I'm doing good, ready to go back to university. There are 3 concerts that I would like to go to. I'm already trying to get a car to go there. One is Alestorm, Korpiklaani & Ex deo, the other is Suidakra and the last one is Ensiferum. What about you, any concerts recently ?

I'm listening to the new Insomnium album, good album but I need to listen to it more to really find out how much I like it. What do you think about it ? And what about Ensiferum's last album ? And Korpiklaani's ? I havn't had enough time to judge the Ensiferum's album but I love Korpiklaani's last release :D ! 3 new great albums, + Be'lakor new album that I absolutely love, this is a great summer for metal \m/

I was talking about By the northern light. Great album, my favorite from Tyr. After a few more listens I love it. I havn't listened enough to Ex Deo to tell you, but if you like Kataklysm it's pretty similar. I didn't know Korpiklaani had released a new album >__< hopefully you told me and so far I like it very much. Seems to me it's a very good album. I'm also listening to Be'lakor new album (so many new great album :D a nice summer for metal) it's as good as their demo, very similar. No concert for me :( I'm working and the only possible concerts are all far... The summer slaughter you will go to has a great line-up ! I was wondering, what kind of job do you do ?

What do you think of Týr's last album ? I've been listening carefully to it and I really like half of it (2nd half and the 1st song) but the 3rd, 4th anf 5th songs are not as good. That's my opinion so far but it may change. Another album I'm waiting for is Ex deo's album ! I love Kataklysm so a Kataklysm side project should be perfect for me :)

The new Tyr album is something I need to listen to. For the second part of the year the albums I'm really waiting for are : of course wintersun, but as you said it's better not to get overexcited, In mourning, Ensiferum (I'm waiting for something really awesome), Disillusion, Turisas, and Korpiklaani. I also would like to see a newcomer in the death or melo death genre so I have an extra mel/death to listen to.

Finally I got my hands on Black sails at midnight with no voice over. I like it very much so far. My favs after 3 listens are Pirate song, keelhauled and wolves of the sea. No doubt in a few more listens it will have changed :P I was quite surprised by the song to the end of our days, not sure if I like it or not... Any song you don't like from this album ?

O__O the new Alestorm ! I don't have it, I'm going to check right now. Ensiferum new album is one of those I really look forward to. Wintersun also... But I've been waiting for this album for so long that I'm a bit disappointed, the album better be more than awesome. Any other album you are waiting for that should be released this year ?

Korpiklaani must be great to see, but moonsorrow, if I remember well their songs last for smthg like 30min, how do they manage to play that on gigs ? Blackguard, I never heard of them, is it black metal ? These days I'm listening to Amon amarth a lot. I realized I was listening quite a lot as well to Destroy destroy destroy. They play some melo/power metal, it's pretty cool, nothing mind-blowing but better than average :) Their name sounds like a metalcore band, the album's artwork is metalcore-like as well but surprizingly they are not. Apart from that I don't really have many new bands, I listening again to some great bands like Kataklysm or lost horizons (if you like super cheezy power metal that kicks ass give it a listen). Any album you are looking forward to for this year ? In a few days Alestorm's new album will be released :D I hope they will be some great folk bands releasing great albums (Ensiferum maybe ? Wintersun finally ???)

I've a melo death band for you. It is not exactly new (last album was in 2007) but I've seen you never listened to it : Detonation. Their last album is definitely my fav but according to reviews and to most people the one before that, Portal to Uphobia (or something like that...) is their best. For me it has been a band I liked at the first listen but I was not really impressed. After a few listens however it becomes much better. Invoking the impact, Into the emission phase, and craven ablaze are great songs ! It is a shame I don't listen more to this band, they deserve it. By the way thanks for telling me about Svartby, it's growing on me, I'll try to get the album and not only the demo (I haaaate demo's sound).

I hope I'll see Ensiferum someday ! Maybe you can give a try to Detonation if you don't know it already, it's a good melodeath band. My fav album is emission phase but everybody says the one before is better... Whenever I'll have some free time I'll try to find a fresh melo death band.

I checked the band it sounds good, i'll give a try at the album. But the sad thing is that they are not a band anymore :( I wish I could find some "fresh" melo death, like Be'lakor (I'm waiting for their next album this band is awesome !). Yesterday I went to Gojira concert and it suckedsuckedsuckedsuckedsuckedsuckedsuckedsuckedsucked !!!!!!!!!!! >____< that was bad ! They started more than 2h late, the opening band was s**t, and as I had to go back home by train I only saw the first song of Gojira with a s***y sound T___T and the concert cost twice as expected.... I hate gojira now. By the way you don't like prog death and things like that ?

:) if it sounds like Suidakra and wintersun it will definitely be great ! I'll check it whenever I can, Thanks

Heidevolk or Suidakra that's a tough choice but I think I would have prefer Suidakra (of course both would have been perfect !). Hope you get a chance to see Heidevolk, they were really cool and when they played is sounded really good as if I was listening to the album, Tyr's sound on the other hand was a bit confused... Heidevolk played : Saksenland, koning Raboud, Zwaarden Geheven, and a few others but I can't remember. Was very cool, and Alestorm played one of their song as well (All the bands played together a few times, it was really nice). Alestorm played Wenches and meat, Captain's Morgan, Leviathan, Sait sails, Hunt master, Nancy, keelhauled, this old spiced (or whatever the song is) and two others from their new album. They played one more song but I had to leave so I don't know which one it was. Their show was funny and I was surprised they played so many songs, and so many from the upcoming album.

Eluveitie has (for me) great song and pretty bad songs, their albums are always a mixed bag. In my case, it's Arkona the band that everybody is so crazy about and I don't like it very much :S I (finally) made it to a concert I wanted yesterday. Black sails over Europe. I think it is the European version of the one you went to : Adorned blood (not too bad), Heidevolk (GREAT! they played all my fav songs), Týr (good) and Alestorm (great!). That compensate for my last missed concert. :D The next one I'll try to go is Gojira. I've seen that Ensiferum and Equilibrium (among others) are going to play in Switzerland but I'm not sure I could go. It would be reaaaaally cool if I could !!!!

I'm listening to Suidakra's Caledonia and a question comes to my mind : which of the last is their best album ? That's really hard to say for me. By the way you don't like Eluveitie ? I was supposed to go to their concert, for once it was in Geneva (so very close to my town) and at the last minute the ****** who was suppose to go with me let me down... I'm sooooooo mad at him. I really wanted to go to that concert :'( Seems like some magical force is keeping me away from concerts....

That must have been a niiice concert ! (I'm so jealous...Suidakra is only going to Germany, not Switzerland....). Did Alestorm played Keelhauled ? By the way do you like that new song ? I like it. How about Suidakra, did they play Feats of war ? I guess they didn't have the female singer with them. Does Tyr play a lot of their older songs or do they play mainly their last album ?

I got into metal also by listening to different bands "softer" at first. My first cds were offspring's americana and smash. That got me into punk rock (which I still like very much) then I had my industrial/hard rock phase, from there I moved to nu metal and that's when I really started to listen to many type of metal. My real name is Emilie, what is yours ? What's your favorite non-metal genre ? I'm happy you like suidakra's new album :D What's your fav so far ? And the one you like the least ? For me it would be feats of war and isle of skye (but it will probably change with time) and shattering swords doesn't seem as good as the other (so far).

It's actually a good album ! And I love the song Feats of war eventhough I usually don't like the "female singer + metal band". It's much more and more folk oriented if we compare to the previous albums, and as far as I'm concerned that's a good thing :D I was wondering, how did you get into metal ?

So far (I've listened to it 3 times) I like it. I'm quite sad that the other singer, the one with the clean voice, left, but that's still a good album. I need to listen more carefully.

:D yaaaaah ! The new suidakra album, I'm listening to it right now, hope I won't bit disappointed.

WHAT?!?! Suidakra new album is out ??? Wow if that's true i need to get it ! No concert my internship is absorbing all my energy, time, and i'm not even paid so that's not the optimal condition to go to a concert. I hope I can find a way to go to Amon amarth next week >___< but I don't think I will sadly...

after I saw your comment I went to Norther's official page, and I guess It's true and official...well I don't know what to say :(

what O_o? really:-s? is this official?

I checked Svartby, I was a bit scared at first coz I saw it was black folk but actually it is good. :) I listened to the demo and I don't like the demo sound but apart from that it's some cool folk :D Thanks for the recommendation

Glad you like Runic :) I just got the band you recommend, gonna check it this week. I already like the artwork of the album.

Thanks for the recommendation, I'll try to check it this week end. I've a band to recommend as well : Runic. I listened to it almost by accident but it is reallyyyyyyyy good !!! I only have "Liar Flag". That's folk metal, but not as folk as finntroll, more like Amon Amarth. Check it out if you can, it is worth it.

yes I like them alot!:D .and I could only say thank you very much for your recommendation :)

Thanks for the link. Maybe it's a pre-version of the real album art. I Like it :) but the style is different from the 1st album

and as for Ensiferum and Norther ,personally I like them both,and I can't make a comparison between them because they have different styles :P

yes, Alestorm sounds pretty good:)

I've never really listened to DT older stuff. I'll give it a try, but I fear I may not like it if it is very different from their latest albums, I'm too used to their current sound. We'll see. I've read it's similar to In Flames first albums, is that true (if you've ever listen to them) ? Coz if that's the case, first and last album are sooooooooo different, it could be a completly different band.I like IF jester album, as well as the most recents (except their last one) but, more than an evolution, there's a change. Good change :)

FAGNING IS THE BEST!

I don't have this Insomnium's album, I got the two others. I love DT last album, maybe because it's the one that got me into the band, but the songs are really good anyway. Focus shift, Empty me and The lesser faith are my favorites on this album (but I love them all). You've only listened to The Gallery ? Like it ?

Yeah you're kinda right...I think that if you want to promote your music you may leave the fans decide on their own if they like you or not...not to claim their attention with prizes and contests like bodom did in the last time...that's some weird frequently shit :|

Bodom's old stuff rocks:)...I like all their albums , but from Blooddrunk I like only a few songs.Their new album don't shows changes . I think that we all need to get used to:P ...and thanks the ear thing lol:))

yea, that sounds alright, did y'all want to go to the village before the movie, me and chester were going to go around 4 or so.

yea, i'm chillin with chester right now, i tried calling dave. i'm hopin to go see it early because i have work at 7 tomorrow morning, do you work tonight?

Yes , Death Magnetic is a good step besides St.Anger.But I don't complain about St.Anger because it was recorded in horrible conditions ,as I saw in Some kind of monster.It was a changing in their style ,obvious.But I think that changes are being considered bad for the moment only, after years and years bad stuff of the past is appreciated(that's only my opinion:P).As for Ensiferum ,not so much time ago I've realized that Petri is in the band since 2004 .I wasn't sensing a difference between the old and the new albums. But now I think that Petri is okay and Jari too :). I like Petri's vocals very much ,he's growling is apart ,if I know well he plays in Norther too, which is also a pretty good band I think.

My fav by Insomnium is Bereavment and in second I would say The moment of reckoning. What about you ? Which Insomnium's album do you prefer ? For me, you would have guessed, it's the last one.

GANT!!! what's up?

yeah Metallica:)...I could say that the old Metallica is way better than the new one...but I can tell that on Death Magnetic are some good songs...but I wouldn't put in the same place Unforgive I,II with III:P...and to be honest I have never listened Wintersun:)

well...Eluveite , Fintroll , Korpiklaani ...

My top 3 would be (but it's hard...) : -Beautiful death, definitely my favorite <3 -Battle against time -Winter madness But that's one of the rare album where I LOVE all the songs and there's not a single one that is "skippable" in my opinion. It's such an amazing album O__O I can't wait to get Time !!!

Here the temperature (celsius degrees) is like 0°c or minus something.There is snow but it is not snowing anymore. ;) Wintersun is really music for the winter ! What's your fav wintersun's song ?

Nice choice of countries ! I like very much where I live but I'm suffering during winter as I used to (my 15 first years) live in south of France. The cold is terrible ! When I listen to Winter Madness in the morning at the station I REALLY understand what the song is about. Where do you live exactly ? Chicago ?

>___< Alestorm + Suidakra + Týr !!!!!!!!!! YAAAAAAH ! You're so lucky ! I really want to see Suidakra ! And Alestorm ! Týr I'd love to see them but it's not a top priority. And Pagan Fest must be cool !!! In which town are you going to see those concerts ? Where do you want to go in Europe ? Do you speak an european language (apart from english of course :P) ?

I didn't have a look at the concerts for 2009. There are many bands that I would like to see, especially the Folk/Viking bands :D What about you ? Our compatibility went from high to super ;) cool, but I wonder how they calculate it.

The discovery of a new band is always great :) I discovered a few those past weeks completely randomly. I liked the album's cover or the name of the band/album and gave it a try. Folkodia has an awful sound on its myspace (seems like my speakers are crappy or that the songs are from some demo), does the album also have a crappy sound ? Do not hesitate to tell me if you make a discovery that you think may interest me.

You have a really nice top 3 ;) Mine would be like : 1st : Amon amarth (I thought no album could be better than With Oden but I'm changing my mind...) Ex aequo with In mourning 2nd : Gojira 3rd : Alestorm (I listen to it quite often and some songs that I didn't like very much in the beginning now sound great, like Nancy) Equilibrium is not in my top 3, I prefer the "fun" of Alestorm but when I listen to a song like Unbesiegt or Blut im Auge I really think they should be in it >_< What about your top new bands of 2008 ? For me there is, obviously :P, In Mourning, but also Heidevolk, Bel'lakor, and Svartsot (thanks for the recommendations :))

What i'm looking forward to for 2009 : Wintersun (of course!), Alestorm, Disillusion, Suidakra (I really have high hopes I hope I won't be disappointed), Turisas (not sure there is an album coming but it SHOULD). 2008 has been a great year for metal :D (at least for me) ! By the way, Happy new year !