X

X is the tenth album by Stam1na, one of Finland's best-known thrash metal bands. They formed in 1996, released a long run of demos and EPs, then signed to Sakara Records — the label run by Tuomo of their friends Mokoma — and made their album debut in 2005 with a self-titled record that had much of the Finnish press naming them the brightest hope of the year. Uudet Kymmenen Käskyä reached number three at home in 2006 and Raja took them to number one in 2008; they have put out records every year or two since and have been fixtures near the top of the national chart ever since. They have toured Japan three times. Two years on from the last one, this is the same world: technical playing, writing that turns progressive without warning, melody that arrives when you least expect it, and Antti Hyyrynen singing in Finnish. Ward Records released the Japanese edition, with a Japanese essay, on 13 October 2023 as GQCS-91377. Ten tracks.