Finnish Melodic Metal band DARK THE SUNS, has unleashed an official music video for its new single, “Raven”. The track features Paavo Laapotti (BEFORE THE DAWN & DEFILED SERENITY) on vocals and is taken from the band’s upcoming fifth studio album, “Raven And The Nightsky”, which will be released later this year via Inverse Records. Here are comments from the band:

Mikko: ” ‘Raven’ is the fourth single from our upcoming ‘Raven And The Nightsky’ album. In the ‘Raven’ single we have a special guest vocalist, Paavo Laapotti. He has an amazing voice, and it brought really beautiful and melancholic athmosphere for the single! Jani also played acoustic guitar for the song, so we got more good new elements. I’m really proud of the results!”

Inka: “We had talked with Paavo about making a song together, and when one night I played the piano and made the chorus to this song, I immediately thought that this would sound great with Paavo’s vocals. He is super talented and he has such a great voice. The result sounds exactly like what I thought at the time. I thought about the single cover for a long time and made many sketches of ravens and black wings to catch the right feeling; in the end it felt like all the pieces fell into place, melodies and words, Jani’s acoustic guitar, painting, video… this was a really great project with a great team, and I am so happy for the results.”

Paavo: “Making of this song was very easy with seamless teamwork and a great, clear concept. I really like the song and it has the great distinctive sound of DARK THE SUNS, but with a twist. It was an honor to be a part of this release and I think we succeeded in bringing the nordic feel to the listeners around the world.”

Jani: “As usual, working with Mikko and Inka was at the same time professional and easy-going, it is always a pleasure to spend time with them. The new song, ‘Raven’, is super catchy with beautiful melodies in it, and the vocals by Paavo are outstanding. I was honored to be involved in this one.”

In 2005 DARK THE SUNS was founded by Mikko Ojala. In 2006 the band grew when three new members (bass player Inka, Juha on the keyboards and drummer Markus) joined the band, which signed with Firebox Records that same year. During 2007-2010 Firebox Records released the band’s three full-length albums, “In Darkness Comes Beauty”, “All Ends In Silence” and “Sleepwalking In A Nightmare. The band performed many live shows during these years.

There have been some changes in the line-up over the years, but Mikko and Inka have been continuously together, making music. The band was inactive for 2013-2020 but in 2020 Mikko and Inka decided to resume making music together. It was a really natural way to continue the band as a duo, because they have written almost all the band’s music and lyrics during all these years.

In 2020 and 2021 Inverse Records released four singles from the band’s fourth album “Suru Raivosi Sydämeni Pimeydessä”. The album includes ten songs of melancholic and melodic Finnish Metal music. The band has always described their music as “beautiful piano melodies and dark vocals.” Jani Moilanen joined the band in March 2023. Their fifth studio album is set to be released later in 2023 via Inverse Records.

You can watch the official music video for “Raven” below: