good blues that can also easily catch the attention of not so blues-hardcore fans.

Well made effort, good lyrics and a little feeling of sloppiness that provide the album with a suitable “underground” touch; perfect to listen with a cigarette in your mouth and a glass of whisky in your hand. 

Rating 4/5.

{mosimage}After leaving Stratovarius, Timo Tolkki, the Finnish magician with the guitar, is back with his new project and the second studio album. 

A second studio album that could perfectly be catalogued as debut one, since the previous one was made up with the material that should have gone originally for Stratovarius. With people like Gus Monsanto on the vocals or Bruno Agra as drummer, Tolkki seems to have formed a more stable project. At least, the band sounds like a band, not just Tolkki trying to impose his guitar solos over the rest of the instruments, and the final result is quite a good work of heavy metal. Let´s see if the formation remains in the future, because there are rumours that Tolkki will count with some old members of Stratovarius for the following full length. 

If it would be any other band, many people would catalogue this as an excellent heavy metal album. But being Tolkki´s new project, it will be loved and hated equally. The album does not provide with any special surprise, actually, almost “surprisingly”, it sounds too much “Stratovarius” in songs like Sins of my beloved or the beautiful ballad Ghost of fallen grace. But in general, all the tracks are pretty enjoyable, especially the flamboyant Ixion´s Wheel or the final folk-metal oriented Into the future. 

Tolkki shows that he still keeps the magic in his fingers, let´s see if his head can also work so fine in the future! For those of you who loved the first albums of Stratovarius and want to listen to more of the same, you are going to enjoy this. For the ones that wanted a more experimental or surprising album, better go somewhere else. 

Rating 3/5.

{mosimage}The Finnish punkers are back with a new album full of speed.

Making studio albums is not a problem for the Finnish punk rockers. Formed 20 years ago, they have releases almost one album per year, being this their 15th full length record. So we are not exactly talking about a group of high school students doing bullshit here. It is not easy to remain for so many years in the demanding Finnish market, so certainly Klamydia has gained with effort their position as one of the strongest Finnish underground band of the circuit.

Hated by many and adored by their followers due to their straight and gross language and their blowing live performances (that can perfectly end up with the singer puking on stage or the concert cancelled due to the ethylic state of the members), the point is that every country needs a band like this. Raw energy, catchy lyrics (in Finnish) and basically, good punk rock “in your face” with some highlights like Miljoonan Kiisan Tennarit or the homonymous Rujoa Taidetta. I have read in some Finnish media that this is the most boring Klamydia`s album in many years, but from my point of view, it is certainly entertaining, accessible also for listeners who are not punk-rock fans and perfect to listen to as background music at the office when you want to isolate your ears from annoying job mates…

Rating 4/5.

{mosimage}Second album for the “astral-folk” British band that exhales a really great quality!

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must confess I had not much idea about what to expect from this second long-length  from the guys from United Kingdom. But I was happily surprised by a fresh album that combines rock, industrial metal and electronic rhythms with a good taste, sounding experimental but classy at the same time, a task not easy to achieve. With this “Love Conquers All” (the literal translation of the Latin album title). The male and female voices get mixed and the electronic parts sound catchy and modern. Listen as some highlights to the introductory Les Malheurs,  the excellent powerful Victorious Cupid or the experimental The Gloaming.

An album that you will love or hate, but certainly does not leave you indifferent. Some of the tracks would be perfect for a vampire movie soundtrack. A great follow up album that shows a band young but not afraid of doing what they want. We will have to follow them with a sharp eye in the future!

Rating 4/5.

{mosimage}The veteran Irish punk rockers are back. It seems that the years catalyze their energy into a more fluid sound.

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till sounding powerful and fluid, it is true that in this album, maybe Therapy? has lost a bit the intensity and rawness of younger times, but on the other hand, has gained in balance and a more colourful musical palette. Well, when a band releases their 12th album, they have nothing more to show. Maybe they do not sound so appealing in the music industry anymore, but they still know how to produce a solid rock album. 10 tracks, no more no less, with quite heavy drums and heavy rhythms like in Enjoy the struggle or the monumental Exiles.

Theraphy? shows to the world that they are well alive and still kicking ass! No need to reinvent themselves when the result is just a good album of rock.

Rating 3/5.

{mosimage}The trio from Helsinki features their second studio album, a must have if you like good pop-rock Finnish music.

I receive dozens of albums a month to review or check out. So it is not a small thing for me when I say that the new album by Major Label is so far my favourite and nicest surprise of the month. The Finnish trio sounds compact, with excellent quality, balanced, with the voice of Arto Tuunela mastering the tempo of every song, great lyrics, catchy tunes… what else can you expect? If you like rock bands with an experimental and indie twist, like Radiohead or A perfect circle, you are going to love these young Finnish fellas. Listen to outstanding tracks like When I am with you you are safe, The Scar or Said the Water to Land and prepare to enjoy a great musical experience!

A great album that sounds mature, well measured and gives hope of an excellent future for the band from Hell-sinki. And shit, do not forget about the CD artwork, especially the cover, the nicest and funniest I have seen for a long time!

Rating 5/5

{mosimage}Here you have a double DVD that involves their trips and music during 16 years.

Here you have a piece of Finnish history, bringing by the band´s drummer Tomi Krutsin and the vocalist-guitarist Tommi Liimatan together with Pauli Hokkanen. 5 hours and a half of a documentary that, from my humble opinion, turns to be a little bit boring.  First of all, if you do not understand Finnish, you will have a problem because there are no English subtitles. The members of the band act in great part of the documentary like any other annoying youngsters who just want to have fun, but it is interesting to see the band growing up, and fighting the real battlefields of the Finnish rock music scene: the little clubs, although I must confess that they music is not exactly my cup of tea.

Obviously, if you are a band´s fan, you are going to receive this with open arms. There are some interesting extras included like a collection of pictures taken all over 13 years by Tomi Palsa or the documentary Kymmenen vuoden yksinäisyys. But for others who could be interested in this out of curiosity, I basically recommend you to think it twice before making an investment; the more than 20 euro that the DVD costs maybe cannot pay off if you are not a hardcore fan.

Rating 2/5.

{mosimage}Second album for the Finnish band with a more settled formation and more mature sound. 

After their debut album in 2006 (Dead water diary), Soulcage are back stronger than every with a follow up album that offers the best they have: good heavy rock with sharp riffs, nice keyboards, a powerful drum, nice lyrics and the great vocals of Aleksi Parviainen (that I don´t know why, during some moments at the beginning of the album reminded me a bit of Ville Valo´s, although later the feeling faded away). 

Soulcage`s style is maybe closer to the American glam rock bands of the 80s and beginning of the 90`s, like Poison, Cinderella, Bon Jovi… Melodic rock with taste that can reach mainstream audiences. Tracks like I see, My Canvas, My Skin, the beautiful ballad Satellite children or the rougher Ride on are some of the highlights of an almost square rock album. If I have to put a “but”, I will complain again about the same trend that seems to be predominantly in all the recent Finnish heavy and rock releases: only 11 tracks for a full length album? Apart from that, a high quality hard rock album you should not miss! 

Rating 4/5  

{mosimage}The biggest Brazilian thrash-metal band of the history is back… without any of the Calavera brothers. 

After the departure of the drummer Igor Calavera, added to the one happened years ago by his brother and vocalist Max, it seems that the essence of Sepultura could be lost. Only 2 original members remain, and certainly many fans can feel that this is not the same. Honestly, I think that it would have been wiser just to form another band and forget about using the logo and name of “Sepultura”… but you know how the industry works, the name is still very catchy for millions of followers, although other many million will not pay the minimum attention to the album without any of the Calavera brothers playing in it. 

I have read a few reviews of the album before writing this one, and I share the feeling with many of them: I was not expecting much of it, and in the end I certainly enjoyed it. A-Lex is a conceptual work based on the famous book by Burgess the Clockwork Orange (and more famous movie by the master Stanley Kubrick). The debut of the new drummer, Jean Dolabella, is certainly great and the guy knows what he is doing behind the drum kit. The band sounds consistent, powerful and beautiful and with good lyrics. Another thing I love is that opposite to the trend of most of the bands of releasing shorter albums, here there are no less than 18 delicious tracks to enjoy! Excellent songs like What I do! , the acoustic A-Lex II or Sadistic Values that put Sepultura in the position they deserve. 

If you are able to approach this album with no prejudgments, you can find it certainly a valuable and great album. 

Rating 4/5. 

{mosimage}Under the hand of Spinefarm, the Finnish record company that brings some of the best metal releases all over the world, here comes the new (and acoustic!) album of Ajattara. 

Ajattara is composed by very experienced Finnish musicians that share this project with other bands. So musically, there is no doubt that the playing is going to be skilful. What is surprising is the genre of the album itself, that it could be defined as a kind of acoustic black metal. Yeah, it sounds strange, but true, and the point is that it works. The Finnish guys put a big effort on the instrumental work, with a high presence of different drums and string instruments, and the result is notorious. 

Ajattara is the name of a God of the woods, and certainly the music goes with the flow. Sang in Finnish, the album creates a mystic atmosphere with excellent tracks like Keuhkosi or Saatama palvoo meitä. Maybe the lovers of electric riffs and more hardcore black metal style will not enjoy this, but for those of you who are eager to open their ears to new experiences in the metal world, this release is certainly remarkable. Give it a try! 

Rating 3/5.

{mosimage}Vanity Ink has gained step by step a good name in the Finnish clubs scene with a lot of effort and great skills! 

The Finnish band, formed in 2002, features their second studio album after the release in 2007 of On your skin. One of the most powerful features of the band is the voice and the presence on stage of the charismatic and beautiful female singer, Annabella, who undoubtedly was born to attract the gazes of the audience.  

The band sounds strong, clean, and right. Good doses of rock & roll with no big pretensions rather than entertaining and make you move your feet. Annabella´s vocal skills are good, and the band sounds technically good, I would say that average. 

Maybe that can be also the main problem of the young Finnish, being “average”. It looks like a great band to see live on a small pub or a festival with a glass of beer in your hand, but maybe they lack the charisma and freshness to become bigger and more mainstream. Of course, with only 2 albums, maybe it is a bit too soon to say so, but I have the impression that they won´t pass farther than just being another name in the endless band lists of Finnish summer festivals. Time will tell… 

Rating 3/5.