Sonata Arctica is a Finnish power metal band, considered by many as the heir of Stratovarius.

The band was founded by Tony Kakko, Jani Liimatainen, Marko Paasikoski, Tommy Portimo and Pentti Peura in Kemi in 1996. The band, originally named Tricky Beans, played songs which were mostly influenced by the hard rock genre and did not approach the power metal genre as such. During their early career, they recorded three demos which were never sent to any record label: Friend till the End...

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