Taking inspiration from the epic saga of “Kalevala,” Finnish band VALKEAT play folk music of the epic variety, with symphonic orchestrations, atmospheric passages, and plenty of well-crafted melodies. All this melange can be heard on the band’s second album, the very ambitious “Fireborn,” which was released on August 18th, 2023, via Reaper Entertainment.
Clocking in at 68 minutes and boasting no less than fourteen tracks, “Fireborn” is a lengthy album that shows the band’s skills at taking Finnish mythology and transposing it into accessible songs. In doing so, they didn’t shy away from using all the tricks of the genre to accurately capture the atmosphere and mood of the stories they wanted to tell. In this respect, the album is pretty complex, layered, and well-balanced, with both English and Finnish lyrics, wonderful instrumental sections, and some really epic songs. This, in turn, makes for a rather diverse outing. On the downside, the album’s second half feels repetitive and drawn out, despite having some good songs, as the hour-plus length makes “Fireborn” feel too ambitious for its own good.
Opening this behemoth of a record is the aggressive single “My Crown” which highlights the band’s metal side by mixing folk and tribal elements with heavy guitars, pounding drums, orchestral arrangements, and choirs making the song edge more toward power metal, thus setting an ominous mood from the start. On the other hand, “Tribe” is more epic in soundscape and scale with a darker undertone and more prominent symphonic elements that give it more bombast, while melancholy “Swan Song (Lemminkäinen)” is a vocally-driven ballad coupled with a piano melody that pops up here and there to support the chorus and mellow percussion that adds to the gentle ambiance. Another interesting piece of music is “Moraš” with its minimalistic instrumental side, gloomy ambiance, and ritualistic-like rhythms. Apparently, this is a tribute to the Sami people and their culture which explains its otherworldly musicality.
The 7-minute long title track starts as yet another stripped-down track with a spoken-word passage over a mournful cello melody but soon more layers are added to the fold that lighten the mood with both acoustic and electric moments as the spoken-word text speaks of the many tales of the “Kalevala.” Despite its epic build-up, this could have been a much shorter affair. Both “Karjalan Kunnailla” and “Summer Nights” are poppier tracks that not only counterbalance the darker themes that came before them but also break up side A from side B while also adding texture and nuance to the album’s soundscape. Melancholy “Iku” is the first noteworthy track of the album’s second half with its sorrowful strings sections and emotional female vocals. On the contrary, the minimalistic “Tule Kokko” with its tribal-sounding drums and chanted vocals feels out of place, only adding to the album’s runtime.
The second 7-minute long track, “Thunderbird,” brings back the metal aspect after these cinematic numbers by combining many of the elements that we have heard on this album – from the symphonic orchestrations and backing choirs, all the way to the atmospheric passages, melodic chorus, and guitar lines – into one epic song. Beautiful instrumental “Kuolematon” again merges tribal sounds with acoustic melodies and subtle vocalizations into a dreamlike atmosphere before giving way to the closing track, “Land of Falling Leaves – Song up the Skies.” This last offering boasts more backing choirs, strings, and an epic chorus section which is sing-along worthy in a live setting, feeling like a wonderful love letter to Finland. Actually, the whole album can be seen as a love letter to the country of 1000 lakes and its trademark melancholy.
To sum it up, “Fireborn” doesn’t feel like a proper metal album as it features many stripped-down moments that rely so much on percussions and vocals or on orchestrations, not to mention the many poppy moments it boasts. As such, the metal elements are relegated to the background and used mostly as ornaments, scarcely used to the full extent of their power. Weirdly enough, it also doesn’t feel very steeped into folk and ambient either, even if “Fireborn” does a good job of playing around with atmosphere and moods throughout its playtime. Because VALKEAT worked hard at creating its own sound by blending traditional Finnish music and melodic/symphonic metal, the band (and by extension this album) sits at the crossroads of such folk acts as HEILUNG or WARDRUNA and such folk metal bands like ENSIFERUM or ELVENKING. So, adjust your expectations accordingly.
Written by Andrea Crow
Tracklist
1 My Crown
2 Tribe
3 Swan Song (Lemminkäinen)
4 Ukko
5 Moraš
6 Fireborn
7 Karjalan Kunnailla
8 Summer Nights
9 Iku
10 Tule Kokko
11 Thunderbird
12 Vana
13 Kuolematon
14 Land of Falling Leaves – Song up the Skies
Lineup
Vocals: Miikka Virtapuro
Guitars: Aleksi Kärkkäinen
Bass: Juho Aarnio
Kantele: Eppu Puhjo
Drums: Vesa Laamanen
Label
Reaper Entertainment
