Line #25 Music/Ensiferum


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ensiferum_8898.jpg]]
2
3	Ensiferum are a [[FolkMetal Viking metal]] band from Helsinki. Their original members were Markus Toivonen, Sauli Savolainen and Kimmo Miettinen. Not long after forming, they were joined by original frontman Jari Mäenpää, who became one of the band's principal songwriters. They recorded several demos and went through several lineup changes before finally releasing their self-titled debut album in 2001. This was followed three years later by ''Iron''. These two albums are considered by some to be the band's "golden age".
4
5	After ''Iron'' was finished, Jari Mäenpää was forced to leave the band due to a scheduling conflict between the tour for ''Iron'' and the recording sessions for his side project Music/{{Wintersun}}'s debut album. He was replaced by Petri Lindroos of Norther. They went on the record an EP, ''Dragonheads'', which contained some new songs as well as a couple of songs originally from their early demos. Three albums, ''Victory Songs'', ''From Afar'' and ''Unsung Heroes'', have come after that. They've been well-received, but a [[BrokenBase substantial portion]] of the fans insist that the band sucks now that Jari's gone.
6
7	'''Current Lineup:'''
8	* Petri Lindroos – vocals, guitar (2004-present)
9	* Markus Toivonen – guitar, percussion, backing vocals (1995-present), clean vocals (2004-present)
10	* Sami Hinkka – bass, clean vocals (2004-present)
11	* Janne Parviainen – drums (2005-present)
12	* Pekka Montin - keyboards, clean vocals (2020-present)
13
14	'''Former members:'''
15	* Sauli Savolainen - bass (1995-98)
16	* Kimmo Miettinin - drums (1995-98)
17	* [[Music/{{Wintersun}} Jari Mäenpää]] - vocals, guitars, keyboards, programming (1996-2004)
18	* Jukka-Pekka Miettinin - bass, backing vocals (1998-2004)
19	* Oliver Fokin - drums, percussion (1998-2005)
20	* Meiju Enho - keyboards, piano, organ, backing vocals (2001-07)
21	* Emmi Silvennoinen - keyboards, piano, organ, backing vocals (2009-16)
22	* Netta Skog - accordion, vocals (2016-17)
23
24	'''Discography:'''
25	* ''Ensiferum'' (2001)
26	* ''Iron'' (2004)
27	* ''Dragonheads'' EP (2006)
28	* ''Victory Songs'' (2007)
29	* ''From Afar'' (2009)
30	* ''Unsung Heroes'' (2012)
31	* ''One Man Army'' (2015)
32	* ''Two Paths'' (2017)
33	* ''Thalassic'' (2020)
34	----
35	!Tropes relating to Ensiferum
36	* CoverVersion: of ''Vandraren'' by Nordman, ''Into Hiding'' by Music/{{Amorphis}}, ''Lady in Black'' by Music/UriahHeep and ''Bamboleo'' by Gipsy King, among others.
37	* EpicRocking: ''Victory Song'' and ''Heathen Throne'' duo pass the 10-minute mark, while ''Passion, Proof, Power'' clocks in 17 minutes.
38	* FolkMetal: The primary music genre.
39	* FunnyBackgroundEvent: The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtvY3a8bpGA 'Week 2' video of the studio diaries series]] starts with Emmi playing a piano piece. Then, about sixteen seconds in...well, just keep your eyes on the window.
40	* GratuitousDiscoSequence: Halfway through [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uh_seKB56ek 'Two of Spades']].
41	* HarshVocals: The primary style, though both male and female clean vocals also show up fairly often.
42	** Jari's vocals were more high pitched than what Petri offers.
43	* HeavyMithril
44	* IAmTheBand: Markus Toivonen
45	* LeadBassist: Sami Hinkka is a minor type B.
46	* {{Mascot}}: The viking that appears on all of their album artwork.
47	* MelodicDeathMetal: Arguable.
48	* MetalScream: Jari did them sometimes. After he left they've mostly vanished from vocals (''Deathbringer From the Sky'' being a rare exception).
49	%%* RatedMForManly
50	* RevolvingDoorBand: Markus remains the only original member.
51	%%* SopranoAndGravel
52	* SpecialGuest: Vesa-Matti Loiri, a famous Finnish actor and singer, recites poetry in ''Pohjola''.
53	* SpokenWordInMusic: The [[BilingualBonus German]] BigLippedAlligatorMoment in ''Passion, Proof, Power''.
54	* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Both of Ensiferum's keyboard players (Meiju Enho and Emmi Silvennoinen) have been women, but they are the only female members the band has had.
55	* TriumphantReprise: The chorus of ''Victory Song'' is a huge, glorious, fully-vocalized version of its album's orchestral opening track, ''Ad Victoriam''.
56	* WalkingShirtlessScene: Good luck finding photos or clips from any of their live performances where Petri, Sami and Markus have their shirts on. Janne, for the most part, keeps his on, as does Emmi (for obvious reasons).
57	* WarriorHeaven: ''Twilight Tavern''. Being a Viking based folk metal band, it come to no surprise.

Context Music / Ensiferum