Since 1990, Esa Holopainen has been the lead guitarist of the progressively-minded heavy metal innovators AMORPHIS. Thanks to the metallic and melodic beauty of such classic albums as Tales from the Thousand Lakes, Elegy and Skyforger, Holopainen's magnificent abilities to create enchanting atmospheres and innovative riffs have become widely known within the worldwide heavy metal circuit - and when the Covid pandemic forced Esa to cancel all plans for 2020, the renowned Finnish guitarist knew that the time had come to finally record a couple of songs he had kept in his drawer for several years.
"Over the last few years, I have been writing a lot of music, and some of the stuff hasn't exactly sounded like Amorphis. When Nino [Laurenne, Sonic Pump Studio] called me late March, I already had three decent-sounding Silver Lake songs in stock. These tracks worked as the backbone for the full solo album. I started asking some of my longtime friends and favourite singers if they would be available", says Holopainen. "Thankfully, it didn't take long to find out that superb artists such as Anneke van Giersbergen (ex-The Gathering, VUUR), Björn "Speed" Strid (Soilwork), Einar Solberg (Leprous) and Jonas Renkse (Katatonia) would be happy to join the project."
With diverse styles ranging from 80's Dire Straits vibes to some heavy, melancholic and even poppy tracks, these 9 fresh creations show once again the versatile virtuosity of Esa Holopainen and will speak to fans of all genres.
