Finnish folk metal icons ENSIFERUM today unveil their official new video for “The Howl.” The track is taken from the band’s Winter Storm full-length, out now on Metal Blade Records.
Much of the new material for Winter Storm emerged during the COVID lockdown, 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 and 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 2020’s 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 Howl” follows the band’s “Fatherland” video which told of a remote tribe who had been fighting against the Winter Storm Vigilantes.
“In ‘The Howl,’” Hinkka elaborates, “we leap ahead many years from the battle of ‘Fatherland.’ The young boy grew up and became a shaman. His people are losing the war and as his last deed he calls the Old Spirits one last time. He sacrifices his mortal form and becomes a spirit wolf and starts his journey to find The One to avenge for his people’s fate. This song is very ENSIFERUM-ish to the core: catchy melodies, powerful harsh vocals and singalong chorus. We’ve already played it on a few gigs; it’s obviously a great live song!“
Watch ENSIFERUM‘s previously released videos for “Winter Storm Vigilantes” HERE, “Long Cold Winter Of Sorrow And Strife” HERE, and “Fatherland” HERE.
ENSIFERUM‘s Winter Storm was produced by Janne Joutsenniemi, mixed and mastered by Jens Bogren, and includes guest appearances by Lassi Logrén on Nyckelharpa and violin and Mikko Mustonen on orchestration as well as Eleine’s Madeleine Liljestam who provides all vocals on “Scars In My Heart.”
Preview and purchase Winter Storm at: metalblade.com/ensiferum
Later this week, ENSIFERUM will begin a month-long run of European live dates on this year’s edition of Paganfest alongside Alestorm, Týr, Heidevolk, and Elvenking. From there, the band will return to North America with their comrades in Korpiklaani for the Folkfest Of The North co-headlining tour. The trek begins on February 27th in Boston, Massachusetts and runs through March 30th in Brooklyn, New York. Additional support will be provided by Trollfest and Nini. Tickets for all shows are on sale now. See all confirmed dates below.
ENSIFERUM w/ Alestorm, Týr, Heidevolk, Elvenking:
1/08/2025 Grosse Freiheit – Hamburg, DE
1/09/2025 Oosterpoort – Groningen, NL
1/10/2025 Filharmonie – Stuttgart, DE
1/11/2025 Turbinenhalle – Oberhausen, DE
1/12/2025 Huxley’s – Berlin, DE
1/13/2025 Congress Centre – Roskilde, DK
1/14/2025 Aladin – Bremen, DE
1/16/2025 O2 Academy – Birmingham, UK
1/17/2025 O2 Academy – Edinburgh, UK
1/18/2025 O2 Victoria Warehouse – Manchester, UK
1/19/2025 O2 Academy Brixton – London, UK
1/20/2025 Ancienne Belgique – Brussels, BE
1/21/2025 Schlachthof – Wiesbaden, DE
1/22/2025 Zenith – Paris, FR
1/23/2025 Z7 Konzertfabrik – Pratteln, CH
1/24/2025 Eventzentrum – Geiselwind, DE
1/25/2025 Backstage – Munich, DE
1/26/2025 OM – Liege, BE
1/28/2025 Alcatraz – Milan, IT
1/29/2025 Transbordeur – Lyon, FR
1/30/2025 Salle Metropole – Lausanne, CH
1/31/2025 Halle Verrière – Meisenthal, FR
2/01/2025 Felsenkeller – Leipzig, DE
2/02/2025 013 Poppodium – Tilburg, NL
2/03/2025 Capitol – Hannover, DE
2/05/2025 Studio – Krakow, PL
2/06/2025 Progresja – Warsaw, PL
2/07/2025 Hala Datart – Zlín, CZ
2/08/2025 Barba Negra – Budapest, HU
2/09/2025 Tvornica – Zagreb, HU
w/ Korpiklaani, Trollfest, Nini:
2/27/2025 Brighton Music Hall – Boston, MA
2/28/2025 Salle Montaigne – Quebec City, QC
3/01/2025 Beanfield – Montreal, QC
3/02/2025 Overflow – Ottawa, ON
3/03/2025 The Concert Hall – Toronto, ON
3/04/2025 King Of Clubs – Columbus, OH
3/05/2025 Crofoot – Pontiac, MI
3/06/2025 Outset – Chicago, IL
3/07/2025 Skyway Theatre – Minneapolis, MN
3/08/2025 Wooly’s – Des Moines, IA
3/09/2025 Gothic Theatre – Denver, CO
3/11/2025 Metro Music Hall – Salt Lake City, UT
3/13/2025 Goldfield Roseville – Sacramento, CA
3/14/2025 Great American Music Hall – San Francisco, CA
3/15/2025 Regent Theater – Los Angeles, CA
3/16/2025 House Of Blues – San Diego, CA
3/17/2025 Nile – Phoenix, AZ
3/18/2025 Sunshine – Albuquerque, NM
3/20/2025 Beer City Music Hall – Oklahoma City, OK
3/21/2025 Granada – Dallas, TX
3/22/2025 Come And Take It Live – Austin, TX
3/23/2025 Warehouse Live – Houston, TX
3/25/2025 Orpheum – Tampa, FL
3/26/2025 Masquerade Heaven – Atlanta, GA
3/27/2025 Hangar 1819 – Greensboro, NC
3/28/2025 Baltimore Soundstage – Baltimore, MD
3/29/2025 Lovedraft’s – Mechanicsburg, PA
3/30/2025 Brooklyn Monarch – Brooklyn, NY
ENSIFERUM:
Petri Lindroos – vocals, guitars
Markus Toivonen – guitars, vocals
Sami Hinkka – bass, vocals
Janne Parviainen – drums
Pekka Montin – keyboards, vocals
https://ensiferum.com
https://www.facebook.com/Ensiferum
https://www.instagram.com/ensiferummetal
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