NOIR

I just realized this has become my favourite album from Finland, my home country. Not bad, eh? Well, it is hard to find anything negative to say about Noir. Everything that feels out of place or incomplete on the other two Callisto albums comes together here to make absolute sense. They use dynamics wonderfully, never keeping a section going for too long or overusing their heavier sides. A brilliant Opeth-like riff can suddenly turn into a sax solo (on the first track, Wormwood) or even a mellow jazz groove-bass oriented section (Folkslave). And when they finally release their "full power", so to speak, like in the end section of Fugitive, the result is some of the greatest metal I've ever heard. Man, talk about building and releasing tensions. I am usually envious of all the countless great Swedish prog bands, but this cd is something that makes me proud being a Finn. Simply ear candy from start to finish.