Korpiklaani - Karkelo review
| Band: | Korpiklaani |
| Album: | Karkelo |
| Style: | Folk metal |
| Release date: | June 2009 |
01. Vodka
02. Erämaan Ärjyt
03. Isku Pitkästä Ilosta
04. Mettänpeiton Valtiaalle
05. Juodaan Viinaa [Hector cover]
06. Uniaika
07. Kultanainen
08. Bring Us Pints Of Beer
09. Huppiaan Aarre
10. Könnin Kuokkamies [digipack bonus]
11. Vesaisen Sota
12. Sulasilmä
13. Kohmelo
No one is a stranger to Korpiklaani these days with the popularity of the folk metal genre. Korpiklaani are perhaps the most productive band album-wise, as the band have released an album each consecutive year from 2005 onwards. This means that for the past five albums the band have put out, each one of these were written, recorded, mastered and sent to pressing in under a year. Pretty fast workers we have here then.
Unfortunately this constant stream of folk metal albums has its down sides, and the flashing red lights with Korpiklaani are that each album is exactly the same as each other. Only difference being they just have a different alcoholic beverage being the theme of a few tracks.
This makes Karkelo extremely tedious to listen to. Korpiklaani have moved no where in five years and have relied only on the booming popularity of the genre to put out the sales for each release. If anything, Karkelo shows even less imagination, less talent for writing songs and less musical capability in general.
Obviously "Vodka" is the figurehead of the album, this is a slightly amusing number about everyone's favourite clear liquid, but comparing this song to something the band might have put out some years ago, this is almost an abomination. Korpiklaani have completely lost touch with what makes a good song, just because the lyrics include a highly alcoholic spirit does not automatically make a good song - unless of course you are already under the influence of the vodka. If this is the case you might just pass out in time to miss the rest of the album, saving yourself fifty minutes of lacklustre tosh.
The odd song such as "Juodaan Viinaa" might temporarily brighten your drunken squaller, but on the whole Karkelo shows Korpiklaani almost as a bad parody of itself. If this is your first Korpiklaani album then perhaps you may enjoy the album before moving on to better albums, but for the most of us who have heard this all before; Karkelo is very forgettable and just not worth buying.
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Folk metal
Nuclear Blast
Finland
Length: 51:25
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 6 |
| Songwriting: | 4 |
| Originality: | 5 |
| Production: | 9 |
Comments
- 1
- 2
Comments: 42
Visited by: 375 users
| Elio Red Nightmare Posts: 4920  |
"Karkelo is very forgettable and just not worth buying." ...And i guess not even listening. Actually I won't do it, I already knew it would have been like this, the same old crap, getting even of the lowest rating an album can get here from a review. $ for songwriting and 5 for originality is indeed too much, I guess I'd rate this album 2 or 3, if I listened to it.
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| Uirapuru Liver Failure Posts: 2955  |
Right... but I really like Vodka, the song is also very good...
----  ---- member of the true crusade against old school heavy metal, early 80s thrash, NWOBHM, traditional doom, first and second wave black metal, old school death metal, US power metal, 70s prog rock and atmospheric doomsludgestoner. o/
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| Ellrohir Heaven Knight Posts: 8662  |
There are two good songs - Vodka and Juodaan Viinaa...but both are on the single and single has great cover too, so no need to buy full length and spend more...
---- My rest seems now calm and deep Finally I got my dead man sleep 
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| Diabolos Space For Rent! Posts: 1522  |
Written by Elio on 28.08.2009 at 16:15 I think that this album is really bad, but just saying that without even listening to an album is somehow a little bit strange 
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| Janne Hugin Posts: 1721  |
I disagree with you. Mettänpeiton Valtiaalle is a great song and what you said they have moved nowhere is not true. For me every album is very very different in sounding, songwriting.. I admit the end of the album is a bit weaker but I like Karkelo very much!
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| Ellrohir Heaven Knight Posts: 8662 |
Written by Janne on 28.08.2009 at 18:54 i find it very boring...compared to stuff from Tales Along This Road for instance...
---- My rest seems now calm and deep Finally I got my dead man sleep
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| Janne Hugin Posts: 1721 |
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| Elio Red Nightmare Posts: 4920 |
Written by Diabolos on 28.08.2009 at 18:53 I'm just supposing, infact I haven't rated it 
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| Øyvind Grave Digger Posts: 671  |
A few (very few) good songs on an album doesn't make it a good one. I agree with Baz, this really is Korpiklaani's worst album, I can only hope they'll come to their senses and make something worth listening/buying next time round.
---- 
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| Ellrohir Heaven Knight Posts: 8662 |
Well Tervaskanto and Korven Kunigas werent so much better...maybe KK was something worth, but still...
---- My rest seems now calm and deep Finally I got my dead man sleep
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| Mother_North Posts: 128  |
I became a huge fan of Korpiklaani, I went to see them last November and it was one of the best concerts I've ever been to but I must say that each album they put out is worse than the previous one  I bought all their albuns except Karkelo and I guess I am not buyibg it, it lacks inspiration
---- "i still can't imagine any of them dead. They live on; they are fixed on that far-off region called childhood, were nothing ever dies, not even oneself."
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| Ellrohir Heaven Knight Posts: 8662 |
Yes, they are good live, when you expect funny gig where you can really entertain yourself...but last november in Prague they played 5 or 6 songs from Tales Along This Road and almost all their songs were from older albums...they probably know why... 
---- My rest seems now calm and deep Finally I got my dead man sleep
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| Diabolos Space For Rent! Posts: 1522 |
Written by Ellrohir on 28.08.2009 at 23:08 I really like Tervaskanto, I think you can count that one to the good Korpiklaani albums . Korven Kunigas was by far their weakest imo (even weaker than Karkelo) because it had not one single good song on it 
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| Ivor Staff Posts: 5290  |
I didn't much like them even when they started out. I found it pretty appalling concept-wise. Imo, there are better themes than alcohol and drinking to sing about. Live they are ok watch but not to listen from CD. As a sidenote Barry: Quote: You might want to look up to what the title of this song translates to from Finnish to English. I.
---- No friends for playing games No foes who scorn my name Computerized machines of steel and rust /---/ No friends in my house on Mars No foes in my house on Mars I was born in my house on Mars I will die in my house on Mars -- Ayreon - My House on M
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| Baz Anderson Staff Posts: 13237  |
Written by Ivor on 29.08.2009 at 00:19 I got back "Booze Alcohol". Hahaha, is that right?
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| Ellrohir Heaven Knight Posts: 8662 |
Who cares about words, when the song makes you dance? 
---- My rest seems now calm and deep Finally I got my dead man sleep
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| Ivor Staff Posts: 5290 |
Written by Baz Anderson on 29.08.2009 at 00:23 Not exactly. I *think* it means drink vodka. Some Finnish dude may confirm or deny it.I.
---- No friends for playing games No foes who scorn my name Computerized machines of steel and rust /---/ No friends in my house on Mars No foes in my house on Mars I was born in my house on Mars I will die in my house on Mars -- Ayreon - My House on M
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| BitterCOld The Ancient One Admin Posts: 15250  |
I have Voice of Wilderness, so pretty much see no need to pick up any of their subsequent albums. i actually joked with Baz that he could save time on the review simply by taking the review of the last album and just changing the album and songs to reflect the new titles... the rest is SSDD... Same Shit, Different Day (well, Same Songs, Different Disk, i suppose).
---- get the fuck off my lawn. Beer Bug Virus Spotify Playlist crafted by Nikarg and I. Feel free to tune in and add some pertinent metal tunes!
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| Doc G. Full Grown Hoser Staff Posts: 9718  |
Written by BitterCOld on 29.08.2009 at 01:00 I think my dad owns some Lawrence Welk recordings, so I had no need to pick up the 2 CDs that I did during my younger folk-metal obsessed days, when folk metal seemed so fresh to me and not gimmicky... Reading this review I'm really not surprised.
---- "I got a lot of really good ideas, problem is, most of them suck." - George Carlin
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| Daggon Underpaid M.D. Posts: 1689  |
I listened this album when they streamed it completely on myspace and I found it really boooring, they just repeat themselves again and again and again, for sure I won't listen again this one. Yup, they lost their touch, but that was two or three years ago.
---- "Les vers savent qu'ils n'ont pas d'ailes, c'est pour cela qu'ils se cachent sous terre"
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| dEAthB3D Posts: 73  |
It's likely that korpiklaani will be dead soon
---- the ultimate use of treason is the treacherous use of reason
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| Valaskjalf Account deleted |
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| Ellrohir Heaven Knight Posts: 8662 |
Written by Guest on 29.08.2009 at 07:19 i dont see any reason for that, man, while "With Oden..." was best album by AA and "Twillight..." isnt far behind
---- My rest seems now calm and deep Finally I got my dead man sleep
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| necrovamp Posts: 424  |
Its a shame because their first albums (Spirit of the forest, Voice of the wilderness and Tales along this road) were really good and didn't sound to similar to each other. I really love these albums, I also enjoyed tervaskanto though it didn't live up to the others. I dont think i'll be buying this album, I may buy itso I can be a nerd and complete the disconography. it looks like I may have to look for the albums they did as 'shaman'.
---- 'I'd rather die than go to heaven' - Murderface
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| Dark Cornatus Powerslave Elite Posts: 4330  |
Vodka was a really crappy song when i say the vid on tubetube, just typical stuff they have recycled. Im not really interested in their new stuff.
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| ImNotMetal Posts: 62  |
Hey, So, which korpiklaani is the best? I want to compare this album with that one
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| Ellrohir Heaven Knight Posts: 8662 |
For me it is Tales Along This Road
---- My rest seems now calm and deep Finally I got my dead man sleep
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| Lord_Regnier Posts: 1469  |
Written by Guest on 29.08.2009 at 07:19 Amon Amarth repeat themselves all the time indeed. It's a band that gets boring quite fast, as nothing ever stands out. However, their music is on a much higher level than stupid booze metal like Korpiklaani. I agree with Ivor that it's appaling, concept-wise. You can hardly find more shallow and trivial.
---- "Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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| albatros Posts: 261  |
Written by necrovamp on 29.08.2009 at 21:19 I think the two Shaman albums are beautiful. Korpiklaani used to bring a couple copies on their concerts, but I'm not sure, wether this is still the case.
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| Magatouve Account deleted |
Magatouve
Account deleted Written by Mother_North on 28.08.2009 at 23:55 Before seeing Korpiklaani live, I never liked them. They are trully great in terms of live performance. I guess instead of wasting time re-doing the same thing again again, they should tour and have gigs all the time. Their old song and few beers make a great gig and a good time. 
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