AMORPHIS – The Beginning Of Times

The waiting was too great to bear, but it’s finally over. With a wonderful display of talent, mastermind musicianship, and storytelling features present in the last three albums, Amorphis returns back to the beginning of everything… the beginning of time from the view point of Finnish mythology. This is certainly not the band’s first run with their local heritage, as they extensively played with it for almost fifteen years. On the other hand, the band’s new album, The Beginning Of Times, clearly shows that every band, no matter how experienced and talented, can win some and lose some. Although it’s not a total loss, this album isn’t close to the quality of their prior trio.

Amorphis’ music since their musical reformation beginning after 1995 has been challenging and articulate. From being a follower of Doom / Death Metal, they began roaming the world of Folklore, thereby creating a new form of music that fit their extreme style. However, the band’s extreme soundscape was lowered a bit as the music kept on progressing. On The Beginning Of Times album, the music clearly progresses even more, but not to such desirable levels in all aspects. Various instruments that once were used by the band, such as the flute and percussion, were once again used to establish uniqueness, along with electric attributes joined by cool effects such as strong delays and atmospheric guitar chorus effects. Probably one of the strongest aspects of Amorphis in their long-standing career, aside from the melodies and the diverse vocals, is their ability to create a sensational atmosphere with a lot of depth.

However, The Beginning Of Times shows that it would have been better if Amorphis kept their musical style to what was offered on their earlier release Skyforger, which was a gold mine. On this new release there were some amazing moments that resembled the same atmosphere and feel of the past, and “Reformation”, “You I Need” and “Beginning Of Times” were the proudest examples. The latter is maybe one of the few examples of the band’s modernized aspects working well for them.

Although the modern approach was there all along, on this particular album it seems that Amorphis chose to broaden the use of musical elements taken from Modern Groove Metal, such as kick downs and heavy low-toned guitar rhythm sections. It seemed it was very important for Amorphis to keep on progressing instead of keeping the same quality as they had before. This album might come as a disappointment in comparison to the band’s last albums, yet on its own it presents the band with the honor they deserve. Even though Amorphis seems to be an all out experimental Metal being, they still inspire with mythological stories and their way of creating quality music.

Tracklist

1. Battle For Light
2. Mermaid
3. My Enemy
4. You I Need
5. Song of the Sage
6. Three Words
7. Reformation
8. Soothsayer
9. On a Stranded Shore
10. Escape
11. Crack in a Stone
12. Beginning of Time

Lineup

Tomi Joutsen – Vocals
Esa Holopainen – Lead Guitar
Tomi “Koippari” Koivusaari – Rhythm Guitar
Niclas Etelävuori – Bass, Backing Vocals
Santeri Kallio – Keyboards
Jan “Snoopy” Rechberger – Drums