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Ensiferum|Ensiferum

Ensiferum by Ensiferum

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A half-decade's worth of inconsistent activities amid occasional demo recordings gave little indication that the members of Ensiferum (which comes from the Latin words for "sword bearer") would ever give up their multiple alternate projects long enough to create this self-titled debut. And yet, by the time it finally did arrive in 2001, said album delivered with such astonishingly high songwriting and production standards -- not to mention a particularly well-developed thematic vision -- that its dynamic contrasts of extreme and more commercial heavy metal elements instantaneously vaulted Ensiferum to the front of the Viking folk-metal class. Moreover, the album was significantly more worldly and accessible than most Viking metal offerings: in part because its songs boasted excellent clean and dirty vocals, were etched with abundant melodic footholds, and were kept relatively short as compared to oft-long-winded competitors; but perhaps most importantly thanks to Ensiferum's willingness to pen lyrics in English, rather than in their native Finnish or some ancient Scandinavian dialect (which several bands insist on doing, believe it or not). And it's no surprise that those numerous demos scattered across the late '90s provided a full half of the songs eventually re-recorded here, including the propulsive "Hero in a Dream," the surprisingly rock-riffed "Guardians of Fate," and the engaging two-part mythology of the "Väinämöinen" suite (the only bit of Finnish-speak to be found here). At the same time, brand new offerings such as the acoustic guitar-enhanced "Token of Time" (henceforth a fan favorite) and the hectically paced, black metal-tinged "Windrider" proved just as impressive, showing that Ensiferum were for real, and launching one of the most consistent careers in the Viking folk-metal field.

© Eduardo Rivadavia /TiVo

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Ensiferum

Ensiferum

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1
Intro
00:01:50

Markus Toivonen, Composer, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Composer, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

2
Hero In A Dream
00:03:40

Markus Toivonen, Composer, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Composer, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

3
Token Of Time
00:04:16

Markus Toivonen, Composer, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Composer, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

4
Guardians Of Fate
00:03:34

Markus Toivonen, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Composer, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

5
Old Man (Väinämöinen)
00:05:32

Markus Toivonen, Composer, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

6
Little Dreamer (Väinämöinen Part II)
00:05:20

Markus Toivonen, Composer, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Composer, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

7
Abandoned
00:06:50

Markus Toivonen, Composer, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

8
Windrider
00:05:40

Markus Toivonen, Composer, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

9
Treacherous Gods
00:05:12

Markus Toivonen, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Composer, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

10
Eternal Wait
00:05:13

Markus Toivonen, Composer, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

11
Battle Song
00:03:19

Markus Toivonen, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Composer, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

12
Goblin's Dance
00:04:29

Markus Toivonen, Composer, Arranger, Guitar - Ensiferum, MainArtist - Jari Mäenpää, Arranger, Guitar, LeadVocals - Jukka-Pekka Miettinen, Arranger, BassGuitar - Oliver Fokin, Arranger, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

13
Into Hiding
00:03:49

Janne Joutsenniemi, Producer - Trad., Composer - Markus Toivonen, Guitar - Sami Hinkka, BassGuitar - Ensiferum, Producer, MainArtist - Petri Lindroos, Guitar, LeadVocals - Meiju Enho, Keyboards - Janne Parviainen, Drums

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

Review: Ensiferum - Ensiferum

A half-decade's worth of inconsistent activities amid occasional demo recordings gave little indication that the members of Ensiferum (which comes from the Latin words for "sword bearer") would ever give up their multiple alternate projects long enough to create this self-titled debut. And yet, by the time it finally did arrive in 2001, said album delivered with such astonishingly high songwriting and production standards -- not to mention a particularly well-developed thematic vision -- that its dynamic contrasts of extreme and more commercial heavy metal elements instantaneously vaulted Ensiferum to the front of the Viking folk-metal class. Moreover, the album was significantly more worldly and accessible than most Viking metal offerings: in part because its songs boasted excellent clean and dirty vocals, were etched with abundant melodic footholds, and were kept relatively short as compared to oft-long-winded competitors; but perhaps most importantly thanks to Ensiferum's willingness to pen lyrics in English, rather than in their native Finnish or some ancient Scandinavian dialect (which several bands insist on doing, believe it or not). And it's no surprise that those numerous demos scattered across the late '90s provided a full half of the songs eventually re-recorded here, including the propulsive "Hero in a Dream," the surprisingly rock-riffed "Guardians of Fate," and the engaging two-part mythology of the "Väinämöinen" suite (the only bit of Finnish-speak to be found here). At the same time, brand new offerings such as the acoustic guitar-enhanced "Token of Time" (henceforth a fan favorite) and the hectically paced, black metal-tinged "Windrider" proved just as impressive, showing that Ensiferum were for real, and launching one of the most consistent careers in the Viking folk-metal field.

© Eduardo Rivadavia /TiVo

About the album

2008 Spin-Farm Oy 2008 Spin-Farm Oy

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