Band:	For My Pain
Album:	Fallen
Style:	Suomi metal
Release date:	2003
Guest review by:	Milena

01. My Wound Is Deeper Than Yours
02. Dancer In The Dark
03. Queen Misery
04. Sea Of Emotions
05. Rapture Of Lust
06. Broken Days
07. Dear Carniwhore
08. Bed Of Dead Leaves
09. Autumn Harmony
10. Tomorrow Is A Closed Gate (Dead For So Long)

When you look at the lineup of this band, the first thing you notice is that it's made almost exclusively of members of bands that have a certain gothic appeal. And before you attack me for not knowing my genres (I can already feel the "Nightwish is not gothic!"-slam on my face), let me rephrase myself: a certain part of people who are fans of those bands like to consider themselves as gothic, or are being considered as such by others. So, has this star lineup managed to give us the perfect gothic album? My thoughts are below, but remember - based on experience, mood and criteria, everyone can have his own.

The term Suomi metal may be used exclusively by Metal Storm, but it does give a good description of a certain blend of metal played by some new Finnish bands. When I listen to the genre, I look for what are, in my opinion, its strongest traits - deep, masculine voices, thick guitar work and dark energy found in bands like early Charon, or general melancholy that induces thoughts of calm death like in Sentenced. In short, something oozing with Finnish spirit. For My Pain does have a nice balance of perfectly tuned elements, but only goes halfway through in providing us with those strong traits I've mentioned before.

Most lyrics are handled by Juha Kylmänen, and he falls into the gothic stereotype pretty often by giving us stories of dark female (sexual) predators meeting (un)willing victims (repeated twice on the album) and also some sad, sad girls, one of which "cried on her own grave" (yep, also repeated twice). His whole writing style is a bit naïve, but quite nice if you're in a right mood - "Sea Of Emotions" and "Autumn Harmony" bring us bittersweet love stories and are perfect if you have your own love story going on, but lame if you're a skeptic when it comes to romance. There are some recognizable touches by Altti Veteläinen, and one song fully written by Olli-Pekka Törrö - more on that one in the following paragraph.

Speaking of the music department, Juha Kylmänen makes up for his naivety in lyrics by writing the album's best song, "Rapture Of Lust". Jarmo Kylmänen from Eternal Tears Of Sorrow contributed with music for "Dancer In The Dark", "Sea Of Emotions" and "Broken Days", and those are among the catchiest songs of the album. Except for "Autumn Harmony", all remaining music is written by Olli-Pekka Törrö. He gives us a very serene mix of melodies to listen to, with traditional song structures. Sometimes music suffers from stereotyped moments too, but it also gives us some dark moments and unusual harmonies, most notably on "Bed Of Dead Leaves" and "Tomorrow Is A Closed Gate". The latter one, fully written by Olli-Pekka Törrö as I've mentioned before, is probably my favorite song on the album - not only does it give us a blast of melancholic moments instrumentally, but it's the only one with truly believable lyrics. Congrats on that one.

This supergroup has a very even approach when it comes to performing - everyone sticks to doing their basic jobs. No songwriting from Tuomas Holopainen, no growls from Antti Veteläinen, no long solos from Lauri Tuohimaa?it's very good in terms of balance, but it stops the group from showcasing their true potential. There is a perfect relationship between the guitar and the keys here. Rhythm is simple and transparent. Juha Kylmänen is a singer loved by most who have heard him. Although he may not have the most creative approach to singing, he does have his one take on things and applies his pleasant voice quite well into the story.

My review sounds like this record is bad, but actually, it's just a bit stereotyped. Although it could have been better, most people who have loved the original bands of these members will also love the little project they've done in their spare time. Sadly, this is the only long-play by this band, but keep ears tuned for the single that followed shortly after this - it contains a beautiful cover of legendary Finnish song "Joutsenlaulu". That's five more minutes of this Suomi goodness.