''Unia'' ( en, Dreams), released on 25 May 2007, is the fifth full-length
studio album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
by the
power metal band
Sonata Arctica, following the album ''
Reckoning Night''. The first single from the album was "
Paid in Full", released on 27 April 2007. This is also the last album that features
Jani Liimatainen, who was later replaced by
Elias Viljanen after the album was released.
The album was mixed at
Finnvox Studios
Finnvox Studios is a recording studio located in Pitäjänmäki, Helsinki, Finland. It was founded by Erkki Ertesuo, Kurt Juuranto and Lejos Inc. in 1965 and is the longest running studio recording facility in Finland. The original multi-track re ...
, and mastered at Cutting Room Studios in
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
,
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
. The album was also released as a limited edition noble book in 7" size (1000 copies), exclusively available via mailorder from Nuclear Blast records. The limited edition came with a differing track listing and bonus tracks "To Create a Warlike Feel" and "Out in the Fields".
Sound and themes
Unia is darker and more aggressive than
Sonata Arctica's earlier work, with mid-tempo songs, more inclusion of 7 string guitars and a minimal amount of solos. It has been described as a significant "turning point".
Vocalist Tony Kakko has once admitted that ''Unia'' being released just after ''Reckoning Night'' "was probably a shock to many people".
He also described it as "a liberating experience. From there we took slowly some other direction".
[ Commenting further on the album, he also stated:][
Drummer and founding member Tommy Portimo said that Unia "brought many good things. I think our band needed that little shaking. ..That album felt very natural. Although we realized it was very far from what we were before. But it was just a natural shaking."][
The track "Caleb" continues what the band refers to as "the so-called Caleb saga", a series of songs that started on '' Silence'''s "The End of This Chapter" and is continued on '' Reckoning Night'''s " Don't Say a Word", '' The Days of Grays'''s "Juliet"; '' The Ninth Hour'''s "Till Death's Done Us Apart"]
Track listing
Personnel
;Sonata Arctica
* Tony Kakko − vocals, additional keyboards
* Jani Liimatainen − guitars, acoustic guitars (on tracks 11, 14)
* Marko Paasikoski − bass guitar
* Henrik Klingenberg − lead keyboards, hammond organ, piano (on track 2)
* Tommy Portimo − drums
;Additional personnel
* Selestina Choir on "In Black and White", "Under Your Tree", "To Create a Warlike Feel" and "Caleb" conducted by Tarja Vanhala.
*Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
s, Bouzouki, Chromaharp, Cavaquinho
The cavaquinho (pronounced in Portuguese) is a small Portuguese string instrument in the European guitar family, with four wires or gut strings.
More broadly, ''cavaquinho'' is the name of a four-stringed subdivision of the lute family of instr ...
and Q-chord
The Omnichord is an electronic musical instrument introduced in 1981 by the Suzuki Musical Instrument Corporation. It typically features a touch plate known as "Sonic Strings", preset rhythms, auto-bass line functionality, and buttons for ma ...
on "They Follow", "Under Your Tree", "The Harvest", "It Won't Fade" and "Fly With the Black Swan" by Peter Engberg.
*Finnish vocals in "To Create a Warlike Feel" by Jarkko Martikainen
Jarkko Martikainen (born 24 October 1970 in Greifswald, GDR) is a Finnish singer, songwriter and member of the rock band YUP. In addition to his musical career, Martikainen has worked as a columnist, a record producer and a documentary filmmaker ...
*Opening narration in "Caleb" by Milla V
*Vocals, "whatevergod..." ("Caleb") and backing vocals, "just passion and rage" ("In Black and White") performed by Starbuck.
;String orchestra on "Good Enough Is Good Enough"
* Tuomas Airola − cello
* Elar Kuiv − violin
* Kati Niemelä − violin/ viola
* Anna-Leena Kangas − viola
* Oskari Hannula − double bass
* Bowed string instruments arranged and conducted by Tuomas Airola.
Charts
Certifications
References
{{Authority control
Sonata Arctica albums
2007 albums
Nuclear Blast albums