Zebra and Snake: The Colours (single)
Zebra and Snake’s single combines Joy Division’s iconic new wave sounds with trendy synth pop.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Electric da Vinci
Architects Ville Haimala and Martti Kalliala are setting up house all over the world with music project Renaissance Man.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Photos Juliana Harkki
DJ by the grace of music
Besides spinning at Helsinki clubs for seventeen years, DJ Anonymous is known for running a record store, hosting radio shows and countless club nights, publishing a blog, planning festivals and touring the world playing records. What next?
Text Teemu Fiilin
Photos Miika Saksi & Kai Kuusisto
Kaspar: Kaspar
Kaspar has crafted fragile dark americana including angels, natural phenomena and phoenixes rising from the ashes. Malcolm Burn, who has also recorded with Bob Dylan and Emmylou Harris, is in charge of production.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Chisu: Vapaa ja yksin
The album Vapaa ja yksin has an organic band sound and versatile compositions drawing inspiration from spaghetti westerns, folk ditties, 70s schlager as well as modern electronica.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Helsinki 78-82: Helsinki 78-82 EP
Helsinki 78–82′s sound is based on melodic italodisco, balearic house, layered synth tracks and tasty pop melodies.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Pikku kukka: Pois ympäröivä maa
Pikku kukka’s sound ranges from softly flowing progressive ditty pop to guitar rock inspired by 90s indie and 70s Neil Young records.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Goodbye to guitars
Sister Flo was known as an indie band – until they plunged into the unknown and made a new album with DJ Jori Hulkkonen.
Text Teemu Fiilin
The death of album cover art
The classics in album cover art have always been visual representations of the music as well as gateways into the universe of the album. One has to wonder: is this still the case today, as the majority of music is purchased as binary code online instead of tangible, store-bought albums?
Text Teemu Fiilin
Photos Kai Kuusisto
Whole world between headphones
Helsinki-based Husky Rescue is hard to define with direct musical comparisons. Instead, their music is easier to describe through movies, cardinal directions, emotions, times of day, temperatures, natural phenomena or even last night’s dreams.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Photos Jussi Puikkonen
Manna: TBA
Manna’s second album surprises with its new, edgier sound and psychedelic soundscapes.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Emma Salokoski & Ilmiliekki: Svenska Visor
Emma Salokoski & Ilmiliekki performs renditions of folk songs in Swedish, as well as compositions of poets such as the Swedish Nils Ferlin. Composers include Jean Sibelius and the early 20th century Swede Lille Bror Söderlundh.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Astrid Swan & The Drunk Lovers: Better Than Wages
Astrid Swan’s wry, sarcastic lyrics are hilarious, and are sung to a worthy background of old analogue synth sounds and The Drunk Lovers’ harmonic yet edgy indie rock sound.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Them Bird Things: Fly, Them Bird Things, Fly!
The album Fly, Them Birds, Fly! tastes like juicy garage pop, psychedelia, country-influenced Americana and indie folk.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Murmansk: Eleven Eyes To Shade
The rhythms in Murmansk’s second album alternate between nervous ticking and massive walls. Guitars either weave their rhythmic melodies or bring down their crushing distorted fury.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Belle Who: Can’t Whistle When You Smile
Belle Who’s solo debut contains smart, joyful, catchy and very radio friendly singer-songwriter pop.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Niko & Tapsa: Parhaita päiviä
The earthy and relaxed sound of the album makes it perfect for home listening, but the album also spits out some clubbier disco sounds.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Hannulelauri: Glittering Night (EP)
The tracks Glittering Night and Sally 2000 are filled with italo disco synths, pretty melodies and rolling basslines. Jori Hulkkonen’s dancefloor-friendly remix of the latter is the real gem of the EP.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Scandinavian Music Group: Palatkaa Pariisiin
Scandinavian Music Group’s fifth record picks up where their previous album left off, fusing together a beautiful yet melancholy folk and heavy-hearted country pop.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Villa Nah: VN (EP)
The Helsinki-based duo Villa Nah spice up their dark synthpop with influences ranging from Human League to New Order, still managing to sound mainly like themselves.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Puppa J: Oi aikoja
Puppa J’s interesting mixture of folk music, reggae, Balkan vibes, rock and unorthodox hip hop is topped off by conscious lyrics that capture the listener’s attention.
Text Teemu Fiilin
V/A: Jazz Heat Bongo Beat
The first compilation of Ricky-Tick Records provides an excellent overview of current Finnish names of jazz, such as Five Corners Quintet, Jukka Eskola, Kerkko Koskinen, Dalindèo ja The Stance Brothers.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Girls just want to deejay
The most famous DJs in Helsinki’s nightlife are, quite naturally, men. The traditionally male-dominated job does, however, have some talented ladies behind the wheels of steel as well. Here are four of them.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Photos Kai Kuusisto
Putting the fun in funk
There are probably countless reasons to why Afro-American funk and its derivatives are so popular in the Helsinki nightlife. The least of these is not the Funky Elephant festival, which will take place for the fifteenth time this year.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Photos Kai Kuusisto
It’s all about the motion
The life of a hip hop artist in the heavy metal loving, recessionridden Finland is far from glamorous. Redrama is realistic about the situation but refuses to give in to the defeat mentality.
Text Teemu Fiilin
Photos Kai Kuusisto
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