Finland's Korpiklaani may indulge themselves in the occasional Scandinavian folk breakdown (pipes, accordion, and fiddle), but at its heart, this hard-hitting sextet produces fits of pure snow-capped heavy metal.
Their third full-length album, Tales Along This Road, has its feet firmly planted within the burgeoning Viking metal scene, but where bands like Stratovarius and Falkenbach build their fantasy worlds from the oft-pillaged chest of power metal cliché, Korpiklaani take their inspiration from ages old Finnish folk songs, often incorporating them unchanged into the mix.
There are no epic, three-tiered symphonic monstrosities to be found here, just ten brutal, occasionally pretty, and startlingly concise songs about ice, Odin, and binge drinking that sound like a Norse Flogging Molly.
Vocalist/guitarist Jonne Järvelä snarls and sneers like a hardcore punk with a secret stash of early Accept albums, and whether he's singing in his native tongue ("Tuli Kokko") or welcoming the listener to "the land of ice and snow" (on the meteoric "Rise"), it's impossible to not yearn for a few flagons of ale and a warm pelt to pass out on.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Happy Little Boozer | Korpiklaani | Play | 03:35 | 8 MB | 28 MB |
| 2 | Väkirauta | Korpiklaani | Play | 03:44 | 8 MB | 29 MB |
| 3 | Midsummer NightJarkko Aaltonen, Juho Kauppinen | Korpiklaani | Play | 03:27 | 7 MB | 26 MB |
| 4 | Spring Dance | Korpiklaani | Play | 03:05 | 7 MB | 24 MB |
| 5 | Under the Sun | Korpiklaani | Play | 04:12 | 9 MB | 33 MB |
| 6 | Korpiklaani | Korpiklaani | Play | 04:39 | 10 MB | 36 MB |
| 7 | Rise | Korpiklaani | Play | 05:20 | 12 MB | 43 MB |
| 8 | Kirki | Korpiklaani | Play | 04:23 | 10 MB | 35 MB |
| 9 | Hide Your Richess | Korpiklaani | Play | 04:45 | 10 MB | 36 MB |
| 10 | Free Like An Eagle | Korpiklaani | Play | 03:26 | 7 MB | 26 MB |
| 11 | Tuli Kokko | Korpiklaani | Play | 05:25 | 12 MB | 39 MB |
| 46 mins | 106 MB | |||||
| 46 mins | 360 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jarkko Aaltonen | Composer |
| 2 | Toni Härkönen | Photography |
| 3 | Jonne Järvelä | Group Member, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Mandolin, Producer, Vocals |
| 4 | Mika Jussila | Mastering |
| 5 | Juho Kauppinen | Composer |
| 6 | Korpiklaani | Primary Artist |
| 7 | Samu Oittinen | Engineer, Producer |
| 8 | Jan Yrlund | Cover Design |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |