TURISAS

Reviewed:

- Battle Metal (2004)

- The Varangian Way (2007)

- Stand Up and Fight (2011)

- Turisas2013 (2013)

BATTLE METAL          2004          (Century Media)

- Standouts: 'As Torches Rise', 'Battle Metal', 'The Land of Hope and Glory', 'One More', 'Midnight Sunrise', 'Among Ancestors', 'Rex Rebi Rebellis'

I'm no folk metal connoisseur, but it is a style of metal that I've always somewhat enjoyed ever since I was first properly exposed to it way back in 2010 whilst attending my first ever Bloodstock Open Air festival. It's the kind of subgenre that I don't think I'll ever take 100% seriously, nor is it the kind of metal that would spawn masterpiece albums of the metal genre in general in my opinion. But it can be a lot of fun depending on the band, and Turisas are the only band in this style where I actually own all of their albums. I mean, they only ever made 4 and have now kind of disappeared into hiatus, but whatever!

So, Battle Metal is their 2004 debut and that album title pretty much tells you everything you need to know. This is record is basically the musical equivalent of an epic Viking battle - and if not Viking, then a medieval, Norman or Saxon-era battle of some sort. And if not based on reality, then think something along the lines of the battle of Helm's Deep in Lord of the Rings!

Once the short instrumental opening 'Victoriae & Triumphi Dominus' is out of the way, the album has me intrigued from more-or-less start to finish. The music is heavy, but the way all the more traditional instrumentals such as accordions, violins and a whole host of percussion, as well as the keyboards and any electronic aids have been incorporated is what makes this record, well, a folk metal album. Yeah, there's metal riffs on every song, but unlike a lot of metal in general, they're almost never the focal point of the song structures. The riffs are there, but it's all these other instruments that provide the real melody to the songs and give them that 'epic' feel that is unique to this style of music. It's also largely those instruments and their melodies that help me to remember and differentiate each track, because these are the instruments that often provide the most memorable parts of the songs. That's not to say the guitars aren't any less important; without those big distorted metal riffs you'd just have the 'folk' part of 'folk metal'!!

I also really like the way the vocals have been handled. Turisas are a Finnish band, but vocalist Mathias Nygard sings in English and in a harsh growly style for the much of the album. I couldn't call them death metal vocals, nor could I call them black metal screams - but they're not clean either. They add to the intensity of the songs though, because this is Battle Metal after all! Even if you don't normally get on with growly vocals in more extreme metal, I don't think the one's should turn you off hearing Battle Metal for yourself. The music itself is nowhere near extreme enough to come close to death metal and whatnot. And on songs like the more mellow 'One More', Nygard does sing clean too. He's not a particularly great clean vocalist as such, but his modest style almost makes it seem as if someone from history is actually narrating these tunes, as corny as that seems.

Also important regarding the vocals is the large use of layered vocal harmonies and choir chants. Again, like all the folk instrument usage, these are essential in providing the epic feel of the music that the band were going for. And once again, these can often be the parts that will stick in your head afterwards, for example, a song like 'The Land of Hope and Glory' relies on it's big vocal arrangements. There's also occasional female operatic vocals in some of the songs, particularly 'Midnight Sunrise'. And again, they've been utilised really well overall, and are integral to the enjoyment of the music.

I do have some negativity towards Battle Metal though. This is not an album I can play any day or time of the week. It's very much an album-focused effort, as silly as that sounds. What I mean by that is, I almost never find myself putting any of the individual tracks here into a playlist and listen to them on their own. They just don't work like that for me, since I feel the music is too atmospheric and niche to make me want to pick out random songs individually. It's an album that I like to hear from start to finish, and even then I still have to be in the right mood for it. And that's not necessarily true of folk metal in general, because there's songs by bands like Finntroll or Ensiferum (and even later stuff from Turisas) that I can listen to in a mixed playlist. I won't say it's too long - the whole thing clocks in at just under an hour, which is fine I guess. But there has been occasions where I've started this album, got maybe 4 tracks in and then turned it off due to boredom.

The other gripe is the production. Well, it's not entirely a gripe, but I do have some issues. It's not that the album sounds bad sonically, it's just that tracks such as 'Rex Rebi Rebellis' have what I can assume are either keyboards/synths playing what are meant to be horns. They don't sound awful by any means, and I do get used to them... but it does mean the songs occasionally sound less organic than they should. They don't sound like real horns, that's all - and the real thing is always better. This sounds like a big deal, but at the end of the day it isn't for me. I still enjoy practically every aspect of the music, I just think there's room for improvement at times is all.

But like I said, if I am in the correct mood, I get really lost in this album and have a hell of a good time. I stuck this on in the gym the other day and my whole session was almost over before I knew it. I think this is a fine folk metal album that any fan of said genre should be checking out if they haven't already. Yeah it's nerdy, but then being nerdy is cool nowadays!

Adam's rating: 8.1/10

THE VARANGIAN WAY          2007          (Century Media)

- Standouts: 'To Holmgard and Beyond', 'A Portage to the Unknown', 'Fields of Gold', 'Five Hundred and One', 'The Dnieper Rapids', 'Miklagard Overture'

They got off to a good start with Battle Metal, a bit like a successful independent film with a cult following. With The Varangian Way, it now feels like the band have been escalated into a Hollywood blockbuster. Fear not however, because this doesn't necessarily mean they've 'sold out' or anything like that. No, it just means the album sounds far better production-wise, the music has gotten even more epic (somehow) and the whole record feels much more streamlined this time - in a good way.

Practically all core musical elements of Battle Metal remain here too, but they've now improved across the board. I think a lot of is down to the production, meaning all the folky instruments now sound much more genuine, the guitars are bigger (but not overbearing) and any of the choir vocal parts are even vaster and somehow more grandiose now. The songs are once again also full of all the clean and growled vocals you could ever want. Opening track 'To Holmgard and Beyond' might be the best folk metal track I've ever heard - it makes me wanna grow my hair and beard out, jump aboard a Viking longship and set sail for, erm... somewhere!! Speaking of Vikings, The Varangian Way is actually a concept album about a bunch of Scandinavians travelling through medieval Eastern Europe, or something. Yeah, I'm not all about the story when it comes to concept albums, but it's not really something that affects my rating of an album either. If the music's good, I'm happy. If it just happens to tell a story, then that's cool too I guess.

I think this album is better in many ways than Battle Metal. It helps that the album is 43 minutes long rather just under an hour - it never gets particularly dull or tedious at any point throughout the listening experience, and the 8 songs that feature are more memorable overall because of it. The other thing that separates The Varangian Way from it's predecessor - well, for me at least - is the fact I can actually listen plenty of these tracks individually now. Not necessarily all of them, but many. As I said, I absolutely love 'To Holmgard and Beyond' - such a killer song!! And I also find myself replaying 'Fields of Gold' a lot too. There's something about the accordion melody in it that just plays over and over in my head, and the whole song is just about one of the most triumphant slices of metal I can think of. 'Five Hundred and One' is pretty special too. It has moments of beauty with both it's intro and outro, whilst the middle of the track gets me pumped!

Of course, The Varangian Way isn't perfect. I think 'Cursed Be Iron' focuses just a tad too much on spoken-word segments, so it isn't really what I'd consider to be 'easy listening' metal. It works when you listen to the album as a whole, but it's not one I ever revisit on it's own merit. I also think 'In the Court of Jarisleif' is maybe a little too folky, as weird as that sounds? Not necessarily in terms of the instruments themselves - there's plenty of metal guitar tones written all over it. No, the actual structure of the music is very, erm... traditionally inspired I guess? And again, it works when I want to listen to the album from start to finish. But when taken on it's own, it can be a bit of a chore to listen to. And once again, I don't think I can step into the 9/10 region when rating this thing. I still have to be in the right sort of mood to listen to this album in full, even if this one is a slightly easier to listen to than the debut. It's not like a Black Sabbath or Judas Priest record, which for me I can hear anytime anywhere and love it.

Yep, if you liked Battle Metal, you'd be foolish not to check this out. The music's even cheesier and more epic in all the best ways. But just to clarify, despite the fact I think this album is superior to Battle Metal, I still really enjoy that debut. I don't think The Varangian Way is leaps and bounds better than it's predecessor, I just think it's a definite improvement. So if for whatever reason you can only own 1 Turisas album, make sure it's The Varangian Way... otherwise don't skimp on Battle Metal! Both are great.

Adam's rating: 8.4/10

STAND UP AND FIGHT          2011          (Century Media)

- Standouts: 'Take the Day!', 'Stand Up and Fight', 'Hunting Pirates', 'The Great Escape', 'End of an Empire'

On their 3rd album, 2011's Stand Up and Fight, Turisas continues to sound like Turisas! However, in the same way that The Varangian Way was subtly different to Battle Metal, Stand Up and Fight is also subtly different to it's predecessor (well, maybe a little more than just 'subtly' this time). Not vastly different, but different enough for me to almost immediately realise which album any of these tracks are from without looking first. If anything, I'd say this album is a tad more accessible than the previous records. I still think they always had hooks in many of their songs, but this time they're more conventional and memorable. Hell, the first time I heard 'Take the Day!', I was surprised to hear that many of it's vocal and musical arrangements were comparable to that of '80s arena rock/AOR!! The instrumentation itself on a song like 'Take the Day!' is still unmistakeably that of the folk metal brand Turisas do so well, only this time it has a slight commercial sheen about it. And surprisingly enough, it works! The keyboard-heavy title track too, has some definite arena rock inspiration behind it, and has me singing along in next to no time.

This is a band that never focused entirely on harsh vocals; they always had clean vocals throughout many of their songs, but on Stand Up and Fight I feel like the harsher vocals have been toned down somewhat, and overall there's far more clean vocals on this album. And to be honest, given that the music itself is a little more accessible anyway, I don't take issue with this. The songs still largely retain the epic atmosphere of the previous albums despite the slightly different take on the music this time around. And to be honest, there's still plenty of material on here that doesn't really offer any real surprises to the listener, e.g. songs like 'The March of the Varangian Guard', 'Venetoi! -Prasinoi!', 'The Great Escape' and the lengthy 'End of an Empire'. There's also a fun song that reminds me of Alestorm (only slightly less silly) in 'Hunting Pirates' - ooh, I wonder what it is about this track that reminds me of Alestorm?!

I think this is once again another rock-solid effort from the band, yet I still think I prefer both Battle Metal and The Varangian Way over it. I think, at times, parts of the songs tread a little closer to power and/or symphonic metal more-so than they do folk metal. I guess this isn't necessarily a bad thing for everyone, but there's something slightly less mesmerising about the music this time around. If I listen to the first couple of records undistracted, they sort of manage to transport me to another world with their grandeur, whereas Stand Up and Fight only manages to do the same for me at times. The epicness is still there, but the... erm... majesticness isn't always?! I know what I mean, I just don't quite know how to word it!! Maybe it's also partly down to the storytelling, like I have a harder time picturing in my head the Varangian Guard that this album talks about more so than I do the lyrical matter of The Varangian Way?

Overall, this is an album that I think is very, very good - but not quite great. However, I wouldn't argue with someone if Stand Up and Fight is their favourite Turisas album either. I'd understand if it was - I'd even agree that 'Take the Day!' is among one of their best songs ever because despite it having more of a streamlined approach to the music, it's also one of their most well-rounded songs for it. And the songs are still full of all the orchestral instrumentation, accordions, keyboards etc., that you've come to expect from Turisas. I'd argue the production has gotten even better too. They just sometimes do things in a way that doesn't quite work as well for me personally as they did on Battle Metal and The Varangian Way! That said, I can still totally recommend Stand Up and Fight to anyone who enjoyed anything else by this band. I can also recommend NWOBHM band Quartz' 1980 album of the same name (which even has a similar album cover to Turisas'!)!!

Adam's rating: 7.9/10

TURISAS2013          2013          (Century Media)

- Standouts: 'For Your Own Good', 'Ten More Miles', 'Piece by Piece'

Going purely by the packaging, something feels off with Turisas2013. I don't like how the photo of Nygard on the cover is cut off above his mouth, and even the album title itself seems half-arsed and completely unlike Turisas somehow. The whole thing just screams 'lazy'. And then there's the reviews - although there are positive one's out there (check out Angry Metal Guy's review), many of them claim this album to be mediocre or just straight-up bad. Well, there's only one way to find out. Are Turisas still winning their epic battle on Turisas2013 or are they retreating with their tail between their legs?

Honestly, the first couple of tracks are fairly decent in my books. 'For Your Own Good' is, like a lot of their material, surprisingly catchy and the main melody sticks in my head. It still has most of the folky elements the band trademarked, but like the odd track from Stand Up and Fight, there's some arena rock/AOR influence in here. It isn't as good as a song like 'Stand Up and Fight', but still solid overall. 'Ten More Miles' however, sounds like classic Turisas. There's a melody in this track that reminds me of the kind of thing John Williams would compose in a Star Wars soundtrack, so the epicness is definitely there. It also makes heavy use of choir and clean vocals, and is probably one of the better tracks here. The highly symphonic 'Piece by Piece' sounds very Varangian Way-like to me as well, so I can't really complain about this one either. 'Greek Fire' is pretty damn good. The crushing riffs are awesome, and while it's lacking in the folk department, it's a cool song on it's own accord. 

I can't really decide whether or not I'm a fan of 'Into the Free'. I like it's fast tempo, but for the most part it just sounds like generic Euro power metal. And Nygard's clean vocals don't really do it justice either... if someone like Michael Kiske of Helloween sang on it, it could be awesome. But as it happens, I just find the vocals to be really mediocre on this track. The music's solid though. And what the fuck is up with 'Run, Bhang-Eater, Run!'?! Why does it seem to be influenced by jazz more than anything else? But more importantly, why does it have random female sex moans on it?! I'd like to give it some credit and say it has some sort of novelty, but in reality it's just a messy composition. 'No Good Story Ever Starts With Drinking Tea' is... kinda fun I guess? It's almost like a taster of if Turisas mixed folk with punk rock! A whole album like this could be cool, but by itself this song doesn't fit in with the rest of the album whatsoever. And while most of the core musical Turisas elements are definitely present throughout this record, many of the folk-based arrangements feel a little unambitious this time, and the music feels a bit less epic for it now. Just listen to 'The Days Passed' and then compare it to something like 'Fields of Gold' to see what I mean.

One definite downgrade here is the production. To me, every Turisas album improved sonically, until this thing dropped. There's just no balls this time around! The guitars might be distorted, but they kinda sound like they're being played through a beginner's amp purchased at Argos. And in general, everything just feels watered down and 'softened up' somehow. I think if you listened to this record without hearing the others first, you probably wouldn't be picking so many holes with the production. But the fact of the matter is that Turisas2013 is easily the worst-sounding Turisas album. To be honest, I can see where a lot of these mediocre reviews are coming from. Although Turisas2013 does have it's moments, the product as a whole feels rushed and incomplete. It's like they ran back into the studio with a bunch of leftover ideas from Stand Up and Fight, recorded them and made sure the album was on the shelves as soon as possible without actually taking the time to finetune the tracks. Maybe there is something to be said about this - there hasn't been another Turisas album since and since 2022, the band have either been on hiatus or they've just split completely. From what I can tell online, they haven't performed live since before COVID either.

So yeah - this was their swansong, and not a particularly good one at that. Granted, some of the songs are decent, but there's also a few dodgy ones making the album feel unfocused because of them. Coupled with the weird production, this is the one Turisas album that just isn't worth your time. I'll give it a 5/10, because I'd say there's enough stuff on here from to consider Turisas2013 average at best, but not much more. Shame.

Adam's rating: 5/10

Deep Purple - thoughts on the upcoming new album, =1

As a Deep Purple fanatic, I'm obviously quite psyched for the new album, =1. It's scheduled for release on the 19th July, just under 2 weeks time. I have both the CD and vinyl on pre-order (it's rare for me to pre-order both formats, but I kinda just thought "why not?" this time), plus a t-shirt. =1 will be the first studio album to feature guitarist Simon McBride, who has been with the band since 2022, after Steve Morse's sudden departure due to his wife's illness. I was initially disappointed to hear Morse's departure (although I completely understand why he left) - I've always loved Morse's playing, he brought a style to Deep Purple that was different to what Ritchie Blackmore was doing, yet also crafted a new and exciting sound that was trademark to the band for several decades. A Deep Purple album with Steve Morse is not the same as a Deep Purple album with Ritchie Blackmore, but is still fantastic for different reasons.

I saw the band live in October 2022, meaning I actually got to experience a Purple concert with Simon McBride. I wasn't entirely sure what to expect at first, but by the end of the night I was on board with McBride. I think his playing style is actually a little closer to Blackmore than Morse without completely impersonating him. Either way, I think Simon fits in the band just fine. Well, at least in the live setting.

But then we've also had 3 singles from the new album in the past few months - 'Portable Door', 'Pictures of You' and now 'Lazy Sod' too. And honestly, I like them all. In fact, I think 'Pictures of You' and 'Lazy Sod' in particular are great. 'Pictures of You' is full of extremely memorable hooks - it's more-or-less a pop rock track with Purple's stamp of approval, and I've played it over and over since it's release. 'Lazy Sod' on the other hand, has a much more retro rocker feel to it, and in my opinion sounds a little closer to '70s Mk. II-era Deep Purple. Meanwhile, 'Portable Door' kind of sounds like classic Purple mixed with Morse-era Purple. Good stuff. I have a limited numbered CD single copy of 'Pictures of You' (5000 in total, mine is number 1915), 'cos you know... I have collector's syndrome!

If these singles are anything to go by, I think we could be in for a diverse album with =1. I also think we could also be in for the most distinctly retro-sounding Purple album in a very long time. Aside from McBride, Purple have existed with Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, Ian Paice and Don Airey since 2003's Bananas, and they've been working with producer Bob Ezrin since 2013's Now What?! (one of my favourite Deep Purple records ever) - so they definitely have a particular style of songwriting that I don't think will stray too far from any of the past bunch of albums. But at the same time I think Simon's guitar playing seems to bring a bit more '70s flair to the band than they did with Morse, at least on these singles anyway.  

Ian Gillan is way past his prime as a singer, and he knows this. That doesn't mean I don't enjoy any of the more modern Purple albums any less. He's adapted his vocals to suit the songs as he ages. I think Glover and Paice are still a rock-solid rhythm section, and I can't fault either of them whatsoever on these new recordings. As for Don Airey, well, that man's just a keyboard wizard. Jon Lord seemed so irreplaceable, and he kinda was. I think only Airey could fill that man's shoes.

I'm not sure how =1 will stack up next to albums such as Now What?! (2013), Infinite (2017) and Whoosh! (2020), but I'm quite confident it will be in a similar ballpark to them in terms of quality. I think Now What?! is outstanding, so maybe it won't be that good, but I still really like Infinite and Whoosh!, therefore am feeling very hopeful overall. And I can definitely just assume it will walk all over the 2021 covers album, Turning to Crime. I must admit, as far as covers albums go, I think Turning to Crime is actually quite fun for the most part, and seem to enjoy it more and more over time. But let's not forget that it is just a covers album, and one they recorded for fun during the COVID lockdowns, therefore is not really even worth using as a comparison. I am a little relieved that Turning to Crime will not be the final Deep Purple album however!!

I don't really have any major negative emotions towards this new record, just small gripes. 'Portable Door' isn't quite as strong as 'Pictures of You' or 'Lazy Sod' in my humble opinion, but I still enjoy it. I think the album cover is a bit uninspired however. Look at it! Plain white with minimal text in the centre!! Far too similar to Now What?! (maybe the only bad thing about that album), only even more minimalistic! Yet at the same time I don't really 'hate' the artwork either... it's quite clean and weirdly artsy in a modern kind of way (not that I know anything about modern art). It is a bit odd though, because the singles have their own artwork, and the t-shirt I have on pre-order is very cool. Whatever.

So yeah, bring on =1. 13 days left...