AURI
III – Candles & Beginnings NUCLEAR BLAST
Nightwish-adjacent prog-folk trio return with more beautiful distractions.
In troubled times it’s good to have bands who can hold a black mirror up to twisted reality, but there’s also a place for those who offer a haven of temporary relief. Finnish symphonic prog-metal titans Nightwish have always had a flair for the fantastical, and their prog-folk offshoot Auri offer a similar escapist vibe. Their mystical flutterings are perhaps what should be expected from a project taking its name from a fantasy book series (The Kingkiller Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss). ‘Far across the sea/A land of home we weave/ With songs of light we bridge the dark,’ croons vocalist Johanna Kurkela as they tiptoe in velvet shoes across The Invisible Gossamer Bridge, the opening song on their third album.