Finntroll

The Finnish cannot be stopped. The Finnish Metal Tour will return to the U.S. in 2011, and it will feature headline sets by folk metal madrigal makers Finntroll and Ensiferum. Barren Earth and Rotten Sound will serve as the support acts. Regardless of the geographical origins of the bands on the tour, one thing is certain: this tour is full-on folky and metallic...

"New York City! We're happy to be back here," Moonsorrow frontman Henri Sorvali said to the crowd at Gramercy Theater. The band was welcomed to the stage with a "Moon-sor-row!" chant. On April 8, when they played with Finntroll and Swallow the Sun, Sorvali kept the banter at a minimum...

"Have you enjoyed all the Finnish bands tonight? Are you ready for some mosh pitting?" Finntroll frontman Vreth asked the people of Gramercy Theater on April 8. The band's New York City stop was the third of a full U.S. tour the band has embarked on...

Finland's Finntroll releases their sixth studio album titled 'Nifelvind', on Century Media. Guitarist Skrymer -- whose real name is Samuli Ponsimaa and has done previous artwork for his folk-metal band -- designed the cover for this latest release...

Congrats to High on Fire, whose 'Snakes for the Divine' sold nearly 10,000 copies its first week on shelves. That's nearly double what their last album sold in its first week, and this is their fifth studio album. It's incredible to see the band having forward progress deep into their career and reversing a trend...

Trollhorn -- yes, Trollhorn, what do you expect from a band called Finntroll, after all? -- and his band perform the lyrics of their songs in the Swedish tongue, even though the band is from Finland, where Finnish is the native language. All told, the band doesn't fear that the use of a foreign language will impede English-speaking listeners from fully absorbing the music...

"Trollish music," according to Finntroll keyboardist Trollhorn, is "something Walt Disney would probably have used in his films if he had born in Scandinavia! It's a mixture between certain instrumentation with certain musical timbres, melodies and 'whatchamacallit,' if you ask me...

Role playing and fantasy games like 'World of Warcraft' aren't too far removed from a band like Finntroll. The band has a bit of a fantasy, otherworldly element to it, fusing metal and folk and a troll-like look. "Half of the band have been playing 'World of Warcraft' for years," keyboardist Trollhorn told Noisecreep...

For many new bands, opening for established acts can be nerve-wracking, but for Arizona teen metal bashers Age of Evil, being in the presence of greatness is inspiring. That's why the quartet should have no problem opening for the new all-star band Hail...

Due to their "unique, dark blend of traditional Finnish hoe-down music and folky black metal," Century Media executives are more than happy to welcome Finntroll -- easily one of the best nom de plume's in metal -- to the label roster. Finntroll's first official album for Century Media will be released next year...