Finland's Metal scene's contribution to the world is on par with what the British Invasion did in America in the 1960's. You can trace how Finnish Heavy Metal has influenced countless other bands throughout the world. If you pay attention and dig a bit deeper into the history of Heavy Metal, you can see a clear before and after demarcation line of Heavy Metal before and then after the Finnish strain came into prominence. The only problem when a certain vein of music becomes overpoweringly influential is the classic question that artists have asked themselves since the dawn of time, which is, "Okay, we've done this great thing. Now what do we do next?" With bands like VORNA, they are showing what is meant to be done to keep the flame of Finnish Heavy Metal burning bright.

From the start, one of the things that I love that VORNA does is that their songs are all sung in Finnish. This feels a lot more genuine of an expression of each song. I would rather listen to songs sung in their native language instead of hearing some botched attempt of someone trying to sing in English that isn't super-fluent in it. Sometimes this works, as in the case of BLIND GUARDIAN, but mostly it comes off as awkward and weird. Upon hearing that there were six members of this band and that they are from Finland, I was almost tempted to think, "Uh oh, here's another CHILDREN OF BODOM or NIGHTWISH clone." But truthfully, I was pleasantly surprised that this was not the case.

There are certainly vignettes of those bands to be found, and I think that's mainly due to sharing the same home-soil as the aforementioned Finnish Metal bands. But where VORNA shines is how they describe themselves as Finnish Melancholic Metal. Melancholy is something that is barely used within the Metal scene, and I am thoroughly delighted to see it used within both the timbre of the music and somber metre of the lyrics. There are hints of Doom and Black Metal, but they only help to set the tone of the songs that are crafted into a sound that is both unique and special. Their sound is dark, yet emotional; like a sky that is about to unleash a torrent of rain during a thunderstorm. There isn't a hint of evil or dread to be found on this album, but of sorrow and regret. Being of Irish ancestry myself, a people group who pride themselves on living in the "RAG AND BONE SHOP OF THE HEART" (to quote the title of the famous book of poetry), I fell in love with the album the more I listened to it.

To be honest, the third album from these Finnish lads is a defining moment for them. I get the same feeling after listening to this as I did when I listened to OPETH'S "Blackwater Park". VORNA have found their definitive and original sound, which is amazing to hear amongst so many other bands that at best pantomime their favorite groups. You can find passages of songs where each instrument is highlighted, but one of the more refreshing touches are the guitar parts that are played clean. Both Henri and Saku's guitar playing intertwine beautifully together, and you cannot imagine one without the other as they both compliment where the other guitar player leaves off. Even the vocals alternating between screaming and almost monk-line chanting adds to the melancholy in a way that's very reminiscent of ENSLAVED'S later work in all the right ways. Fantastic album from start to finish without anything left to dislike. And yes, as always, and especially with this one, BUY THIS ALBUM!!!