ALBUM REVIEW: Borderland – Amorphis

One of the working titles for a song on Borderland, AMORPHIS’ fifteenth record, was Disco Tiger. It’s not a moniker typical of Nordic melodic death metal, but then, AMORPHIS are anything but typical. As prevalent as hallmarks of the genre in their music are – the growls, the machine gun bass drums, the mythological lyrical matter – the current incarnation of the band have devoted themselves to the mighty melody. Queen Of Time from 2018 was crammed full of feel-good choruses, like on Amongst Stars which has a refrain worthy of its name, and Brother And Sister, one of its bonus tracks, had the year’s best earworm. AMORPHIS’ metallic arsenal seeks to elevate powerful tunes that soar over the distortion, creating the kind of frisson often found in swelling symphonies. 

And on Borderland, tunefulness is king. Disco Tiger has become Dancing Shadow, a song guitarist Esa Holopainen says he can imagine lighting up a metal club’s dancefloor. The reason for that is more than just the beat; singer Tomi Joutsen’s cadence in each verse is similar to the build before an EDM drop. There’s a rise and a release, a crescendo of musical tension that bursts into a percussive boogie. 

Even Bones, a song keyboardist Santeri Kallio considers the heaviest on the record, makes you wanna move your body, not just your head. Its industrial stomp may as well be the rhythmic pulse of a pop banger, and once its chorus kicks in – at this point in the band’s career, they have choruses down to a fine art – it’s hard to consider even the record’s most pummelling track as anything other than an invitation to dance. 

It’s appropriate then that the record starts with the sound of a synthesiser. The Circle segues from the keys to a conventional guitar-and-drums assault, setting out the record’s stall. Borderland is a fusion, and in its lyrics, Joutsen found a tussle between ‘ancient wisdom and the struggles of modern life’. On The Lantern, guitarist Holopainen cites Vangelis as a reference point, the composer behind the iconic score for Blade Runner. Towards the end of the track, the old and the new dance around one another, guitars and keys in a call-and-response bringing yesterday and today into harmony. 

It sounds like an identity crisis on paper, but AMORPHIS are too good and too dependable to do anything other than succeed. After 35 years, they are still adding strings to their bow, discovering new avenues within their familiar framework. The record is packed with moments of euphoria fans have come to expect, only now they are infused with electronica, like Joutsen’s voice on Light And Shadow. After repeated listens in preparation for this review, Light And Shadow’s refrain is still tingle-inducing. The band have been pulling these moments of magic off for years and it is a wonder how they keep finding ways of going toe-to-toe with their best material. 

For those looking for business-as-usual, the title track is as AMORPHIS as it comes, as epic and timeless as their usual fare. But for the most part, Borderlands is as amorphous as, well, AMORPHIS. Wouldn’t you know: AMORPHIS in another stellar triumph shocker.

Rating: 8/10

Borderland is out now via Reigning Phoenix Music.

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