Thank you! I think your definition is quite right. We are a melodic death band but we are much more melancholic and progressive than your average melodeath act. Sorrowful tunes, acoustic passages, epic songs… That’s us. We are more versatile than In Flames but less kinky than Opeth:)

We get the melancholy from the mother’s milk already. Traditional Finnish tunes are more or less sorrowful and Finnish music in general tends to be gloomy. But I think Insomnium combines the Swedish harmonies and Finnish sadness in a way that no one else does. We have harmonies everywhere but that doesn’t make the music any happier. Well, in Drawn to Black we have some Abba-harmonies in chorus but they just sound cool:)

We will never be MTV material because we like to make quite complex songs and as you said there is a lot going on all the time. When you first hear the songs you will only get some impression of the whole picture. We try to make stuff that would last [some] time and [also] would give you something when you hear the album for the 30th time. But actually many people who don’t like metal still like us because we are so melodic and we have also easier parts.

On the new album the overall sound is much better than ever before. For the first time we sound as heavy as we should. With the previous albums we had some difficulties in the studio but now everything went well. The sound is clear, dark and heavy. We used a new studio which partly explains this.

Mortal Share video was made with tiny budget but it looks very, very good. At least the Finnish national TV has shown it because we were 9th on the album charts! [That is one cool TV, I have to say]. In the internet many people have seen the video so it’s definitely a very good promotion for us.

People who say we are just like DT have not really listened to our albums. They have maybe heard Mortal Share which has pretty Dark Tranquillity–kind of feeling. I like DT a lot, especially the older albums, but we are surely not imitating them. If you listen to our epic songs like At the Gates of Sleep or Last Statement you will hear that DT has never done anything like that. We like to play the same riff quite long and just add new layers and melodies around the same idea but DT nowadays sounds too hasty in my opinion – new riffs are starting before you could grip the previous one. [I do not completely agree, but I very much appreciate Niilo speaking his mind]. But, they are a great band and one of our early favorites. [That is for damn sure, and my all-time favorites].

I’m answering this from Budapest, Hungary, and we still have 9 shows left on this tour. We are all getting tired but this has been a great experience for us. We share the bus with Keep of Kalessin and they are the nicest guys in the world. We usually party every night and we have the same kind of stupid sense of humor. Satyricon then… we are actually not allowed to talk to them so it’s better that I don’t say anything:) But anyway, crowds have been mostly very good everywhere and there are always some people who have come to see just us. These are quite melodic black metal bands luckily and not any old school underground Satanists, because then we would not enjoy this…

We will surely come to the States when we get the chance but I think it’s the label’s strategy to take Europe first and US and Japan later. Personally I would like to see us touring US in 2007 since maybe half of our fans are from North America. But it is much more expensive than touring Europe so label has to be sure that they get something back when they invest that much money. For example Katatonia is now doing their first US tour ever and in my books they are a big band – and they have been around for a long time. But when we come to the US then we surely have to meet and have a drink or twelve together:) [Hell yes!]

It’s a great song and many people regard it as the best Insomnium song ever. Which of course is a great compliment to me as it’s my song:) In all the songs that I make there is more of this Viking/traditional Finnish feeling than in the songs that Ville Friman does; his style is closer to the Swedish style with some American influences as well. From the new album songs like At the Gates of Sleep and In the Groves of Death are pretty close to the atmosphere of In the Halls of Awaiting. We like to have these epic songs with different kind of parts, it’s challenging and rewarding for the listener and the musician.

We could have this mystical rock star image, but somehow we have chosen a more open way to show ourselves to the public. Personally, I would like to know more about the persons in the bands that I like so basically we just try to serve the fans. If they want to know who we are then they can just go there and read it. We all have our studies and normal jobs because playing death metal is not actually a goldmine. This way we can make the kind of music we really want and we don’t have to worry that much about the sales. Of course, if I could choose I would be a full-time rock star all year but this current situation suits me fine also. For example being on the road is fun but really exhausting and I can’t understand how some bands can do like 300 shows after a new album. Of course the conditions are better when your band is bigger but still… it’s a long time away from home, family and friends. Actually, if I really could choose I would be a death metal god and a novelist, so that I could do all the time what I really like but I wouldn’t have to be away from home that much:)

Thank you for reading this interview! If you like furious and melodic metal please visit our website and see the videos and listen to the samples, I will guarantee you won’t be disappointed! Hope to see you soon!

Thank you very much for this interview and your support, Alex! It took some time to answer this on the road but hopefully you got this back in time. All the best to you and your wife! Cheers!