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Tuska Open Air 2013 - 28/06/2013 - Suvilahti - Helsinki

This was a very special Tuska for me, as it was my tenth year in a row. With this in mind, I’ll take a look back at times and wonder how fast time flies by. This time there was “only” three stages compared to last year’s four, but this was mostly a good thing as there was still constantly something to see and one didn’t miss so many good bands. This year Tuska had an additional shadow looming over it, as Live Nation had their own huge festival, Rock the Beach, at the same time in Helsinki. Especially Saturday’s main act Rammstein must have caused some heavy competition for Tuska. Tuska still managed 25 000 visitors, but the last time Tuska was sold out was in 2010 with 33 000 visitors, and ever since the amount has been steadily declining. This is part of the festival wars as multinational promoters are having their own huge festivals and driving the competition to the ground. This year in Sweden one of their long-running festivals had to be canceled due to bankruptcy and another had to move to a completely different city. We’ll see in the coming years how the festivals in Finland will be affected, but I for one will be rooting especially for Tuska, since yet again they delivered a magnificent weekend filled with awesome acts and good times.

Friday 28th

Abhorrence (Inferno Stage): I only saw a little of these old school death metallers, but they sure did sound classic and good. Other than that I really can’t comment.
?/5



Wintersun (Radio Rock Stage): It really doesn’t feel like summer until one’s standing in front of the main stage and enjoying a massive band with all the other metalheads. Wintersun played both in 2005 and in 2006 after the release of their first album, but they weren’t really all that big back then. Surprisingly, when they were sorta forced to play in 2011, they had amassed a cult following, despite still working on their seminal masterpiece, Time. Now that they managed to get the first part of Time out last year, they’ve started to gather the massive support they deserve. They mostly played new songs, and some classics like Beyond the Dark Sun were sadly left out. On the other hand, it was good to hear the massively epic songs played to the huge crowd, a really awesome start to this year’s festivities.
5-/5



Torture Killer (Club Stage): Three years ago in 2010, when they last played in Tuska, Torture Kller was a somewhat different band. Now with several lineup changes and their best album to date they really killed. Mostly my attention really went to the incredibly crap bar, and the fact that there was just one guy serving several dozen thirsty people. Overall I felt that both the bars and the area layout had taken several steps back when compared to last year.
4+/5



Bolt Thrower (Radio Rock Stage): By far the greatest booking accomplishment this year or maybe any year for Tuska was Bolt Thrower. This legendary death metal band really doesn’t do too many gigs, and this was actually their only European gig of 2013! They also had their own merch booth, where they sold their shirts for only 12 euros, compared to the 20-30 euros other bands’ shirts cost. Not surprisingly, there were a LOT of Bolt Thrower shirts to be seen during the weekend. The gig itself was really good, but not quite great. The sound was exactly what one would expect: old school as fuck. Most songs were mid-tempo, as one’d expect, with Warmaster breaking the pattern with furious blast beats. For me, the intensity and nuances of Wintersun just overshadowed Bolt Thrower and made them sound a bit monotone, kinda what happened a few years back with Nile playing right after Cannibal Corpse. Still, the gig can be best summed up in their own words: “In a world of compromise, some don’t”.
4+/5



Kuolemanlaakso (Club Stage): Kuolemanlaakso was something I really wanted to check out, but sadly missed almost completely due to oddly playing at the same time as Bolt Thrower. I managed a glimpse and liked what I heard. During the weekend I listened quite a lot to their album and I highly recommend this act to fans of Ajattara especially.
?/5

Seremonia (Club Stage): The club stage was again indoors, which is a great thing for bands like Seremonia. Out in the scorching sun they’d have felt ridiculous, but in a dark and moody setting their occult rock really worked. They reminded me of the cult Finnish band Mana Mana, with their morbidly funny Finnish lyrics and somehow twisted songs like Antikristus Kuuskuuskuus (666), a really good thing to chant by the way.
4/5



King Diamond (Radio Rock Stage): Sadly I’ve never really listened to King Diamond. Or as a friend put it, I’m fortunate since I still have all of his work to discover. In any case it was rather a mindfuck to watch the gig with something weird and strange happening on stage. Take for example the old lady being pushed around the stage with no context, or the part where all the vocals were playback and King wasn’t even pretending to sing for no obvious reason. It did take a few songs for my brain to accept his vocals, but after that I was mostly amazed how he still can manage such incredible feats with his singing. The stage looked the part, too, with a castle where he could sing from a second floor. Also, there were no water bottles on stage. No, King Diamond only drinks from silver chalices. Now THAT’s class! Highlights of the gig were Up from the Grave, with a shovel-wielding King, the traditional “fuck the sun”speak, often heard in Tuska, which launched into Voodoo and the insane guitar playing of both Mike Wead and Andy LaRocque. They even had an acoustic double guitar part. A usual low point was the completely pointless drum solo.
4/5



Check here all photos from Friday (King Diamond, Seremonia, Amorphis, Bolt Thrower, Torture Killer, Ihsahn, Wintersun, Tombstoned, Abhorrence, Leprous)



Saturday 29th

Lost Society
I saw these young guys from Jyväskylä already when they were opening for Overkill in spring, and I got caught up in their enthusiasm from the get-go. It’s pretty rare nowadays to see some new bands that can actually give so much on stage, and capture you like this. Lost Society with their old school thrash metal do this very well, and their energy is so contagious that it affects immediately the audience, despite being so early during the day. Circle pit, and a weird guy dancing and jumping in between the crowd are proof of it.
Great job Lost Society, and to be honest, I think it’s been one of the most enjoyable gigs of the weekend. For sure the revelation of Tuska 2013.
(by Marco Manzi)



Soilwork (Radio Rock Stage): Soilwork last played in Tuska 2004 ten whole years ago. Since then they’ve had their share of lineup changes and they’ve redefined their sound several times over. Somethings never change though, and Speed managed to get the crowd going straight from the start: “Are you guys ready for some svedupelle (a funny/derogatory term for Swedes in Finnish) metal!?” They started with their newest album’s opening track, which is one of the most furious songs they’ve made in years. Speed is just one of those frontmen who has such strong charisma and stage presence. Still, it felt almost as if he was trolling the crowd with his comments on keeping the pit going, when they were playing several ballads in a row. Their set was a clear disappointment to me, at least. With only one song from Natural Born Chaos and nothing older, several old fans shared my sentiment. I’ve definitely seen better gigs from these guys..
3/5



De Lirium’s Order (Club Stage): Next up was some local technical death metal. A combination of incredibly tight and technical playing and allover brutality, De Lirium’s Order deserves a lot more than to play on the smallest stage. The hall was filled to the brim and good thing too, as the gig was being recorded.
4+/5



Stam1na (Radio Rock Stage): This year marked Stam1na’s fifth Tuska appearance, having taken the stage in 2005, 2006, 2008 and 2009. This time the theme was Hawaii, with straw skirts and a lot of inflatable beach toys, most of which ended up being tossed around by the crowd at some point. This included a kids pirate ship, which seemed to cause some annoyance when landing on top of unprepared gig watchers. They played a brand new song called Rautasorkka (Iron Hoof) from their upcoming album. It sounded really good, even if the guys themselves said they pretty much played it completely wrong. They ended their set with Paha Arkkitehti, and even had a short encore with their break-thru hit Kadonneet Kolme Sanaa.
4/5



Whispered (Club Stage): I managed to see a few songs from these guys before I had to rush to see Kreator. A Finnish band playing something they’ve dubbed samurai metal, with kabuki face paint playing melodic death metal and some Japanese folk instrument sounds fro the synth thrown into the mix. A rather strange combination, but not bad from what I saw.
3½/5

Kreator (Radio Rock Stage): It’s been five years since Kreator played in Tuska 2008, and surprisingly little has changed. They played some songs from the newest album, but otherwise the crowd was having a blast and the Kreator sounded really good. Mille seemed pretty wasted with an empty look in his eyes and sorta strange speaks, but his vocals and playing were as good as always. A big Wall of Death and an impressive circle pit with Pleasure to Kill blasting in the background, this is how you do it! We will await the return of the Kreator.
4+/5



Lama (Inferno Stage): This year has really seemed like the revival of punk. Just look at how many punk bands played in Provinssirock, and now a punk band in Tuska? Something strange is definitely going on. Unlike the awesome bands back at Provinssi, these guys really should’ve stayed in retirement. Boring and predictable, with crap vocals, this was somehow so completely pointless an addition to an otherwise great roster.
1-/5

Urfaust
The Dutch duo fits really well in the club stage, where the dark and a bit mystical atmosphere is enhanced by the smoking chalices surrounding a bottle of Jaloviina (pretty bad-tasting Finnish alcohol) holding a candle on top of it. Last year at Hammer Open Air the theme was Karhu beer, so the guys always bring something traditionally Finnish and alcoholic to their shows. The audience surely appreciate that, as well as the band, which performs better in this enclosed setting rather than outdoors in the sun, that’s for sure!
It’s unfortunate that I couldn’t see the whole gig (you don’t want to be late for Testament!) but it is always worth to take that moment to just enjoy Urfaust in their live rituals, which in their own way are always a bit special.
(by Marco Manzi)



Testament (Radio Rock Stage): Seeing Testament in Tuska 2005 really blew my mind. I went from someone who’d vaguely heard their name at some point to a full fan during that gig. 2010’s set was really good too, so I had high hopes for this time. I sure as hell wasn’t disappointed! The light’s were a lot fancier than what Kreator had had, and Chuck Billy was as massive as always. The entire band was filled with energy and this was well reflected in the audience, too. The set was a good blend of newer songs like True American Hate and Native Blood and old classics like Over the Wall and Practice What You Preach. It was pretty awesome seeing the Metal Club Mökä flag doing quite a few laps in the circle pit during Into the Pit, too. I never cease to be amazed by the virtuosity of Alex Skolnick, either. The only low point of the gig was when, during Alone in the Dark, Speed of Solwork was brought on stage to sing along. He was obviously completely unprepared for this, having no clue what to do or when. It was pretty painful to watch, but luckily he did catch on before the end and managed some pretty good whoahs with Chuck. Otherwise, this was really good ending to a great day.
5-/5



Check here all photos from Saturday (Testament, Dark Buddha Rising, Urfaust, Kreator, Von, Dr. Living Dead!, Stam1na, De Lirium’s Order, Soilwork, Baltimor, Lost Society)



Sunday 30th

Amaranthe (Radio Rock Stage): Sunday was definitely the melodic day of this Tuska, but there was still some good bands to see. Amaranthe has three vocalists: a cheerleader-look-a-like babe, a guy who’s escaped from a boy band and a more heavy-looking growler who also played second guitar on one song. Their music resembles a combination of Eurovision schlager and melodeath, but the result is just so cheerful and energetic it’s almost impossible to smile when listening to them. Excluding the too repeated use of the shout Suomi Finland Perkele, it was a really good start to the final day. Their outro was a Swedish happy pop song about their home city of Gothenburg, which further underlined the cheerfulness of their band.
4+/5



Khroma (Club Stage): A polar opposite of the previous band, Khroma was dark, cold and sterile. Combining hypnotic Meshuggah riffs with electronic elements they were once again a band which couldn’t really have made the same impact on an outdoor stage. They also utilized a really cool video projection for their show which combined with their music made for a really memorable show. An awesomely positive surprise for me.
4+/5



Battle Beast (Radio Rock Stage): This year’s only cancellation was that of Asking Alexandria’s. Everyone I talked with were however of the opinion, that the replacement act Battle Beast was a big step up. It was still a bit heartbreaking to see many emo kids wearing AA shirts.. Battle Beast has a new vocalist, and I for one prefer her. I can’t really say I like them all that much. They fall in the category of OK; not really good, not really bad. For me they were more background music than an act that I’d watch.
3/5



Betrayal at Bespin (Club Stage): Yet another act perfect for the club stage. This year there were just so many great acts on the inside stage, I really really hope they’ll have it again next year. It’s just something that sets Tuska apart from all the other festivals. The obviously Star Wars named band played surprisingly beautiful and mellow music. They were a bit late, which is always surprising since usually all the acts stick to the schedule like glue. This didn’t really matter though, and Betrayal at Bespin played a wonderful set filled with mostly instrumental songs befitting the melancholic Finnish mindset. Another band who’s entire discography I just had to buy then and there, it’s a good thing they have the Levykauppa X’s record store on the festival premises.
4+/5



Nightwish (Radio Rock Stage): Nightwish played several times during the infancy of Tuska, with appearances in 1999, 2000 and 2002. I managed to catch them at my first Tuska in 2004, when they still played with their original vocalist Tarja Turunen. I had nothing against Anette Olzon, since I think she definitely brought her own thing to the band, even if many seemed to have something against her. This was the second gig I’ve seen with her replacement, Floor Jansen, and I have to say she’s definitely the right person for the job. She has a fantastic voice and can emulate both her predecessor’s styles while still having her own style, and she really has the showmanship needed to front such a big epic band. She also did her best to do her speaks in Finnish, and she did a rather good job at it. Another example of her taking that little extra step to win the crowd over.
This was the first and only gig this year to utilize pyros, and they’ve clearly saved all they could for this one special show, with huge red flames and bombs and even a show-ending fireworks display. This was also a special gig for the band, since it was guaranteed the last gig in Helsinki until at least 2015. It was clear that the band was having fun too, and they also brought along Troy Donockley to play uilleann pipes on many songs, culminating in a dual lead with the guitar. It was a fantastic show, and a truly worthy ending for yet another incredibly entertaining Tuska! As usual, this marks the beginning of a long wait for the next Tuska, I hope it’ll be as glorious as this one.
5/5



Check here all photos from Sunday (Nightwish, Betrayal At Bespin, Stratovarius, Battle Beast, Khroma, Santa Cruz, Amaranthe, Deathchain)



All Tuska 2013 photos here (including after shows and audience):


Report a cura di Markus Karppinen