On the biggest, baddest and most bodacious of the lists, Billboards top 200 list for the United States of America, HIM peaked at 25.

Deciphering all that may be a bit like trying to figure out who is the REAL heavyweight champion of the world, but we think it’s safe to say the band is doing splendidly. Coming soon to some Bam Margera shenanigans near you – check out the tour dates at www.heartagram.com/tour!

Finnish music, design, fine art, theater and all manner of creative output and endeavor will be a strong presence in China from now until the zero hour and beyond. Musically noteworthy events include tours by hard ‘n heavy rockers Children of Bodom (Spinefarm Records), Stratovarius (Edel/ Ear music) and Sonata Arctica (Nuclear Blast), electronic whiz kids Renaissance Man (Wanadoo), Eero Johannes (Harmönia) and Top Billin and jazz masters Niklas Winter (Abovoice) & Teemu Viinikainen, Verneri Pohjola (Texicalli Records) and Iiro Rantala New Trio (Rockadillo Records). 

Stay on top by checking the blog!

There’s hope. Finland will throw you an anchor.

Michael Monroe (Backstage Alliance), the perpetual motion machine previously glimpsed fronting the legendary Hanoi Rocks, has SXSW nailed down. Odds are you won’t be able to swing a dead cat around your head without hitting a Michael Monroe gig. Him and his rock hard band (including Sam Yaffa of Hanoi Rocks and Ginger of the Wildhearts) are playing four shows between Wednesday and Sunday. In addition to the manic blur that is Monroe, Austin can offer you the beautiful harmonies and laid back songs of Kaspar. They are playing on Wednesday night and might be just the thing to help you get over the rock assault of a Michael Monroe gig earlier that day. His band is opening for Motörhead!

Finns at SXSW 2010

Michael Monroe
March 17 8:00pm   Austin Music Hall with Motörhead
March 19 8.00pm   Rusty Spurs
March 20 8.00pm   Maggie Mae’s Rooftop
March 21 8.00pm   Continental Club

Kaspar
March 17 10.00pm Opal Divine’s
March 19 12.00pm Caffe Medici

To listen to the playlist click here.

Murmansk

Until now, non-metal bands from Finland went largely unnoticed. This year’s by:Larm appearances suggest that 2010 undoubtedly belongs to the Finns. Enter the alien and eerie world of Murmansk. Borrowing their name from the cold and isolated Russian outpost, this Helsinki–based foursome invited the selected few present at Rockefeller Annex on Friday night to an intense and passionate sonic experience. Hidden behind a thick veil of smoke and large amounts of distortion their compositions proved to be incredibly well-arranged and flawlessly executed. Their bass-driven sound consisted of countless melodic layers and dynamic changes creating lunar soundscapes infused with urgency and aggression, while their gripping lower-key passages were washed away in gloom and melancholy. Their aloof and enchanting singer is tiny in size but possessed a considerable vocal range.

Joensuu 1685

Brothers Markus and Mikko Joensuu managed to track down another guy with the same surname called Risto Joensuu and formed a band cunningly named Joensuu 1685 (the number has apparently got some family tree references). Their farfisa organs haunted Stratos, a venue on the 12th floor of a building with a creepy view over snow-beaten Oslo. The trio were super tight, generating vintage noise and achieving a remarkably full sound, while their airy take on Bruce Springsteen’s ‘I’m On Fire’ was simply genius. Mikko’s pristine vocals were compelling and meditative - almost cathartic – and their generous feedback psychedelic loops resulted in a dazzling performance.

Rubik

Cheerful fanatics Rubik gave by far the liveliest and most fun performance of the weekend at John Dee on Saturday. Having eight vivacious folks on stage who screamed and jumped up and down for half an hour made for very good entertainment indeed. With a brass section in their arsenal, complete with tambourines and glockenspiels, they burst into infectious melodies and released a great deal of energy. They made everybody in the room dance too! Comparisons range from the Flaming Lips to Animal Collective - with an added Finnish twist.

See full article here.

The workshops feature solid leads from major record companies for all the important music markets on the planet, so for ambitious young writers inspiration is usually easy to come by, especially when partnered with experienced writing partners.

The workshop has produced long-term partnerships for some people and an educational, as well as eye- and ear-opening experience for all.

For more information and participant listings, check out the event page.

Applications are due April 1st 2010.

Instructions for applying: www.musex.fi/fi/event/kiinan-ja-lahialueiden-kiertuetuki/

Further information:
Jani Joenniemi
Producer, Finland at World Expo 2010
mob. +358 (0)400 727241
S-posti: jani@musex.fi

http://www.finlandatexpo2010.fi
www.musex.fi - www.finpro.fi

As we all know, you’ll really be at Finnish Metal Expo/Helsinki Metal Meeting to work your ass off, not to party. That’s just how serious-minded a person you are. Luckily for you and the expense report you’ll need to write, Finnish Metal Expo’s Industry Day at Nosturi is packed full of goodies, from a roundtable discussion dealing with the future of metal magazines and other topics to a buffet dinner and a live show.

Click here for a list of participants.

The Cable Factory Expo Area will be a veritable smorgasbord of everything metal has to offer, worldwide: gear, clinics, interviews, an interactive songwriting workshop with Tuomas Saukkonen of Before the Dawn and all the rest of the quality stuff you’ve come to expect.

The gigs offered at this year’s Expo are sure to cause more mayhem than a busload of lost pensioners in the subway system of a strange city. At Nosturi, Finntroll will release their 5th studio album, “Nifelvind” during the expo. They’re playing with two up-and-comers: the progressively inclined Barren Earth and the 80s-to-the-core Armour.

Over at Cable Factory, there’s no lack of world-class headbanging: Apocalyptica, Sonata Arctica, Amorphis, Satyricon, Hypocrisy... None of them need introducing. You can also check out some bands you may not be as familiar with as the aforementioned legends: the revelry of Korpiklaani, the dramatic and doomed Swallow the Sun, the death metal stylings of Survivors Zero, atmospheric metal by Kiana, Russian metalcore juggernaut Amatory, self-proclaimed goth core by V For Violence, the industrial metal circus of the ever controversial Turmion Kätilöt, grungey and catchy Doom Unit, melodic metal mavens Winterborn and fresh from the Helsinki suburbs, death metal act Tukkanuotta.

And from Finland, the unique sonic tapestry of Vuk. The band is a vehicle and occasional alter-ego for the unclassifiable art of Finnish-American singer-songwriter Emily Cheeger, who manages to throw everything from voodoo percussion to arty Talk Talk textures and Balkan vocalism at her songs. The songs, to their credit, stand tall and stately in the face of this onslaught, so the eclecticism is obviously true expression, not affectation. The second album, The Plains, was easily one of the best Finnish albums of 2009.

On the strength of the album and her performances, Vuk spent a part of last year opening for Fever Ray in the USA.

JA JA JA in London, at the Lexington on Thursday, February 25. For more information, check out the website www.jajajamusic.com.

The Finnish offering this year rides the gamut from cool to hooligan. Joensuu 1685 has been tipped for a full European takeover at many an event and their plans are proceeding apace. Murmansk mines the same shoegazing sheet of sound as the Joensuu brothers, but comes up with a totally different noise. Rubik is art rock as it was meant to be played. Manna is pure charisma and material produced by Mikko Joensuu, the linchpin of his own band. On the electronic front there’s Mesak, one of the progenitors of skweee and a member of electro legends Mr Velcro Fastener, as well as Jesse, the denim and leather hooligans of synth.

The good folks of Music Export Finland will be there, for discussions, the notorious “Speed Meetings”, lectures, debates, workshops… Among the close to 2000 attendees, you’ll recognize us by the huge grins on our faces, because with music this great, business can’t be anything but good, maaaan!

By:Larm in Oslo, on February 18-20. For program details and more information, check out the event page.