Hellsinki Industrial Festival is a yearly festival showcasing industrial metal, darkwave, and various other forms of electronic music from the darker end of the spectrum. The 2024 edition of the festival took place on Friday and Saturday, November 8th and 9th. For this year, the festival found a new home at the Tiivistämö quarters in the Suvilahti area. Many visitors seemed to miss the old venue at Ääniwalli, with its slightly more rustic, industrial feel and somewhat less spacious surroundings. Nevertheless, the lineup promised a lot of exciting performances and some genre-crossing surprises.
On the opening day, Friday, November 8th, 2024, the festival began with LIRPO, a self-proclaimed punk-industrial group. Their material was quite varied: one song echoed the style of RAMMSTEIN, another leaned towards indie rock, and a third flirted with hardcore punk. The best of their material was very good indeed, but it seems the band is still refining their style.
Next up, BLASTROMEN opened the main stage with their DJ set. They brought the more danceable side of the festival to life with an electro set. The crowd started filling the venue, and the festival was off to a great start.
On the smaller stage, BEDLESS BONES from Estonia delivered a darkwave set to an enthusiastic audience. They were a last-minute replacement for the canceled DIVINE SHADE, but many in the crowd seemed to view the replacement as an upgrade. The smaller side of Tiivistämö quickly filled with eager dancers during their set.
Even better was to come, as the main stage next featured MOAAN EXIS, who also performed at the festival last year. The French post-industrial duo was, for us, the highlight of the day. The cold, melancholic ruggedness of their performance was a perfect fit for the festival, and the artists seemed at home on the Tiivistämö stage.
Back on the smaller stage, the German EBM trio ANY SECOND performed next. Following two very strong acts, it was not an easy slot to fill, but the Germans made good use of their time. The small stage, with its tight, club-like surroundings, was definitely a good match for them. Much of the crowd seemed to take a breather during this set, giving the performance a more laid-back feel compared to earlier ones.
The main stage was then taken over by ALIEN VAMPIRES. The British-Italian EBM group is considered a notable figure in the genre. Their show was energetic, to their credit. However, we were left somewhat cold musically; it felt more like a day at work for them rather than a heartfelt connection with the audience. That said, many in the front rows were dancing enthusiastically, so the music clearly resonated better with some than with others.
On the smaller stage, the evening ended with MURJU-8 performing his debut single for the first time. The song showed a lot of potential, and many in the audience were surprised by the short, one-song set. We would have gladly listened to more.
The two final performances of the night took place on the main stage. First up was NIGHTSTOP. The synthwave group brought a tongue-in-cheek air to their performance. One might assume that at a festival like this, such a lighthearted approach wouldn’t work, but their anime aesthetics and other gimmicks resonated surprisingly well with the audience.
The evening concluded with HORSKH, an industrial metal band. For us, the French group was one of the night’s standout acts. They took the stage with commanding authority and roused the late-night crowd into a frenzy of fist-pumping, dancing, and jumping. It was a spectacular way to end the night! Check our photo gallery of the evening below…
Lirpo
Blastromen
Bedless Bones
Moaan Exis
Any Second
Alien Vampires
Murju-8
Nightstop
HORSKH
Photos by Richard Forsman & Arto Alho
