Playlists

New Rock and Metal from Finland

Words by Music Finland

Published 3.2.2023

The first groundbreaking Finnish rock bands paved the way for future success already back in the 1970’s, with bands like Hanoi Rocks and Wigwam inspiring numerous Finnish artists with their success.

Ever since the late 1990’s Finnish rock and heavy metal bands have been household names all over the world. From stadium sized acts like The Rasmus, Nightwish and Amorphis, to cult favorites such as Beherit and Terveet Kädet, to fresh newcomers like Blind Channel and Cyan Kicks, the list could go on endlessly. Mind you, even Barack Obama knows that Finland has the most heavy metal bands in the world per capita!

On the New rock and Metal from Finland playlist we take a look at the most exciting new releases Finland has to offer. Listen to the playlist on Apple Music or Spotify and read more about the artists below! The playlist is updated regularly.

New Rock and Metal from Finland on Apple Music

New Rock and Metal from Finland on Spotify

Lordi

The world's number one monster rock band Lordi rose to global fame after the Eurovision victory in 2006, with their catchy hard rock hit ”Hard Rock Hallelujah”. Since then, the group has toured several times in Europe, the US, and Asia and released a steady string of albums. In 2021 the band released a massive entity of seven (!) new albums called "Lordiversity". Never eager to lay low, the monsters returned in 2023 with a new collection of songs, "Screem Writers Guild". In 2025, Lordi will get ready to release their 19th album, "Limited Deadition".

Arion

Metal quintet Arion was formed in 2011, while the members were still in high school. Two years later the band was already signed to Ranka Recordings and performing on Finnish television’s UMK song competition, to be a Eurovision finalist. That Arion did not become, but instead their symphonic, modern power metal quickly found fans in Japan and Finland, where the band has toured relentlessly. Arion’s came back with the sophomore album “Life Is Not Beautiful” in 2018 and their 3rd full-length "Vultures Die Alone" saw daylight in 2021.

One Morning Left

Founded in 2008 in Vaasa, Finland, One Morning Left is well known for its unique blend of electro, hardcore, metalcore, and straight-up pop influences, as well as its entertaining and energetic live shows where absolutely anything can happen. The band has so far released five albums: "Panda Loves Penguin" (2009), "The Bree-TeenZ" (2011), "Our Sceneration" (2013), "Metalcore Superstars" (2016), and "Hyperactive" (2021). In January 2025, One Morning Left announced that they would compete to represent Finland in the Eurovision Song Contest with their song "Puppy."

Horizon Ignited

Bridging the gap between melodic death metal and metalcore, aggressive, melancholic and melodic are the important words when describing Horizon Ignited. Founded in 2017 by guitarists Johannes Mäkinen and Vili Vottonen in Kouvola, Horizon Ignited released their debut "After the Storm" in 2019. The self-published album was met with positive feedback and built up a good following on streaming platforms – which led them soon signing to Nuclear Blast.

Moon Shot

The self-proclaimed "true 21st century rock band" with an anthemic stadium rock sound, Moon Shot released their debut single in November 2020. Moon Shot's first full-length, "Confession", was released in 2021, and after the pandemic, the foursome hit the road to promote the album, playing numerous shows in Germany and their home country. 2024 saw the release of their 2nd album "The Power". Before forming Moon Shot, the four members toured the world with bands such as Disco Ensemble, Children of Bodom, and Lapko.

Luna Kills

Alternative rock foursome Luna Kills spices up their unique mix with metal and modern electronic sounds, as well as 00s aesthetics and game music vibes. Their frontwoman, Lotta Ruutiainen is known for her strong vocal performance, ranging from smoother pop singing to metalcore-type fry screams. With a great number of gigs under their belt from clubs to festivals, Luna Kills has also toured Russia and Sweden, sharing stages with acts like Thundermother (SWE). Luna Kills' 2nd album ”not to be bitter, but it helps” (2021) has been followed with a handful of singles throughout 2022–2023 and the band is currently preparing their 3rd album, to be released in 2024.

Shereign

In the world of Shereign, melodic alternative metal meets a narrative that dives into the depths of the human psyche. On their sophomore album, "Black Halo," Shereign invites listeners to tales of cosmic escape, deepening despair, and the eventual discovery of hope amidst the darkness. Shereign is Sara Strömmer (vocals), Joonas Pulkkinen (guitar), Timo Pönni (guitar), Jani Rissanen (bass) and Miika Kunttu (drums).

Shedfromthebody

Doomgaze/alternative metal artist Shedfromthebody’s – a solo project by multi-disciplinary artist Suvi Savikko – music paints a distorted, ethereal landscape, through which she carries her songs with her haunting vocals and a wall of crushing guitars. With her roots in doom metal, doom folk, and early 2000s alternative rock, Shedfromthebody's music varies from grim to comforting, from crushingly heavy to light and airy. Her debut album, "A Dead and Aimless Hum" (2020), has been followed by “Amare” (2023) and "Whisper and Wane" (2025). Savikko has also produced darkwave music under the name 1X4X44R and composed music for the Love Shore game.

Moshimoshi

Helsinki's four-piece moshimoshi draws their biggest influences from the US emo scene, counting bands such as Algernon Cadwallader, Cap’n Jazz, The Mars Volta, and At The Drive-In as their main paragons. Their music combines melodic indie pop, mathematically precise jazz elements, and punk-inspired raw emotion, best audible on vocalist Aatu Kovanen’s screamo squall. Playing together in various projects over the years has trained the quartet into a tight-knit ensemble. Moshimoshi’s debut EP, released in early 2021, was followed by the band's first full-length in 2023.

Ginger Evil

“From Foo Fighters to Fleetwood Mac” is how Ginger Evil describes their sound. Born from the ashes of Moonshine Inc., the band's founding members are Tomi Julkunen and Veli Palevaara (guitars & bass) with the addiction of Toni Mustonen on drums and the powerhouse vocalist Ella Tepponen. The quartet's debut album “The Way It Burns”, due out later in 2024, is produced and mixed by Teemu Aalto (Insomnium) and mastered by Grammy-nominated Svante Forsbäck of Chartmakers (Rammstein, Volbeat, Sunrise Avenue, Apocalyptica).

Dharma Guns

Self-proclaimed "dandy Punks from Helsinki", Dharma Guns play rock’n’roll infused with proto-punk and Scandinavian action rock influences: sing-along choruses, fiery guitar licks, and a dirty grooves. Their singles created buzz within the scene, gaining attention from local media outlets and Vive Le Rock alike. Their debut album "Ex-Generation Superstars" (2024) introduces a band filled with glamour and energy. Dharma Guns' members are formerly known from bands like Karoshi Lovers, Plastic Tears, Vanity Ink and Jo Below.

Messier

Noisy alternative rock/powerpop/punk band Messier was founded in the city of Oulu in 2017. After the release of their debut album "On Malaise" (SideOneDummy Records, 2021), the original threesome was reduced to the duo of guitarist-singer Lauri Huumonen and bassist-singer Antti Orajärvi. With the new line-up, Messier has released a string of singles, leading up to the eventual release of their sophomore album in 2025.

Marko Hietala

Marko 'Marco' Hietala is a Finnish heavy metal vocalist, bassist and songwriter best known as a former member of the symphonic metal band Nightwish. He is also the vocalist, bassist and founding member in the heavy metal band Tarot, formed in 1985. In early 2020 he released the english-sung version his "hard prog" solo album "Pyre of the Black Heart", originally recorded as "Mustan sydämen rovio" in Finnish the year before. In December 2020, Hietala told Nightwish he had decided to leave to focus on other projects.

Cvlt of the Svn

Cvlt Ov The Svn have called their music both "black'n'roll" and "occult murder pop" – which both describe their combination of black metal and pop, supernatural themes as well as musical inspiration by bands such as Type O Negative, Marilyn Manson, Turbonegro, Ghost, Pantera, Backyard Babies, and even Roxette. The band has released music since 2018 for a steadily growing number of listeners, but have not yet played live and also have remained anonymous (a bit like their famous Swedish occult rock colleagues Ghost) – due to being "musicians of renown in Finland".

Rioghan

Progressive metal band Rioghan is built around the poems and lyrics of singer-poet Rioghan Darcy. The gothic-flavored progressive metal group came to the attention of international metal circles with the Blackened Sky EP (2021) and debut album "Different Kinds Of Losses" (2022). The debut album was made in collaboration with Einar Solberg from Leprous and Jonas Renksen from Katatonia. The members of the band include Red Eleven's Teemu Liekkala and Leverage's Valtteri Revonkorpi.

Parashyne

Parashyne is a project by vocalist and composer Tanja Härkönen. Parashyne’s music is melodic and catchy, with elements from rock, heavy metal and pop music. The project's debut ep "One" (2022) was made in co-operation with guitarist Samuli Federley and bassist Strutter. Parashyne's debut full-length "Calibration" saw daylight in August 2024.

Pressure Points

Melodic prog metal band Pressure Points was founded in Heinola in 2004. Their music has been compared to the biggest names in the field, like Opeth, Dream Theater, Porcupine Tree, and Katatonia. The band has a strong sense of melody combined with innovative and dynamic metal constructions. Pressure Points has toured in Finland and abroad, including tours with Insomnium, Swallow the Sun, Nile, and Keep of Kalessin, and also support slots Katatonia, Samael, and Omnium Gatherum.

Alas

Alas is a screamo band from Jyväskylä, Finland. Formed in 2020, the band sparked interest with their 2022 debut album "Uusi vuosi" ("New year"), which garnered great reviews in media outlets such as Stereogum, where Alas was compared to Fucked Up. Released through the Zegema Beach label, the album is described "No chugs. No breakdowns. No metal. Just gorgeous Euro screamo with the tiniest hints of emo-violence”.

Lust for Lily

Lust for Lily, founded in Tuusula in the summer of 2022, represents the subgenre of heavy metalcore, which combines the sensitivity and melancholy of alternative pop with the explosive energy and expressive power of modern metalcore. The foursome made their first appearance on the Finnish scene with the debut ep "Relinquish" in Spring 2024.

Awake Again

Awake Again is a four piece alternative metal outfit from Turku. In 2018, they won the international Wacken Metal Battle band competition. Later that year they performed at Wacken Open Air Festival in Germany and signed an international record deal with Spinefarm Records. Their music is a mixture of metal, post-hardcore and pop. Awake Again has made a steady rise in the Finnish metal scene with their catchy songs and energetic live performances.

Balance Breach

Mikkeli based quintet Balance Breach combines the elements of metalcore, post-hardcore and modern rock – along with the Nordic melancholy inherited in their DNA. Since 2019 the band has been signed to a German label Out of Line Music. On their 2nd album "ABYZMAL" , released in May 2023, Balance Breach addresses themes such as mental health problems, loneliness and death as well as violence between family members and intimate partners.

Ollie T

Poets of the Fall guitarist Olli Tukiainen, aka Ollie T, began his solo career in 2024 when his main band decided to take a short break. Composing and releasing instrumental music has long been on the mind of the internationally successful guitarist, and the solo album "Lost Within the Fire" provided the opportunity to do so.

Havukruunu

Bridging the gap between black and folk metal, the pitch-dark and mournful foursome Havukruunu (fka Talvikuu) was formed in the small town of Hausjärvi in 2013. After three albums for the Naturmacht Productions label, Havukruunu signed with Svart Records in 2024, to release their 4th full-length "Tavastland" the following year.

Rock Band from Hell

Rock Band From Hell is a new punk, rock, trap, pop…(you name it) – flavored band from Oulu. Even though the group is new for the most, these guys have played together since their childhood. Even the band’s name was originally invented when the band members were mere seven-year old ”punks”. In 2022 RBFH signed a recording contract with Central Line Entertainment and began recording their debut album – and have so far released four pre-album singles. While waiting for the full-length, RBFH has been touring across Europe supporting Blind Channel.

Stratovarius

Power metal giants Stratovarius, originally formed in 1985, are one of the most successful Finnish metal bands. Since their formation, Stratovarius has released 19 studio albums. During its existence, the band has gone through many lineup changes, and after founding guitarist Timo Tolkki's departure in 2008, there are no founding members remaining in the line-up. Currently, the longest standing members are singer Timo Kotipelto and keyboardist Jens Johansson, who have joined in 1994 and 1995, respectively.

Himmelkraft

Himmelkraft, the new band led by Sonata Arctica frontman Tony Kakko, came to light in late 2024 after signing a recording deal with Reaper Entertainment. The self-proclaimed "Finnish metal secret society" had been preparing their debut record for a while, and also mapping out their concept. The outcome will be "its own strange new world, where Kakko also gets to tell stories in a completely new, surprising and exciting way", the band says.

Tyrantti

Helsinki-based power trio Tyrantti released their self-titled debut album in 2019 and its epic successor, "Orjaplaneetta", in 2021. Both albums were received to great praise in the Finnish metal scene and made it to national album charts in their release weeks. The debut single from Tyrantti’s 3rd album, "Lihaa Mattoon!", overwhelms with a more aggressive approach, while maintaining Tyrantti’s signature combination of fast guitar licks, relentless drumbeats and ridiculously high-pitched vocal harmonies.

East Electric

Formed in 2022, East Electric features singer Jocke Levälampi, guitarist Toni Kajasti, bassist Matti Vähätalo and drummer Tuukka Ilmakari. They have varying backgrounds from different bands and genres, which they now bring together in their blend of 1970s blues rock and modern, alternative sound. East Electric released their self-titled debut EP in 2023.

Mary Ann Hawkins

Mary Ann Hawkins is a Helsinki based rock band defining their genre as surf rock. Their music combines cinematic soundscapes with menacing rock music. They’ve toured both Finland and Europe and have released several singles and EP during 2017 and 2021. In addition their live shows have been described as wild and fast.

Noora Louhimo

Known as the singer of internationally famed metal act Battle Beast, Noora Louhimo released her debut solo album in 2021. Instead of the catchy, 80s tinged pop metal of her main band, Noora Louhimo Experience's "Eternal Wheel of Time and Space” focused on soulful blues rock with even the occasional country influence. In 2024, Louhimo explored more music beyond her day job with the blues-based jam band The J.J. Explosion.

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