“Time waits for no man…” Ironic title, given it’s been eight years since the Finns’ eponymous debut. Not too many people would wait nearly a decade for a sophomore effort. In fact, few bands are considered a going concern, with such a gap between releases. Sure, there’s Gn R and Def Leppard, but those were multi-platinum selling act, but a little band from Finland, on Nuclear Blast? Well, in the mind of Jari Maenpaa, there was never any doubt. With both clean and sinister growls, I always considered the initial album the missing link between power metal and classic black metal efforts like Dissection’s “Storm Of The Light’s Bane” and Immortal’s “At The Heart Of Winter”. Is it worth the wait? Well, if that includes the likelihood of live North American dates (this December), then yes.

In the years since 2004, the metal world has seen the rise of power metal (throughout the Naughts) and its symphonic/goth offshoot. Seems like the intervening years allowed influences from countrymen Nightwish (orchestral creations, reliance on synths and the odd female vocal) and Turisas (sing-along Broadway showtunes) to creep into Maenpaa’s mindspace. There are just five compositions (a second disc offers instrumental versions of same tracks), with the Japanese influenced opening instrumental ‘When Time Fades Away’ (4:07), which overstays its welcome, and ‘Darkness And Frost’ (2:24) comprising just part of the 40 minute running time.