Search - Valerian :: Intimations of Sorrow

Valerian is the latest,and maybe the greatest, in an invasion of remarkable talent from Scandinavia and Northern Europe. Sounding like no one else but instantly familiar, Valerian is a one-group invasion-conquering new worlds with the fiery intelligence of its songs and the disciplined wildness of its play. Valerian is full of surprises, moving from grinding almost metallic riffs to soaring and dramatic guitar solos to a softer almost delicate lyricism, all tied to solid, heartfelt lyrics voiced with style and conviction by a remarkable lead singer who uses his chameleon voice to tell stories ranging from the travails of life on the road in "Homesick" to the blood chilling "Nothing Will Ever Take Me Away From You (From the Archives of a Serial Killer)". That lead singer and spark-plug is Olli Koskela and he is backed by the brilliant guitars of Toni Ritonen and Matti Toivonen and the inspired rhythm section of Janne Jaaskelainen on bass and Tipi Andersson on drums.