MELANCHOLY & HEAVINESS

Nordic melancholy meets progressive soundscapes and crushing heaviness: cult band Amorphis come to Pratteln with their unique blend of melodic death metal, folk, epic melodies, powerful metal anthems and atmospheric soundscapes. On the Borderland Tour 2027, the Finns will present their current album. Joining them are Insomnium and Unto Others as support acts.

Since the 1990s, Amorphis have been one of the defining bands of their genre. With albums like Tales From The Thousand Lakes and Queen of Time, they have continuously evolved their unmistakable sound, combining powerful riffs with profound lyrics often inspired by Finnish mythology. Fans of sophisticated modern metal will be more than satisfied here. On the current tour, Amorphis present their latest album Borderline, created for the first time in collaboration with Danish producer Jacob Hansen (Volbeat, Amaranthe, Epica, Evergrey and others). Esa Holopainen explains: “Amorphis have a distinct sound and a very unique way of making music. Six strong personalities in the band naturally create their own challenges during the production process – especially for the producer. Jacob was chosen for several important reasons: he has worked with an impressively diverse range of artists and is an incredibly calm, creative and imaginative producer.” The result sounds fantastic. Band leader Esa Holopainen seems incapable of running out of brilliant melodies. Metal1.info writes: “The first thing that comes to mind with Borderland is pure joy of playing: when hearing these songs for the first time, you can almost picture the excitement on the musicians’ faces while writing the riffs, solos, choruses, bridges and more. The fact that Amorphis dare to experiment enriches Borderland tremendously, but more importantly, the Finns have reimagined their proven strengths: Amorphis sound unmistakably like themselves on Borderland – yet at times more melodic, at times heavier, but above all more gripping than ever.” The Metal Hammer reviewer awarded the highest rating and concluded: “This band sounds more Finnish than the Finnish national anthem and will surely soon be declared a national cultural treasure.”

Insomnium: Time and again, Insomnium manage to combine the force and energetic catchiness of classic Swedish melodic death metal with the majestic vastness and melancholic darkness typical of many Finnish acts. Over the years, the band has refined this extraordinary blend into a style entirely their own, earning impressive international recognition. In spring 2026, Insomnium spent extensive time in the studio working on the successor to their last album Song Of The Dusk (2023). We are already looking forward to hearing the new songs alongside beloved fan favourites at Z7. About their last show in January 2025, a Metalfactory reviewer wrote: “The incredible show was rounded off with two more Insomnium favourites: ‘Lilian’ from Anno 1696 and ‘One For Sorrow’ from the album of the same name. It may have been January, it may have been cold and miserable outside – but for everyone at Z7 that night, there was only headbanging, devil horns and smiles all around!”

Unto Others: The still relatively young story of Unto Others from Portland, Oregon, has been quite a rollercoaster ride. Hyped underground band, court-ordered name change (formerly Idle Hands), major label deal and then back to an underground label – none of it has slowed them down on their path toward a gothic rock renaissance. Their current album Never, Neverland (2024) establishes Unto Others not only as worthy successors to Type O Negative or Sisters of Mercy, but as a band standing on the verge of something truly huge. At the end of 2025, Unto Others followed up with the punk-infused EP I Believe In Halloween II, featuring three new tracks as well as haunting cover versions of “Halloween” (Misfits) and “Pet Sematary” (Ramones).