Belated Gig Reviews Part 4: On Volcano & Ultramariini

So, a couple of weeks ago I went out, once again, to see bands play live. The headlining act of the evening was a band called Ultramariini but at the end of the evening I couldn't help thinking that the warm-up act On Volcano was actually a lot more interesting!

Yes, I realize that I have recently been exposed to such ambitious music that it might affect my thinking and reactions quite a lot. However, this blog has never been much about objectivity..


Grandiose, epic, big sounds... Music created in the spirit of shoegaze/indie rock bands and something about it even reminds of such bands as Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Sigur Rós. Those are the ingredients of post rock – and nowadays also On Volcano's music. With classy Christmas lights illuminating the stage, the skillful musicians of On Volcano played an amazing set. This wasn't the first or even the second time I saw On Volcano but now they had really found their sound and perfected their music – I am already waiting for a full album. Almost every song of the live set was longer than five minutes and there were long instrumental periods, but the music was still perfectly balanced... It is the magic of post rock! Also, you just have to love a band that concludes the set with a ”country ballad”. Definitely the best post rock band of my hometown Tampere!

Ultramariini plays pop that could be described as indie but it also has qualities to make it appeal to wider audiences. Frontman Matti Johannes Koivu has been doing solo albums during the past years and performing as a solo artist. I have seen him live probably three times and loved every gig. Now his old band Ultramariini has returned and released a new album called Ydin. I will probably check out that album at some point – and most definitely On Volcano's new EP New Blood which the band is giving out for free!

Free download of On Volcano's New Blood EP
Ultramariini at MySpace