Pariah’s Child

Sonata Arctica – The Ninth Hour Review

Sonata Arctica – The Ninth Hour Review

The Ninth Hour marks Sonata Arctica’s fourth full length since Unia. In 2016, that means that half the band’s career is post-Unia and since that monumental album Sonata Arctica has gone through a tense relationship with its history and—if the comments on this blog are anything to go by—their fanbase. This has led to these veterans of Europower reintroducing wolf shirt and their old logo. But for me it’s The Days of Grays—an album distinctly lacking in both—that remains the band’s best since 2007.” So after all this time has Sonata Arctica produced a worthy successor to The Days of Grays?

Sonata Arctica’s Top 5 Awkward and Unintentional Successes

Sonata Arctica’s Top 5 Awkward and Unintentional Successes

“I am stoked for Sonata Arctica’s forthcoming Ninth Hour which will be here on the 14th of October from Nuclear Blast. Now I know you’re probably thinking to yourself: “self, why would AMG write an article about a band’s ‘Awkward and Unintentional Successes’ if he likes that band?” Indulge me a second. See, Sonata Arctica started out as a better version of Stratovarius that was founded with a songwriter at the helm—Tony Kakko—who’s like a weird, Finnish version of Jim Steinman. This means that the band’s sound is epic, quirky, but ultimately it can get a little… awkward.”

Sonata Arctica – Pariah’s Child Review

Sonata Arctica – Pariah’s Child Review

“A strange thing happened somewhere between Sonata Arctica’s 2012 release Stones Grow Her Name and 2014’s Pariah’s Child: Tony Kakko found his wolf shirt and his copy of Ecliptica. Neither of these things were to be expected. Since 2007’s much-maligned Unia, these Finnish masters o’ cheesemetal have been popping out records that are hard to tie back to the band’s original incarnation.” Ain’t nothing as good as record with a great picture of a wolf on it.