Warmen is a Finnish heavy metal band assembled by keyboardist Janne "Warman" Wirman. Wirman had played with

Children of Bodom Children of Bodom was a Finnish melodic death metal band from Espoo. Formed in 1993 as Inearthed, the final line-up of the group upon their split in 2019 consisted of frontman Alexi Laiho, drummer Jaska Raatikainen, bassist Henkka Seppälä, ...

since 1997, and in 2000 created the neoclassical/melodic metal project Warmen focused on

instrumental An instrumental or instrumental song is music without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through Semantic change, semantic widening, a broader sense of the word s ...

work with only occasional guest singers on a few selected songs. In 2023, the band added full-time singer

Petri Lindroos Petri Lindroos (born 10 January 1980) is a Finnish heavy metal musician. He has been the lead vocalist/ harsh vocalist and a guitarist for Ensiferum since 2004. In 2023, he joined Warmen in the same role. He was also a founding member of Nor ...

and moved towards a

melodic death metal Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal (including New Wave of British Heavy Metal). The genre features the heavines ...

style similar to Children of Bodom.

History

''Unknown Soldier'' (1999–2001)

The first incarnation of Warmen was composed of Janne Wirman, guitarist Sami Virtanen and drummer Mirka Rantanen. This line-up recorded and released the ''Unknown Soldier'' album in 2000, with the collaboration of guest singer

Kimberly Goss Kimberly Goss (born 1978) is an American former singer and keyboardist, best known as the frontwoman and co-founder of the Finnish metal band Sinergy (1997–2004). Early life Goss was born in Los Angeles, California, to a Korean father an ...

(from

Sinergy Sinergy was a Finnish/Swedish power metal band started in 1997 by American musician Kimberly Goss. The idea for a "balls-out female-fronted metal band" was first formed when Kimberly Goss of Dimmu Borgir met Jesper Strömblad of In Flames whil ...

), guitarist Roope Latvala (also from Sinergy, later also from

) and bassist Jari Kainulainen (from

Stratovarius Stratovarius is a Finnish power metal band. Formed in 1984, they have released sixteen studio albums, six DVDs and six live albums. The band's line-up has changed many times, with no founding member left since the departure of drummer Tuomo ...

''Beyond Abilities'' (2002–2004)

The following year, the band saw the addition of Lauri Porra (later in Sinergy and Stratovarius) and Janne's guitarist brother, Antti Wirman (from

Kotipelto Kotipelto is a Finnish power metal self-named band by Timo Kotipelto, created during a hiatus in activity for power metal band Stratovarius. Kotipelto has been commercially well received in their native Finland, with a top 10 single "Beginning" ...

). In the ''Warmen Productions Studio'' (now called ''Beyond Abilities''), this line-up recorded the album ''Beyond Abilities'', which received positive reviews. With a more diverse use of vocals, this album made use of the talent of

Timo Kotipelto Timo Antero Kotipelto (born 15 March 1969) is a Finnish musician best known as the lead singer of the power metal band Stratovarius, whom he joined in 1994, as well as fronting his own band Kotipelto. Biography He studied vocals at the pop/ja ...

(from Stratovarius), Pasi Nykänen (from

Throne of Chaos Throne of Chaos (TOC) were a heavy metal band from Espoo, Finland, active from 1996 to 2005. Their early sound, as recorded on their debut album ''Menace and Prayer'', has been described as melodic death metal, having musical characteristics re ...

) and returning vocalist Kimberly Goss.

''Accept the Fact'' (2005–2006)

Their third album, ''Accept the Fact'' was released in June 2005 and features vocals by Timo Kotipelto, Marko Vaara, Jonna Kosonen and

Alexi Laiho Alexi Laiho (; born Markku Uula Aleksi Laiho; 8 April 1979 – 29 December 2020) was a Finnish guitarist, composer, and vocalist. He was best known as the lead guitarist, lead vocalist and founding member of the melodic death metal band Children ...

from Children of Bodom. Alexi performs clean vocals in "Somebody's Watching Me" (originally by Rockwell), which is rare, since in Children of Bodom he has performed clean vocals in only one song, a cover of "

Rebel Yell The rebel yell was a battle cry used by Confederate soldiers during the American Civil War. Confederate soldiers used the yell when charging to intimidate the enemy and boost their own morale, although the yell had many other uses. There ar ...

", originally by

Billy Idol William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Idol achieved fame in the 1970s on the London punk rock scene as the lead singer of Generation X ...

. The spoken words on the first track "Accept the Fact" are taken from the movie ''

Amadeus Amadeus may refer to: People and fictional characters * Amadeus (name) Amadeus is a theophoric name, theophoric given name derived from the Latin words ' – the Imperative mood, imperative of the word ' ("to love") – and ' ("god"). As a Compou ...

'', spoken by the character

Antonio Salieri Antonio Salieri (18 August 17507 May 1825) was an Italian composer and teacher of the classical period (music), classical period. He was born in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice, and spent his adult life and career as a subje ...

''Japanese Hospitality'' (2008–2010)

The fourth Warmen album, titled ''Japanese Hospitality'', was released on 24 August 2009 via

Spinefarm Records Spinefarm Records is an international record label. Founded in Finland in 1990, Spinefarm was acquired by Universal Music Group in 2002. History Spinefarm Records began as a mailorder distribution company, founded by Riku Pääkkönen. The c ...

. The 10-song effort includes two cover versions — "Separate Ways", originally recorded by Journey, and "Black Cat" by

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

, featuring a guest appearance by the Finnish pop/rock singer Jonna Kosonen. Other guest musicians that appear on the CD include Alexi Laiho (Children of Bodom) and

Pasi Rantanen Pasi Rantanen (born 30 October 1969, in Helsinki, Finland) is a Finnish singer best known for his power metal band Thunderstone, of which he was a member from the band's creation in 2000 until 2007. He rejoined Thunderstone in 2013 as a full-ti ...

(ex- Thunderstone).

''First of the Five Elements'' (2014)

On 9 July 2014, Warmen started a campaign on

PledgeMusic PledgeMusic was an online direct-to-fan music platform, launched in August 2009. It was started to facilitate musicians looking to pre-sell, market, and distribute projects, such as recordings and concerts. It bore similarities to other artist pa ...

to have fans help fund the production of the album, titled ''First of the Five Elements''. This campaign was successful and the album was released on that same year. The album was re-issued in 2023 due to PledgeMusic's bankruptcy, resulting in a limited number of physical copies released.

Stylistic change, ''Here for None'' and ''Band of Brothers'' (2023–present)

In late March 2023, the band announced drummer Mirka Rantanen was leaving the band and was being replaced by Seppo Tarvainen. A few weeks later, the band announced

Ensiferum Ensiferum (Latin: , n adj., meaning "sword bearing") is a Finnish folk metal band from Helsinki. The members of the band label themselves as "melodic folk metal". History Formation, demos and ''Ensiferum'' (1995−2002) ''Ensiferum'' was foun ...

as the band's first vocalist. This change would see the band move towards a

style similar to

. On 31 May 2023, the band announced their sixth album, ''

Here for None ''Here for None'' is the sixth studio album by Finnish metal band Warmen, released on 18 August 2023. The tracks "Warmen Are Here for None" and "Hell on Four Wheels" were released as singles. A music video for "Hell on Four Wheels" was released, ...

'', which was released on 18 August, and is their first album in this new style. On 19 May 2025, the band announced their seventh album, ''Band of Brothers'', which is set to be released on 15 August.

Band members

Current members *

Janne Viljami Wirman Janne Viljami "Warman" Wirman (born 26 April 1979) is a Finnish Heavy metal music, heavy metal musician. He is the founder and keyboardist of Warmen and was formerly a member of Children of Bodom from 1997 to 2019. Biography file:Janne Wirman ...

– keyboards * Antti Wirman – guitars * Jyri Helko – bass guitar * Seppo Tarvainen – drums *

– vocals, guitars Former members *

Mirka Rantanen Mirka Rantanen (born ) is a Finnish musician. He was the drummer for power metal band Thunderstone when it formed in 2000. Rantanen has also drummed for a number of other Finnish bands, including as a session member for the supergroup Northern Ki ...

– drums * Sami Virtanen – guitars *

Lauri Porra (born 13 December 1977) is a Finnish bass guitarist and composer who has written scores for films and other media, as well as commissions from orchestras such as the Lahti Symphony and the Finnish Radio Symphony. He is also known for his wor ...

– bass guitar

Timeline

Discography

Albums

* '' Unknown Soldier'' (2000) * '' Beyond Abilities'' (2001) * '' Accept the Fact'' (2005) * '' Japanese Hospitality'' (2009) * ''First of the Five Elements'' (2014) * ''

'' (2023) * ''Band of Brothers'' (2025)

Compilations

*''The Evil That Warmen Do'' (2010)

Singles

* "

Alone Alone may refer to: * Solitude, a state of seclusion or isolation * Loneliness, negative emotions arising from seclusion Film and television Film * ''Alone'' (1931 French film), by Henri Diamant-Berger * ''Alone'' (1931 Soviet film), by Leonid ...

" (2001) * "

Somebody's Watching Me "Somebody's Watching Me" is a song recorded and written by American singer Rockwell, released by the Motown label in December 1983, as the lead single from his debut studio album of the same name. It features guest vocals by Michael Jackson w ...

" (2005) * "Warmen Are Here for None" (2023) * "Hell on Four Wheels" (2023)

References

External links

* (archived) * {{Authority control Finnish heavy metal musical groups Finnish musical quintets Finnish melodic death metal musical groups Finnish power metal musical groups Finnish progressive metal musical groups Musical groups established in 2000 Nuclear Blast artists