Posts
* Genre(s): Grind core
* Representative Albums: "Cycles", "Still Psycho", "Murder works"
Biography
Finland, like most countries, has its mainstream, middle-of-the-road pop stars (people who sound like Celine Dion or Gloria Estefan singing in Finnish) as well as its musical extremists who cater to the underground; and rock doesn't get much more extreme and underground than Rotten Sound. In the '90s and 2000s, Rotten Sound has favored a brutally harsh, violent, angry, and ferocious approach to death metal/black metal and grindcore. There is nothing merciful about Rotten Sound's blistering albums, which have a very claustrophobic quality and give the listener no room to breath; when a Rotten Sound album is finished playing, one feels drained and exhausted. And while that mercilessly intense approach has earned Rotten Sound no mainstream acceptance, the band has enjoyed a small but extremely devoted cult following.
Founded by guitarist Mika Aalto in Vaasa, Finland, in 1993, the band quickly earned a reputation for being one of the most intense bands on the Scandinavian death metal/grindcore scene. Rotten Sound -- whose early influences included Slayer, Napalm Death, Suicidal Tendencies, Entombed, and Carcass -- started recording in 1994, when the headbangers' debut single "Sick Bastard" came out on the Genet label. Subsequent releases included 1995's "Psychotic Veterinarian" on SOA, 1996's "Loosin' Face" on Anomie, and 1997's "Splitted Alive" on IDS. Under Pressure, Rotten Sound's first full-length album, was released by Repulse Records (a Spanish label) in 1998 and was followed by Drain (also on Repulse) in 1999. In the early 2000s, Rotten Sound signed with Necropolis' Deathvomit subsidiary, which released Still Psycho in 2000 and Murderworks in 2002.
Over the years, Rotten Sound has had some personnel changes; in 2002, the band's lineup included founder Mika Aalto on guitar, vocalist Keijo Niinimaa on vocals, Mika Häkki (who replaced Pekka Ranta) on bass, and Kai Hahto on drums. In the early 2000s, all four of them preferred to go by one-letter nicknames: Niinimaa went by G, while Häkki called himself H, Aalto went by Q, and Hahto called himself K.
HISTORY
Rotten Sound is a Finnish grindcore band, formed in 1993 in Vaasa.
Rotten Sound plays music in the same vein as Napalm Death and Extreme Noise Terror, lyrically attacking social issues such as greed, conformity and racism. The band has been praised mostly for its ferocity and relentlessness, as well as the unusually high musicianship of the group, particularly ex-drummer Kai Hahto, who left to join the Finnish progressive / melodic death metal band Wintersun.
Formation, Under Pressure and Drain (1993–2000)
Rotten Sound was founded by guitarist Mika Aalto in Vaasa, Finland, in 1993. The group started recordings in 1994, releasing the single Sick Bastard through Genet label. Their subsequent underground releases, between singles and EPs, included 1995's Psychotic Veterinarian on SOA, 1996's Loosin' Face on Anomie, and 1997's Splitted Alive on IDS.
Rotten Sound's first full-length album, Under Pressure, was released by Repulse Records (a Spanish label) in 1998 and was followed by Drain (also on Repulse) in 1999. This album was also the debut of second guitarist Juha Ylikoski. In early 2000, the band signed with American Necropolis Records, a subsidiary Deathvomit label for release the EP Still Psycho, which included a cover of Carcass's "Reek of Putrefaction". Paul Kott of Allmusic praised the album saying, "Rotten Sound does a good job, and although the audio production does leave something to be desired, the finished product is well worth listening to for any fan of earlier death metal and more recent grindcore. The video segments are very well-produced, with fantastic live audio recording, multiple camera angles, and good edits." The band toured in Europe to promote the album, along with label mates Hateplow, In Aeturnum and Malevolent Creation.
Murderworks and Exit (2001–2005)
Rotten Sound release their second full-length, Murderworks, in 2002. The Allmusic reviewer Alex Henderson stated, "This 2002 release gives the listener no room to breathe; from start to finish, Murderworks is an exercise in sensory assault for the sake of sensory assault." For the album's promotion, the group headline a European tour, titled Murdering Europe, with support of two Czech bands, Fleshless and Lykathea Aflame. They also toured Europe during June 2003, along with Hateplow and Debauchery. In May 2004, Rotten Sound teamed up with Circle of Dead Children, Phobia and Strong Intention for US Grind the East Coast tour. The band's fourth studio album, Exit, was recorded at Soundlab studio in Örebro, Sweden with engineer Mieszko Talarczyk and mastered at the Cutting Room. Shortly after their release, the album peaked at number 22 on the Finnish album charts. In March 2005, the band teamed up with Disfear for a co-headline Scandinavian tour.
Members
* Mika Aalto (aka "Q") – guitar (1993–present)
* Keijo Niinimaa (aka "G") – vocals (1993–present)
* Kristian Toivainen – bass (2010–present)
* Sami Latva – drums (2006–present)
Former members
* Toni Pihlaja - bass (2003-2009)
* Masa Kovero – bass (1994)
* Ville Väisänen – drums (1994)
* Kai Hahto (aka "K") – drums (1995–2006)
* Pekka Ranta – bass (1998–2000)
* Juha Ylikoski (aka "J") – guitar (1998–2001)
* Mika Häkki (aka "H") – bass (2000–2003)
Discography
EPs
* 1995 - Sick Bastard (Genet Records)
* 1995 - Psychotic Veterinarian (S.O.A. Records)
* 1996 - Loosin' Face (Anomie Records)
* 2000 - Still Psycho (Necropolis Records/Merciless Records)
* 2006 - Consume to Contaminate (Spinefarm Records / Power It Up Records)
* 2010 - Napalm (Relapse)
Full-length albums
* 1997 - Under Pressure (Repulse Records/Revenge Productions)
* 1998 - Drain (Repulse Records/S.O.A. Records)
* 2002 - Murderworks (Autopsy Stench Records/Necropolis Records/Century
Media Records/Relapse Records)
* 2003 - From Crust 'Til Grind (Century Media Records)
* 2004 - Murderlive (Spinefarm Records)
* 2005 - Exit (Spinefarm Records/No Tolerance Records/Willowtip Records)
* 2008 - Cycles (Spinefarm Records)
Splits
* 1997 - Spitted Alive Split with Control Mechanism (I.D.S. Records)
* 2001 - 8 Hours of Lobotomy Split with Unholy Grave (M.C.R. Records)
* 2003 - Seeds of Hate Split with Mastic Scum (Cudgel Agency)
* Representative Albums: "Cycles", "Still Psycho", "Murder works"
Biography
Finland, like most countries, has its mainstream, middle-of-the-road pop stars (people who sound like Celine Dion or Gloria Estefan singing in Finnish) as well as its musical extremists who cater to the underground; and rock doesn't get much more extreme and underground than Rotten Sound. In the '90s and 2000s, Rotten Sound has favored a brutally harsh, violent, angry, and ferocious approach to death metal/black metal and grindcore. There is nothing merciful about Rotten Sound's blistering albums, which have a very claustrophobic quality and give the listener no room to breath; when a Rotten Sound album is finished playing, one feels drained and exhausted. And while that mercilessly intense approach has earned Rotten Sound no mainstream acceptance, the band has enjoyed a small but extremely devoted cult following.
Founded by guitarist Mika Aalto in Vaasa, Finland, in 1993, the band quickly earned a reputation for being one of the most intense bands on the Scandinavian death metal/grindcore scene. Rotten Sound -- whose early influences included Slayer, Napalm Death, Suicidal Tendencies, Entombed, and Carcass -- started recording in 1994, when the headbangers' debut single "Sick Bastard" came out on the Genet label. Subsequent releases included 1995's "Psychotic Veterinarian" on SOA, 1996's "Loosin' Face" on Anomie, and 1997's "Splitted Alive" on IDS. Under Pressure, Rotten Sound's first full-length album, was released by Repulse Records (a Spanish label) in 1998 and was followed by Drain (also on Repulse) in 1999. In the early 2000s, Rotten Sound signed with Necropolis' Deathvomit subsidiary, which released Still Psycho in 2000 and Murderworks in 2002.
Over the years, Rotten Sound has had some personnel changes; in 2002, the band's lineup included founder Mika Aalto on guitar, vocalist Keijo Niinimaa on vocals, Mika Häkki (who replaced Pekka Ranta) on bass, and Kai Hahto on drums. In the early 2000s, all four of them preferred to go by one-letter nicknames: Niinimaa went by G, while Häkki called himself H, Aalto went by Q, and Hahto called himself K.
HISTORY
Rotten Sound is a Finnish grindcore band, formed in 1993 in Vaasa.
Rotten Sound plays music in the same vein as Napalm Death and Extreme Noise Terror, lyrically attacking social issues such as greed, conformity and racism. The band has been praised mostly for its ferocity and relentlessness, as well as the unusually high musicianship of the group, particularly ex-drummer Kai Hahto, who left to join the Finnish progressive / melodic death metal band Wintersun.
Formation, Under Pressure and Drain (1993–2000)
Rotten Sound was founded by guitarist Mika Aalto in Vaasa, Finland, in 1993. The group started recordings in 1994, releasing the single Sick Bastard through Genet label. Their subsequent underground releases, between singles and EPs, included 1995's Psychotic Veterinarian on SOA, 1996's Loosin' Face on Anomie, and 1997's Splitted Alive on IDS.
Rotten Sound's first full-length album, Under Pressure, was released by Repulse Records (a Spanish label) in 1998 and was followed by Drain (also on Repulse) in 1999. This album was also the debut of second guitarist Juha Ylikoski. In early 2000, the band signed with American Necropolis Records, a subsidiary Deathvomit label for release the EP Still Psycho, which included a cover of Carcass's "Reek of Putrefaction". Paul Kott of Allmusic praised the album saying, "Rotten Sound does a good job, and although the audio production does leave something to be desired, the finished product is well worth listening to for any fan of earlier death metal and more recent grindcore. The video segments are very well-produced, with fantastic live audio recording, multiple camera angles, and good edits." The band toured in Europe to promote the album, along with label mates Hateplow, In Aeturnum and Malevolent Creation.
Murderworks and Exit (2001–2005)
Rotten Sound release their second full-length, Murderworks, in 2002. The Allmusic reviewer Alex Henderson stated, "This 2002 release gives the listener no room to breathe; from start to finish, Murderworks is an exercise in sensory assault for the sake of sensory assault." For the album's promotion, the group headline a European tour, titled Murdering Europe, with support of two Czech bands, Fleshless and Lykathea Aflame. They also toured Europe during June 2003, along with Hateplow and Debauchery. In May 2004, Rotten Sound teamed up with Circle of Dead Children, Phobia and Strong Intention for US Grind the East Coast tour. The band's fourth studio album, Exit, was recorded at Soundlab studio in Örebro, Sweden with engineer Mieszko Talarczyk and mastered at the Cutting Room. Shortly after their release, the album peaked at number 22 on the Finnish album charts. In March 2005, the band teamed up with Disfear for a co-headline Scandinavian tour.
Members
* Mika Aalto (aka "Q") – guitar (1993–present)
* Keijo Niinimaa (aka "G") – vocals (1993–present)
* Kristian Toivainen – bass (2010–present)
* Sami Latva – drums (2006–present)
Former members
* Toni Pihlaja - bass (2003-2009)
* Masa Kovero – bass (1994)
* Ville Väisänen – drums (1994)
* Kai Hahto (aka "K") – drums (1995–2006)
* Pekka Ranta – bass (1998–2000)
* Juha Ylikoski (aka "J") – guitar (1998–2001)
* Mika Häkki (aka "H") – bass (2000–2003)
Discography
EPs
* 1995 - Sick Bastard (Genet Records)
* 1995 - Psychotic Veterinarian (S.O.A. Records)
* 1996 - Loosin' Face (Anomie Records)
* 2000 - Still Psycho (Necropolis Records/Merciless Records)
* 2006 - Consume to Contaminate (Spinefarm Records / Power It Up Records)
* 2010 - Napalm (Relapse)
Full-length albums
* 1997 - Under Pressure (Repulse Records/Revenge Productions)
* 1998 - Drain (Repulse Records/S.O.A. Records)
* 2002 - Murderworks (Autopsy Stench Records/Necropolis Records/Century
Media Records/Relapse Records)
* 2003 - From Crust 'Til Grind (Century Media Records)
* 2004 - Murderlive (Spinefarm Records)
* 2005 - Exit (Spinefarm Records/No Tolerance Records/Willowtip Records)
* 2008 - Cycles (Spinefarm Records)
Splits
* 1997 - Spitted Alive Split with Control Mechanism (I.D.S. Records)
* 2001 - 8 Hours of Lobotomy Split with Unholy Grave (M.C.R. Records)
* 2003 - Seeds of Hate Split with Mastic Scum (Cudgel Agency)
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