Last year we visited Hellsinki Industrial Festival and we were so pleased by the selection of artists and overall atmosphere that we just couldn’t miss out on this year’s edition. Again they managed to select some of the best that the industrial/EBM/synth music scene has to offer and we were really excited to make it there again! Also it was the last time it could take place at the legendary Nosturi venue, that with its old warehouse look is simply a perfect fit for this event.

We arrived just in time to catch the last couple of songs from Sekret Teknik on the small stage set up in the downstairs Elmun Baari. It looked and sounded like these guys just played a very energetic set of synth based music. An act I might wanna catch a full show of some time in the future for sure!

EGGVN (***1/2)

The second act on that small stage was the Mexican industrial/wave duo EGGVN. Faces hidden by big goat skull masks they took over the room with their very danceable Satan inspired electronic music! Despite their somewhat evil appearances, they clearly were the nicest guys ever and thankful for showing up so early to see their show. It was a blast and a very nice warm up for the night!

Leæther Strip (****)

When it was time for us to move to the upstairs main room, the solo project Leæther Strip was the one to get things going there. The man behind the project, Claus Larsen, thanked those of us who showed up and then got things going. His kick-ass blend of EBM and industrial music immediately brought the heat to the Nosturi concert hall. Throw into that a performance loaded with passion and emotion, including some nice moves by the main man himself and you’re in for a really fun show. Afterwards, the sweaty Claus thanked the crowd for being the best one he’s had in the Nordic countries and making it a great gig with him despite having to open the night.

Centhron (***1/2)

Raise your fists! Centhron is here! With German precision these 2 guys lit the dance floor on fire. Sadly they couldn’t attend with the full forces present on stage, but that didn’t seem to bother them one bit or make them lack in power or conviction. They slammed harsh electro track after track in our faces until you couldn’t deny them and started moving to the music. Cool outfit that I’d love to see again with everyone actually there!

Zardonic (*****)

The act I was personally looking forward the most the first night, was most definitely Zardonic. Ranging from Venezuela, this DJ with his iconic mask has been going strong for about 15 years, traveling all over the world to make people dance to his interesting mix of music. He has remixed some of the biggest artists in certain genres and blends drum & bass, dubstep, industrial and metal into a damn infectious and magical result. And that was apparent as soon as he kicked off his set at Nosturi. The room was packed and the excitement of him jumping around behind his mixing table was soon reflected by every single person doing the same on the dance floor. The beats were hard, the bass was loud, the windows almost rattled out of their frames and the crowd went wild! An act that I could easily imagine making crowds several times bigger than tonight go just as wild. Zardonic, you were as awesome as I hoped for!

Aesthetic Perfection (****)

Headliner of the first night made a lot of people really happy and excited (possibly some dropping their panties along the way). The man with the hat was returning to Finland! Or in other words: American industrial pop outfit Aesthetic Perfection came to play a show for their adoring fans in the country. Frontman Daniel Graves greeted the crowd under ecstatic screaming from the crowd and was his all charming self throughout the show. I have to say that personally I maybe wasn’t the biggest fan of his more screamy vocals, but that didn’t take away from it being a damn good and entertaining show.

Daniel had the crowd eating from his hands and his live musicians added a lot of energy to the experience. Keyboardist Elliot stood at times all they way on top of his instrument and when he strapped the guitar around the shoulders, he came from behind the keys, running and thrashing around on stage. And drummer Joe Letz, who I recognized from formerly playing with Combichrist, went as usual nuts behind his drum kit as if he was playing his own little show for us. A topnotch show to close down the first night and keep people warmed up for a night of dancing to the beats at the after party.

For more pics, go here.