Page "Music of Finland" Paragraph 181

In the field of electronic music, Jori Hulkkonen, as well as Jimi Tenor and Pan Sonic, have had underground success worldwide for a decade.

In the sphere of trance Finland has given birth to internationally renowned DJs such as DJ Orkidea, Alex Kunnari, DJ Proteus, JS16, Super8 & Tab and Paavo Siljamäki.

Other notable Finnish artists are Mesak, Imatran Voima, Mr Velcro Fastener, Luomo a. k. a. Vladislav Delay, Brothomstates, Lackluster, Pan Sonic, Op: l Bastards and Ovuca.

Some of the best-known electronic music labels are among all Sähkö Recordings, Kahvi Records, Dum Records ( run by Kimmo Rapatti a. k. a. Mono Junk ) and Jyväskylä's Rikos Records.

The indisputable pioneer of Finnish electronic music is Erkki Kurenniemi who built his legendary DIMI synthesizers in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

There's also the Finnish underground psy trance culture, which is mostly active in the Helsinki metropolitan area.

The Finnish style ( suomisaundi ) of psy trance music is known worldwide and has notable fan audiences abroad, for example in Japan and Russia.

Main characters in Finnish psy trance are artists such as Mullet Mohawk, Texas Faggott and Squaremeat.

By far the most popular Finnish electronica artist is Darude ( Ville Virtanen ), who gained international success with his chart-topping single " Sandstorm ," and the following hit album " Before the Storm.

" His music is a combination of hard house and progressive trance.

The Finnish Hard Dance scene has also gained some following, primarily due to Helsinki based DJ Proteus winning the title of Best DJ at The Hard Dance Awards in 2004 and 2005.

Finland also has a popular and internationally recognised Freeform hardcore scene, with the FINRG label enjoying large success in the UK, Australia, and more recently Canada and the United States.