ROMUN HUUTO 18.1.2025
Text, video and photos: Mikko A
For long time, Joensuu region has been one of my favorite places to stay. I usually spend weeks, if not month every year around there. Most often in the woods. Joensuu city itself has been familiar since childhood. City was notable for its summer time rock festival that had strong indie/alternative angle added to it in the 90’s. Besides mainstream musicians, you could catch plenty of Finnish obscurities. Circle, Deep Turtle and countless others. Especially at the smaller ”clubs” that would host also small punk groups and such. Couple of music related bars exists.
City has now one record store, but it is a good one. Popdivari Vuoromies may appear as a regular music store catering all music styles: pop, rock, reggae, blues, metal, punk, jazz… and so on. Notable is that they have shelves for experimental, electronic, industrial and so forth. I have personally scored many good albums there and even more there are items I already have, but it leaves positive spin when visiting record store that actually has even couple good noise albums available.
Amount of underground live events have varied. Been visiting at live shows of Joensuu city on four decades: 90’s, 00’s, 10’s and now 20’s and notable change is that in early days, anything related to noise was very rare. Cloama and Strom.ec known to perform something. Grunt played there in its early days. Then followed dry years until mr. Tanskanen and crew decided to make things happen. Now more decade later, Joensuu is still geographically far from pretty much everything, yet established itself as city where noise events happen couple times a year. Most notable is Romun Huuto that has been organized about ten years.
Ten years ago when Grunt played in Joensuu last time, Romun Huuto was organized in rental garage located outskirts of city at the industrial area. Since then, they have used various venues. Current one is located in the city center, by the river, very close to bus- & train station. Relaxed atmosphere, where there are no bouncers, no bar, just old wooden building where people can hang out, drink their own beverages. This is ideal. No retarded DJ music blasting on full volume, but between bands there appears sort of the gathering of noise freaks. Notable was, that there were people pretty much all around the country. Helsinki, Vantaa, Kotka, Jyväskylä, Lappeenranta, Oulu, Lahti and of course also locals. Also several who I do not know. Total number of people probably 50, with 20% ladies who many appeared to come to see the bands.
There was no stage, but it wasn’t needed in this sized venue. It was packed pretty full, but not too full, so you could actually see each performer. Sound system with couple decent speakers plus subwoofer made really nice sound. Powerful, but also with nuance and detail. Video projections was used by some of the artists, most focusing solely on creation of sound. Since there would not be the usual bar environment drunkards chatting and yelling, you had no distractions.
Event started in time with organizers own project, Vigilantism. Man is also known as Edge of Decay. Vigilantism is less about smashing metal junk, more about darker industrial noise and power electronics. Very old school approach with feedback and mid-paced flanger waves being very dominant elements of sound. Slightly distant, distorted vocals and tonality of sound made me think a bit some works of Ramleh. This has never really been name that I’d think when I listen to Vigilantism recorded material. Recorded material tends to have more control, more detail. Live set was focusing on couple of ideas that were physically created on the spot. Sound of guitar multi-efx floor unit is very ”90’s” and there is that… electric and hissing quality to many of sounds that go through it. Its not like Vigilantism would sound like Strom.ec or Cloama, but those projects often relied in this synthetic digital distortion as means of getting very ”electric” feel to their sound. I remember being shown back in the day one very cheap digital multieffect as the ”secret ingredient” for getting desired vocals production for the early 00’s Joensuu sound. While many appreciate the analog warmness, there is indeed things found in cold and odd sound of this type of ”uncool” effects.
Tahma is one of the newer generation noise makers of Finland. Two small edition tapes and compilation tracks has been published and couple lives shows. Short set consisted metal junk object, mixer-feedback and some source sounds played from noise now playing -quality tape player. Tahma told that this was the first show he was using mixer feedback-loop along broken junk noise and source tape. At best, mixer noise can be brilliant. Think of the best of Merzbow releases, and you got example there. At worst, god damn… No-input mixer noise can be atrocious, if maker has no taste on what is good and what sucks ass. Luckily, Tahma is true noise devotee who has taste and idea what to do. His short set started with surprise that feedback was totally unlike in the soundcheck, yet was gradually getting better and better and louder until reached conclusion of how far this minimal set up allows it to go. Nice.
Moozzhead was not part of original line-up. He was coming to see the bands and asking organizer some recommendations for cheap hostel to stay and got replied with ”If you are coming, you should play at the gig!” -type message. Lucky for us, since Moozzhead is best known for his commitment to do good gigs! Not only he rehearses new ways of getting his electronic storm of pedal noise into perfection. It is also a bit different than it was previous times and on top of that he prepared new amusing video art for the gig. Sound was pure bliss from beginning to the very end. After the show I talked to less experienced person who had come to see the show who said ”Am I wrong, but he really knew how to make good stuff?”. Yes. Moozzheads talent is so visible and audible, that even people who are yet to really ”understand” noise, fan FEEL it.
This was officially the first Giärmäi live gig, but while ago I was at private event where he played pretty much same material. At that event, I was zoning out, eyes closed, on border of sleep, in almost meditative states. Now at this event, I was keeping mind clear and alerts. Despite the private event was excellent as well, watching when man crafts his mystical, sort of rural industrial with twist of folk instruments and spoken word, was really good with clear head. Finnish noise podcast, Noisecast, reported of this event saying that gig could have lasted way longer. Many of the sounds were so tasty, that he could have had slower transitions. I am sure it would work out even twice as long gig. Perhaps this way there is less of just floating in great moments and more intent of composition? Set was coherent and he was always working on things. Sometimes sound came from reel-to-reel source tapes, sometimes acoustic instruments, or electronic processing and analog synth. It was really good that he did not play in front of the screen, but next to wooden wall. Plain textures of wood was much more suitable for Giärmäi than video projection.
Stinkfinger was born out as sort of side-project of Unclean. At least that’s how it seemed to be as some later days Unclean started to reach level of harsh noise. After artists decided to abandon the usual slow waving synth tones and bleakness and just pick up another name for work that went straight to harsh noise, it was really good move. There is more wink in the eye type perspective, and hands-on approach and Stinkfinger became instantly hit – so to say. What he does, is nothing new, but perhaps even a bit ”old”, in a good way. Recordings are probably all unedited studio-live. Created with small amount of pedals and focus is in classic timeless elements. His use of delay pedal reminded me instantly of some of Ramirez mid 90’s tapes. Recording quality, and the balls to really do it that simple. As if material would mainly be distortion pedal and delay, yet STILL make it work. This type of minimalism requires taste and vision, plus picking up the pedals that work. Right kind of delay, that you can make very vivid changes that mutate the noise in good ways. Right kind of distortion or overdrive that will keep good amount of source and has good timbre. Stinkfinger did exactly that. Comparing Moozzhead and Stinkfinger is not about evaluating which is better, but easy example how ”contact mic junk + pedal noise” can be so different. Moozzhead with his spaceship like Merzbowian playfulness and Stinkfinger with his Ramirez -esque blunt harsh attack that works with more restricted palette of sounds, but nevertheless with restless active processing.
Aprapat had the last slot. His noise is never pedal noise. Man trusts more on tape players and mixer. This doesn’t mean he would be doing ”playback”. He uses source tapes as well as physical creation of sound, that is being overdriven with vintage gear. No echoes. No neat ”effects”. Just the brilliant sound is the sound itself and the flavor of mixer crunch. Absolutely fantastic quality of sound elements may not be perfectly audible from video recordings. One can imagine that he has not been satisfied with whatever distortion or overdrive, but it has to be exactly right kind of sound and timbre. In such case, noise making can be certainly extended from process of ”playing”, to process of searching and experimenting gear that enables sound to be what it should be. There are always number of people who’ll think that whatever mixer will do it. Yep, whatever mixer might get you whatever sound. That is very different approach of wanting something very specific. Even the earlier mentioned mixer feedback is not only process of putting cable from output to input. The hard part is to find the mixer that actually makes good sounds with feedback loop. Then also learn the possibilities, different routing and how to control it. In same ways, Aprapat set would have not been THIS, if its would be iPhone playback to typical Mackie mixer. Thing is not pricy vintage or that equipment should be hard to get. It is merely about willingness to do the leg work: To experiment and know what you are after and willing to try out unknown gear to find what it is, that does the job. Aprapat clearly is the master on this. Not settling for whatever, but finding out what makes his sound to be what it needs to be. In this case, bulky sized vintage gear is what it take for him to get this specific tone and saturated, blown-out quality of very concrete and tactile sounds. Excellent.
Most people left fairly quickly after shows. Artists, organizers and some other people first cleaned up the venue and then meeting at the local bar for beer drinking and noise discussions. Flawless night in Joensuu is good reminder that even if this means driving to other side of country, it is certainly worth it. To keep up what’s happening in live noise, for Finnish shows, Special Interests forum live announcement is one place to keep eye on. It may not have all shows mentioned, but pretty much all the relevant ones at least.