Kimmo Kuusniemi, guitarist and founder of Finnish metal godfathers Sarconfagus, has announced a new documentary on the band is in the works. He has issued the following update:

"In September 2010, Sarcofagus started a comeback tour. We did three gigs and there were more gigs lined up for later in the year but the 23rd September gig in Dante’s ended up being the last gig for Sarcofagus, ever. I filmed plenty footage of Sarcofagus preparing for the comeback; rehearsals, planning, backstage, video diary… 

The documentary looks into getting a band after 30 years back on the road and why it all ended so abruptly.

Sarcofagus retired finally last year but I just felt this documentary needs to be done. There will also be released a full Dante’s Gig Live For The Last Time album. On this gig we also had guests appearing. The audio recording is also cool, as it is a straight mix from the Dante’s gig. So it is 100% authentic live; not a multitrack that has been fixed in studio like most of the 'live' releases are "

Stay tuned for updates as they become available.

Although Britain is rightfully credited for the historic effect that its heavy metal scene of the late 1970s and early 1980s had on the genre as a whole, the significance of a scene that was developing at the same time to its northeast should not be overlooked. In Sweden, for example, bands like Heavy Load, Gotham City, and Mercy were beginning to establish themselves. Similarly, in Sweden's neighbor to the east, a group named Sarcofagus emerged as Finland's first heavy metal band under the primary direction of Kimmo Kuusniemi.  

Sarcofagus first released the "Go to Hell / All Those Lies'' single in 1979, and then quickly released its first two albums in 1980, the very same year in which Iron Maiden released its self-titled debut. The first of these recordings, Cycle Of Life, provided evidence of a talented group that was on the brink of fully defining itself. While it is a worthy accomplishment in its own right, Cycle Of Life was to be overshadowed by its imminent successor, Envoy Of Death.

Over the span of its first three recordings, Sarcofagus underwent a few lineup changes, which culminated in the quintet of Kuusniemi (guitars), Juha Kiminki (bass), Ari-Pekka Roitto (drums), Esa Kotilainen (keyboards), and Hannu Leidén (vocals) on the second album. Following the "Go to Hell / All Those Lies'' single, the addition of Kotilainen, one of the most accomplished keyboardists in all of Finland, proved to be of essential significance to the band's climactic sound, which had fully developed by the time the second album was recorded.