ALBUM REVIEW: Talviyö – Sonata Arctica

Combining progressive metal with power metal is, on the surface, not a bad idea. The notion of combining two rather contrasting genres opens up both to those who may find DRAGONFORCE too fast and DREAM THEATER too slow, and for nearly a quarter of a century SONATA ARCTICA have been able to carve out a successful niche in this. Tenth studio album Talviyö, the Finnish word for ‘Winter Night’, arrives on Friday via Nuclear Blast, no doubt hoping to continue the success of a band who have long been heralded as certified legends.

The pitfall of blending varying music styles together is balancing them out properly, so that an album doesn’t jump about or lean too heavily on one side at different points. As mentioned, SONATA ARCTICA have become old hands at this and their prowess has yet to desert them here. Whirlwind is a good example of this, the chorus soaring nicely around driving metal that throws an acoustic bridge in which doesn’t feel jarring or out of place. Follow up song Cold grows more and more symphonic as it progresses and We Failed the Most showcases a solid amount of stomp. There’s also A Little Less Understanding, which sticks out as a sore thumb in terms of style because it’s ridiculously cheesy and, whilst the lyrical content isn’t exactly Poet Laureate material, the chorus is undeniably catchy. Perhaps the strongest track overall though is Demon’s Cage, it’s softer opening building into chugging riffs and snarling as it goes, an indication of what this band can do when they’re on the top of their game. Unfortunately, this record does not relay that at all.

Truth be told, there is an overriding feeling that SONATA ARCTICA have recorded Talviyö whilst lounging around the studio sipping a bit of the bubbly from long champagne flutes. Far too often the album fades into mundane passages and forgetful movements, damaging the likes of opening track Message from the Sun and nautical-based Storm the Armada, the latter of which had started so promisingly. It seems lazy and by-the-book, as if the band decided to take a free hit with this record in the knowledge that their status and reputation would see them through regardless. It’s not helped by the production job either, which affects the prog-heavy The Last of the Lambs, greatly; the mix is all over the place and what could have been a standout, sprawling epic instead leaves the mind as quickly as it enters.

The fact that the instrumental Isco’s Got Good Reactions, clearly intended as a short interlude, is far better than the title assumes says a fair amount about the rest of the material, and this is summed up nicely by the closing two tracks; The Raven Still Flies With You is an incoherent mess, flying from mood to mood on a sixpence and containing a wholly unnecessary keyboard solo whilst The Garden, underpinned by piano and acoustic guitar, is a very wet end that does the band no benefit whatsoever.

Of all the words of mice and men, the saddest are ‘It might have been’, and when SONATA ARCTICA have been delighting metal fans for many years, knowing that they’re far better than their latest material is both a real shame and a concern that maybe they’re coming towards the twilight of their career with gathering speed. Talviyö, with a better producer and bite, could have been brilliant; instead, it’s floundering towards the lower end of the band’s overall back catalogue.

Rating: 6/10

Talviyö is set for release on September 6th via Nuclear Blast Records.

Like SONATA ARCTICA on Facebook.