NORRHEM – Koitos

Ok, I know this is not the last album by the Finns from Norrhem, however, in my defense I need to clarify that despite having heard the band’s name in several places I had never paid due attention to the guys’ music before and, making a parenthesis here, maybe this is one of the big problems these days for all those who have their ears open to new musical discoveries, there are many bands coming up every day and there are always excellent bands that sometimes escape our radar and end up passing by unnoticed. This was my case with Norrhem and as the first album I heard from the band was this “Koitos” released in 2020, perhaps it made a much stronger impression on me than the other releases of the band that, by the way, I looked for listen right away and they’re all great. I loved the band, but “Koitos” for me is the best of the three albums they’ve released so far. The band was born in 2017 and with only five years of history has already released three full lengths; “Koitos” is the band’s second work and is preceded by “Vaienneet voittajat” which came out in 2018 and precedes “Elonkehrä” released now in May 2022. The Black Metal they play escapes a little from that classic Finnish style; they manage to add a lot of great melodies to their music, some with a strong folk influence, but used in a way that I would say is quite smart and original, perhaps due to the great creative choices that permeate all seven tracks. The keyboards on this album managed to find a perfect balance within the song. occupying a very important place in the compositions, but without stealing the protagonism of the guitars that explore a large amount of musical arrangements and techniques that are very well fitted into the tracks, managing to bring with this variety exactly the feeling and soundscape that each musical moment calls for. Still talking a little about the keyboards, some choices of timbres and more “traveling” and unusual sounds give a whole mystical and lysergic aura to Norrhem’s music. All the songs on the album have unique and memorable moments, but I would especially highlight two tracks that caught my attention and are that kind of composition that can make your spine shiver because they are so deep and rich. The first of these is the dense and slow “Lopussa” that intersperses melodic lines on guitars and keyboards and has a more tragic musical connotation, listen to the middle passage of this song with the acoustic guitar and keyboards and that culminates in a guitar solo and you will understand what I mean. The other would be the track that closes the album “Vapaa sielu pohjoisen” which for me is not only the best of this work but the best composition of the band’s career; the arrangements of this composition are built in a very solid way, the chain of riffs with its variations connect in a perfect way making the song “grow” during its execution; this is one of those tracks that when you think it’s reached its highest point it surprises you by transporting you to another level and becoming even more epic and fantastic; and it’s strategically brilliant that they leave the strongest composition of the album at the end, urging you to look for more stuff from the band or to listen to “Koitos” again, something I believe can happen to you. Tip, put it on repeat mode because “Koitos” can become an addictive experience…