| Amoral (band) | |
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Playing at Tuska 2009 festival |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Helsinki, Finland |
| Genres | Technical Death Metal (old) Power Metal (currently) |
| Years active | 1997–present |
| Labels | Imperial Cassette |
| Website | amoralweb.com |
| Members | |
| Ben Varon Ari Koivunen Masi Hukari Juhana Karlsson Pekka Johansson |
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| Past members | |
| Silver Ots Erkki Silvennoinen Matti Pitkänen Ville Sorvali Niko Kalliojärvi |
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Amoral is a metal band from Helsinki, Finland. At their first three full-lengths they played progressive technical death metal and melodic death metal styled music. The band's 4th album was an about-turn, replacing the dominance of quirky death metal with an exemplary display of riff-driven, heavy, yet melodic power groove and the occasional sing-along chorus, thus owing in equal measures to the likes of Skid Row and Pantera.[1] Amoral has performed extensively in bars, clubs, festivals and other venues in Finland, Europe, and Japan. Amoral is releasing Beneath in the US via The End Records in February 2012.
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Amoral was formed in 2000 by Varon, Karlsson, and Ots; their first vocalist was Matti Pitkänen, who was quickly replaced by Niko Kalliojärvi. Former band members also include Ville Sorvali from Moonsorrow on bass. For some time before Sorvali joined Amoral, the band was without bass player, and Ots played bass on some of their demos. Amoral released two demos, Desolation and Other Flesh, with varying line-ups, and played some minor gigs before releasing their first full-length album.
Amoral signed with Rage of Achilles Records and released their first album, Wound Creations, in 2004. After the bankruptcy of Rage of Achilles Amoral was picked up by Spikefarm, a division of Spinefarm Records, a major Finnish rock and heavy metal record label with whom they re-released Wound Creations and added a bonus track ("Metamorphosis" from an early demo) to mark the new release version. The album has received predominantly positive reviews from metal magazines and webzines around Finland and Europe, and Amoral played numerous gigs following the release and thenceforth Their rise from the underground metal scene was further marked by a month-long European tour with renowned metal bands Finntroll and Naglfar, and their inclusion in Tuska Open Air Metal Festival 2005, Finland's most important heavy metal festival.
Soon after the 2005 European tour, Amoral returned to the studio to record their second album, Decrowning. The album was released in Finland and several other countries in October 2005 and in Japan and the United States in March 2006. A music video has been shot for the song "Lacrimal Gland." The band embarked on a second European tour in the spring of 2006. The 37-date tour was headlined by Dark Funeral and Naglfar, and supported by Amoral, Endstille, and Asmodeus. Amoral has since played a showcase gig in Japan and a mini-tour in Italy.
Amoral's third album was first announced on their website in early July 2006. The album was recorded in Studio Sound Supreme in Hämeenlinna in early 2007, and it was released in August 2007. A video was shot for the opening track and first and only single of the album, "Leave Your Dead Behind."
Amoral's fourth studio album was announced in November 2008 when the band announced Ari Koivunen as their new front man. On January 21, their first single was put up the band's MySpace account. The first single is entitled Year of the Suckerpunch and the song is clearly distinctive from any of Amoral's previous material, and is built around Ari's higher pitched, clean, melodic voice, as opposed to former vocalist Niko Kalliojärvi's growling death metal vocals. The album, Show Your Colors, was released May 6, 2009.[2][3]
12 January 2010 the band announced that Amoral and Silver Ots had parted ways.[4] Valtteri Hirvonen, who already played at the European tour 2009 replacing Silver, was announced to be the "permanent stand-in guitarist" for the time being. In January 2011 Amoral announced it´s new guitarist Masi Hukari.
2010 Amoral worked with it´s 5th album and is recording it 2011. Studio blog is online.
Amoral has completed work on its fifth studio album. 'Beneath was recorded at Sound Supreme studios in Hämeenlinna and was produced by Janne Saksa and guitarist Ben Varon. The CD will be released 26th October 2011. The Japan edition will be out 19th October. The first single "Same Difference" was released at the beginning of summer.[5]. The second single "Silhouette" was played first time on Radio Rock (FI) 3rd October and was followed by a video. Silhouette has both electric and acoustic versions, from which the acoustic one is the original.
Beneath will be released in the US via The End Records on February 14th 2012.
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