All the songs that Amorphis never performed live

Show of hands: who has seen Amorphis at least once in their life? I’m raising my hand. I’ve seen then twice, actually. Now, recently there was someone complaining that they always perform almost the same, identical setlist every time. And while I certainly do not mind that, there are some hidden gems in their catalogue that they’ve never played. Let’s find them out together, shall we?

The Karelian Isthmus

Oh, to be young and wonderful. The debut album by Amorphis, released in 1992, saw them perform all the tracks, except “The Pilgrimage“. On this album, the vocals are offered by the band’s now guitarist Tomi Koivusaari.

Tales from the Thousand Lakes

Let’s go a bit further in time, two years later to be precise (no I did not intend for these sentences to rhyme). Also from this album, out in 1994, there is only one track that’s not been played. It’s “To Fathers Cabin“.

Tuonela

The Finns have played all the songs from “Elegy” released in 1996, but from the following outlet, “Tuonela” released three years later, the only one that they never performed is “Withered“. In this album, Pasi Koskinen is the lead vocalist.

Am Universum

New millenium, same old story. In 2001, with the release of “Am Universum”, Amorphis performed all tracks, except “Captured State“. This is the last album with drummer Pekka Kasari who left in the following year.

Far From The Sun

The band is fairly consistent with releases, each one arriving about 2 to 3 years later from the previous. It’s 2003 when Amorphis release their new full-length, and this time it’s two tracks that they’ve left out of their setlists. “Ethereal Solitude” and “Higher Ground“.

Silent Waters

For the purposes of this article we skip the album “Eclipse” (all songs played from that one, the first with Tomi Joutsen on vocals), and we arrive at 2007’s “Silent Waters”. Here too, two tracks have been shelved so far: “Black River” and “Sign“.

Skyforger

Two years later, in 2009, the band releases “Skyforger”. According to lead guitarist Esa Holopainen, the album is the band’s most musical. And from this release, the band has the first spike in most non-played songs, with four tracks. “Highest Star“, “Course of Fate“, “Godlike Machine” and “Separated“.

The Beginning of Times

It’s 2011, and Amorphis release “The Beginning of Times”. The vocals for the album were recorded with Marko Hietala at Hietala‘s home studio in Kuopio. And in this full-length, we have even more tracks left off of live shows, with 5 out of 12. “Reformation“, “Soothsayer“, “On a Stranded Shore“, “Escape” and “Heart’s Song“.

Circle

Like clockwork, two years later the Finns are back with another release. This time, the album was produced and mixed by Peter Tägtgren from Pain. The only track the band has never performed is “Dead Man’s Dream“.

Queen of Time

We’re taking a big leap into 2018, when the band releases “Queen of Time”. Original bassist Olli-Pekka Laine rejoined Amorphis for this album following the departure of Niclas Etelävuori in April 2017. “Queen of Time” marks the first album since 1994’s “Tales from the Thousand Lakes” to include all original members. The lineup is now complemented by Tomi Joutsen and Santeri Kallio. Happy times, so they only skipped to perform just one track: “Honeyflow“.

Halo

After the pandemic, Amorphis returned stronger than ever in 2022 with “Halo”. The album won the Emma Award for Best Metal Album in 2023. They have not performed three tracks out of this album all starting with W: “Windmane“, “When the Gods Came” and “War“.

Borderland

And our journey through Amorphis‘ land is almost over in… “Borderland”. Also from this release, there are five tracks that the band has yet to premiere in a live setting. They are: “The Circle“, “The Strange“, “Tempest“, “Borderland” and “Despair“.

Considering that they’ve released 15 full-lengths and the songs they haven’t played aren’t even 30, I would say that’s acceptable. What do you think?

Upcoming shows:

• 29.01. – 02.02.2026 US Miami, FL – 70,000 Tons of Metal
• 05. – 08.08.2026 CZ Jaroměř – Brutal Assault *NEW*
• 06. – 08.08.2026 DE Schlotheim – Party.San Metal Open Air *NEW*
• 06. – 09.08.2026 DE Kortrijk – Alcatraz Metal Festival *NEW*
• 12. – 15.08.2026 DE Dinkelsbühl – Summer Breeze Open Air *NEW*
• 13. – 15.08.2026 DE Sulingen – Reload Festival *NEW*

Info & Tickets: https://amorphis.net/tour

Amorphis are:
Tomi Joutsen | vocals
Esa Holopainen | guitars
Tomi Koivusaari | guitars
Olli-Pekka “Oppu” Laine | bass
Santeri Kallio | keys
Jan Rechberger | drums & percussion

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