Allas Sea Pool, Helsinki’s urban spa featuring saunas, fresh and seawater pools, and wellness facilities, was buzzing with events throughout the summer. Among the many cool happenings, Finland’s hardest-hitting rock act, MOON SHOT, took the stage alongside Sweden’s most entertaining rock band, ROYAL REPUBLIC—a match made in heaven. We went to check them out on August 2nd, 2024.
The evening kicked off as planned with MOON SHOT taking the stage right on time. In an unexpected twist, just as they started playing, it began raining cats and dogs. Despite MOON SHOT being a relatively new band, having only released their debut album in 2021, they have already built a tight-knit fan base that clearly doesn’t mind a little rain. The number of people who stayed put and started dancing—ponchos and all—was quite impressive. Credit where credit is due, MOON SHOT defied the rain and brought some sunshine back to the Helsinki area. Their show was filled with positive vibes, with vocalist Ville Malja giving his all in a wild stage performance, guitarist Jussi Ylikoski energetically shredding, and bassist Henkka Seppälä laying down laid-back bass melodies. Drummer Mikko Hakila, the backbone of the band, energetically pounded his drums. The setlist included bangers like “Big Bang,” “Yes!,” and my personal favorite, “Second Chance.” The band managed to conjure up a rainbow, I guess what they say about finding a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow is true.
After MOON SHOT, ROYAL REPUBLIC took the stage. Having seen the band only once before, I vaguely remembered them being very entertaining. While I’m not super familiar with their songs, that one memory turned out to be absolutely true. Like MOON SHOT, they were incredibly energetic on stage, with a rock ‘n’ roll attitude, and seemed to have a blast performing for their fans. During “Stop Movin’,” they even included a bit of choreography in their set. The band managed to play 16 songs, mixing tracks from all their albums. The energy remained high throughout the entire show, from start to finish. The rain at the beginning of the evening was quickly forgotten. Check out our photo gallery here…
Moon Shot
Royal Republic
Photos by Laureline Tilkin
