In 2023, guitarist Tomi Koivusaari announced his long-awaited solo project Bjørkø, which features an array of stellar guest vocals and collaborations. For years, Koivusaari has been the one of the creative backbones of Amorphis, a band synonymous with innovation in heavy music. With Bjørkø (‘Birch Island’ in English), Koivusaari ventures beyond band dynamics to showcase his distinct artistic vision.
The album’s saga still continues after its release date in December 2023 and today a new Bjørkø video, containing mind blowing footage created by AI, sees the light of day.
“It’s been 1 year since the release of my solo-project Bjørkø’s debut album, Heartrot. To celebrate that I will put out one more music video from it. It’s called ‘Vaka Loka’, vocals and lyrics are by Addi Tryggvason (Sólstafir) and personally I think that is one of the strongest songs from the album. The video is produced by my old-time friend Sami J Kosonen from Studio Publivox. It also contains some AI special effects in it. So, with this I want to thank everyone who has listened to the album and being involved in any way, I hope you’ll enjoy this one, cheers!”, reveals Koivusaari.
Watch the “Vaka Loka” video below:
Heartrot is far from a solo endeavor in the traditional sense. It features an all-star lineup of vocalists in multiple languages, contributing to an atmosphere that’s rich and multi-layered. The talent of Waltteri Väyrynen (Opeth, ex-Paradise Lost), Lauri Porra (Stratovarius), and Janne Lounatvuori (Hidria Spacefolk) add a rock-solid foundation to Koivusaari’s artistry.
Unfettered by the structural limitations of a traditional band, Heartrot stands as a testament to Koivusaari’s versatility and depth. “It’s a collection of various songs and points of view,” he says. “I didn’t want a traditional approach to limit my artistic expression.”
15 years ago, Tomi Koivusaari began building riffs and songs that he could use on a solo album he planned to release on his 40th birthday. The debut album by his solo project Bjørkø took, however, years to turn into reality. As with many a musician, it wasn’t until the pandemic stopped touring that Koivusaari finally found the time to work on what became the album Heartrot .
“Heartrot is a personal vision that’s naturally influenced by all the music I have subjected myself to over the years. It is, in a way, a soundtrack to an imaginary film. Musically the album’s guiding themes are a strong visual connection to nature and moods that are rarely happy or positive. Melancholy is always looming in the background”, says Koivusaari, who in the past studied movie sound engineering among other things.
Even though the album is diverse, according to Koivusaari there are many factors that many of the songs share. Half of the lyrics were written by his old Abhorrence bandmate Jussi “Juice” Ahlroth.
“Me and Jussi worked on the themes of the lyrics together, and he turned them skillfully into text: a lot left for the imagination and open to many interpretations. Some of the singers (Mariska, Ismo Alanko, Jessi Frey and Addi Tryggvason) wrote their won lyrics while the rest (Stian Thoresen, Jeff Walker, Petronella Nettermalm, Marko Hietala and Tomi Joutsen) interpret Ahlroth’s lyrics. The album was produced by my longtime friend Nino Laurenne.”
Order the album here.
Tracklisting:
“The Heartroot Rots”
“Vaka Loka”
“Whitebone Wind”
“Värinvaihtaja”
“Awakening”
“World As Fire And Hallucination”
“The Trickster”
“Hooks In The Sky”
“Magenta”
“Reverberations”
“Värinvaihtaja” video:
“Whitebone Wind” video:
“The Heartroot Rot” video:
(Photo – Sam Jämsen)