Insomnium : "Anno 1696"

This Finnish band normally writers pretty hooky death metal. This album is somewhat conceptual as it focuses on witches and their persecution in northern Europe.  The opening track is pretty much what you expect with a few more folk elements, The second song has Sakis from Rotting Christ on the track. The album is well produced, and the guitars have plenty of room. The write with a great deal of melody haunting the songs.  Johanna Kurkela provides vocals on "Godforsaken" which is more deliberate than many of the harmonized guitar thrashings I have heard from this band in the past. There feels like there is more dynamic ebb and flow with this album. 

The drums could carry more thunder in the mix, which makes things not sound as heavy or as dense as they could. "Lilian" feels almost more like a Nightwish song going into it. It is not until the vocal roar to life that the distinction is made. The attack with more of an At the Gates like aggression going into it. The growling has power behind it, but is limited in terms of the range they covered. They do not create a hook, but come close. The guitars continue to get more melodic with each song. The pace picks up but it does not sound more intense in so doing. "Starless Paths" feels longer than it needs to be. It does find the band wandering off in melodic side quests .  This album is surprisingly not cluttered with guitar solos and those that do appear are rather tasteful.

Aside from the strum of clean guitar "the Witch Hunter' could be any melodic death metal band following the formula originally birthed from their neighbors in Sweden. Not the album's most inspired moment, but well executed. "the Unrest" feels like a cross between Opeth and Tiamat, which works even though it is more of a ballad. "the Rapids" lingers on the mood established on the previous song before the double bass kicks in. What I said about "the Witch Hunter" applies here, though this song is more dynamic, the originality factors weighs in the same. I will however give this album an 8.5 as it excels at working off this formula and does so in a richly melodic manner. 

7.3