12 Gauge is the sixth studio album by the Finnish melodic death metal band Kalmah, released on 3 March 2010.

The album was recorded with more thrash metal elements than their previous releases, while the melodies that the band is known for and environmental themes regarding the swamps of Finland were retained.

Each of the band members kept in touch with their fans by keeping track of their recording sessions online at the official website's studio diary.

12 Gauge received generally favorable reviews by European and American critics, with a few considering it better than either of its immediate predecessors, For the Revolution and The Black Waltz.

When Kalmah began writing music for their melodic death metal[2][3] album, their intent was to incorporate more "aggressive thrash material" than their previous recordings had.

The album would not be entirely thrash metal, since the band planned on adding acoustic guitar sections[citation needed] and also trumpets.

[5] When the music was completed, Pekka began working on the lyrics,[citation needed] which were inspired by various topics, including "politics, religion ... drinking, failure, [and] pessimism".

"Hook the Monster" was about fishing,[6] "12 Gauge" was inspired by hunting,[citation needed] and the impact of land development in the swamps of Finland was the subject of "Swampwar".

Commenting further on the swamps, Pekka remarked, "[those] valuable areas are a part of our northern wilderness and [are] always threatened to be ditched or drained.

[citation needed] Because they were comfortable self-producing on all their previous albums, they refused to bring in an outside record producer for 12 Gauge.

They commissioned Rami Mursula to create a hand-drawn piece of artwork, depicting a man emerging from the swamp to fight a beast.

Pekka explained the symbolism: "In Kalmah's mindset, there is Swamplord defending his marshlands against [the] monster created by common materialism, industrial pollution and [the] world-wide nausea of globalism."

[21] David E. Gehlke of Blistering was already devoted to Kalmah's previous album, For the Revolution, so he had high expectations for 12 Gauge.

He found the album full of "break-neck riff action", "visceral melodies", and "daring" dueling between Antti's guitar and Sneck's keyboard.

He thought it important that Kalmah had "not fallen prey to the tendency of introducing American metal elements or becoming more mainstream with their sound.

[26] Stalker's Kathleen Gransalke admitted that she was unfamiliar with Kalmah's previous work, but she was nevertheless impressed with its technicality, double-guitar melodies, fast solos, and the combining of genres.

The camera and Steadicam operator was Markus Lintu, and Kalmah's bassist, Timo Lehtinen, edited and color-timed the final product.

In the first, a hunter (uncredited actor) straps a 16-gauge shotgun around his shoulder, and tracks footsteps through the snow, eventually finding the Swamplord (the band's mascot, here as depicted on the covers of The Black Waltz and For the Revolution).

[5] In the second narrative, the band members, dressed warmly in heavy clothing,[8] are sitting around a campfire, preparing a kettle of an unknown drink.