Insomnium

When it comes to metal, Fins tend to play it with audible melancholy and with an emphasis on melodies. And Insomnium’s the perfect example of this. For over a quarter of a century of an intense career, the Joensuu band continuously chiselled and perfected the already-outstanding formula that compounds the lofty melodies of death metal with the power of doom metal. The band is sure to both bruise you and make you reflect.

History:

The mid-size city of Joensuu, with a population of almost 80 thousand people, is where Insomnium took its first steps. Not an area particularly associated with metal music, it did not deter the band from making huge leaps with each record. It all started in 1997. The ensemble fronted from the very beginning by Niilo Sevänen recorded two demos at the turn of the century and in 2002, they released their full-length debut album, “In the Halls of Awaiting” 

Both this and the follow-up album, “Since the Day It All Came Down”, are widely considered to be highly introspective pinnacles of melodic death metal. However, the band’s true milestone was “Above the Weeping World” from 2006 – an album still at the crossroads of melodic death metal and doom metal yet showcasing the band’s more fantastical and oftentimes progressive face. Upon its premiere, the album reached the top ten of the Finnish charts. 

This notable rise in popularity solidified Insomnium’s position as a big metal band – a position that they hold still. The band continues to record and release successful records (the latest three were best-selling albums in Finland), seamlessly blending melodic death metal, doom metal and progressive elements. The latest full-length album released by the Century media artists is Anno 1696 from 2023.

Discography:

Studio albums:

In the Halls of Awaiting, 2002
Since the Day It All Came Down, 2004
Above the Weeping World, 2006
Across the Dark, 2009
One for Sorrow, 2011
Shadows of the Dying Sun, 2014
Winter’s Gate, 2016
Heart like a Grave, 2019
Anno 1696, 2023

EPs:

Where the Last Wave Broke, 2009
Ephemeral, 2013
Argent Moon, 2021
Songs of the Dusk, 2023

Demos:

Demo 1999, 1999
Underneath the Moonlit Waves, 2000

Singles:

Weather the Storm, 2011
While We Sleep, 2014
The Conjurer, 2021
The Reticent, 2021
The Antagonist, 2021
Lilian, 2022
White Christ, 2022
The Witch Hunter, 2023
Song of the Dusk, 2023