Review by Felix on June 27, 2024.

Artistic freedom is a fine thing, as is personal development. But the same applies to integrity and reliability. The mastermind behind Korpituli has entered this field of tension. This wasn't a good idea. “Pohjola” is not only the third full-length of the band; it also presents the third musical approach. Previously, the project stumbled with some Burzum vibes into the scene and afterwards the name Emperor was at the top of the agenda. Now the new direction of Korpituli features a lot of folkloric elements and this approach is simply annoying. Multi-voiced Viking vocals and sing-along lines meet mediocre harmonies while the one man army falls victim to its own fickleness. Speedy sections only occur sporadically and black metal is obviously no longer in the portfolio of the one man project. In this respect, you shouldn't be fooled by the cover, which incidentally looks pretty stupid. Or is it particularly heroic to slay an unarmed opponent with an axe?

The new approach of Korpituli asks for a lot of keyboards, narrative vocals and a crude form of melodies that intend to sound very Scandinavian and archaic. At the end, we are attacked by songs like “Pohjan akka”, a song with a few acceptable sections and almost unbearable “melodic” parts as well. The fact that Mister Korpituli tries to sing in a more usual way becomes an own goal, because he is no natural born vocalist. He intends to give the vocals a heroic note, but everything sounds almost amateurish and not authentic. His vocals, the permanent presence of the keyboards and the general milder approach are the biggest problems I have with “Pohjola”. As I said at the beginning of the review, everybody has the right to do what they want, but I have the right not to follow.

Probably the intention behind “Pohjola” was to create an album with a full, masculine sound. But the prominent position of the keyboards and the voluminous yet shitty Pagan vocals kill the album. One can speak of a good sound with respect to the equally harmless musical content, because it does not hurt anybody, it can call itself professional and the single components are more or less well balanced. But who cares in view of this musical disaster which gets more and more evident the longer the album lasts. “Saunavihdat”, for example, delivers nothing but uninspired harmonies that drag on and on before an alibi speed part brings the song to an end (much too late). The dwarfish staccato of the chorus line at the beginning of “Yksi kaksi kolme neljä” makes absolutely no sense. A melody like a hiccup. It takes away any desire to listen to the song to the end. I did it anyway. It wasn't worth it. Okay, maybe this is a love it or hate it album, but honestly speaking I don’t think that these 45 minutes have the power to polarize. “Pohjola” is simply a waste of time for black metal fans. The Pagan metal community can lend an ear, but even they should not have high expectations. And who knows, the fourth album of Korpituli will probably feature techno thrash. Or melo death. Or horror punk...

Rating: 1.4 out of 10