Having spent two decades languishing in cheerful obscurity as one of Europe's most respected underground bands, Amorphis have lately been embraced by the resurgent prog movement. In truth, the Finns have always had a big dose of keyboard-driven 70s pomp underpinning their strident folk-tinged sound, but like their last few albums, Circle is more accessible and less experimental than their earlier works. Based on an original story penned by lyrical muse Pekka Kainulainen, these songs evoke the windswept mysticism of ancient Norse folklore and Finland's national epic, the Kalevala. But in contrast to many bands who get bogged down in twee narrative conceits and fiddly-diddly Viking jigs, here songs such as Shades of Gray, The Wanderer and Narrow Path work as stirring, bombastic metal anthems, too, with Tomi Joutsen's bellow the glue that holds it all together.