Barrel from Finland delights fans of versatile metal by releasing their debut album Triptych. The band began preparing for the album in December, when their first single Scavenger was released. The second single Sophia’s Repentance was released in January.

The metal regiment has been resolutely marching towards the album’s release, and the three-part epic has been released in its entirety last week for the enjoyment of heavy metal fans. The lead single is the massive song War, which pays tribute to a Ukrainian war hero.

“War is a legend about Vitalii Volodymyrovych Skakun. A tribute to the determination and readiness of one man and an entire nation to do what must be done. To say ‘no’ to the genocide and terror of a nihilistic Nazirota. It is a tribute to when someone is ready to defend the independence and existence of their homeland, no matter what it costs them. Never forget what the price of peace is. Never forget Vitalii. Slava Ukraini! Heroyam slava!”, the band commented.

The story of the Triptych album is brought to life through the comic book world of Juha “Wuorlock” Wuorinen. All singles are accompanied by a comic book telling the story of the song. Vuorinen has also designed the album covers and the band’s promo image.

“Collaborating with Barrel has been both extremely rewarding and challenging. Mainly because the themes of the songs are big, it’s difficult to summarize something essential on one page,” says Juha “Wuorlock” Wuorinen, a long-time tattoo artist, cartoonist and visual artist from Seinäjoki.

“Triptych is Barrel’s unholy trinity. It is a three-part painting of Satan’s metaphysics. A collection of stories about the names and meanings that man has given to primordial phenomena in himself and in the universe. The arc of the drama runs from the birth of Satan through the creation of our world and the fall of man to the end times, war and the rest of the grave. Triptych scoops from the depths and against the current. It challenges meanings and wholes in a time where the wide path leads to contentlessness and detachment,” the band paints.

Triptych track listing:
1. Cryptomnesia
2. Prelude to the Fall of Man
3. Scavenger
4. Sophia’s Repentance
5. Prelude to War
6. Signs for Kings
7. Dogma Denied
8. War
9. Ode to the Fallen

Barrel is celebrated the release of their album in Tampere at the Thrasherie bar.

The conquest of the Finnish peninsula continues this year as follows:

20.03.2026 – RockNeck, Jyväskylä (w/ Wizards Of Hazards, Cardinal Fleet)
27.03.2026 – Varjobaari, Tampere (w/ Steel Systems, Miss Vain)
15.05.2026 – Nirvana, Turku (w/ Pressure Points, Sum of Seven)
16.05.2026 – Bar 15, Seinäjoki (w/ TBA)
29.08.2026 – Toppila Klubi, Oulu (w/ Burning Point, Steel Systems)

Barrel is:
Valtteri – vocals
Vellu – bass, backing vocals, cello
Janne – guitar
Joonas – guitar
Vili – drums

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Barrel, who skillfully combines different genres of metal, is now taking the next step towards their first full-length studio album. Another preview of the Triptych album, which will be released on February 6th, was released in the form of the single Sophia’s Repentance. The song, which rushes forward accompanied by furious guitar riffs, offers a fast-paced journey, during which it visits the fields of death, thrash and also heavy metal.

“Sophia’s Repentance continues Triptych’s metaphysical journey towards the fulfillment of the trinity. Our physical world and us were created apart from perfect knowledge. Millions worship a demiurge blind to the truth, a cosmic error. A creator god whose imperfect creation causes suffering in the material world,” the band’s bassist Vellu opens the story of the song.

“The ignorant and arrogant Yaldabaoth took his light and power from his own creator Sophia, created our dim world from them, and sought to enslave weak man, demanding worship and submission. From the dawn of the archetypal dawn, a star rises to bring light and justice to the world – to right the wrong through Sophia. From the suffering of the repentant Sophia, the possibility of salvation arises. Awakening to knowledge and truth frees man from Yaldabaoth’s power. Sophia’s Repentance is the question: Who will bring gnosis and release your divine spark?”

The album’s first single, Scavenger, was released in December, and in addition to media attention, it raised high expectations for the upcoming debut album. Sophia’s Repentance raises the revs even higher, and the Triptych album, due out next month, will propel the band towards a promising career in the metal field. The upcoming album offers a diverse range of metal, ranging from explosive rock and roll through thrash to a hauntingly beautiful melancholy floating in the endless expanse of deserts and space. The question Barrel poses is: why confine yourself to a genre when metal is a chaotic force of boundless creativity?

Barrel also stylishly invests in a distinctive visual world, where in addition to cover and promo images created by Juha “Wuorlock” Wuorinen, single releases are also accompanied by comics.

Triptych track list:
1. Cryptomnesia
2. Prelude to the Fall of Man
3. Scavenger
4. Sophia’s Repentance
5. Prelude to War
6. Signs for Kings
7. Dogma Denied
8. War
9. Ode to the Fallen

Barrel is heading to the gig scene this month, and their conquest of the Finnish peninsula will continue throughout the spring. Known for their tight live act, the band has played dozens of gigs in their career, and has performed at Suistoklubi, Nokian Kerhola and the Tuhdimmat tahdit e-club in the now defunct Hönö Baar. Last autumn, Barrel also performed in Latvia and Estonia.

16.01.2026 – Ravintola Torvi, Lahti (w/ Alun loppu, Void Monarch)
06.02.2026 – Triptych album release party, Thrasherie Bar, Tampere
20.03.2026 – RockNeck, Jyväskylä (w/ Wizards Of Hazards, Cardinal Fleet)
27.03.2026 – Varjobaari, Tampere (w/ Steel Systems, TBA)
15.05.2026 – Nirvana, Turku (w/ Pressure Points, Sum of Seven)
16.05.2026 – Bar 15, Seinäjoki (w/ Crow’s Flight)
29.08.2026 – Toppila Klubi, Oulu (w/ Burning Point, Steel Systems)

Barrel’s previous EPs Bullet With Your Name (2022) and Unanticipated Confessions of Love (2023) garnered positive attention both in Finland and abroad. Triptych opens the next chapter in Barrel’s career – a comprehensive and ambitious album is promised, presenting a skilled and resolutely forward and upward-moving band. The Triptych album still features the previous drummer Honkku, and since the summer Barrel has had the new drummer Vili.

Barrel is:
Valtteri – vocals
Vellu – bass, backing vocals, cello
Janne – guitar
Joonas – guitar
Vili – drums

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