It must be lousy to have a landmark birthday or anniversary in 2020. All those carefully laid plans scuppered by this bugger of a pandemic. This is exactly the situation that Amorphis find themselves in. This year is the 30th anniversary of their formation and they had grand designs of how to mark this momentous occasion. Sadly lockdowns and the fact that none of us are going anywhere quick has put paid to all of that. However, instead of being downhearted they have decided to jump on the live stream bandwagon and perform two special commemorative shows from their home town of Helsinki.

They have opted not to use the stage of the Kaapelitehdas and instead have positioned themselves in a wide circle on the venues dancefloor, each member facing inwards towards each other. This set up really works and allows the cameras to capture the action without hindering or obstructing the band. It feels less like a communal-garden gig and more like something special and immersive. If streamed shows are going to become the norm or at least the methadone for us, live music addicts, it is heartening to see that bands are already playing about with the format.

The set is very much a deep-dive time-machine taking us through three decades of evolution and experimentation, but we start very much in the present with 'The Bee' from the 2018’s sublime “Queen of Time”. It is archetypal modern Amorphis; slick and keyboard drenched, but full of killer hooks and soaring vocals. Tomi J’s vocals are as sumptuous as ever, with utter ease he skips from harsh to melodically clean delivery. It is certainly a monumental start and showcases how expansive and cinematic their sound has become. We stay in the near present with the title track of 2015’s “Under the Red Cloud” and even though third track 'Sky is Mine' is already eleven year old, it still feels part of the thoroughly modern and harmonious sounding Amorphis. In fact for the first thirty minutes or so, we stay firmly rooted in the modern era, with its prog tinges and varied shifts in pace and texture. The band are obviously enjoying themselves and there are points where they feel like a through-bread racehorse allowed to race free after a protracted time in the staples. “Silent Waters”’s ‘Towards and Against' and “Circle”’s ‘The Wanderer' both make welcome returns to the set, the former seeing Tomi J particularly animated flinging himself on and off a strategically placed flightcase.

Then suddenly halfway through the set they take a handbrake turn into the deep and distant past and we get the old shit. ‘The Sign from the North Side' may well be twenty eight year old and light years in style from where Amorphis currently are, but it is still superb. Its has a primal rawness to it, jagged and brittle. But even though it is distinctly Death Metal it still has those flourishes of inventiveness that makes this band so special. It is obvious that they are all relishing raiding their back catalogue, even though Tomi J does sheepishly admit to fucking up the lyrics. We stay firmly in the past with 1994’s 'Into Hiding' (with its Deep Purple-esque keyboard refrains) and the superb (but very Maideny) 'Against Widows’. The way that their sound was developing even back then is really obvious. Tomi K’s guttural gruff vocals juxtapose with Tomi J’s silky and smooth delivery.  ‘Black Winter Day ‘ is the final piece in this nostalgic mid-section and it oozes with dense doomyness. The riffs are gigantic and crushing. It feels refreshing to see a band that are regarded as having a lightness of touch being this god darn heaviness.

‘Death of a King' returns us screaming and kicking to the present. We are back to the slick complex prog that Amorphis have made their own. The feel is almost cosmic and psychedelic when the Far East influences are plain to see. It is such a magnificent and emotive piece of music. Its swirling mysticism demonstrating just how spot on tonight’s sound is. The band are by now clearly engaged with this whole bizarre experience and the only thing that still feels awkward are those deafening silences when tracks come to pulsating crescendos. Tomi J does his very best to counter this (in a second language no less) with heartfelt thank you’s and jokey confessions of struggling with choruses. But it just feels disconcerting to see him attempt to banter with an empty space. 'My Kantele' closes the show. It might be twenty four years old but it comes across as very much a bridge to their modern direction. The grit and grime of Death Metal is still evident in its DNA, but the shoots of power chords and massive choruses are also evident.

They end with a very un-socially distanced group hug. It is obvious that as a band this has been a very bizarre but also uplifting bonding experience for them. As Esa Holopainen comments, if he wasn’t doing this he would be him watching Netflix. Tomi J again thanks the virtual audience and soberingly states that they have no idea what the future holds and when they will play live again. Whilst there were aforementioned cumbersome moments, musically and performance wise tonight they were stunningly good. Other streams are hinted at and if this is our only opportunity to witness the spectacle that is Amorphis live, then I for one will be jumping at the chance.