Victory Songs

Full-length, Spinefarm
April 27th, 2007

Written by mystagogue (metal archives member) on April 24th, 2007

Markus Toivonen is a genius. I think most people are too caught up in Jari fever to realize this, but he is. Not to say that Jari isn't good, because he's amazing, and Wintersun is one of my favorite bands, but Markus is the mastermind behind Ensiferum, not Jari. Markus formed the band in 1995, a year before Jari joined, Markus has been in the band ever since, and Markus writes almost everything for Ensiferum. Song writing is the most important part of any band, and Markus has always been Ensiferum's main writer. I think that most people have rated this album lower than it deserves for the simple fact that Jari has left the band, but if this exact album was released by any other band, everybody would be raving about how good it is, because it's awesome.

Victory Songs is definitely different from Ensiferum's first two CDs. It's more folky, with some songs even reminding me of humppa metal at times. Also, the overall atmosphere is slightly different, a little less wintry. But these aren't bad things, Ensiferum is evolving instead of repeating themselves, and the results are amazing.

Ad Victoriam opens the CD with possibly the coolest intro I've ever heard. The great folk melody builds throughout the song before exploding into the second song, Blood Is the Price of Glory. This song, along with Deathbringer from the Sky, reminds me of the layout of Ensiferum's last CD, with track 2 being fast and upbeat and track 3 being power metallish. Both songs are fast and solid. Then track 4 and 5, Ahti and One More Magic Potion, show more contrast from Ensiferum's older material. Both have a variety of instruments, sounding folkish and almost humppa, yet they are still mid to fast paced songs. Then comes the Wanderer, which is probably my favorite ballad ever. It's written perfectly, nothing fancy, just pure inspiration, and the lyrics fit perfectly. Tracks 7 and 8 are both solid, but the next stand out track is the last, Victory Song. This is a 10 minute epic, with the sweetest progression ever. It starts with slow folk melodies, then is brought together with the double bass and builds until the end, fading out to pipes playing the main riff. Have to hear it.

Overall, I would rate this album above the debut, but slightly below Iron, which is pretty impossible to top. Hopefully people will realize how talented Markus is and give him the respect he deserves.