Artist: Sonata Arctica Title: “Closer To An Animal” (Single) Label: Nuclear Blast Records Release Date: 8/12/2016 Genre: Power Metal Rating: 4/5
In a little over a month fans of those Finnish Metal sensations Sonata Arctica will get to enjoy the bands 10th studio album with “The Ninth Hour” which will come care of their longtime label Nuclear Blast Records. The band recently offered up a taste of the release with the first single called “Closer To An Animal” and here are some quick thoughts about the tune. The pacing of the tune is not your typical zooming melodies that we can occasionally find the band doing and its tempo while a little slower is still very steady. I think I can say it harkens back to the couple of years ago “Stones Grow Her Name” stuff if I could pick one out. That’s not a bad thing at all of course. Lyrically this comes across to me as an awareness piece where the band is telling us to be mindful of the Earth and its creatures around us. It’s not preachy at all of course which is very important to make mention of. We have truly come really far but at the same time we have not when it comes down to how we deal with the stuff that is actually important. I liked the chorus and feel in the live sense this will go over great. Continue reading “Closer To An Animal” (Single) by Sonata Arctica→
It feels like only yesterday that I was watching the mighty Sonata Arctica tearing up the stage in NYC and as a matter of fact it was That’s right, the Big Metal Apple was treated to the last night of the bands brief headlining tour which ended at Stage 48 in Hell’s Kitchen. It was a fantastic time and I was glad to be a part of it and also to toast to their continued adventures after the show before they headed back to Finland. Today amounted to some special news which made my own celebrations about the 11th Anniversary of the site all the more awesome because you see the band has announced that they will be returning in the Fall with support from both Leaves’ Eyes and Omnium Gatherum. Check out the full press release below along with the poster and dates and then I’ll return with some closing thoughts.
The Press Release:
Finnish melodic metal quintet SONATA ARCTICA has started to work on the follow-up album to the successful Pariah’s Child record. To top off the already great news, the band has announced they will return this fall for a 33-date headlining tour of North America. The kick-off show is slated for November 6th at The Fillmore in Charlotte, NC. Supporting the band will be German-Norwegian symphonic metallers LEAVES EYES and Finnish melodic death metallers OMINIUM GATHERUM opening for the band. Advanced tickets for the confirmed tour dates are now available exclusively at EnterTheVault.com. A limited number of VIP Meet & Greet tickets which include a poster will be available for for purchase for each show. Tickets will go on sale April 29th at all other outlets. Continue reading Sonata Arctica Announces Fall US Tour→
Artist: Sonata Arctica Title: “Christmas Spirits” Label: Nuclear Blast Records Release Date: 12/18/2015 Genre: Holiday Heavy Metal Rating: 4/5
Finland’s Sonata Arctica are going to be fighting the Krampus with some serious Holiday Heavy Metal thanks to their “Christmas Spirits” single. Before I examine it, here’s what the band had to say about offering up this tune for those Metal Stockings that are hung by the chimneys of the world;
“”Hello everyone out there! Christmas is just around the corner so we decided to cheer you all up with a nice Christmas story. “Decided” might be a bit strong in this context since the ‘Christmas Spirits’ song has been around for about ten years now, we just never had the time to record it. Finally during the Pariah’s Child sessions we managed to do the basic tracks and this autumn we finished the song. I guess the main reason for the delay was getting the lyrics done, it’s nearly impossible to get into the Christmas mood unless it’s actually… you guessed it, Christmas. Hats off to Tony since he did it anyway, this autumn, and without any snow, we might add. Be that as it may, here’s our latest piece of art: ‘Christmas Spirits’! Merry Christmas to everyone & cheers,“
I hate to be the bearer of bad news but this came through the email a little while ago and I wanted to toss it up online for any of you that are planning on hitting this sure to be thunderous event. Please scroll down for the Official Press Statement from Finnish Metal Doomsters, Insomnium.
Set to kick off their headlining North American tour this week, Finnish melodic death metallers INSOMNIUM have announced a live replacement for vocalist/bassist Niilo Sevanen. The band comments:
“Dear fans, Last Saturday we got unexpected phone call while driving to Gothoom Festival in Slovakia. Unfortunately, serious illness had taken place in Niilo’s close family. We all felt devastated but somehow we were still able to pull through the show. However, due to these unpredicted circumstances, there was no way Niilo could have been able to leave his family behind and attend the upcoming US tour. Family is the most important thing and always comes first.
We were left with two equally bad options. To cancel the tour altogether or to go and try to find replacement for Niilo in couple of days notice. We had already invested considerable amount of money on this tour and whole tour personnel had made commitments to take time off from other work to do this tour. At the same time we felt really bad about thinking about financial side of things while one of our best friends was going through terrible family tragedy. After series of emergency meetings we decided to go and look if there would be anyone that could help us out. All things considered, 50% original line up would be better than no line up at all. We also did not want to let down all the people who had already bought the tickets. Most importantly, we did not want to give up. Continue reading This Just In: Insomnium Announces Tour Replacement For Niilo Sevanen→
Sonata Arctica didn’t come to see the USA in 2015 but they’ll be making up for lost visiting time with this appearance at Stage 48 with some local support acts. Sadly Delain was only doing select dates after the Nightwish tour. Don’t miss one of Metals most exciting live bands.
