The new and, by the way, 4th album of the finnish band Sielunvihollinen starts without ceremony and bell toll with the opener „Tulen kaste“. It is believed they were founded as a one-man-project, but gradually became a bunch of five individuals destined to drive their mischief in the black metal underground. The band members remain anonymous since the very beginnings. And so they let their music speak for themselves. Into english language Sielunvihollinen translates as „the adversary“ and on their new album they get angry once more. Just like its predecessor this one is released via the finnish label Hammer Of Hate Records. And it shows black metal at its best. Has somebody called „Black ’n Roll“? What the hell is that?! Darkness and misanthropy don’t ever have to be monotonous. And black metal in its entirety is even versatile. So to start with the above mentioned opener „Tulen kaste“ with its fireworks of melodies. Another one is „Muetunut pelli“, which spreads kind of R ’n R-flair. Also I would mention „Kahleidenkatkoja“, whose final part reminds the listener slightly of Iron Maiden. Don’t get me wrong. Every band has its influences, both musically and lyrically. And IMO this is to be seen as an honour. All in all this well produced work can be seen as the most diversified work in the band’s discography yet! And there really is an amount of albums, EPs, comps and demos that were released so far. The voice is more expressive than ever („Noitavaino“) and the guitar riffs are just more melodic than before. This for example can be heard in „Varjot“, whose title reminds me of another infamous finnish band. The whole thing can be seen coincidental. Also I would mention the band has listened to some albums Mithotyn. But now it’s enough with mentioning names of other bands, because Sielunvihollinen are Sielunvihollinen and this at their very best. The first song which was spread via YouTube is the title track „Teloitaskäsky“, which gave us a foretaste of what has to come with this album. But precisely because of doomier songs like „Hukkuneet“, which shows a rollercoaster of aggression on the one hand and relaxation on the other hand, points out the new creativity of this band. „Usvan tuoma“, whose final acoustic part, I’m sorry, reminds me of Immortal. All these details make the whole album really worth listening. I’m really excited and I will take a bow! Well done, please carry on.
Rating: 5,5 out of 6 Pointe
Yggdrasil / Seelenfeuer 2021
Listening example
Tracklist
1.) Tulen kaste
2.) Mustunut pelli
3.) Varjot
4.) Kahleidenkatkoja
5.) Noitavaino
6.) Teloitaskäsky
7.) Hukkunat
8.) Usvan tuoma
Distro
Seelenfeuer BM Online Magazin 