Review by Shadowdoom9 (Andi) for Amorphis - An Evening With Friends at Huvila (2017)
You know what, I don't think we have to wait until 2030 for another perfect live album to follow up from Forging the Land of Thousand Lakes. We already have it in 2017's An Evening with Friends at Huvila! It's a shorter live show while still including some of their greatest tracks throughout the two decades prior. If we put all the live tracks from this live album and the other one together, the only album at the time without a song performed live is The Beginning of Times. I should review that album again sometime.
The show took place in the Helsinki Summer Festival the previous year. Guests include jouhikko player Pekko Käppi, flute/saxophone player Sakari Kukko, and a special vocal appearance by Anneke van Giersbergen (ex-The Gathering). The band really let those non-metal instruments shine in the songs, making them calmer while more diverse.
We already hear these more acoustic tendencies in "Enigma", replacing a lot of the heaviness while still sounding beautiful. "Far from the Sun" is an epic yet relazing highlight with a poetic chorus, "I walk away now from you, and your sun, it goes down from you, as I walk, away now from you, far, from your sun." Then we have another serene progressive highlight in "Silent Waters".
Up next is the grand "My Kantele". The sorrowful lyrics really detail the emotional magic from the Finnish instrument in question ("Its strings gathered from torments, and its pegs from other ills. Truly they lie, they talk utter nonsense... So it will not play, will not rejoice at all. Music will not play to please.") The vocals work well with the guitars and keyboards. The beautiful blazing "Silver Bride" begins the heavier part of set, although it is actually the second track of Skyforger. That album's actual opening track, "Sampo" comes next, filled with enchanting melody.
The more melancholic "Alone" is pretty much the only song from Am Universum they perform live these days, which is a shame because there are a few other solid songs from that album. There's more accessible speed in "The Wanderer", which is one of the best singles from their new era. "Her Alone" ends the set as the most progressive standout here, with the gorgeous singing of the aforementioned Anneke van Giersbergen.
You can either get this glorious live CD on its own or as part of the tour edition of Under the Red Cloud. Apparently, there was an entire performance of that album later that night that didn't make it in. Still this solidifies Amorphis as one of the best live bands. Acoustic folk never sounded this majestic when added to melodic progressive metal!
Favorites (one track per album): "Far From the Sun", "My Kantele", "Sampo", "Alone", "The Wanderer", "Her Alone"