Insomnium - Netherworlds (2026)

Just when you think a band cannot surprise you anymore, Insomnium comes with their tenth full-length release, “Netherworlds”, and drops a 53-minute melancholy opus. Featuring the band’s signature catchiness and Nordic darkness, this release unleashes ten highly engaging songs. Stepping into more somber territory, this release feels fresh, cinematic, and yet total signature Insomnium with their emotive Melodic Death Metal.

Opening with a bombastic cinematic atmospheric piece “The Cold Song”, the album really hits its stride with the dreamy “Shadowlife”, a track filled with Insomnium-signature riffs and very moody vocal arrangements. With “Remembrance” and “Gleam in the Black” we get more of a Gothic Metal vibe at first, before the masterful guitar leads of Markus Vanhala, showcasing the band’s different approach to this release and allowing their sound to expand.

The longest track in this release is the crafty “The Hours Grows Late”, a very melancholic piece filled with engaging percussions, dreamy atmospherics, and a hearty dose of heaviness, allowing for plenty of headbanging. It is quite masterful how the band turns tracks like “Arch of the Sky”, “Pathways of the Night”, and “The Banished” into full-on bangers thanks to brilliant tempo changes, and unrivaled abilities to bring melancholy in so many different ways, alongside monster guitar leads.

Balancing this release we also have highly atmospheric pieces like the hypnotic “Ethereal Sleeep”, one of the band’s most melancholic and expansive pieces to date. Overall, “Netherworlds” is another brilliant release by this Finnish outfit. Never getting stale or repetitive, the band strives pushing their sound into darker realms, while retaining their signature style - something rare these days as they are not afraid to experiment and grow.

Rating: 96/100