Bjørkø – Heartrot
Bjørkø – Heartrot
Svart Records
Release Date: 01/12/2023
Running Time: 42:00
Review by Rory Bentley
8/10
If you know anything about your boy Benters it’s that I’m a huge Amorphis fan, not just a “Tales from A Thousand Lakes” guy, but a whole career lover. From the Melodeath, to the Folk to the Proggy noodlings I think they’re one of the most consistent Metal bands of the last 20 years. The last Amorphis spinoff I checked out was the gorgeously melodic Silver Lake project by Amorphis axeman Esa Holopainen, which featured a star-studded cast of Euro-Metal royalty lending their vocal chops to some Wintertime bops that didn’tquite fit into the Amorphis canon. I loved that album so when I found out another Amorphis guitarist had done his own side project utilising the golden lungs of some more celebrity mates I jumped at the chance to do this one.
Unlike the more easy-listening approach of Silver Lake, “Heartrot” is a more robust, gnarly affair that mainly leans on the earlier elements of the Amorphis sound, where Death Metal dominated. Guitarist Tomi Koivusaari has assembled a more eclectic array of guest singers, many of which are more associated with more Extreme genres, There’s still bags of melody and a progressive feel to be found all over the record, but those wanting to headbang will be very pleased with what’s on offer here.
Carcass mainman Jeff Walker is the first guest singer up to the plate and he’s in no mood to fuck around, and neither is the skin-flaying song he lends his scouse gurgle to. “The Heartroot Rots” is the most explicitly Melodeath composition on here and perfect for one of the godfathers of the genre, combining buzzsaw riffage and triumphant leads as Walker scowls his way through a typically cantankerous bout of razor-larynxed mic abuse that those who have only gone in on latter day Amorphis may find a little jarring to say the least. It’s an absolute rager and a great start to this tapas menu of molten Finnish Metal.
Those that want another big dollop of heaviness will enjoy ‘World as Fire and Hallucination’ featuring Dimmu Borgir gurgler Shagrath in the booth, who provides a characteristically icy pomposity to a straight up theatrical Black Metal ripper that you wouldn’t dream of getting from Tomi’s day job these days. Speaking of the dayjob, Amorphisfrontman and fellow Tomi Mr Joutsen rocks up on ‘Hooks InThe Sky’ to roll back the clock with a beefy number that sees him utilising his earth-shattering Death growls more liberally than we’ve been used to with recent Amorphis records. Naturally the chemistry between the two Tomis is bang on and it leads to a clear album highlight.
But it ain’t all shouty Nordic blokes and blastbeats on here, ex-Nightwish singer/bassist and absolute lad Marco Hietala lends his soaring tenor to the more sombre ‘WhiteboneWind’, duetting beautifully with Paatos singer Petronella Nettermalm, who I definitely didn’t have to google before writing this. It’s a strong enough performance from both singers that it doesn’t disrupt the album’s momentum, despite getting lighters in the air fairly early into the runtime. My personal favourite track was ‘Vaka Loka’, featuring Addi Tryggvason of Metal/Classic/Postrock Icelandic cowboys Solstafir (those of you who are already fans will know that everything I’ve just said in that mental description is accurate). The song does a lot with a little, utilising stripped down Rockj arrangements and textures to provide the backdrop for Addi to let loose his idiosyncratic, impassioned and slightly unhinged vocals which somehow still sound cool as fuck.
The worry with these kind of ‘jukebox’ solo albums is that they can lack cohesion, however Tomi does a great job of providing a consistent throughline throughout the record that keeps everything within the same fantastical feel while allowing each guest singer to shine at what they do best. As the year winds down this is a late highlight that packs a punch while conjuring up the fantastical snowy atmosphere you’d want from the Amorphis camp. Get the fire on, grab a blanket and take a fantastical trip with Bjorko.
TRACKLISTING:
01. The Heartroot Rots
02. Vaka Loka
03. Whitebone Wind
04. Värinvaihtaja
05. Awakening
06. World As Fire and Hallucination
07. The Trickster
08. Hooks In The Sky
09. Magenta
10. Reverberations
LINE-UP:
Tomi Koivusaari – guitars, backing vocals, keyboards
Janne Lounatvuori – synths and keyboards
Lauri Porra – bass
Waltteri Väyrynen – drums
LINKS:
Disclaimer: This review is solely the property of Rory Bentley and Ever Metal. It is strictly forbidden to copy any part of this review, unless you have the strict permission of said party. Failure to adhere to this will be treated as plagiarism and will be reported to the relevant authorities.
