This has got to be one of the best records of the year. The songs are great, best when the lyrics are read. The lyrics to "Summers End" and "Nightfall" are very talented. Musically, the record is very diverse, their sound is exclusively Amorphis but similar at times to Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Ambient, Oriental, The Doors, Jethro Tull, Deep Purple and a bit of Grunge. I've listened to Amorphis since 1992(The Karelian Isthmus). I can tell they're really comfortable with this sound. All the elements from the past have come together to find Tuonela a reflection of the "Real Amorphis." The keyboard player and Sakari Kukko are awesome. Production is louder and more sonic/dynamic than ever. Of course, if all you listen to is metal you probably won't dig this record. It's rock and damn good rock at that. If you only like the old Amorphis, you might buy it for "Greed" which is in the vein of a melodic(and better produced)Karelian Isthmus. Unfortunately, there are plenty of people out there, like the "2 stars" on this ratings board, who refuse to leave the underground. The appropriate response is: that's not what music is all about. When a band is together 10 years they sell out when they don't change. Amorphis changes, and does so successfully. I'd recommend the album to anyone who is a music fan.

Relapse records: the home of ridiculous, boundary pushing grindcore and sonic extremity. Amorphis hardly qualify as extreme, but boundaries they do push... Tuonela is a logical progression for Finland's finest metal export. In fact, it barely resembles metal at all, a transition furthered with Am Universum. Instead, Amorphis weave abstract keyboard and organ playing with pyschedelic guitars and the occasional power chord. Tuonela is lush, organic and beautiful... imagine cruising through the desert at night, tripping on Peyote. This is the soundtrack.

AMORPHIS - Tuonela

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Evolution is a dangerous thing for many bands, especially when your transition changes you from a Death Metal band into a Prog-Rock band. Criticisms are bound to be made, mainly by those evil metal purists. Luckily for myself I explored Amorphis with an open mind, getting Thousand Lakes, Elegy, Tuonela all at once. Personally I love this music... It's good Progressive Rock & Roll without the guilt of listening to generic mainstream garbage (A la Matchbox 20.)

73 Reviews and not one play by play... so here it is:

-This CD opens `The Way' which has Gilmore-esc guitar work, and comes across as almost sounding a bit like the great Porcupine Tree. Perfect opener... this song just grabs your attention.

-Track 2 is `Morning Star' which has an almost doom-inspired Rock feel blended with some 90's era grunge.

-`Nightfall' opens with some horns, which sound amazing... It also has big middle-eastern vibe which makes the track even more beautiful.

-Fourth is the title track which has a ridiculously catchy chorus and some more spacey Gilmore-esc guitar work.

-Now as much as I'm praising the prog-side of Amorphis, my favorite track is easily track five `Greed'. Mr. Akerfeldt steps in to do some of his trademark growls which blend perfectly with the raunchy guitar riff. In fact just about anything Mikeal Akerfeldt touches is pure gold.

-`Divinity' is the next track, which has, yet another, infectious chorus. It has a really cool solo (Almost sounds like a slowed down Children of Bodom solo.) and even chucks in a few little growls for good measure.

-`Shining' has some beautiful melodic guitar work, though the chorus seems a bit similar to some of the earlier tracks it flows well within context of the album.

-Track eight is `Withered' which returns with the middle-eastern vibe mixed with some great progressive rock, this song is probably the most beautiful track on the entire album.

-`Rusty Moon' digs deeply into the folk traditions and even includes some really amazing flute work another. Progression is a wonderful thing, especially when you can pull it off like this.

-The closer, `Summer's End' is a nice somber ending to the CD... this song probably wouldn't have fit anywhere else on the album, but the subtle build works great as the albums closer.

Recommended for Fans of Porcupine Tree, or any other modern Prog-Rock bands... Also for open minded fans of older Amorphis. Sure it may be stripped down a bit and lacking the growls we all love so much... but if you listen based on this material alone it is an amazing CD.

Favorite Songs: Greed, Withered, Morning Star and The Way.

-4.5 Stars.

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Amorphis's Tuonala, a very controversial album indeed. Maybe writing a review for this is pointless since everyone seems to have a differing opinion, but I'll give it a shot though. This is where they changed from Death metal to more melodic metal. All songs feature clean vox and only one song has death vox on it. This is just fine with me, Pasi has improved a lot at singing since Tales From the Thousand Lakes and while the death vox were awesome too they were more restrictive than helpful to Amorphis's sound. As for the music it's almost the same as Elegy. Just a bit more mellow and more atmospheric. The best comparision I could think of would be Draconian Times era Paradise Lost, only a bit more wispy sounding. They also use a lot more intruments that aren't typical for metal on this album, flute, saxophone, sitar. I don't think these were neccassary but they don't hurt the album in any major way either. In my eyes Tuonela ranks up there with the best from Katatonia's later stuff, Anathema, Paradise Lost and all the other bands that make similar music. This is one of my favorite Amorphis albums and may even be their best. Like I said before though, everyone seems to have their own opinion about it so it would probably be benifical to listen to it before purchasing it.

Tuonela, although a dramatic change from 1996's Elegy, was foreshadowed in their My Kantele release, a 5-track EP featuring the two-part "The Brother Slayer". Equal parts death-metal and 70's prog-rock, the band was showcasing a new sound that would later dominate their forthcoming albums.

With only one track featuring death-metal grunts, the raw "Greed", Pasi Koskinen has taken over the role of primary vocalist. The album was received with mixed opinions by fans, but lauded by critics. This is only natural - critics applauded the creative maturity, but fans were shocked by the tremendous shift from death-metal to retrogressive rock. Songs such as "Nightfall" are decorated by saxophones and a whimsical flute makes an appearance on "Rusty Moon", one of the album's standout tracks. Despite the changes, the album still has its hard-rockers. The opening track "The Way" has hints of Elegy-esque melodies and vocal arrangements, while "Divinity" is the new sound's aggressive style.

Although the album has its great selections, it does have its formulaic, repetitive pieces that add little to the mix ("Summer's End" for example). To separate the album more from its predecessors, the lyrics are new, band-written (as opposed to the Finnish poems from which the band derived their previous albums' lyrics). The album is no longer the melodic thrash that characterized the band's most prized creations, but it is still worth a listen. For its creative merits (and stunning stand-outs), Tuonela is greatly appreciated.

See also: Amorphis - Am Universum, Green Carnation - A Blessing in Disguise