The first acts of the second day at Tuska Festival 2025 were clearly designed for the older metal demographic – oh, sorry, I meant to say, for the more seasoned and battle-hardened. The kickstart for Tuska Saturday was delivered by the Finnish cornerstone of quirky and philosophical singer-songwriter music, Jarkko Martikainen, at the Radio City stage. His name probably did not ring a bell for the international crowd, but I reckon there isn’t a single Finnish person in existence who isn’t familiar with at least some of his work. The music aficionados of my generation were lucky to spend their adolescent years listening to the eccentric and progressive art-rock of YUP throughout the 1990s. Martikainen became renowned as the band’s talismanic frontman, and he has been pursuing a solo career for the past 20-something years with music that is by far not one bit less quirky and eccentric than those monolithic classics from his old band. This Tuska performance was a part of his 20th-anniversary tour. Finnish melodeath squad ARION was set to kick off the day on the Nordic Energy stage at the same time, but… c’mon, there was no way I would have missed the chance to see yet another living legend in action! ARION‘s latest album, “The Light That Burns the Sky,” released earlier this year, has been met with somewhat mixed reviews, but, in my opinion, it isn’t such a bad album at all. Still, a legend is still a legend, so I headed for the Radio City stage right off the bat when I arrived at the Tuska premises.
On the stage, before Martikainen and his trusted companion from the YUP years, keyboardist Petri Tiainen entered, you could see a few acoustic guitars resting against the stands and a vintage-looking upright piano. You could almost forget for a moment that you were at a metal festival. The setup looked more like a smoky jazz club setting. Then again, is there a better way to start the second day at a metal festival than by delivering a set of acoustic music that is a fine blend of Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, and Nick Cave with a sly Finnish twist? No, there isn’t. The setlist was comprised of seven, mostly acoustic songs, the lyrics of which resonated thick with the Slavic melancholy of Vladimir Vysotsky, the existentialism of Fyodor Dostoevsky, and a good pinch of dark, dry humor. For the quirky riffs of the vintage YUP classic from 1994, “Homo Sapiens,” Martikainen grabbed an electric guitar. It was THE song that hit the audience right in the sweet spot. There was quite a good crowd gathered in front of the stage, especially considering that the younger metal demographic at Tuska had probably never heard of Martikainen or YUP. The songs were predominantly from the solo albums released under the moniker Jarkko Martikainen. One of the highlights, “Raato Raahautuu,” was a song from the 2016 album, “Ruosterastaat,” released under the moniker JARKKO MARTIKAINEN & LUOTETUT MIEHET. The performance was brought to a haunting close with the fan-favorite, “Valssi Tanssitaidottomille.” It is a waltz that became pretty huge almost 10 years after its initial release, after appearing in the Finnish TV format, SuomiLOVE. As far as I understand, the song has become a popular wedding song – a perfect choice for a closer, then. In a way, the set was bookended by two songs somewhat related to the theme of love. That’s metal as fuck.
That haunting start for the Tuska Saturday wasn’t the last we heard from Martikainen. The thing is, in a galaxy far, far away, he once wrote the lyrics for the gargantuan, vintage hits, “Surupuku” and “Lumessakahlaajat,” by the Finnish heavy-metal legends, TIMO RAUTIAINEN & TRIO NISKALAUKAUS, scheduled to set things in motion on the main stage next. This is one of those two bands that brought metal with Finnish lyrics into the mainstream a long, long time ago. (The other one was MOKOMA, which coincidentally was set to play on the main stage right after these elderly statesmen of Finnish metal. Coincidence? Yeah, right. I see what you did, Tuska Festival…) If I got my facts straight, this marked the 10th time TIMO RAUTIAINEN & TRIO NISKALAUKAUS performed at Tuska. This performance was special also because it celebrated the 25th anniversary of their classic album, “Itku Pitkästä Ilosta,” released a quarter of a century ago. Yes, that’s right. Feeling old yet? I could fully relate to Rautiainen when he chatted between the songs about how the equation of his vocal register getting lower and his mass of inertia becoming bigger with age was pretty challenging. I have also reached the age when the phrase, “You’re gonna die in the pit!” could only be taken literally. The band played that album classic from start to finish, so the flow of the show was slightly different from their average performance. Well, I guess. I’d seen the band only once before, and it was a long, long time ago. “Itku Pitkästä Ilosta” is pretty short for an album, barely 40 minutes, or something. Thus, we heard some biggest bangers from the band’s back catalog at the end of the set – “Nyt On Mies!” from 2004, a new song from their upcoming album, and those two larger-than-life classics, of course. The band sounded really good and despite all that self-deprecating humor about not being able to reach those high notes, Martikainen sounded really damn good, as well. By now, I had already lost count of how many legends I had seen at this year’s Tuska, but these grand old men of Finnish heavy metal definitely counted as one. I guess this was the closest thing to a Finnish version of Ozzy Osbourne-era BLACK SABBATH one could wish for.
Then, yet another difficult decision was called for. Should I go and see Charlotte Wessels at the Radio City tent – she is the powerhouse vocalist who rose to fame as the lead singer of DELAIN, after all! – or should I head for the Nordic Energy stage and check out what the Italian dwarf-metal squad, WIND ROSE, was all about? I couldn’t make the call, so I tried to see a little bit of both. It was becoming a recurring theme at the Tuska Festival – trying to choose between two great acts. At this point, I needed to grab some snacks and coffee from the Alepa container, which was located by the Nordic Energy stage, so I figured I might as well start with the dwarves. What even is dwarf metal?
Apparently, it was high-octane power metal with strong folk elements, like a cross between FINNTROLL and STRATOVARIUS, perhaps? I’m not really familiar with either power metal or even those myriad folk-metal legends from my home country. Yeah, I should be ashamed, I know, but I’ve always been too busy digging the record crates for something more obscure and progressive. Still, I’m pretty sure that $ WIND ROSE is not your average power-metal outfit, even though their costumes adhered to that Lord of the Rings -esque folk-metal standard. For one thing, their vocalist, Francesco Cavalieri, was something out of this world. His vocal range was really impressive, to put it mildly. Then, he looked like that short guy from one Gaulish village that were going on about their endless crusade against the forces of Julius Caesar under the influence of some magic potion. By the name of Teutates, how could this little guy sound like Freddie Mercury and Pavarotti both squeezed into one?! Then, as if this wasn’t impressive enough, the band was on fire. Like one of my friends commented, WIND ROSE is the perfect choice if you want to grab a few beers with friends and put some music on. I guess the band would agree; at some point, Cavalieri asked the audience, “What is better than one dwarf?” I reckon everyone thought that the correct answer would be “Two dwarves,” but nope. The answer was “A drunken dwarf.” Damn right, it is! I didn’t want to miss Charlotte Wessels entirely, so about halfway into their show, I had to say farewell to these magnificent Italians and head for the tent. The band pulled such a kick-ass performance that I might very well have to check out their latest album, “Trollslayer,” which came out last year.
Charlotte Wessels launched her solo career just a few years ago, after a 17-year stint in DELAIN, which was supposed to be a one-time thing as far as I understand. Now, she has released three solo albums in a relatively short period, the last of which, entitled “Obsession,” was released last year. Her Tuska setlist focused on the new songs, naturally. I think all the songs that I managed to catch were from the new album. I did miss the biggest banger, “Dopamine,” which had been placed second in the setlist, according to the Internet, but I guess hearing the second-biggest made up for it – plus, “The Exorcism” closed the set on nothing short of a high note, so I left the venue smiling like a Cheshire cat. What a great performance! The new album has impressed critics across the board with its diverse sound – it is not just about symphonic metal, but so much more – and it sounded just sublime on stage. Not only was Wessels herself on fire, but her band was extremely tight as well. I missed her previous show in Helsinki, in late 2024, when she supported VOLA on their Friend of a Phantom tour. Next time, I’ll be so much wiser.
The Finnish metal legends, MOKOMA, were one of those bands that also played at Tuska 2023. Back then, I skipped their performance in favor of IMMINENCE since I’d seen MOKOMA quite a few times already. This year, MOKOMA was set to play on the main stage. This could have been taken as a hint, I guess. The rumors had it that MOKOMA had pulled such a killer show at Rockfest, Turku, just recently, that it had put the international superstars in their place – and not just any “superstars” but big names, such as MUSE and MANIC STREET PREACHERS. If there were anyone at Suvilahti on this fateful Saturday afternoon who thought these claims were nothing but hot air, they were in for a surprise. The thing is, not only did MOKOMA fire with all cylinders like never before, but their setlist was also nothing but pure gold – classics, bangers, and fan favorites all the way through, kicking off with “Elävien Kirjoihin” and ending with “Kesytä Perkeleet.” This year, some select Tuska performances were broadcast live on YLE Teema, albeit only in Finland, I think. MOKOMA‘s performance was one of those, and I think I might have to relive it by watching it from YLE Areena later. Fuck it, who am I kidding? As long as this live footage is available on that streaming platform, I’m going to absorb all of it, once more. I’m not sure whether these live performances will be available outside Finland, either, I’m afraid. The absolute highlights of MOKOMA‘s show were “Sinne Missä Aamu Sarastaa” and “Toinen Ihminen.” These two haunting performances seemed to get us old thunderbolts reaching for the tissues in the audience. Who would have thought that, out of all the great acts in this year’s Tuska, it was this Finnish senior bunch that would give us the biggest goosebumps?! I mean, Finnish metal audience must have seen the band like a million times already, and still, they caught us totally off-guard – and it was beautiful!
My original plan was to catch a little bit of JILUKA as well as CEMETERY SKYLINE next. Some of my teenage daughter’s friends seemed to dig JILUKA‘s metalcore with a Japanese twist, visual kei as the genre is officially termed, I believe. So, I would have liked to check them out properly at the Radio City stage. Then again, set to play simultaneously on the Nordic Energy stage, CEMETERY SKYLINE was nothing short of a supergroup, boasting members from AMORPHIS, INSOMNIUM, SENTENCED, DIMMU BORGIR, and DARK TRANQUILITY. Their 2024 debut “Nordic Gothic” was one of the best albums released last year, so I just couldn’t let this opportunity pass. Maybe I could leave early and sneak a few songs by the Japanese electro-goths, as well? Right? I thought I’d leave right after CEMETERY SKYLINE’s biggest radio hit so far – the song, “Violent Storm.” Well, they saved it last, so… Even though this type of Gothic metal and broad sunlight was not necessarily the most optimal combo, the band delivered right up to specs. Here and there, I couldn’t help but briefly indulge in those highly enjoyable recollections of seeing HIM on stage, from way (way!) back; more than once, CEMETERY SKYLINE‘s Gothic-vibed hard-rock (or soft metal) resonated with the air of vintage HIM – and I mean this as a compliment. Of course, vocalist Mikael Stanne‘s voice is loaded with gravitas slightly deeper than that of Ville Valo, but the overall atmosphere echoed HIM‘s love metal rather nicely. So, you see, there was no way I could leave early. I kept thinking, “Just play that banger already and I’ll make it to the Radio City stage before JILUKA wraps up their show!” Hence, I ended up hearing all of their bangers (yes, I do like their other songs, too), which was actually pretty nice. Finally, that one banger ended the show – and I did catch the last few minutes of JILUKA‘s visual kei performance, albeit not nearly enough to say anything clever about it. However, I think the decision to schedule CEMETERY SKYLINE and JILUKA to play simultaneously wasn’t that ill-advised, really – I don’t think the fanbases of these two bands overlap that much.
Two years ago, I missed half of ORBIT CULTURE‘s set because it overlapped with BRYMIR, and I just couldn’t help myself, as usual. That torso of a performance that I did see was enough to convince me that, this year, I most definitely wouldn’t miss a beat. The band is one of the strongest up-and-comers in the pantheon of groove metal. Not only has the band rightly deserved a place in that pantheon alongside the greats, such as LAMB OF GOD and SOILWORK, but also the slot at the Tuska Festival‘s main stage was more than well deserved, as you could easily verify by looking at the size of the crowd they had lured at the venue, let alone the way their fans shaked their groove thangs in the pit. ORBIT CULTURE is releasing a new album later this year, so the set was kicked into motion with the new single, “The Tales of War,” released just recently. It has certainly hyped everybody up for the upcoming full-length, already, and the live performance will do even more so. It’s kinda funny that their previous studio album came out in 2023, and they played at Tuska; now, they were here, again, and they have a new album coming out later this year. I mean, it must be a good sign – that 2023 album topped quite a few Album of the Year lists, eventually, including Metal Hammer‘s. Overall, the setlist was a nice cross-section of the band’s grooviest releases, with the oldest song coming from their 2021 EP “Shaman” and the newest banger being the title track of their yet unreleased album, set for release in October. With this band, it is impossible to single out the highlights of the show because each of the songs slapped hard. ORBIT CULTURE has developed one hell of a knack for writing groovy but nasty riffathons. The closer of their Tuska 2025 set will probably be forever remembered, in particular, if not for featuring a surprise guest vocalist, Johannes Eckeström of AVATAR, then at least for being one hell of a spirited live rendition of one of their biggest bangers, “Vultures of North” from the said 2023 album “Descent.” I’m not sure whether it would yet be appropriate to call ORBIT CULTURE by the moniker, legends, but if they keep releasing music like this and performing like this, it won’t take long before it’s more than appropriate. This is how legends are made.
So far, the choices I’d had to make between the bands scheduled for the Radio City stage and Nordic Energy stage had been difficult, yes, but not too heart-wrenchingly so. The fourth choice of the day was: in the name of the sweet mother of Beelzebub, how was I supposed to choose between the Finnish melodeath legends, INSOMNIUM, and the French masters of atmospheric melancholy, ALCEST?! To make matters worse, I’d never seen either one on stage before! So, I REALLY would like to have been able to see them both. Knowing that, whichever band I would choose, there was no way that I could leave in the middle of the set, my choice would be final in the worst possible meaning of the word. Okay, ALCEST visited Finland quite recently (for a show in Helsinki, last November, a show that I gloriously missed for some bullshit reason!), so it wasn’t very likely that they would be coming here anytime soon. With any luck, I figured I might be able to see INSOMNIUM somewhere else soon enough since they are a Finnish band, so I set my course to the Radio City stage.
ALCEST are THE trailblazers of that black-metal derivative which we call by myriad names – blackgaze, post-black-metal, or simply hipster black metal for the lack of a better term. Like I said, they dropped by quite recently on their Les Chants de l’Aurore Tour in support of their latest album by the same name. For me, they are a very special case, along with Ihsahn‘s solo works, since these two acts were the first to convert me into appreciating the black-metal aesthetic in full. I’m old enough to remember the pioneering, Norwegian black-metal acts from when they started to make waves, but back then, I was an insufferable music snob who thought the music was utter garbage. Lucky for me, such youthful absolutism is an ailment of the soul that heals by itself with age. For myriad reasons, I had somehow managed to miss ALCEST whenever they came to Finland over the past years. So, ever since it was announced that they would be performing at Tuska 2025, I’d been waiting for this day to come with the same level of anticipation with which the End-Of-Days Christians are twiddling their thumbs for the rapture. Thus, a disclaimer might be in order here; I cannot be very objective about the performance because, for me, it was just that – THE rapture!
The set kicked off with “L’Envol” from the new album, representing the lighter, post-rock side of the band – if you could use the term, “light,” about their music since it probes a mile deep into your soul even without distortion. I overheard two stereotypical-looking metalheads discussing the music in between the songs, and I couldn’t help but notice how overwhelmed they were. Oh, yes, these French dudes have that effect on people! The rest of the set was mostly comprised of songs from the new album and “Spiritual Instinct” from 2019. Although the new album is somewhat more ethereal than the older material, we heard Neige‘s beautiful black-metal screams, too, in “Améthyste,” as well as in a few other songs. There were also a couple of special treats thrown in between the new songs – “Écailles de Lune” from the band’s sophomore 2010 album by the same name, and in the very end, closing this haunting sonic journey, “Autre Temps” from 2012’s “Les Voyages de l’âme.” The closer hit a sweet spot, not only mine but the audience’s as well, and why wouldn’t it have – I reckon the song is something of a blockbuster in the post-rock circles. It was also my gateway song into the band’s music, so… as if I wasn’t in heaven already, this song sure lifted me there. While the rest of the Tuska Saturday had a good few aces up in its sleeve, the absolute highlight of the day was ALCEST, for me at least. Then again, I’m a Finn and I got the love for such shimmering melancholy from mother’s milk. Now that I finally made it to the band’s show and bitterly realized what I’d been missing all these years, I’m not going to let any bullshit reason to prevent me from attending their next gig in this neck of the woods – that’s simply non-negotiable.
Okay, then… the next act on the main stage had raised one hell of a commotion before their show. The tabloid press were having a field day all through the week, screaming in neon letters how the Tuska Festival were supporting Putin-friendly metal band and all that type of shit. Russian deathcore band SLAUGHTER TO PREVAIL‘s appearance at the festival sparked not only big headlines in the yellow press but also provoked a demonstration during their performance just opposite the main entrance. The signs questioned whether Tuska was the right platform for “Russian propaganda” and asked why Tuska was giving space to “Russian patriots.” I guess the band’s vocalist’s recent stunt in the United States was largely to blame for this public outrage, along with his unapologetic national pride and some past controversies. The band’s frontman, Alex Terrible, had waved the Russian flag during their performance on June 14th in Washington, D.C. He has also been accused of being a neo-nazi, although, as far as I understand, that was just some poorly judged teenage phase from which he has publicly resigned himself since. So, are we going to keep reminding him about it until he’s 65? I mean, c’mon… we’ve all done some stupid shit when we were young and dumb. I know I have, but lucky for me, I grew up in the era before the Internet and mobile phones, so you can’t prove anything. Then again, these accusations of being a Putin supporter and a neo-nazi seem a bit contradictory, especially considering how he has voiced his anti-war views in public since Russia invaded Ukraine. How could he be both at the same time, anyway? I thought this Russian “military operation” in Ukraine was officially about denazification or something? Okay, the decision to pull out the Russian flag in times like these was a little bit ill-timed, whatever his intentions were. Sure, we should be able to be proud of our country and culture without being automatically viewed as though we were supporting the ass-to-mouth policies of our governments. In this case, Terrible‘s somewhat cringeworthy macho attitude in some interviews has not exactly helped his cause. I wasn’t familiar with the band or any of the controversy surrounding the band, so I couldn’t say whether or not these accusations had any measure of truth in them. What I could establish as a cold, hard fact, however, was that none of the most vocal critics on those Finnish online music forums could provide any substantial evidence proving things one way or another. All that I could find was loudmouthing to and fro without any facts. So, I decided not to let any of this shit-show disturb my festival experience, and, despite deathcore still not being my go-to genre when it comes to metal, I wanted to see this band on stage, secretly hoping that SLAUGHTER TO PREVAIL‘s music would speak for itself and shut everyone up. And I think it did.
This Tuska performance was the band’s exclusive EU festival show, and, despite all the controversy, they had pulled quite a few fans to the festival, judging by the number of masks that looked identical to the ones a few of the band members themselves sported. How about the music, then? First things first, whatever the fuck you may have thought about the vocalist’s persona, he proved one hell of a vocalist. The music was just as brutal as you would expect from a deathcore act but, since I don’t know shit about the genre, I can’t say where their stylistic traits land exactly on the deathcore spectrum – except that… they sure had a good few riffages that sounded groovy as hell! Lastly, in light of all this nonsense surrounding the band, I couldn’t help but notice how Terrible seemed sincerely humble and grateful for all the support from the fans. There was not a single drop left of that cringe, macho attitude which the corporate mainstream media seemed so hellbent on associating him with. His short monologue about taking personal responsibility in your own life resonated with quite a poignant aura, considering his dubious past. Sure, I could be totally wrong and it was just a show, but…. I don’t know. Terrible didn’t exactly strike me as the Nazi-sympathizing maniac that the media has painted him to be. He has admitted to having been such once, but I thought anyone was supposed to be able to redeem themselves from the sins of their youth. Since the metal community claims to be all about love and unity, much like the original PLUR (Peace, Love, Understanding, and Respect) generation in the techno rave scene where I spent a good deal of my questionable youth, I would rather see people taking their facts from somewhere else than the tabloids of the yellow press. If I’m wrong about this band, feel free to enlighten me with some cold, hard facts, and I shall publicly apologize and stand corrected.
In a way, it is nostalgic that some of our fellow citizens and those big corporate media outlets want to offer salvation to us sinful metal fans – it’s just like the Satanic panic in the 1980s, or the legendary “Jesus bus” in the early Tuska festivals. For several years, religious fanatics used to station their bus outside the festival entrance to spread their gospel to the poor, lost metal-listening souls. Eventually, their ridiculous antics turned against themselves, and they stopped coming. Or maybe they realized that we metal-loving sinners were just lost beyond salvation. Who knows?
At this point, I must say this year’s Tuska Saturday was about the beauty of contrast even more than Friday. Just think about the emotional, spiritual, and musical transition from the ethereal melancholy of ALCEST to the brutal deathcore of SLAUGHTER TO PREVAIL and then to the melodeath of the Swedish supergroup, THE HALO EFFECT, scheduled next on the Nordic Energy stage. That was quite an emotional roller-coaster ride. There was also the Swedish metalcore act, THROWN, on offer at the Radio City stage, but they did not have a ghost of a chance against their fellow countrymen next door. The combination of the words “Swedish” and “melodeath” carries certain weight that is pretty hard to outweigh when it comes to quality metal. Plus, I gotta say that the band’s vocalist, Mikael Stanne, did something rather remarkable by performing twice at the Tuska festival on the same day! First, his signature Gothic crooning adorned our day with CEMETERY SKYLINE. Then, he geared up on the harsher melodeath vocals with THE HALO EFFECT. One does not simply pass up the chance to witness something like this. What a legend!
The setlist leaned slightly more toward the band’s 2021 debut, “Days of the Lost,” than their new studio album, “March of the Unheard,” released in January this year. The new outing has been hailed as a slightly better salute to the early days of the Gothenburg metal sound than the debut, but, of course, fans were more familiar with the older songs. Then again, I don’t think it mattered that much with this band since the songs were bangers all the way through. If they hadn’t been, it would have been something quite out of the ordinary, considering that the band’s lineup is such a star-studded collective of ex-IN FLAMES members. It looked almost as though there was an overarching theme to this year’s Tuska: “Hey, let’s throw in as many metal legends as you could possibly imagine and see how the crowd goes berserk.” Well, it worked.
Then, it was time for the Saturday headliner, the German power-metal storm, POWERWOLF. The band’s name did not ring a bell at all, but to be honest, I’ve never been that much into this particular subgenre of metal, to begin with. That said, this year’s Tuska lineup featured some pretty impressive outfits representing this highly melodic, theatrical, and uptempo branch in the family tree of metal. So impressive, in fact, that my already ridiculously expansive Spotify playlists have grown larger by several magnitudes as of writing this festival report. POWERWOLF‘s musical trademarks stood out rather quickly, and they sure set the band light years apart from their more generic peers. First, vocalist Attila Dorn‘s charisma and operatic vocals made quite an impact. Second, the prominent use of the churchy organ stood out in the band’s favor. I also noticed that some of the songs had lyrics written in Latin, which laced them with an additional layer of Gothic atmosphere. Nice! Oh, and yes, of course – they must have been the first power-metal act that I’ve ever seen to sport corpse-paint-like facial adornments!
The set kicked off with “Bless ’em With the Blade” from the band’s latest album, “Wake Up the Wicked,” released last year. So, as the title suggests, the band’s lyrics seemed to lean quite heavily toward the standard Dungeons & Dragons themes of power metal. You know, werewolves, vampires, warriors, and old folk tales. Theatrical? Oh, yes. Entertaining? Damn right! Two songs in the setlist stood out as particularly catchy to my peasant ears – “Demons Are a Girl’s Best Friend” (props for the title, dudes!) and “Heretic Hunters.” I must admit that I was more than slightly puzzled when this particular band was announced to be one of the headliners. I had never even heard of them, although I’m not a total stranger when it comes to this sort of metal conduct. Later, I learned that the band is insanely popular in Europe. Now, I understand why. Not only was the band’s delivery top-notch from start to finish, the video-game-like visuals added a nice touch, and the pyros were pretty damn impressive. I guess I must have become softer with age, because the 20-year-old version of me would have dubbed this kind of music boring, if not sacrilegious, even – it was neither written to follow the Fibonacci sequence nor did the chord sequences look like differential equations, I was sure. Instead, POWERWOLF‘s music was a tradition-savvy celebration of strong melodies, powerhouse vocals, and a general feel-good atmosphere. In short, the band’s modus operandi seemed to be about having a good time, and that’s what we all certainly had. What a powerful way – or, Powerwolf way, to be more precise! – to end the second day of the Tuska Festival 2025!
Written by Jani Lehtinen
Photos by Laureline Tilkin & Marco Manzi
