Hailing from the most metal country in the world, Finland, folk metallers or melodic death vikings ENSIFERUM are back to the grind with a new album entitled, ‘Two Paths‘, following the legacy and aura of their previous release ‘One Man Army‘ which was out back in 2015. On September 15, ENSIFERUM will release their new album worldwide via Metal Blade Records. The album is produced is Ansi Kippo and the master was recorded on tape for a true old school analog experience. Talk about being trve!
You can’t talk about the true greats of folk-inspired melodic death metal without reverent mention of ENSIFERUM , and with ‘Two Paths‘ they once more affirm their place in the pantheons of the genre. Further building upon the thrilling metallic hybrid honed across six full-lengths, ‘Two Paths’ is simultaneously the Finnish quintet’s most epic and far-reaching collection and their most organic, which definitely sets it apart from the pack. Additionally, the album literally takes the concept of ‘Two Paths‘ to heart, with two different versions of standout tracks “Don’t You Say” and “God Is Dead“.
“Even though Ensiferum has always had clean vocals and choirs, harsh vocals have been the main style, and those songs worked so well with both styles that we decided to include both versions,” explains bassist/vocalist Sami Hinkka. With Mikko P. Mustonen again handling orchestral arrangements and Lassi Logren returning to play nyckelharpa and violin on a few songs, Hinkka is also more than happy that they brought “more bombastic orchestral and down to earth folk aspects” to the record, further fleshing out their vision. This also applies to the contribution of Gyula Havancsak, who provided the artwork for both ‘Two Paths‘ and its predecessor, ‘One Man Army‘. “It was really nice to work with him again because he always wants to hear our ideas and then he adds his own magic and improvements to them, and the result is always astonishing.”, he adds.
‘Two Paths‘ track-listing :
1. Ajattomasta Unesta
2. For Those About to Fight for Metal
3. Way of the Warrior
4. Two Paths
5. King of Storms
6. Feast with Valkyries
7. Don’t You Say
8. I Will Never Kneel
9. God Is Dead
10. Hail to the Victor
11. Unettomaan Aikaan
12. God Is Dead (Alternative Version)
13. Don’t You Say (Alternative Version)
Pre-Order ‘Two Paths‘ HERE!
Obviously just like every other band in order to support their new alum ENSIFERUM will tour across different countries. From September 27th, 2017 onward, the Finnish folk masters will play new songs amidst old classic ones and give fans a taste of what they have in store with regards to ‘Two Paths‘. The European dates for September are out and is only the first leg of the entire European tour which commences from 27th of the same month as stated above. April 2018 will see them hit off from where they leave for a second European tour, but this time spanning across major and many European countries. In between the two legs, ENSIFERUM will also enchant fans along their folk tunes in other continents, thus spreading the legacy and the viking spirit in them! Following are the dates for the first leg, more to be announced soon:
ENSIFERUM “Two Paths: The Beginning – Tour 2017” dates:
Aug. 17 – Summerbreeze festival – Dinkelsbuehl, Germany
Sept. 26 – Bochum, Germany – Zeche
Sept. 27 – Langen, Germany – Stadthalle
Sept. 28 – Arnhem, Netherlands – Luxor Live
Sept. 29 – Berlin, Germany – SO36
Sept. 30 – Osnabruck, Germany – Hyde Park
Oct. 1 – Paris, France – La Machine
ENSIFERUM line-up:
Petri Lindroos – Vocals/Guitar
Markus Toivonen – Guitar/Vocals
Sami Hinkka – Bass/Vocals
Janne Parviainen – Drums
Netta Skog – Digital Accordion/Backing vocals
Today the band unravels the first single off the upcoming album, “For Those About to Fight for Metal“. Watch the video below:
