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Concert Review – Enslaved & Insomnium (The Opera House, Toronto, ON, 04/08/2023)

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Two of the most important bands in the history of Nordic metal turned up the heat this weekend in Toronto with their unparalleled music and hypnotic performances. 

OPENING ACT: Black Anvil

There’s nothing better than uniting two Nordic bands in Toronto (and we all know how Finland, Norway and Canada can get really, really cold) to celebrate the end of another freakin’ winter, and that’s exactly what hundreds of fans were able to witness at the always cozy The Opera House this Saturday when INSOMNIUM and ENSLAVED, with the support of BLACK ANVIL, kicked some serious ass with their very melodic, folk, and obviously heavy-as-hell music. The weather was good enough (for Canadian standards) for several people to only wear T-shirts, including myself, and I must say that was a wise decision as things started to get pretty warm inside the venue right after the doors opened. And on a side note, if you’re attending any concert at The Opera House or just visiting the neighborhood, a new Slayer Burger location (and I still think they should be called “SLAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEERRRRR Burger” for obvious reasons) opened on February 12 right beside the venue, offering a great option to fill up your personal tank before heading into any mosh pits.

It was 7:30pm when the opening act, New York, United States-based Black/Thrash Metal act BLACK ANVIL kicked off the night with their vicious music, with vocalist and bassist P.D. and drummer R.G. stealing the spotlight with another blasphemous performance, and I say “another” because I already had the pleasure of seeing them opening for the mighty Cannibal Corpse in November also here in Toronto. Still promoting their 2022 opus Regenesis, the quartet did a very solid job on stage, with their newest song NYC Nightmares being the highlight of their performance for me. Perhaps the only “issue” with their show was the fact that their music is considerably different from the main attractions, and at least I felt there was a lack of circle pits during their entire set. The fans still raised their horns for the band and clapped their hands in approval after each song was played, but as I said maybe the night was too eclectic for a band like Black Anvil.

INSOMNIUM

Then after a quick break, more specifically at around 8:30pm, Finland’s own Melodic Death Metal institution INSOMNIUM hit the stage with a flawless performance, blending songs from all of their previous albums with the stunning creations form their brand new opus Anno 1696. Spearheaded by the iconic vocalist and bassist Niilo Sevänen, the band started their show with five superb songs in a row, those being 1696, White Christ, While We Sleep, Godforsaken and Lilian, embellishing the airwaves and putting the entire crowd in a metallic trance and showing how strong their newest album is. Insomnium have always been one of the pillars of Nordic Melodic Death Metal since their inception back in 1997, always releasing amazing albums, but it feels like they’ve perfect their sound even more with Anno 1696, and the reactions of the fans in Toronto to their new songs was the ultimate proof of that.

One thing I must say about Insomnium, in special when talking about their live performances, is how awesome their guitars are nowadays with Markus Vanhala (the heart and soul of another Finnish Melodic Death Metal beast, the excellent Omnium Gatherum) and Jani Liimatainen, who’s in a much better position these days compared to his time with Sonata Arctica or Altaria, sounding sharp, crisp and extremely melodious for the absolute delight of all fans who were at The Opera House. I have no idea why their third guitarist Ville Friman missed the show, and I’m sure it would have been even more amazing if he had played as well, but Markus and Jani nailed it from start to finish even without their bandmate. Another new song that sounded thrilling live was The Witch Hunter, again proving their latest release is a beast of an album, and closing their performance with the not-so-old song Heart Like a Grave was one more attestation those Finnish metallers are always moving forward in their career. It was my first time seeing Insomnium live despite being a fan of the band for a long time, and I’ll make sure I don’t miss any of their future shows in Toronto from now on after such pleasant night in the city.

Setlist
1696
White Christ
While We Sleep
Godforsaken
Lilian
And Bells They Toll
The Witch Hunter
Valediction
Mortal Share
Heart Like a Grave

Band members
Niilo Sevänen – lead vocals, bass
Markus Vanhala – guitars
Jani Liimatainen – guitars, clean vocals
Markus Hirvonen – drums

ENSLAVED

It was a little past 10pm when the main attraction of the night, Norway’s Progressive Black/Viking Metal horde ENSLAVED, took the city of Toronto by storm led by their charismatic vocalist and bassist Grutle Kjellson, putting a huge smile on the faces of everyone at The Opera House, and inspiring part of the crowd to head into the battlefield (aka mosh pits) for the delight of the band. The start of their performance with the songs Jettegryta and Homebound, from their 2020 album Utgard, plus the fact they played Kingdom, Forest Dweller and Heimdal, from their 2023 album Heimdal, therefore making for half of their setlist, also shows that Enslanved, just like Insomnium, are forward-thinking musicians who respect their past but are not trapped in it, and their diehard fans more than love that based on their reaction to their entire performance.

Enslaved were also one man down, as their guitarist Ivar Bjørnson was absent from the concert in Toronto (and from their entire North American tour “due to immediate family issues that needed to be taken care of” as per a statement from the band on their official Facebook page), but Grutle made sure Ivar received some positive vibes from us Torontonians who screamed his name when prompted by the band. Furthermore, their other guitarist Arve Isdal was on fire, shredding his guitar nonstop and filling all empty spaces left by Ivar, in special in the amazing tune Return to Yggdrasil. Add to that the intense, multi-layered background sounds by Håkon Vinje and Iver Sandøy, and there you have the perfect recipe for a fulminating Norwegian attack. When they closed the night with Allfǫðr Oðinn, everyone at The Opera House was beyond happy and mesmerized, and I’m sure that will inspired Enslaved to return to the city sooner than we can say any of the names of their songs in Norwegian. Ad of course, thanks a lot to Noel Peters from Inertia Entertainment for putting together such enjoyable night of first-class metal music, and thanks once again to my friend Keith Ibbitson of Lower Eastside Photography for the amazing shots! SKÅL!

Setlist
Jettegryta
Homebound
Return to Yggdrasil
Kingdom
Forest Dweller
The Dead Stare
Isa
Havenless
Heimdal
Allfǫðr Oðinn

Band members
Grutle Kjellson – vocals, bass
Arve Isdal – lead guitars
Håkon Vinje – keyboards, clean vocals
Iver Sandøy – drums, clean vocals

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Album Review – Insomnium / Shadows Of The Dying Sun (2014)

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Insomnium provide us high quality Melodic Death Metal just the way we like it, directly from the land of ice and snow.

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insomnium_sotdsAfter the huge disappointments from Ahola and Sonata Arctica this year, we’re finally able to enjoy some decent Finnish Heavy Metal with the album Shadows Of The Dying Sun, from Melodic Death Metal band Insomnium. Although this is the sixth full-length album from this Joensuu-based dark and gothic band formed in 1997, it’s only the first with guitarist Markus Vanhala (Omnium Gatherum), and the final result is so professional and enjoyable that it might soon be considered by fans the best so far in the band’s career.

Their lyrical themes may not be the happiest in the world, as Insomnium usually sings about pain, loss, darkness, and especially how we cannot beat time, which in the end is the main connector of all those elements, but that doesn’t make their music less exciting. Quite the contrary, when a band is capable of awakening inside us a feeling that time is passing by and that we should do something about our lives, in other words, when a band makes us THINK about our lives, that’s when their music deserves to be listened, shared and truly appreciated.

One of the most interesting characteristics in Shadows Of The Dying Sun is that it’s not only Melodic Death Metal, but a substantial mix of other genres such as Doom, Black and even Folk Metal, which can be noticed since the very beginning of The Primeval Dark, with its enticing atmospheric instrumental, heavy riffs and deep vocals, working like an “intro” to one of the highlights of the album, the 6-minute melodic masterpiece While We Sleep, an awesome track with clean and guttural vocals blending really well, intense lyrics (“When all you ever wish for is to go back once more / When all you ever wish is to open that cage and long / When all you feel is remorse, pain and regret / When you brought on curse unable to move on?”) and a stunning riff in the background that gives the song an even more melodic sonority. Not only that, the smooth passage together with a nice guitar solo after 4 minutes until the end of the song is great, and don’t forget to check its superb official music video at the end of this review.

insomniumAnd that was only the beginning of the album, which goes on with Revelation, a song that constantly varies from raw to more melodic Death Metal and back again, with the instrumental always being very clean despite the heaviness of the music; and Black Heart Rebellion, a very melancholic and brutal track where drummer Markus Hirvonen abuses his double bass. The guitar duo and riffs are also amazing, and add to that some thoughtful lyrics and Niilo Sevänen’s above-the-average performance, and you have another memorable moment in the album.

Lose To Night is a more gothic song with some Paradise Lost-ish elements, moving it closer to Doom Metal rather than the band’s traditional Death Metal, while Collapsing Words brings the album back to a heavier sonority, again with awesome vocals by Niilo. These two songs are followed by The River, which has many elements from Black Metal (especially drums and riffs), with highlights to the semi-acoustic and very melodic ending; and the more commercial (but not less pleasant) single Ephemeral, with its amazing lyrics (“Darkness is ignorance / Knowledge is light / Fight only with yourself / Or the shadows of the night”) and a totally catchy chorus. Unless you have a very good reason for hating Insomnium, there’s no way you won’t get addicted to this song.

Finally, in order to end the album in a high note, the band offers us the beautiful ballad The Promethean Song, where the guitar riff works perfectly with the acoustic guitar, and Shadows Of The Dying Sun, with a dark bass tune to start it in an excellent way, a great chorus, and more powerful bass lines by Niilo along the whole song. Furthermore, if you’re a fan of the band, don’t miss the special limited digipak edition of Shadows Of The Dying Sun, which includes a bonus CD with four bonus tracks.

And was the album art inspired by Alfred Hitchcock’s classic The Birds, or by the zombie birds from Resident Evil? Anyway, although it can be relatively simple to our eyes, it’s darkly delightful and very effective in translating into images all the musicality in the album. In short, this is the high quality Heavy Metal we always expect from any band that comes from the cold and marvelous Finland, and as previously mentioned the intensity the band puts in their music and lyrics is commendable, elevating them to the status of one of the best active Finnish bands today.

Best moments of the album: While We Sleep, Black Heart Rebellion, Collapsing Words and Ephemeral.

Worst moments of the album: Revelation and The River.

Released in 2014 Century Media Records

Track listing
1. The Primeval Dark 3:16
2. While We Sleep 6:20
3. Revelation 5:15
4. Black Heart Rebellion 7:03
5. Lose To Night 4:56
6. Collapsing Words 4:38
7. The River 7:57
8. Ephemeral 4:01
9. The Promethean Song 6:41
10. Shadows Of The Dying Sun 6:32

Limited Digipak bonus tracks
11. Out to the Sea 5:17
12. The Emergence 1:46
13. The Swarm 2:54
14. The Descent 3:11

Band members
Niilo Sevänen − vocals, bass
Ville Friman − backing vocals, guitar
Markus Vanhala − guitar
Markus Hirvonen − drums