Review by Xephyr for Amorphis - Elegy (1996)

The Uncanny Puzzle

I’d consider myself a big fan of Amorphis for a long time now, after I originally discovered the band in 2015 with the incredible Under the Red Cloud. Obviously Amorphis’ career and legacy started way before this as they are one of the most consistent and prolific bands on the Progressive side of Death Metal, and 1996’s Elegy was a massive turning point in that career. With the release of their 15th album Borderlands in 2025 it’s no secret that Amorphis have found the sound that they are comfortable with, seemingly content to release similar albums for the past 20 or so years. However, that wasn’t always the case as the band went through rapid changes and evolutions in the 1990’s, morphing from a doom and gloom Death Metal band on The Karelian Isthmus into exactly what a listener of today would expect on Tuonela. Within this stretch, Elegy stands as a strange transitional piece that distinctly pushes the envelope of Amorphis’ sound in a way that they most likely never will attempt again, given their track record. 

I was a very seasoned Amorphis listener before checking out Elegy, or any of their earlier material honestly. My listening rotation consisted of Skyforger and beyond for years and my curiosity was never piqued enough to go back to their humble beginnings. Because of this, I ended up listening to Tales From The Thousand Lakes and Elegy basically back to back, and it was a bit shocking. I was instantly drawn into Tales… because it was a heavier and dirtier version of the Amorphis that I had loved for years. Elegy then proceeded to blindside me with a fully Progressive Metal album that I still find very strange, no matter how many times I come back to it. It feels consistently and faintly familiar as a bunch of the tropes that are present in their later albums are here in full force, like the folky melodies layered on top of double bass and chugging rhythms as well as the oriental-like minor scales utilized on the opening “Better Unborn”. Despite these familiarities, this album continues to stump me as the whole thing feels a bit too wonky as Amorphis commits to a whole lot of ideas that don’t end up being cohesive for me. 

Even though it’s been a little while since my first time through this album, I still remember being taken aback by the vocals in general. Amorphis’ current vocalist Tomi Joutsen doesn’t join the band until their 2006 effort Eclipse, so harshes are done by rhythm guitarist Tomi Koivusaari as they were in Tales… along with cleans done by newcomer Pasi Koskinen. While I think Koivusaari’s groveling, early Death Metal vocals work well on their first two albums given the darker and heavier tones, having the same delivery on an album with a brighter, borderline psychedelic tone is uncanny to me. It can feel at home on tracks like “On Rich and Poor”, but the fact that it’s so one-note completely derails tracks like “Against Widows”, especially when combined with Koskinen’s expressive, almost gothic deliveries throughout the album. Maybe it’s because I grew up with Joutsen’s masterful middle-ground between harshes and cleans, but the two extremes of the vocalists on Elegy really take me out of the whole experience. For whatever reason, both vocalists just fall flat for me throughout and, in turn, makes the album a strange experience for me to sit through no matter how many revisits I give it. 

The addition of scratchy, 70’s prog guitars and the electronic noodlings is what gives Elegy it’s unique character as all these elements are intertwined with wisps of Amorphis’ normal riffing, which would become synonymous with their modern style. There’s a notable amount of parts being crammed into each track, with the lead guitar work being especially impressive in tracks like “Cares”, but sometimes these interesting parts are difficult to decipher due to being pushed back in the mix. There’s also a few very strange grooves that are attempted that really don’t land throughout the album, like the main melody in “Against Widows” or the incredibly alternative radio rock coded synths of “The Orphan” alongside Koskinen’s cleans. With Amorphis trying so many different things in this album, it’s almost a shock when a more straightforward track like “On Rich And Poor” comes on, to the point where I think it doesn’t quite fit with what Elegy is attempting. 

I think I’m the one who’s simply confused on what Elegy is trying to do. It’s strange, because this album should be exactly what I’d be looking for as a fan of the band that has been beaten down by so many similar sounding albums. Objectively, Elegy is a fascinating and truly creative album that is still unique to this day with its blend of so many opposing influences. Gravelly harsh vocals amidst glittery synths, melodic folk passages atop Death Metal inspired chugs, and a distinctive atmosphere that jumps between gloomy gothic and bright psychedelia offers so much to explore, but those parts never manage to coalesce for me. In many ways, this album is Amorphis’ most important album due to how many ideas they tried before turning into a band that refuses to stray from their established sound. There are moments in the back half on “Elegy” or “Relief” where I think the creativeness of this album still shines, but Elegy remains a puzzle I personally can’t piece together.