For the uninformed, I live in Finland. For the really uninformed, Finland is a country, a country which most people seem to not really know about even if they've heard of it. A quick overview of Finland is that it's a very northern country that shares its borders with Russia, Sweden and Norway (at the very, very tip top of the country)¹, is consistently ranked as having one of the best education systems in the world² and has the most metal bands per capita of any other country³. It's the 7th largest country in Europe only behind Russia, France, Ukraine, Spain, Sweden, and Germany; however it only has around 5.4 million people.
Now that you know a little about Finland, do you remember just a second ago when I said that Finland has the most metal bands per capita of any other country in the world? Good. Because that's what we're here to talk about. I love the metal from Finland and it is genuinely a one-of-a-kind sound, but it makes me sad at how many people don't know of all the other amazing bands that come from here that don't play metal. Well, that's what this list is for. I've started out with bands similar to what most people expect to hear out of Finland and then slowly worked my way towards the complete opposite end of the spectrum and tried to make sure that there was at least one band on the list for every kind of music fan. And yes, before you even ask, all these bands sing in English! So now you have no excuse but to listen!
1. For the Imperium
Remember when I said I was going to ease you into this gradually? Well that's what I'm doing! For the Imperium, formed in 2008, are a self-described "Metal, Pop, Rock, Avant-Garde" band from Helsinki who create "action, drama, excitement. Rocking metal music challenged to the limit, and beyond!" who are signed to Warner Music Finland and Graphite Records. The band consists of Hakim Hietikko (vox), Ville Suorsa (guitar), Jyri Helko (bass), and Tuomas Rauhala (drums). Their most recent album, Hail the Monsters was released in 2013 on Warner Brothers and received good reviews, but if their new single "Alive," which was released in April of this year is anything to go by, this next album will be even better.
2. Sleep of Monsters
Sleep of Monsters is a band whose hometowns are both Helsinki and Porvoo that is still on the darker end of this list, but is a personal favourite of mine. Sleep of Monsters debuted in 2013 at the New Year's Eve Helldone Festival, which, you may or may not know, is a well-known and, more than usually, completely sold out show featuring the recently recluse Finnish band H.I.M. Having debuted in such a fashion, this band definitely delivers on attitude and doesn't disappoint, especially since it is made up of relatively well-known artists within the Finnish music scene. Their lineup includes Ike Vil (vox, and formerly of Babylon Whores), Sami Hassinen (guitar, and previous guitarist of Blake, a band that appeared on Viva la Spring Break with Bam Margera), Pätkä Rantala (drummer, who previously played on H.I.M.'s hit debut album), Janne Immonen (keys, who has toured extensively with Waltari and Ajattara), Uula Korhonen (guitar), and Mäihä (bass). Not to be forgotten, though, are their equally talented backup singers known as "Furies" which are made up of Hanna Wendelin, Nelli Saarikoski and Tarja Leskinen. Their debut album, Produces Reason which was released on Suomen Musiikki was hailed by critics and given rave reviews such as 9/10 from Imperiumi and 4/5 by Inferno and, according to the band's Facebook page, they are currently working on album number two.
3. My First Band
My First Band is a band that, in my opinion, should be blowing up in the States and abroad in general. While the band is steadily gaining a fan base across Europe, they still haven't seemed to jump across the Atlantic, which is a real shame because you guys are missing out. The band is comprised of Antti Koivula (vox), Heikki Puhakainen (keys + backing vox), Juho Vehmanen (bass + backing vox), Heikki Kytölä (drums + backing vox), and Mikko Virta (guitar + backing vox) and they've had this lineup since 1998 even though My First Band as we know it, wasn't officially until 2006. During the band's career they've released (to date) three albums, two of which have done very well in Finland. The first album, You Look So Bored, was released in February of 2009 and didn't receive much significant success; however, their second album, Mercury & Glitter peaked the Finnish charts at #39 after release in September of 2011. Their third, and best album yet, is their most recent, Corazon, which was released on May 2 of this year by Sony Music Finland. This band is everything you ever knew you wanted from a pop-rock band and even more that you didn't realise you needed! They have catchy hooks and choruses that will be stuck in your head for weeks, except you'll be enjoying it (unlike some other songs...looking at you "Moves Like Jagger"). While I told myself I would only post one song per band in this post...there is one single that My First Band has released that I can't overlook which is called "Baby You're Too Young (I Wanna Make Love to Your Mama)", and without spoiling too much of the amazing everything that single gives you, let me just say that it delivers on its great title (and that the title of the song may or may not be a link leading to the video for it. I'll never tell.).
4. Madcraft
Madcraft are a personal favourite of mine on this list (though I love all of them, but I have a soft spot for pop punk, what can I say?). They're a Helsinki-based pop punk band that, if you're a follower of Eurovision (it's like American Idol for all of Europe if you've got no idea what I'm talking about), were finalists in competition for Finland's representative. The band is made up of Tom "Tomppa" Nuorivaara (vox + guitar), Juho Rinne (guitar + backing vox), Jesse Mäläskä (bass + backing vox), and Otto Uotila (drums + backing vox) and what sets them apart is their totally unrelenting embrace of social media and the internet. Madcraft is a great pop-punk band, but what is even greater is their interactions with fans. They respond to tons of fan tweets, Facebook posts, and are always game for taking weird selfies with anyone who asks, and, in the digital age, that's a great thing because that is how you get a great and loyal fan base and set yourself apart. Even more awesome is the fact that they are a completely self-sustaining band including, but definitely not limited to, site design, merch, music videos, and music production. To date they have released two EP's, an acoustic album, and five singles, the most recent of which is "Never Had the Guts" which is their best example of unfiltered pop-punk yet. If I were you, I'd definitely keep an eye out for these guys because I don't expect them to stay mostly in Finland for much longer.
5. French Films
French Films is an Espoo / Jarvenpää based indie-pop band that was formed in 2010 and includes Johannes Leppänen (vox + guitar), Max Salonen (vox + guitar), Santtu Vainio (keys), Antti Inkiläinen (drums), and Tuomas Asanti (bass). In the fall of 2010, shortly after forming, the band was signed to GAEA (in Finland) and have released their (currently) one EP (Golden Sea, 2010) and two studio albums (Imaginary Future, 2011 and White Orchid, 2013). This band has a definite indie sound resembling that of heavy hitters like The Shins but with their own spin which always ends up reminding you of 70's and 80's brit-rock. With their beachy-sounding vibes, one would wonder how that ended up coming out of a snowy, dark land where Santa Claus lives (seriously), except then you would be forgetting that we do get summer! For about 2 or 3 months out of the year we get what the average person would consider summer temperature-wise, but with a twist, which is that some places get 21-24 hours of sunlight at summer's peak here in Finland. With that in mind, it's easy to see these guys hanging out on any of the 175,000+ islands around the country and coming up with this chill sound. In the past few years French Films has toured extensively all over Europe, Japan, and the States and have amassed a pretty impressive fan base for a Finnish band, especially a non-metal Finnish band.
6. Satin Circus
Last, but certainly not least, is the guilty pleasure band of the list. Well, I say guilty pleasure, but if you're a 8-15 year old girl I would almost expect you to like them. Who are they? They're Satin Circus and they're as pop as pop gets for a boy band from the Nordics. Satin Circus (which, to me, sounds like a euphemism of some sort, which makes me love the name even more) formed in 2010 in Helsinki with Kristian "Krippe" Westerling (vox + guitar), Axel Kalland (keys + sax + backing vox), Paul Uotila (bass + backing vox), and Olli Halonen (drums + backing vox) and subsequently signed to Sony Music Finland in 2012. The group is understandably compared to groups like One Direction, and while I totally understand that, I'd say that's almost an insult to Satin Circus. I'm no fan of One Direction, but that's because I'm a huge fan of artists that write their own music, which I see as a way of directly connecting an artist/band with their fans, and that's what Satin Circus do (that and they can play instruments...). What I love about it though, is that it's so good you almost don't feel guilty for singing it to yourself on days when you're especially happy. It's approachable, it's fun, and it takes you back to when you were buying those marionette dolls that N*SYNC were selling and re-creating the entire "Bye, Bye, Bye" music video...no? Just me? Fine. Anyways, what I'm saying is that it takes you back to the hey-day of boy bands without feeling dated and I think that's something we all need whether we actively admit it or not.
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