Joensuu 1685 - Electric ocean sailor (video)

Finnish shoegazers Joensuu 1685 have a new video for the song "Electric ocean sailor": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdJppF0QNCo

Rubik to tour US in June

Finnish act Rubik will be touring the US with Christian rockers mewithoutYou and David Bazan:

06/02 - Off Broadway, St. Louis, MO
06/03 - Granada, Lawrence, KS
06/04 - Marquis Theatre, Denver, CO
06/05 - Murray Theater, Murray, UT
06/07 - El Corazon, Seattle, WA
06/08 - Hawthorne Theater, Portland, OR
06/10 - The Boardwalk, Orangevale, CA
06/11 - Chain Reaction, Anaheim, CA
06/12 - Henry Fonda Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
06/13 - Martini Ranch, Scottsdale, AZ
06/15 - Emo's, Austin, TX
06/16 - The Door, Dallas, TX
06/17 - Diamond Ballroom, Oklahoma City, OK
06/18 - Outland Ballroom, Springfield, MO
06/19 - Juanita's, Little Rock, AR
06/20 - M-Lounge, Birmingham, AL
06/21 - Hi-Tone Cafe, Memphis, TN
06/22 - Masquerade, Atlanta, GA
06/24 - New Brookland Tavern, Columbia, SC
06/25 - The Square Room, Knoxville, TN
06/26 - The Madhatter, Covington, KY
06/27 - The Eagle Theater, Pontiac, MI

Disco Ensemble - Protector

Finnish act Disco Ensemble are giving away their new single "Protector" for free via Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/discoensemble

Kiki Pau
White mountain
Johanna Kustannus

I fell quite hard for "Let's rock", my first exposure to Finland's Kiki Pau. As I noted in my review, the group has an uncanny knack for seamlessly transitioning through and combining the pivotal elements of numerous sub-genres. There are a few tracks on "White mountain" that could have been on "Let's rock" (and this is not to suggest the band has been overcome by creative laziness, but to reemphasize the strength of that previous album), but Kiki Pau's newest effort brings in a number of new artistic avenues: on "Just real", The Smiths or Pixies-like tempos and approach is replaced by a driving, guitar-layered framework more akin to the rock'n'roll of the 1960s; the title track is one of the band's finest moments, easily combining elements of garage rock with an almost '70s pop feel; "I fell asleep" springs to life on the back of warm, distorted guitars -- yet another homage to the rock of past decades -- and ends in a glorious, near-psychedelic freak-out; and "Daniel Fulano" could almost be a Håkan Hellström composition (and I'm a big fan of Hellström's, so there is no backhanded compliment present in my words). Yet, as with "Let's rock", "White mountain" is very much Kiki Pau's creation, despite the links that can be made between their music and the works of others. While there are sure to be songs that will have you asking yourself "Who does that remind me of?", you'll find yourself quite content in the realization that, after two fine albums, those tracks sound just like Kiki Pau.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson

Villa Nah in the UK

Finnish duo Villa Nah will be heading to the UK for a few dates in May to support the release of their new single on Moshi Moshi:

05/07 - Metalwerks, Islington
05/08 - Urban Outfitters, Oxford Street
05/09 - The Drop, Stoke Newington
05/10 - Barfly, Camden

Aversionline recommends Upright

Aversionline recommends Finnish hardcore act Upright: http://www.aversionline.com/blahg/2010/04/21/upright-2010-demo-cd/

Deathbed confirm new album, offer preview

Finnish hardcore act Deathbed has confirmed that their new album "Birds of a coming storm" will be out in late May via Combat Rock Industry. Hear a couple samples at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/killedbybed

Gangrenator album preview

Stream a few new tracks from "Tales from a thousand graves", the new album from international grind/death act Gangrenator (feat. members from Dødheimsgard/DHG, Endwarfment, Thorns, etc.): http://www.myspace.com/gangrenator

Sirius playlist week #16

Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU:

01. Masshysteri - Dom kan inte höra musiken
02. TALK 1
03. David Sandström Overdrive - How the story feels
04. Ludwig Bell - Jag är en idiot
05. Faster Katt - Strange candy
06. TALK 2
07. Zombiekrig - Döden
08. Vorum - Eyes burning red
09. Okkultokrati - No light for mass
10. TALK 3
11. Björn Kleinhenz - Dackes drabanter
12. The Je Ne Sais Quoi - Transparent for you all
13. EL-SD - Sösjö
14. Robert Svensson - Beat
15. TALK 4
16. The Aches - Something to die for
17. Meleeh - Trauma
18. Grande Roses - Hell's own trial
19. Underachiever - Keep an eye
20. TALK 5

Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers.

Volcano shuts down metal night, Thunderstone soldiers on

Oddly fitting: tonight's Ja Ja Ja metal showcase in London has been cancelled due to Iceland's volcano shutting down all air traffic. However, all is not lost -- Finnish act Thunderstone already made it to London and will be playing for free at The Lexington by themselves. Read more: http://www.jajajamusic.com/news.php?id=32

Pintandwefall in Germany

The very fun Finnish act Pintandwefall is heading to Germany in September:

09/08 - Grüner Jäger (Band of the week Party), Hamburg
09/09 - tba, Berlin
09/10 - Gladhaus, Cottbus
09/11 - Schwankhalle (Sitzdisko), Bremen
09/13 - Ampere Cafe, München
09/14 - Cafe Glocksee (Ruby Tuesday), Hannover
09/15 - Moritzbastei, Leipzig
09/16 - Keller Klub, Stuttgart
09/17 - Nachtleben, Frankfurt

Cobra announces new releases

Cobra Records has confirmed two new releases on the horizon -- first up is The Man-Eating Tree, the new band from ex-Sentenced drummer Vesa Ranta, who will be releasing their debut full-length "Vine" in September. Samples here. Second is a split between Finnish extreme metal acts Sotajumala and Deathchain which will feature one new song plus one Iron Maiden cover each, with Deathchain taking on "Purgatory" and Sotajumala covering "The prowler" with guest vocals from OG singer Paul Di'anno. That release will be available on April 28.

Katatonia, Swallow the Sun to tour US

Scandinavian doom acts Katatonia and Swallow the Sun will be doing a US tour together in September: http://www.lambgoat.com/news/view.aspx?id=14323

Radiopuhelimet - Globaali anaali (video)

Finnish act Radiopuhelimet have a new video: http://vimeo.com/10789793

Music Doc Film Festival in NYC

The folks at The Swede Beat are presenting event at the Music Doc Film Festival in NYC on April 15 featuring a screening of the Broder Daniel documentary "Broder Daniel forever" plus "Fuck you very very much - A film about Leila K", "Electronica Reykjavik" and more. Full details, including the rest of the Music Doc events: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=347005224972&ref=ts