Ensiferum - Winter Storm Vigilantes (Official Video)
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Published 2024-06-18
New album Winter Storm is out October 18, 2024
The Finnish folk-metal melodeath sensation has maintained a prolific release schedule since their first demo in 1997, gradually increasing in stature until eighth album Thalassic crowned their ascent in 2020. The nautical opus went on to top Finland's album chart, reaching #3 in Germany, and top ten in Switzerland, Canada, and the United States. Eventually, ENSIFERUM would take Thalassic on two massive world tours and to festivals like Wacken, Hellfest, Summer Breeze, and Ragnarök, but the global Covid pandemic ensured that the four-year wait for Winter Storm would be the longest in the band's near-thirty-year history.
Much of the new material emerged in the lockdown era, when ENSIFERUM's founding guitarist Markus Toivonen set himself the challenge of finding new ways to make music -- eventually composing every song except the rousing, anthemic “Fatherland,” written by bassist Sami Hinkka. The addition of singer/organist Pekka Montin's crystal-clear melodic high notes provided a tremendous boost on Thalassic. But on Winter Storm -- a fantasy concept narrative penned by Hinkka -- Montin's super-strong voice finds its optimal place in ENSIFERUM's sound. Bringing to life such grandiose, heroic material, the singer emerges as one of the greatest vocal discoveries of the decade.
"The way I see it, this album is more like a 'musical' than a traditional album," says Hinkka. "The lyrics of Winter Storm are based on part of my unpublished fantasy book. One day it will be out… I don’t want to reveal the plot or details too much but ‘Winter Storm Vigilantes’ and ‘Fatherland’ tell of two factions in this long tale. The Vigilantes have gained knowledge to utilize certain rare elements, and even though there was already magic in this world, with this new epiphany they have reached a completely new level. This element seems to interact with living things in a way that even the wisest men don’t completely understand. And through generations of trial and error, they have refined a skill to expose their horses to the element and managed to break the law of gravity, making their steeds fly. But they became ruthless and greedy on their quest to gain more of this element. A small tribe in the north keep on fighting for their land, which the Vigilantes plan to take over. These North Folks will literally fight until the last man…
“Other characters include a Vigilante castaway, the last shaman of the North Folk, and a mysterious widow. The album ends with a great battle against the Vigilantes and the unholy alliance of the castaway and the North Folk shaman, who has transcended into a spirit wolf. Who will prevail? Will this be the final battle of the book? Time will tell… I understand that all this sounds very far out -- well, it is a fantasy book -- but believe me, it will be truly an epic story!"
Adds Hinkka of ENSIFERIUM’s first single from the offering, “Winter Storm Vigilantes,” “Markus had quite grandeur visions of the song and it turned out to be even more heroic than we expected. It was an obvious choice to open the new album. This epic song serves as one faction of the big story. The song pushes forward with the might of a thousand horses and will surely be a great song in the future setlist.”
Winter Storm Track Listing:
1. Aurora
2. Winter Storm Vigilantes
3. Long Cold Winter Of Sorrow And Strife
4. Fatherland
5. Scars In My Heart (Feat. Madeleine Liljestam)
6. Resistentia
7. The Howl
8. From Order To Chaos
9. Leniret Coram Tempestate
10. Victorious
11. Six Ribbons (Jon English cover) *
12. Lambada (Kaoma cover) *
** Special Edition Bonus Track
ENSIFERUM:
Petri Lindroos - vocals, guitars
Markus Toivonen - guitars, vocals
Sami Hinkka - bass, vocals
Janne Parviainen - drums
Pekka Montin - keyboards, vocals
#ensiferum #winterstorm #folkmetal
All Comments (21)
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In the realm of frost and bitter cold, Where winter's wrath begins to unfold, There dwell the brave, the valiant few, Winter storm vigilantes, mighty and true Through the blizzards, through the storms, they won't let evil grow, With frost in their veins and fire in their hearts, They fight the darkness, tearing evil apart Their winged beasts soar through the frigid air, Majestic and swift, with fiery manes they wear, With snowflakes as their armor glints, On horses of steel they ride to victory In the moonlit snow, they take their stand, Protectors of this frozen land, Their hearts are cold but they carry the flame, Winter storm vigilantes, is their name In the depths of winter's biting embrace, They chase injustice, a relentless race, Through frozen valleys and mountain peaks, Winter storm vigilantes, justice they seek Through the blizzards, through the storms, they won't let evil grow, With frost in their veins and fire in their hearts, They fight the darkness, tearing evil apart Oh, can you see them fly High across the skies Their swords shine in the moonlight The enchanted flame in the night, Guiding them forward, their purpose in sight, On steeds of steel, they ride with pride, Winter storm vigilantes, the heroes who won't ever hide As winter yields to the coming spring, The vigilantes' legacy, a tale to sing, Their steel horses rest until the next call, Winter storm vigilantes, the protectors of all Through the blizzards, through the storms, they won't let evil grow, With frost in their veins and fire in their hearts, They fight the darkness, tearing evil apart Winter storm vigilantes!
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They did it again. It gives goosebumps how they combine 3 vocal styles: Petri with the raspy growls, Pekka with high-pitched power metal vocals and Sami with the glorious viking-choir-like melodies. Such a unique sound and I am happy their sound developed this way from where they started. I'm lucky I have seen them 2x in Budapest and Manchester!
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It was a great honor for us that our "serious" faces appear in the music video of a band such as Ensiferum, of which we are huge fans - for some of us, such a performance is "metal dreams come true" :D All hail Ensiferum!
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One to growl, one to howl, and a third to bring them together.
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From Afar vibes!!! ✨ It's like 'From afar' and 'Thalassic' had a son! 😁
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Here we go, Wintersun, Nightwish, Ensiferum - the best year.
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The cleans added such a fantastic dimension to the last album. I'm glad they are back!
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I'm a teen again, I'm discovering folk metal for the first time again, Ensiferum, what is this magic!?
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Cant stop playing this song i love ensiferum ❤
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All hail the mighty Swordbearers from Finland!
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The vocalist at 2:15 absolutely CRUSHES those high notes. Wow! He blows me away.
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Its amazing! I remembered the sound of Victory Songs but with a more current feel. Amazing Ensiferum! Hugs from Brazil!
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This sounds phenomenal. Glad Ensiferum still sound as awesome as they did when I first heard them!
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Thalassic was one of my favourite albums ever, I can't wait for more!!! This sounds amazing already, yeah!!!!! 🤘🤘🤘🤘🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
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This songs a banger. One of the best songs of the year so far and it's been a super good year for metal. This is top notch stuff 👌
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I wish you guys could make music forever... Greedings from Germany
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From Nepal.. Forever loyal for Ensiferum
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Чтобы не писали критики, а ребята круты и лично я всегда жду их новых битв и чертовски зажигательных композиций 😊💣🔥
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I'm not an Ensiferum fan, but this song really caught my attention...
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Ensiferum are the gods of folk metal. The song "Winter Storm Vigilantes" proves it once again. The song has taken my heart by storm. I love it! Congratulations and thank you so mutch!❤🤘
