Insomnium
Finnish melodic death metal band
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Insomnium is a Finnish melodic death metal band formed in Joensuu in 1997. Their sound and lyrics portray darkness, sorrow, loss, pain, and nature. Their music includes progressive metal and doom metal.
Insomnium | |
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Insomnium performing at Party.San 2017 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Joensuu, Finland |
| Genre | Melodic death metal |
| Years active | 1997–present |
| Labels | |
| Members |
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| Past members |
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| Website | www |
History
On 9 September 2011, Insomnium released the music video "Through the Shadows" from their 2011 album, One for Sorrow.[1]
In November 2011, Insomnium headlined their first European tour with support from Before the Dawn and MyGRAIN.[2] During April 2012, Insomnium toured the U.K. as the main support act for British gothic metal band Paradise Lost. Vreid was also on the tour as a supporting opening act.
On 19 September 2013, Insomnium released "Ephemeral", a single from their 2014 album, Shadows of the Dying Sun, via Century Media Records. It was the first track to feature new guitarist Markus Vanhala (Omnium Gatherum), who replaced Ville Vänni in 2011.[3]
On 29 April 2014, Insomnium released their sixth studio album, Shadows of the Dying Sun. On 30 April 2014, they made a guest appearance on Epica's CD release show at 013 in the Netherlands.
On 19 May 2016, Insomnium announced their seventh studio album, Winter's Gate, released on 23 September. It was a concept album, consisting of one 40-minute track, about "a group of Vikings who set out to find a fabled island west of Ireland, despite the treacherous winter drawing near."[4] This album was based on the short story by Niilo, "Winter's Gate", or "Talven Portti" in the original Finnish. This story won or was nominated for many Finnish awards.[5]
In 2019, they announced their eighth album, Heart Like a Grave, released on 4 October 2019. With the album announcement, they confirmed that guitarist Jani Liimatainen had joined the band full time. He had occasionally filled in for Ville Friman on tours since 2015.[6]
Insomnium released the EP Argent Moon on 17 September 2021.[7] They talked about plans for a ninth studio album to be released in 2022.[8] In 2022, they announced their ninth album, Anno 1696, released on 24 February 2023. Like Winter's Gate, the album is based on a short story by Niilo.[9] In spring of 2023, the band toured with Enslaved and Black Anvil.[10]
In March 2025, Niilo Sevänen confirmed that a tenth studio album by Insomnium was in the works and planned for a 2026 release.[11] The album name, Netherworlds, and cover were revealed in July 2026. On 16 January 2026, touring guitarist Tomy Laisto was announced as an official member.[12]
Members
Current members
- Niilo Sevänen – bass, unclean vocals (1997–present)
- Ville Friman – guitars (1997–present); clean vocals (2011–present)
- Markus Hirvonen – drums (1997–present)
- Markus Vanhala – guitars (2011–present)
- Tomy Laisto – guitars (2026–present; touring 2024–2026)
Former members
- Tapani Pesonen – guitars (1997–1998); drums (1997)
- Timo Partanen – guitars (1998–2001)
- Ville Vänni – guitars (2001–2011)
- Jani Liimatainen – guitars, clean vocals (2019–2024; touring 2015–2019)
Touring members
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIN [15] |
AUT [16] |
BEL (FL) [17] |
BEL (WA) [18] |
FRA [19] |
GER [20] |
JPN [21] |
SWI [22] | ||||||
| In the Halls of Awaiting |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| Since the Day It All Came Down |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| Above the Weeping World |
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9 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| Across the Dark |
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5 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| One for Sorrow |
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6 | — | — | — | — | 95 | — | — | ||||
| Shadows of the Dying Sun |
|
2 | 38 | — | — | 178 | 18 | 287 | 23 | ||||
| Winter's Gate |
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1 | 27 | 124 | 92 | 184 | 19 | — | 17 | ||||
| Heart Like a Grave |
|
1 | — | 154 | 115 | 178 [23] | 10 | — | 15 | ||||
| Anno 1696 |
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1 [24] | 15 | 165 | — | — | 5 | — | 10 | ||||
| Netherworlds |
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To be released | |||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart. | |||||||||||||
Singles
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| "Where the Last Wave Broke" |
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| "Weather the Storm"[25] |
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| "Ephemeral"[26] |
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| "While We Sleep"[27] |
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| "The Conjurer"[28] |
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| "The Reticent"[29] |
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| "Song of the Dusk"[30] |
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Demos
- Demo 1999 (1999)
- Underneath the Moonlit Waves (2000)
EPs
- Ephemeral (2013)
- Argent Moon (2021)
- Songs of the Dusk (2023)
