Hellsinki Metal Festival, one of the most talked about events this year, announced its first performers earlier this month. There were several highly anticipated bands, such as Mayhem, Satyricon and Doro.
Today, there is a new batch of acts added. See below!
Continue reading Hellsinki Metal Festival adds more acts to 2024 line-up
This year, Tuhdimmat Tahdit festival was held in Ratinanpuisto, Tampere 16-17.6 . Two days of both local and international acts brought a diverse array of bands to the small festival. A smooth way to transition into festival season. Though the smaller stage had constant technical difficulties , there was very limited seating in the shade, and there were some long lines for water during the hottest hours of the day, it was a cozy festival for city center attraction.
Day 1 Highlights –
Verikalpa were a great band to get things rolling. They always have great energy and produce an atmosphere that draws you in. Unfortunately, people were still trickling in and they didn’t have such a large crowd but it was one of the more solid performances of they day. Although Transworld Identity were the first to experience the bad luck of the smaller stage with technical and sound issues, they powered through and provided a bit more palatable sound for those who are not into heavier music. Ensiferum seemed to be the real start to the festival, with most of the attendees finally in, and still getting into the groove. Though once ‘Lai Lai Hei’ started, people moved forward in unison as if drawn by strings and from then on the energy kept up. Bloodred Hourglass is starting to really take off! I’d even go so far as to say they were the unofficial headliner of the day. It was heartwarming when Jarkko, their vocalist, asked how many had never seen them before, and welcomed them to the ‘family’. Lordi was the predicted yet never dull show stopper. My personal first time seeing and shooting them and damn, what have I been missing! A personal highlight for me, and many others! It would be great to see more of them but, as Mr.Lordi made clear, he’s not getting any younger – using the example of almost forgetting to throw his confetti! Mors Subita also put on a solid show. Despite the beating sun, raging heat and sound issues, they still gave one of the most full throttle performances I have ever seen from them! Dead by April was definitely a highlight for many, as they were only main stage act to come from abroad. The band themselves also seemed ecstatic to be back in Finland, and definitely showed it with their performance! Diablo was also another classic, and really great to finally see their newer music live! One note about the layout of the festival was that it was pretty cool to be able to watch what was going on at one stage even if you were in the front waiting for the act coming on the next stage.
Beast in Black is a crowd favorite to the max. Their cheesy rock star moves and intimate crowd connection make for a great show, and damn, the tiny TINY details that go into their set decorations! Mind-blowing!
Day 2 Highlights –
Although the opening band of Day 2, Carnival Academy, also not have such a huge crowd, the fans there were there were enthusiastic as hell! Smallest mosh pit I’ve ever seen! Maybe next year they should start the festival later and add a third day? Anyway, they were much more solid than their aesthetic let on! And had a much more mature, and promising sound as well. They even had a little party trick with their mascot of a horror clown going around handing out clown noses with “CA” painted on them. It was fun and professional at the same time. Antony Parviainen Trio plays Iron Maiden stopped me in my tracks. Way more than I could have ever expected! Who knew Iron Maiden performed by a talented vocalist, upright bass, cello and acoustic guitar could sound so magical! It was beyond perfection and I cannot wait to see them again. Similar to the previous day, the festival atmosphere started kicking up when Turmion Kätilöt hit the stage, even though I believe that was the earliest time of day I have ever seen TK play! I have to say, ShagU (Saku)’s show has matured a LOT since the earlier years of him playing in TK. I feel there is a definite line now between his Fear of Domination and TK stage presence. I look forward to seeing them both soon to see how else the performances will evolve. Both Wolfheart and Before the Dawn felt like the unofficial festival headliners. On top of Tuomas Saukkonen (who is the founder and has multiple roles in both bands) being a multi-talented superhero, both bands gave extremely strong performances and were epic in their own way. Of course, Wolfheart has been more familiar in recent years, so they have the solid following. But Before the Dawn has recently made a comeback, including their new extremely talented vocalist Paavo Lapotti, who not only has an other-worldy voice, but great charisma and stage presence as well. They were one of my most unanticipated favorites, and now strive to see them any chance I can! Shereign was another of my personal highly anticipated acts. Although they did experience the bad luck of the small stage on a major, show stopping scale, they all had magnificent spirit and didn’t let the issues dampen their fun or energy. It was an honor to witness as I believe it will be their only gig this summer. All the love to them! Brymir also suffered show stopping (or show delaying) technical difficulties, but, in true Brymir fashion, it resulted in a very special, once in a lifetime opportunity for Viktor and the guys to show off their epic rap improvisation skills! After what felt like 10 minutes, things got worked out and the show went on, including the infamous Steve the fish being thrown so hard around the mosh pit, it could be seen flying higher than the stage, in a video taken from across the river from where the festival was being held! Mokoma, being a summer festival veteran band, had a predictably huge crowd, and although they seemed to also be suffering sound difficulties, Marko, their vocalist seemed to be singing his lungs out, as the other members played one of the most driving shows in my memory of their live shows. They are currently celebrating the 20 year anniversary of their classic album Kurimus. Closing out the smaller stage, Swallow the Sun. They were one of the few lucky bands to not experience any issues on the small stage, and deserving as always, of the flawless show they gave us. A short but sweet set built with a solid mix of old and new, at a decent enough time of day that the blaring sun didn’t kill the mood. I even got so wrapped up in the music for the first few minutes it was difficult to make my arms do the things they needed to do with the camera. But that is a normal reaction for me. There are no words for how much I appreciate this band and anything more I would have to say would come straight out of bias. So, on to the finale! Battle Beast! They are stunning and captivating as always, although it has sadly been way too long since I personally have seen them live. I really wish they were doing more festivals in Finland this summer but we can’t have everything! Beyond their flawless show, and spot on charisma, they had such a great connection with the audience and each other as well, one has to really work not to enjoy watching them. In all honesty, I think them being the final act for the festival was a bit unbalanced, they were maybe too good to be the closing act for this kind of festival!
Photos and report by Serena Solomon
Melancholy Mass 2022: Red Moon Architect, Kaunis Kuolematon, Marianas Rest, October Tide and Swallow the Sun at Olympia in Tampere, FI
What better way to welcome the beautiful gloom of Autumn than with the masters of melancholy and doom? Friday, September 23, 2022 was the Autumnal Equinox and Melancholy Mass hit the stage in Tampere, Finland.
Marianas Rest opened the mini festival with their usual presence that is almost viscerally tragic. Melancholic with a touch of extreme.
Red Moon Architect continued with their huge sound and amazing stage presence, probably the heaviest sound of the night balanced with the delicate vocals of Anni Viljanen.
The night continued with Kaunis Kuolematon endulging the audience in their own brand of melancholic metal. The contrast between Olli and Mikko’s vocals never ceases to bring chills and a unique feeling of strength and powerlessness.
October Tide blew me away. They were the only band on the bill that I had not seen before and I truly hope they make their way back soon. They added a raw heavy twist to the mix, still doom as hell but some got under your skin in a deeper and dirtier way than the other bands. Love their stage presence too, Alexander has a snarky dgaf attitude that keeps things light but heavy at the same time, i.e. (to the audience) “Are you happy?” -audience cheers- “why are you happy? We’re trying to make you sad.”
And the highlight of the evening, Swallow the Sun. I can never praise this band enough. They are always a pleasure to watch and shoot, even when their performance is a little off, it makes it all the more of a unique experience, as each show of theirs is.
The fourth day starts and I feel a bit tired a bit from rushing stage to stage. Slight pain in the throat does not help at all, too. But rock’n’roll awaits still.
In the afternoon, the thrash group Nunslaughter, Exhorder and the Czech Faust are worth mentioning. I was happy with the music of Benighted, which I had the opportunity to see last year as well. Their extreme action full of growling and pig squeals was satisfying as usual.
Nunslaughter, Faust, Exhorder
From the modern and more progressive side, bands like Aviana, Stake, Humanity’s Last Breath, Frontierer played early. Another less metal, more hardcore (kinda) was presented by Comeback Kid and Sick of It All or fusion of styles by Stake.
Stake, Humanity’s Last Breath, Sick of It All
Outside of black metal, I was looking forward to doom performed by Swallow the Sun. Again and as always, nice performance. The sad melodies dug into us damn deep. Maybe even more so, when we watched the lead guitarist Juho Räihä. He seemed crazy thin to me…
Swallow the Sun
I was preparing for blackness again. Mainly Abbath and Panzerfaust from Canada. I saw the guys a few months ago in Czech club. The music was good, but because of the (in)correct lights and smoke, everyone saw complete crap the whole concert… At the Brutal Assault, it really bothered me that many bands of similar genre overlapped at the same time… Was it like that last time too? I do not even remember due covid break. Now it was very frequent and I was quite sad. Panzerfaust didn’t start playing until half an hour after Abbath, but that was actually even worse for me. Most of us who were at Abbath show wanted to hear the second part of the set, when they again played covers from the legend – Immortal. So I didn’t hear anything from that part… Panzerfaust showed us that their black metal is powerful and strong at least, even if there was a little too much of the fog for my taste. The „chaotic“ plucking of dissonant chords in the fast tempo and the slower passages enhanced the greatness and force the band has.
Abbath, Panzerfaust
As the previous day represented the legend of King Diamond, on Friday it was the legacy of Chronos with Venom. Again, and absolute professionalism combined with a fun that was felt from the members. They kicked off the concert with the legendary song “Black Metal” and that was actually enough to give me full satisfaction. As Imentioned overlapping times of some bands, here, due Venom, I have missed Slagmaur which was playing on other side of the festival, unfortunatelly. Black metal band who closed the day of the day, was Mysticum, which was more on industrial side of the genre. Besides good music and great light show, many of us drooled on the great muscle mass of the guitarist. I think ladies had quite a hard time to keep on their legs. Stay tuned for the final day.
Venom, Mysticum
by Carina Lawrence / Dark Art Conspiracy
IANAI is a mysterious multi-instrumentalist project from Jaani Peuhu (Swallow The Sun), which includes collaborations from members of HIM, Massive Attack, Sisters of Mercy and The Rasmus. Through Jaani’s vision and the impressive array of guests, it is no surprise this debut album ‘Sunir’ embodies many sounds and influences, taking you on a beautiful, transcendent journey. ‘Sunir’ will take listeners through the instrumentation of Scandinavia, Africa, Asia, the Middle East and South America and beyond.
Continue reading REVIEW: IANAI – “Sunir”
Swallow the Sun played at Pakkahuone in Tampere on 27th of May. It was the second date of their Finnish tour promoting their new album Moonflowers which was released last year. Kaunis Kuolematon and Edge of Haze were the opening acts (for only two of the seven dates in Finland). It was a solid lineup. Edge of Haze opened with energy and heaviness, and Kaunis Kuolematon brought it down to a more melancholy yet powerful level. Then, Swallow the Sun hit all of the above, including songs from their first few albums that they haven’t played live in a while. From the more melodic “Stone Wings” to one of my personal favorites, and heaviest song off the new album “This House Has No Home”. So heavy in fact, that a mosh pit broke out! I don’t think I have ever seen a pit during a Swallow the Sun gig! It was great to see all three bands at a bigger venue. I don’t believe this gig was sold out but it was pretty well attended. I, like many others, cannot get enough of Moonflowers and it is just magic to see live. I wish I could say more, but this band always leaves me speechless. Let the photos speak for themselves…
EDGE OF HAZE:
KAUNIS KUOLEMATON:
SWALLOW THE SUN:
Photos and review by: Serena Solomon
Dark Art Conspiracy 
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