After such a bland release as "Are You Dead Yet?" by the (once) famed Children of Bodom. Their close cousins Norther announce a new album. In the hearts of true metal fans there was a bit of a discouragement. A suffering. Will the album live up or are they going to drop off as well? Let me tell you this is yet another solid release from Finland's metal masters.
"Throwing My Life Away" (3:08) - Kicks off in regular Norther fashion. Nothing out of the ordinary, another kick ass solo. 4/5
"Drowning" (3:46) - Keys are much more present. A little bit slower song with a beautiful break down half way through the song with chugging guitars and a nice bass line. Already it can be heard that the solos were better planned out and well executed. 3/5
"Norther" (3:41) - First comment, it's nice to see a Band-Title track this far into their career. A typical Norther song. Some nice leads during the chorus and of course the solo rips more than any other album. 2.5/5
"Everything" (4:31) - Another slower paced song. Very generic for Norther. Nothing too special to point out. 2.5/5
"Evil Ladies" (3:37) - Being the first track 'released' on Spinefarm's website, I had already listened to it many times. It can be said that this hard hitting song, despite the horrible title, is just what you expect from Norther. The leads are great, making you want to bang your head the whole time. The solo is nice as always, duels back and forth showing Norther will never give up. 4/5
"Omen" (4:27) - This song opens with a beautiful piano melody and synths for 30 seconds before breaking into a perfect slow paced song. Of course Petri's vocals rip out during the lead filled intro-chorus. As could be told in the first 30 seconds of the song, this is the first of three songs on the album with clean vocals. The chorus is a mix of clean vocals and piano cords. So beautiful, yet so different for Norther. A step in the right direction if done perfectly and that it is. 5/5
"Scream" (4:19) - Another typical Norther song, filled with tapping solos, ripping vocals and an unexpected break down with clean tone guitars. Who would have thought! It sounds perfect and is done well with the lightening fast riffing that was done only seconds before. 5/5
"Fuck You" (2:02) - A punk like hate anthem. That is all that really is needed to be said. The solos is kinda Slayer like. 2.5/5
"Alone In The End" (4:09) - Another typical Norther song, the keyboards are more dominant in parts of the song. This is the second of three songs with clean vocals in the chorus by Kride. After the first clean vocals comes a nice instrumental break with pianos and a great lead. The piano melody really stands out in this song as a strong moment on the album in total. The keyboard solo/outro is another stand out point. 4/5
"Die" (3:23) - There is more aggression in the vocals and the riffing in this song than in previous ones. Still typical, no real change here (Which is very good). The solo really stands out, these guys have really improved. 4/5
"Wasted Years" (5:00) - Clocking in as the longest song on the album it is also the most drastically different song. The third and final song with clean vocals, in the chorus again, met by a beautiful piano piece. The leads remind me of a 90's Metallica in some spots, mixed with the piano sounds absolutely beautiful. Of course, in Norther fashion, things speed up towards the end when the shredding begins only to be pulled back into the very melodic chorus. 5/5
"The End of Our Lives" (3:54) - After kick ass song after kick ass song, how does the closing track live up to the rest of the album? Well most people know that metal bands like to close their albums with a more experimental track. Leading towards something different, Norther blasts away with industial like keys in the intro to burst into some extremely aggressive vocals and riffing. Throughout the song, the experimental keyboards really add to what Norther is known for. The solos shred like every other song, especially the keyboard solo. It truly shows how much better these guys are getting. 5/5
While still keeping to a true Norther form, it is apparent these men are changing and exploring new territory. Would I call it good? Hell I'll call it better than good, it sounds great. The new kings of Finnish harsh power metal have been crowned. It is time for Children of Bodom to step down and allow Norther into the spot light.
"Throwing My Life Away" (3:08) - Kicks off in regular Norther fashion. Nothing out of the ordinary, another kick ass solo. 4/5
"Drowning" (3:46) - Keys are much more present. A little bit slower song with a beautiful break down half way through the song with chugging guitars and a nice bass line. Already it can be heard that the solos were better planned out and well executed. 3/5
"Norther" (3:41) - First comment, it's nice to see a Band-Title track this far into their career. A typical Norther song. Some nice leads during the chorus and of course the solo rips more than any other album. 2.5/5
"Everything" (4:31) - Another slower paced song. Very generic for Norther. Nothing too special to point out. 2.5/5
"Evil Ladies" (3:37) - Being the first track 'released' on Spinefarm's website, I had already listened to it many times. It can be said that this hard hitting song, despite the horrible title, is just what you expect from Norther. The leads are great, making you want to bang your head the whole time. The solo is nice as always, duels back and forth showing Norther will never give up. 4/5
"Omen" (4:27) - This song opens with a beautiful piano melody and synths for 30 seconds before breaking into a perfect slow paced song. Of course Petri's vocals rip out during the lead filled intro-chorus. As could be told in the first 30 seconds of the song, this is the first of three songs on the album with clean vocals. The chorus is a mix of clean vocals and piano cords. So beautiful, yet so different for Norther. A step in the right direction if done perfectly and that it is. 5/5
"Scream" (4:19) - Another typical Norther song, filled with tapping solos, ripping vocals and an unexpected break down with clean tone guitars. Who would have thought! It sounds perfect and is done well with the lightening fast riffing that was done only seconds before. 5/5
"Fuck You" (2:02) - A punk like hate anthem. That is all that really is needed to be said. The solos is kinda Slayer like. 2.5/5
"Alone In The End" (4:09) - Another typical Norther song, the keyboards are more dominant in parts of the song. This is the second of three songs with clean vocals in the chorus by Kride. After the first clean vocals comes a nice instrumental break with pianos and a great lead. The piano melody really stands out in this song as a strong moment on the album in total. The keyboard solo/outro is another stand out point. 4/5
"Die" (3:23) - There is more aggression in the vocals and the riffing in this song than in previous ones. Still typical, no real change here (Which is very good). The solo really stands out, these guys have really improved. 4/5
"Wasted Years" (5:00) - Clocking in as the longest song on the album it is also the most drastically different song. The third and final song with clean vocals, in the chorus again, met by a beautiful piano piece. The leads remind me of a 90's Metallica in some spots, mixed with the piano sounds absolutely beautiful. Of course, in Norther fashion, things speed up towards the end when the shredding begins only to be pulled back into the very melodic chorus. 5/5
"The End of Our Lives" (3:54) - After kick ass song after kick ass song, how does the closing track live up to the rest of the album? Well most people know that metal bands like to close their albums with a more experimental track. Leading towards something different, Norther blasts away with industial like keys in the intro to burst into some extremely aggressive vocals and riffing. Throughout the song, the experimental keyboards really add to what Norther is known for. The solos shred like every other song, especially the keyboard solo. It truly shows how much better these guys are getting. 5/5
While still keeping to a true Norther form, it is apparent these men are changing and exploring new territory. Would I call it good? Hell I'll call it better than good, it sounds great. The new kings of Finnish harsh power metal have been crowned. It is time for Children of Bodom to step down and allow Norther into the spot light.
