Their first vocalist was Matti Pitkänen, who was quickly replaced by Niko Kalliojärvi. Former band members also include Ville Sorvali from Moonsorrow on bass. For some time before Sorvali joined Amoral, the band was without bass player, and Ots played bass on some of their demos. Amoral released two demos, Desolation and Other Flesh, with varying line-ups, and played some minor gigs before releasing their first full-length album. Amoral signed with Rage of Achilles Records and released their first album, Wound Creations, in 2004.
The band's production can be classified as technical, progressive and melodic metal, combined with rock elements. Amoral’s sound is heavy riff driven yet still has a melodic power groove. Skillful ensemble and crisp performance has characterized Amoral, which is internationally recognized as one of Finland's foremost bands. The brave and independent development of their music can be heard throughout their four albums.
Soon after the 2005 European tour, Amoral returned to the studio to record their second album, Decrowning. The album was released in Finland and several other countries in October 2005 and in Japan and the United States in March 2006. Amoral's third album was first announced on their website in early July 2006. The album was recorded in Studio Sound Supreme in Hämeenlinna in early 2007, and it was released in August 2007.
Amoral's fourth studio album was announced in November 2008 when the band announced Ari Koivunen as their new front man. The album was also the debut of bassist Pekka Johansson. The development culminated in 2009 on Show Your Colors, the 4th album, where the previous growling vocals were replaced with clean vocals and big choruses. Amoral´s music was earlier characterized by metal media as death metal due to the growling vocals, but now the classification varies from power metal to progressive rock. Show Your Colors received a lot of praise upon its release. The album's first single, "Year of the Suckerpunch" was on the Finnish national radio Ylex´s playlist, with the highest hopes of receiving song of the year for 2009. The album was ranked by public voting as the fifth best domestic metal album at the Finnish Metal Awards 2009. Show Your Colors has also been released in Great Britain, Germany, USA, Canada and Japan.
At the end of 2010 Amoral announced it´s new guitarist Masi Hukari, who shared the lead guitar with Ben Varon as well as co-wrote two of the songs. 2011. the band recorded Beneath at Sound Supreme studios in Hämeenlinna and the CD was released 26 October. The Japan edition was out 19 October. The album was produced by Janne Saksa and guitarist Ben Varon. Beneath continued on the path Amoral started with ”Show Your Colors”. The emphasis is still on solid songwriting, big hooks, new arrangements and guitar riffs, but the scale is wider than before: From 9-minute epics ”Beneath” to straightforward rock songs ”Silhouette” and ”Same Difference”, to nods to the band's death metal past ”(Won't Go) Home” and ”Staying Human” and talks between acoustic guitars and industrial landscapes in ”Wastelands”. The album was ranked by public voting as the fourth best domestic metal album at the Finnish Metal Awards 2011.
On 26 March 2015 the band announced that the original vocalist Niko Kalliojärvi is returning to the lineup.
AMORAL HOMEPAGES
http://www.amoralweb.com/
AMORAL FORUM
http://www.amoralweb.com/forum/
AMORAL TWITTER
http://twitter.com/amoralband
Current members
* Ben Varon - guitar and songwriting
* Niko Kalliojärvi - vocals, guitar
* Ari Koivunen - vocals
* Masi Hukari- guitar, keyboard
* Juhana Karlsson - drums
* Pekka Johansson - bass
Former members
* Silver Ots - guitar, bass
* Erkki Silvennoinen - bass
* Matti Pitkänen - vocals
* Ville Sorvali - bass
For more info and samples visit http://www.amoralweb.com.
Pusher
Amoral Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And it's darker than what I was told
From the depths I can feel
A grip that might hold
It's called 'excuse', 'lies'
And 'one more time'
On the surface it's burning but
And the walls are waiting to be climbed
Half the steps leading nowhere
Half the steps going spare
(chorus)
No wonder you've been found
Walking away with broken legs
To find out the siege has been laid
Walking away with broken legs
To witness the directions fade
Walking away with broken legs
The one who started now begs
Moving on disguised is being
Wrapped up in lies
Too far to retreat
And avoid the wages
Between two sides to
End up despised
Repeat until satisfied
Or bear the stages
Half the steps leading nowhere
Half the steps going spare
(chorus)
No wonder you've been found
Walking away with broken legs
To find out the siege has been laid
Walking away with broken legs
To witness the directions fade
Walking away with broken legs
The one who started now begs
And the walls are waiting to be climbed
The lyrics to Amoral's song "Pusher" depict the struggle of being trapped in a situation that is difficult to escape from. The singer confesses that they have never been in this place before, and it's much darker than they were initially warned. They feel that they are being held back by something that is defined as "excuse," "lies," and "one more time." This atmosphere turns up the heat on the surface, but the singer holds their breath enough to survive. At the same time, the walls close in while half of the steps leading to a clear exit and direction, as well as our choices, lead us towards desperation, with no one to blame but ourselves. The chorus underscores the challenges the singer faces to escape this situation, where they seem to have already suffered from broken legs. The situation is described as being under siege, and the directions for leaving and finding a way forward have faded away, leaving the singer unable to continue.
"Pusher" conveys the feelings of being stuck in a situation from which we cannot find escape. Excuse, lies, and the illusion of "one more time" generation engage the singer's dilemma. The song's theme is universal, and it is not clear whether the singer is talking about addiction, love, or any other type of poisonous attachment that one is overwhelmed by.
Line by Line Meaning
Never been here before
I'm in a new and unfamiliar situation.
And it's darker than what I was told
It's a more difficult and dangerous situation than I was warned about.
From the depths I can feel
A grip that might hold
I sense a powerful force that could trap me and keep me from escaping.
It's called 'excuse', 'lies'
And 'one more time'
The force holding me back is made up of rationalizations, falsehoods, and a desire for repetition despite the harm it may cause.
On the surface it's burning but
I'm holding my breath just fine
Externally, things may appear to be intense and urgent, but I am able to remain calm and composed.
And the walls are waiting to be climbed
In addition to the danger and difficulty of the situation, there are also barriers that need to be overcome in order to make progress.
Half the steps leading nowhere
Half the steps going spare
Many of the actions I could take will not lead to any meaningful progress, while others are meaningless or irrelevant.
No wonder you've been found
Walking away with broken legs
To find out the siege has been laid
Walking away with broken legs
To witness the directions fade
Walking away with broken legs
The one who started now begs
Others who have faced similar situations have been deeply hurt and defeated, only to realize that the situation was even worse than they thought, leaving them feeling hopeless and desperate for mercy.
Moving on disguised is being
Wrapped up in lies
Trying to move forward while covering up the truth is essentially lying to oneself, and will likely lead to further problems down the road.
Too far to retreat
And avoid the wages
It's impossible to simply back out and avoid the consequences of my actions thus far.
Between two sides to
End up despised
No matter which path I choose, I risk ending up disliked or rejected by some group or another.
Repeat until satisfied
Or bear the stages
I can either keep repeating the same mistakes and hoping for a better outcome, or endure the difficult process of learning and growing from my experiences.
Contributed by Taylor D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.