Amorphis "Circle"

Circle is the eleventh studio album by Finnish heavy metal band Amorphis, released on 17 April 2013, through Victor Entertainment and on 19 April 2013, through Nuclear Blast. Recorded at Petrax Studio in Hollola and at 5K Studios in Helsinki, it is the first Amorphis album since Far from the Sun (2003) not to be produced by Marco Hietala, or to be based on the Finnish national epic Kalevala. Instead, Circle was produced by Peter Tägtgren and focuses on an original story penned by lyricist Pekka Kainulainen.

In August 2012, Amorphis announced that they were going to start recording a new album the following month. Circle was recorded at Petrax Studio in Hollola, Finland, and at 5K Studios in Helsinki, Finland. Peter Tägtgren, who had previously worked with Children of Bodom, Celtic Frost and Dimmu Borgir, among others, produced and mixed the album. As Tomi Koivusaari observed, the band was initially surprised by the up-front position that Tägtgren gave to the guitars relative to the keyboards. Bassist Niclas Etelävuori used a five string bass on Circle, which was tuned a whole step down. Regarding the writing and recording process, guitarist Esa Holopainen stated:

“ While promoting The Beginning of Times, we started to feel that we were giving the same explanations over and over again when people asked about the studio process and how the songs came about. Even though the music was very strong, the making process didn't offer any surprises and appeared to be quite secured. Now the addition of a new dimension to the developing process has inspired us to focus on our material even more. The songs are extremely strong, bombastic and skull-pummelling. ”

Koivusaari further explained that the band needed to make a change to the recording process to maintain its inspiration. The band chose a "peaceful place" in the countryside to record, which, Koivusaari felt, led to the distinctive atmosphere.

All songs arranged by Amorphis 

Videos were made for "Hopeless Days" and "The Wanderer", both directed by Patric Ullaeus. 
Another video was made for "Nightbird's Song", directed by Denis Goria, and featuring Peter Tägtgren, who produced the album. 

A making-of video, "Circle: The Rockumentary" was also made, and included with some versions of the album. 

The different vinyl editions have a different cover artwork with a bird, include bonus tracks "Dead Man's Dream" and "My Future" and have an additional poster. 

The Korean edition also features two bonus tracks:
10. Dead Man's Dream (04:03)
11. My Future (07:11)

Recording information:

Recorded between September and October 2012 at Petrax Studios, Hollola and 5K Studios, Helsinki. 
Mixed between October and November 2012 at Abyss Studios, Pärlby. 
Produced by Peter Tägtgren and Amorphis. 

Mastered by Jonas Kjellgren at Blacklounge Studio.