MUSIC REVIEW: Song Watch - March 2024
March ended up being quite a busy month with regard to new releases, with new material from Mia Hafrén, After Infinity, Kiuas, Coventhrall, Jo Below, Merta, and Lost in Grey all included in my reviews!
I hope you enjoy this selection of hot new singles from March 2024! Don’t forget to check out my Best of 2024 and Finndie playlists down below if you’re looking for more new or local music!
Crimson Sun - “Sail Home”
Crimson Sun might just be one of Finland’s most underrated bands, per the quality of the music they release. Their last album, “Fates,” was a slow burner but ended up being a favorite from that year, which meant that I was very excited to find out that they’ll be releasing new music in 2024. Their newest single is out today and is perhaps one of their most interesting tunes yet, opening on interesting synth notes and vocal lines that are a bit reminiscent of BMtH. Their particular brand of modern melodic metal is really atmospheric and emotional, so definitely don’t let this one slip under your radar!
Dear Mother - “Threads”
I know of Dear Mother less through their music and more through the fact that they’ve really enjoyed working with Tuonela Magazine over the years. As such, I stay on their mailing list and make sure to check out their music whenever I have time, and I rather enjoyed this new track, “Threads.” It’s got a bit of everything: strong growls, solid vocal lines, heavy music, all while having an awesome, catchy chorus that has a lot of alternative flare to it. Plus, I just respect these guys for going the indie road in this day and age!
Infected Mushroom & Mr. Bill - “Rawthentic”
Infected Mushroom are one of those bands that have elaborate music in which I find myself mystically able to find peace. Maybe it’s because they’re the first thing my cub and I bonded over. Maybe it’s because they’re musical geniuses who write music that just happens to suit my taste. Either way, “Rawthentic” is a new track with Mr. Bill that shows off a different side of them, with a bit of a sci-fi flare added to lively, peppy trance music. This is exactly the type of music that’ll get you up and dancing. Incidentally, the first thing I noticed on Googling this track to see if there was an earlier version was that “RAWthentic” is the website for RAW rolling papers—haha!
Lost in Grey - “The Bottomless Pit”
Yet another teaser for “Odyssey into the Grey” has been bestowed upon us and it ended up being a personal favorite from the release! The combination of spectacular orchestrations and incredible vocals that are traded off in alluring lines really just works. Then, the way the rest of the song builds around it? Perfection. I feel like there might be a hint of Nightwish influence in the musical sound, which is also never a bad thing, before the big choirs kick in—awesome track!
Marko Hietala & Tarja - “Left on Mars”
Invoking the classic Alice Cooper song, “Might As Well Be on Mars” is the least interesting thing about this new track from Marko Hietala and Tarja Turunen, who are of course known as former members of Nightwish, with this being the first time they’ve been recorded in a studio track together in 20 years (they have, of course, been seen together on tours and at Raskasta Joulua in recent years though). This new track is closer to what one might expect from Marko’s solo material, though there is a bit of Tarja’s style notable in there as well. The backing orchestrations are really impressive, especially when there’s a lot of 'hard rock in the guitar sound in the verses—and interesting juxtaposition! The grungy guitar lines from Tuomas Wäinölä paired with these two excellent vocalists makes an unusual but wonderful sort of magic. Also… damn, that harmonization!
Finnish Rhapsody - “It’s a Hard Life”
I can’t say that I generally really like Queen cover bands, just because there are too many of them. I enjoyed the Queen Extravaganza when Mark Martel was their singer, but otherwise, I haven’t really been into any of them, at least until now! This is even one of the songs that I’m not so familiar with, but nevertheless, it’s a top-notch cover and after playing it the first time, my partner hadn’t realized that I wasn’t just playing a Queen song that he didn’t know very well, which goes to show just how high-quality the vocals are! Pair that with a punchy, somewhat heavy rendition of the song’s music and you’ve got a really solid cover!
King of None - “Lizards for Brains”
It goes without saying that I’ve really been enjoying King of None’s new material in the past few months, with each track offering something new and diverse. The latest single, “Lizards for Brains,” which came out on March 18th, is a mid-tempo, grungy, stoner-y track that’s extremely easy to love for its hefty low-end and heavy guitar sound, as well as those mellow-yet-forceful vocals. They’ve got a really great sound, so I hope to see them showing up at events like Helsinki Psych Fest, Desert Hel, and Kosmos Festival in the future. Or at least at some clubs, I’m way past-due to hear these guys on stage, as it’s clear that I really like what they’re doing with their sound.
Night People - A Heavy Metal Tribute - “Night People”
Speaking of Mikael Salo and his current cover bands, there was another debut song from Night People - A Heavy Metal Tribute, with the titular song, “Night People,” coming from the discography of one Ronnie James Dio. Mikael has always had a sound somewhere between Dio, Hansi Kürsh, and Bruce Dickinson, so it goes without saying that the vocals in this track are awesome. What’s really spectacular though is the soloing and general guitar performance—what a winning combination! I’m sorry that I won’t be able to see their debut show in April on the 27th, but if you’re free, you should check it out!
Rajavirta - “Ovi”
Now, being the big fan of Lost in Grey that I am, I tend to pay at least a little bit of attention to what the band members are doing in other musical spheres. More recently, a project from Anne Lil Rajala and Jussi Virta has been teased with some promo shots and the like. Towards the end of March, their debut single, “Ovi,” was released and what a refreshing change of pace it was! Normally Anne is heard in the very high-production setting of theatrical heavy metal, so it was really fun to hear her in a more alternative rock/pop setting—it’s a really nice song and a refreshing change of pace to hear her singing in this different style!
Missed in February
Euge Valovirta - “The Game” ft. Oceanhoarse
Euge Valovirta’s name has been around the scene in Finland for what feels like forever. I first knew him as one of the folks from Spinefarm Records, but in more recent years, he’s also been playing guitars with CyHra from Sweden. However, it seems that a new solo album is in the making and this new single, “The Game,” featuring Joonas Kosonen and Ben Varon of Oceanhoarse is a pretty solid guitar-led heavy metal track. I am slightly confused about why all of Oceanhoarse are present in the music video when only the songwriters are included in the feature, but that is a mystery for another day. In the meantime, if you like your guitars shredding and fast, this is a track worth checking out.
Thanks for following along! Here’s the backlog of articles from 2024:
New Song Watch - January 2024
New Song Watch - February 2024
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