Finnish melodic black metal veterans AUTUMNFALL have shared a new song from their forthcoming album “The Archaic Sins”: “Crystal Skies” is now streaming, offering another glimpse into the melodic richness and atmospheric depth of the record, due out on September 25, 2026 via Ardua Music.
The new single further reveals the peculiar balance at the heart of AUTUMNFALL, where black metal intensity is shaped by flowing guitar lines, understated drama and a strong emotional sensibility. “Crystal Skies” unfolds without rushing, allowing its melodies to gradually build and intertwine while the rhythm section provides a firm but unobtrusive foundation. There is a distinctly melancholic quality to the song, yet its melodies retain a sense of openness and movement, reflecting the band’s ability to find beauty without sacrificing the darker shades of their music.
Composer Jussi Hänninen comments:
“‘Crystal Skies’ is probably my favorite track on the album, and has been since I first heard it re-recorded and brought to this age. It’s an interesting piece in the sense that the lyrics actually have somewhat of a positive undertone.”
Formed in Finland in 2019 by Jussi Hänninen, best known as the primary songwriter of Fall of the Leafe between 1996 and 2007, AUTUMNFALL emerged as a continuation of the musical sensibility that characterized the earlier years of that influential band. Joined by vocalist Tero Ruohonen, Hänninen has developed the project into a vehicle for revisiting old ideas while giving them renewed shape and purpose.
Following “Ghosts of Light” (2021), “Bleak” (2022) and “The Archaic Shadows” (2024), “The Archaic Sins” once again draws heavily from the past. With just one completely new composition, the album is primarily built around songs written between 1998 and 2001, now brought into the present through fresh arrangements and performances.
The result is fluid, finely arranged melodic black metal that never needs grand gestures to make its impact. AUTUMNFALL weave melodies together continuously, allowing guitars and rhythms to move with a natural, unforced sense of progression. The music can evoke wonder one moment and bitterness the next, shifting between emotional shades without ever disrupting its graceful flow.
Carefully considered rhythmic patterns provide a solid foundation for compositions that remain loose and organic, while the constant interplay of melodies gives the album its distinctive character. There is an unmistakable sense of musicians who have spent decades understanding how songs work, knowing when to add detail and, just as importantly, when to let an idea breathe.
Whether described as melodic extreme metal, dark metal or simply AUTUMNFALL, “The Archaic Sins” offers a sound rooted in experience, melody and atmosphere: material from another era that finds an unexpectedly natural home in the present.
Tracklist:
1. Halo In Utopia
2. Lightless Depths
3. Dark Goddess
4. Mists of Eternity
5. Crystal Skies
6. Pulse
7. The Blind Brother
8. The Timeless Kin
Credits:
Jussi Hänninen: All Music
Tero Ruohonen: All Vocals/Lyrics
Mastered by Jasse Kesti at Kesthouse Studio
https://autumnfall19.bandcamp.com/
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