Fall Of The Leafe - Volvere

This is the first part of my planned series of blogs covering, what I believe to be, under-rated albums/bands. In this one I will be looking at the album Volvere by the Finnish sextet, Fall Of The Leafe, who are sadly no more, having split up in 2007. Volvere was released in 2004, and I don’t know of another single person who owns a copy of this album. Why? To be honest, I really don’t know (for some possible reasons, please refer to my previous blog on under-rated music). As I remember, this received some pretty good reviews from the mainstream rock/metal press on it’s release and had a song on at least one magazine's cover-mounted CD, which is probably how I discovered it, but I can’t be 100% sure as I was an employee of HMV at the time, and therefore had access to lots of new music. This marketing tool obviously works, as magazines still give away cover CD’s with almost every issue, so, I don’t know why it didn’t work in this case. Add to that, that it really is an interesting and varied slab of rock/metal with some subtle gothic touches (In the Finnish/Swedish metal sense of the word, so don’t let that put you off), it becomes even more disappointing to me. So, I have decided to try to put this right, and to try to garner a little interest in this album, albeit, 6 years late. If I can inspire even 1 or 2 of you to pick up a copy, then I will be a happy man.

Now, let’s get down to what the album actually sounds like. Well, let me just say that this is definitely an album from those who like their “softer” end of the scale Finnish/Swedish metal, with it’s clean (and occasional gruff) vocals and top notch songwriting...these Finns certainly know how to craft a catchy hook or two to say the least. The guitars are crunchy, the rhythm section is tight and the subtle keyboards add a nice depth of atmosphere and extra melody to each song along the way too. The production is also a real plus point, as it really helps highlights the strengths on display here. I would recommend this album to fans of bands such as: Amorphis, Sethian, Swallow The Sun, Dark The Suns, Before The Dawn, Ghost Brigade, Poisonblack, Sentenced, Katatonia, etc. That is not to say that it really sounds like any of these bands as such, but rather that it is of a similar ilk. If you like any of the aforementioned artists, then I’d say this is certainly worth a little of your time (and money). Occasionally, there is also a melodic metal influence, as is evident in the guitar melody on “Song From The Second Floor”, and in the almost ´folky´ “Hell’s Silence”, which is a little reminiscent of “Reroute To Remain” era In Flames, and is one of the highlights for me. I have realised, while typing this, that it isn’t much of a review if you are not already familiar with this style of music (but hey, I’m no journalist). I would say then, if you want a starting point of reference for this album, then you should check out either “A Waiting Room Snap” or “Hell’s Silence” on itunes, where they are available, along with the rest of the album, for just 79p per track or £7.99 for the complete album.

I will be continuing with this theme of great albums that I feel have been unfairly forgotten about, or which failed to sell a substantial number of copies when they were released. Part 2 will be up very soon, so keep your eyes peeled.