The Karelian Isthmus [ORIGINAL RECORDING REISSUED] [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED] [EXTRA TRACKS]

Amorphis

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 21, 2003)
• Original Release Date: January 21, 2003
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered, Extra tracks
• Label: Relapse
• ASIN: B00007FZEX
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #123,438 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Full Title - The Karelian Isthmus / Privilege Of Evil. Relapse has re-issued this long out-of-print classic in a special deluxe edition. The Karelian Isthmus has been re-mastered, re-packaged, and features six bonus tracks taken from the bands first recording for Relapse (The Privilege of Evil session), 'Pilgrimage From Darkness', 'Black Embrace', 'Privilege Of Evil', 'Misery Path', 'Vulgar Necrolatry' & 'Excursing From Existance'. 2003.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A strong and simple death metal album, June 22, 2004

By	"scskowron" (North Brookfield, MA, USA) - See all my reviews

I purchased this Amorphis album thinking it was going to be like their later, more progressive and diverse releases. I was quite shocked to find out that it was a dark death metal album, although I was pleasantly surprised! This is a very dark and heavy metal album that is both simple and talented. I am quite pleased with this early style that Amorphis had. The guitar riffs are definitely the highlight of the album, having a dark and heavy tone reminiscent of Celtic Frost. After the great atmospheric acoustic track "Karelia", there is no let up on the relentless death metal attack. The album also diverts into more of a doomy and slow sound, although the elements of early death metal - complete with the low growls of Tomi Kivusaari - remain. It is a concept album of some sort of war - I believe it is a Finnish folk tale although it sounds like a tale of the Crusades. My favorite song is "Vulgar Necrolatry", a fast paced canticle praising necromance. The bonus tracks are pretty good but I would be just as happy without them.

Overall I recommend "The Karelian Isthmus" to anyone who is looking for a dark death metal album, but isn't seeking anything excessively brutal.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Imaginative epic death metal, February 2, 2003

By	death metal and black metal "death metal and ... (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

Cut from the simplest of forms, this album shapes basic songs into intense small narratives of events in a Finnish national epic. Melodic but thunderous death metal riffing surges on the beat and transitions smoothly between passages which have to some degree musical "profundity," in that they resemble that of which they are sung with a grace and integrity. Although much of these songs show the youth of the band at the time, as a whole the achievement of this album is an insightful and intense portrayal of combat and passion as one and the same.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Brutal Beginnings, April 3, 2007

By	Justin Gaines "Corporate Rocker" (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Originally released in 1992, the Karelian Isthmus was the debut album from Amorphis, a band whose innovative blend of death, gothic, and progressive metal would make them one of the most renowned names in extreme metal. In 1992 however, Amorphis was a straightforward death metal band. You won't find any unique instrumental experimentation or clean vocals here, just fast, heavy, and brutal death metal. In fact, if it weren't for the fact that the band drew inspiration for this album from Finnish folk tales, you'd be hard pressed to tell it was Amorphis in the first place.

I'm not knocking this album. As death metal albums go, it's pretty good, but it's also very much a product of its time, before bands like At the Gates, Opeth, and yes Amorphis would go on to push the boundaries of the genre and create such impressive new sounds. Taken in context with the rest of the band's impressive output, the Karelian Isthmus seems pretty basic, and doesn't serve much purpose other than to say "this is where it all started."

The bottom line is this: If you're a serious old school death metal fan, you're going to love the Karelian Isthmus. If you're a serious Amorphis fan, you're probably going to pick this up just to complete your collection, and will rarely take it off the shelf.

NOTE: The 2003 reissue of the Karelian Isthmus features the complete 6-song Privilege of Evil EP as bonus tracks. These tracks are, if anything, even more raw and brutal than those on the Karelian Isthmus, and have a much darker, more patently sinister approach.