Review Insomnium – Netherworlds

Let’s not kid ourselves: from big-name bands you more or less inevitably expect good albums (especially as a fan). With the death-metal melancholics of INSOMNIUM, you have also never had to worry about the quality of their compositions. Nevertheless, in recent years – and here especially with „Anno 1696“ from 2023 – a certain agreeable smoothness has crept in. Be that as it may, the dark cover of „Netherworlds“ and thus the band’s tenth studio output raises hopes for sublime gloom. Does that pan out?

„The Cold Song“ and „Shadow Life“ at least show right away what matters for INSOMNIUM again in 2026. The former impresses as an opulent intro with a strong pull right from the start and is somewhat reminiscent of „Clear“ by HAKEN, while the second position on „Netherworlds“ immediately shows that the Finns have lost none of their drive and intensity in the three years since „Anno 1696“. The track pushes forward in finest melodeath fashion, serves up gorgeous melodies straight away, and Niilo Sevänen’s distinctive growls blend wonderfully with fitting clean vocals. This component and an even further increased melodiousness prove, as the album progresses, to be the core of the new album.

The guitar lines of „Remembrance“, more beautiful than melancholic, demonstrate this very clearly afterwards, while the absolute catchiness of „Gleam In The Black“ is likely to be a door-opener for newcomers, because agile drumming and a wealth of big melodies definitely make this track a repeat candidate, without sacrificing intensity for the sake of increased accessibility. That is probably INSOMNIUM’s new recipe, and for most of the time the band has no trouble at all maintaining this new old standard, as a lavishly beautiful number like „The Hour Grows Late“ clearly demonstrates. And not because the feature with Tomi Joutsen, Santeri Kallio and Tomi Koivusaari from AMORPHIS would be any guarantee of that, but rather because it proves to be a meaningful addition.

The clean vocals on „Netherworlds“ in particular are a great asset in terms of their presence. Because there’s no other way to put it: a track like „Ethereal Sleep“ gets the emotional icing on the cake on top of all its world-weariness and (initial) restraint. The calm, deliberate way in which guitars, keyboards and drums build atmosphere here culminates in a genuine goosebump chorus, and then you feel it again, INSOMNIUM’s ability to evoke great emotions both in relative quiet and in compositional eruptions. So is there a catch somewhere?

INSOMNIUM have delivered as usual. „Netherworlds“ lacks nothing that you wouldn’t expect anyway as a die-hard fan. But despite the big melodies, the coherent clean vocals and the varied composition, that certain spark is missing. The thing that already made „The Primeval Dark“ as the intro to „Shadows Of A Dying Sun“ feel so grand and sublime, the majestic melancholy that ran like a common thread through „Winters Gate“ – these subtleties also remain relatively pale in 2026, presumably in favor of the once again increased accessibility of the tracks. In spite of all their ability to write great songs, this is simply a shame to the extent that this very depth has always been part of INSOMNIUM’s DNA.

Publiziert am 16. Oktober 2026 von Philipp Sorger