DEATH METAL OR DIE!

Finnish Fucking Death Metal Maniacs Fest V will take place on July 7th and 8th, 2023, with an additional warm-up gig scheduled for the Thursday, July 6th. The trusty Rock Bear in Korso, Vantaa, will again serve as the venue for these three nights of relentless underground madness and mayhem.

The line-up of the fifth edition takes the festival back to its roots and consists solely of Finnish bands, akin to the concept of the first legendary FDMM Fest in Pori back in 2015. Familiar classic names are accompanied by some of the strongest contemporary acts, as well as unseen monstrosities from beyond the grave!

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Finnish Fucking Death Metal Maniacs Fest 5
Rock Bear - Korso, Vantaa

Thu July 6 / Worm Up
19:30 DAMNGOD
21:00 LARVAE (IT/RO)
22:00 KUSIPÄÄ

Fri July 7 / Day 1
18:00 LIE IN RUINS
19:15 PESTIGORE
20:15 CEREBRUM
21:15 BLOOD CHALICE
22:00 THROMDARR
23:00 NECROPSY
00:30 INFERIA

Sat July 8 / Day 2
17:00 LANTERN
18:15 CHARNEL RIFT
19:00 CADAVERIC INCUBATOR
20:00 GOD FORSAKEN
21:00 RIPPIKOULU
22:00 Surprise act
23:00 TENEBRAE
00:00 TORSOFUCK

Tickets: https://events.liveto.io/events/finnish ... acs-fest-5
Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/2581115635357920
Website: https://www.rockbear.fi/fdmm-fest-5/

Gathering a wide breadth of the sickest Finnish underground madness from across four decades, Finnish Fucking Death Metal Maniacs present the first 11 names of the 2023 festival line-up!

With their roots stretching as far back as 1987, NECROPSY from Lahti are among the oldest Finnish death metal bands. Despite releasing several demos and a split LP with Demigod in the early 90s, Necropsy’s debut full-length "Bloodwork" didn’t appear until 2011, with a nearly 15-year period of dormancy in between. However, the band has remained productive ever since, pushing into an even more brutal direction in the new millennium. Their latest output, the “Exitus” mini-album from 2020, is a down-tempo bulldozer that sees the band at their heaviest, showing that even after more than thirty years, Necropsy keep finding new angles to their art of butchery.

Ever since the band’s unexpected return in 2014, RIPPIKOULU and Finnish Death Metal Maniacs have walked together, with the band setting foot on stage for the first time in over two decades at FDMM ’15, and appearing at all subsequent editions of the festival. The fifth one will not break this tradition, as Rippikoulu have been evoked to deliver yet another black ceremony of their revered death-doom in Vantaa in July 2023. As the band’s performances at FDMM and various international metal fests over the years have shown, Rippikoulu’s ability to tap into that crushing gloom which spawned the early 90’s cult recording “Musta seremonia” has not waned, but quite the opposite.

Combining the sharp vitriol of black metal and the pummeling force of death metal, BLOOD CHALICE is a newer outfit from Pori that truly lives up to buzzwords such as "brutal" and "bestial". Their music isn't merely speed and savagery, though, as they also know how to slow down, occasionally submerging the listener in hypnotic heaviness before escalating back into all-out apocalyptic carnage. The recently unleashed second album "The Blasphemous Psalms of Cannibalism" is their strongest display of force to date, and as those who have witnessed the quartet live are well aware of, Blood Chalice also have the proficiency and presence to deliver their barbaric assaults on stage with exceptional conviction.

THROMDARR is a name that has remained marginal even in their domestic scene, despite having a long history that stretches back to the dawn of Finnish black/death metal. Formed in Riihimäki in 1989 under the name Necrobiosis (not to be confused with the other Necrobiosis from Uusikaupunki), the early 90s saw the band update their moniker to a more original one, as their style had begun to evolve to a darker, more atmospheric direction both musically and thematically. Thromdarr released several demos and played numerous gigs throughout the 90s, culminating with the release of their debut album "Northstorm Arrives" in 2000. Despite seemingly long periods of silence, the band hasn't died in the new millennium either, coming out with their second full-length "Electric Hellfire" in 2011. More recently, summer 2022 saw the release of "Midwinter Frost", a complete collection of their 90's demo tapes, showing the band's evolution from raw death metal to an atmospheric yet fierce fusion of the icy bite of black metal and the epic melodicism of heavy metal. However, Thromdarr aren’t only reminiscing the past but also composing new material, and FDMM Fest V will offer a rare chance to check out the current live condition of these largely unsung veterans.

Although the origins of CADAVERIC INCUBATOR date back to 2004, and their line-up consists of seasoned maniacs that have been around since death metal's early days, it's in the last half a decade or so that the band has established their spot among the most ripping deathgrind acts of today, spewing out a steady stream of quality releases and playing numerous punishing shows domestically and internationally. Proudly inspired by the old school masters of putridity, from Autopsy to Xysma, this power trio doesn't try to reinvent the breaking wheel, but they execute their gory craft with an irresistibly rotten touch that should appeal to anyone with a taste for morbid aural decay.

Those with eyes and ears for the demo scene of early Finnish death metal should be well familiar with the fast, straightforward and brutal sonic slime of PESTIGORE. The band actually showed their first signs of reanimation after more than two decades of slumber at FDMM Fest I and II, and have remained steadily active since, playing occasional gigs while carefully crafting new material. Following an unfortunate last-minute cancellation at the previous edition due to illness, 2023 will mark Pestigore’s return to the ranks of Finnish Death Metal Maniacs, and you can be sure that they’ll be taking no prisoners.

Formed in 1989, INFERIA is the most relentless exception in the fragmented history of Finnish death metal, having squirted out new releases semi-steadily throughout their three decades of debauchery, with the 2022 album "Grind Cumpaign" being the group's latest show of potency. While the early material was more in the average death metal vein both musically and thematically, over the years the grindcore elements have increased, and the lyrics moved to exclusively concentrate on mainman Jani Huttunen’s undying passion for pornography. After extensively spraying their seed all over Europe and South America, these Lahti perverts have developed into a well-lubed and deadly live unit, so prepare for an assault that is as intense as it is exhilarating, when Finland's premiere porngrinders ram their way in!

In addition to more musically grinding outfits such as Inferia and Lifeless Vomit, the 90's underground scene in Lahti produced some truly demented racket as well, such as the noisecore of YESMEANSYES. The group terrorized Finland with several live gigs and made a handful of recordings, appearing on various split releases as well as their own '95 EP, which packed 88 "songs" on a seven-inch vinyl. After decades of dormancy, they will make an unexpected return to the stage to rape your music-loving ears at FDMM Fest V!

With their first public demos coming out already in 2005-06, LIE IN RUINS were at the forefront of the resurgence of Finnish death metal, yet have hardly received the attention they deserve. Somehow Lie in Ruins have never played at Finnish Death Metal Maniacs either, but this will be rectified in 2023! Evolving from their raw beginnings heavily influenced by classic Swedish death metal, the band have come to develop a murky and ominous sound of their own. After the ambitiously lengthy second full-length "Towards Divine Death" and the following one-song EP "Demise", the third album "Floating in Timeless Streams" sees the band return to a punchier format, where the suffocating darkness and the eerie guitar melodies come together to reach an unholy equilibrium.

Ranking among the most distinguished names of the contemporary underground, Kuopio's LANTERN have already 15 years and three impressive full-lengths under their belt. Despite conveniently fitting under the black/death metal categorization, their style comes off as intuitive and innovative, combining possessed roars, ghastly lead work and unpredictable structures, all with a thick layer of bonedust on top. Since early on, Lantern have been conjuring up their unique nightmarish vision, weaving primordial chaos and otherworldly obscurity into a coherent sonic form, yet never taming the dangerous essence that makes it so alluring. Equally captivating on stage as on record, Lantern will take you to the depths, and beyond.

The first 15 years of COPROFAGI haven't been quite as prominent or productive, but somehow these disease-ridden partyraptors still keep crawling through the gutters of Jupperi. Their punky scumfuc death metal brings a foul stench of a more primitive kind to the festival line-up, one that might require more than a few beers to stomach. Those into GG Allin, the filthier end of Autopsy and such should feel right at home, though. Finnish death metal of the 2000s isn't all sophisticated, spiritual and shit, you see.

More bands to be announced in early 2023! Expect anything from deadly rockin' to cannibalistic violence of the most disgusting kind...

Shitmas is coming early this year, as we unveil the addition of what is without a doubt the sickest and most brutal bunch of gorehounds to ever hail from Finland. You guessed it right: after more than a decade of dormancy, TORSOFUCK is back in action! The same deranged duo of Mikko and Jarkko that brought us the infamous freak fuck fest of "Erotic Diarrhea Fantasy" has reunited and recorded the new album "Postpartum Exstasy" to be unleashed soon. The year 2023 will mark the band's return to spreading their disgusting filth on stage as well, starting at Finnish Torsofucking Death Metal Maniacs 5!

As a special guest for Thursday's warm-up gig, we've summoned the deranged death/doom duo LARVAE from Bucharest, Romania. Having released its debut tape as recently as in 2020, this cadaver is a fresh one, but commanded by Lucilia Sericata's strong morbid vision and unsettling vocal delivery, Larvae has possessed its own sickening sound right from the beginning. The most recent EP "Acid Horror Cult" is another testimony to this, crushing your bones and your sanity alike. Larvae's first appearance on Finnish soil will no doubt have an equally devastating impact, making Thursday's pre-feast a must for all of you doomed maniacs!

Another up-and-coming twosome to get your corpses warmed up comes from Finland, and goes by the deceptive moniker of FLORIDIAN HIPPIES. Don't be fooled, though, sonically these guys take you back to the very dawn of Finnish death metal and grindcore, when a little band called Repulse started grinding away somewhere in rural Naantali in 1988... Despite their loyally primitive old school approach, Floridian Hippies' latest EP "Fuel Injected" presents a band that is shamelessly infectious, youthfully fun, and charmingly authentic.

The third Thursday act is a longer-running one, as DAMNGOD is back in business, more pissed off than ever. Those who have followed the Finnish underground slightly longer should remember these Lahti death metallers from their most active years around 2008–2012, when they put out two full-lengths and a handful of shorter releases. Now after a decade of laying low, the band has regrouped with a new line-up, and punishing new material is on its way. Spattered with hefty amounts of Entombedian groove, Damngod's coarse outlaw death metal is a boot in the face, best served in the flesh!

Line-up finalized with three more bands! Daily running orders to be announced during the spring.

CEREBRUM from Turku is one of the largely unsung names in early 90's Finnish death metal, perhaps for having been a bit late to the game, with the band's solid debut demo released in late 1993, when many of their peers were already splitting up or moving on musically. Cerebrum also took a more melancholically melodic and ambitiously progressive direction on their second demo “Grief” in 1994, which displayed a band bursting with skill and vision. However, line-up changes ensued, and the band faded into obscurity after a few more years.

Two decades passed until old Cerebrum material resurfaced as the “Endless Tears of the Distant Sea” tape compilation, released by Old Skull Productions in 2017. Fast-forward half a decade more, and the time was ripe for four of the old members to get back together to write the next chapter in the story of Cerebrum. And that chapter will of corpse include a live performance at Finnish Fucking Death Metal Maniacs 5!



Formed in 1991, and releasing their second and final album in 1996, TENEBRAE from Helsinki had a longer lifespan and left behind a larger body of work than many other groups of the era. Tenebrae didn’t exactly sound like your typical Finnish death metal band, basing their sound on a heavy mid-tempo groove, complemented with a moderately technical angularity, and infused with a breadth of influences, from doom to thrash to rock and beyond...

After the more experimental second full-length “Hypnotech,” the band entered a slumber for 25 long years. Even though mainman Jussi Heikkinen had stayed continuously active in the underground with numerous bands in the meantime, Tenebrae’s return at Steelfest 2022 took many by surprise. Now that the old engine has been warmed up, it’s time for the band to take the stage closer to their home turf as well!



CHARNEL RIFT from Helsinki is among the very freshest names on the bill, having released their first two demos and done their stage debut during 2022. Yet the group’s course is evidently clear and their delivery highly convincing already, with no doubt or hesitation to be sensed, and the spirit within their music is ancient. Charnel Rift’s occult death metal surges forth with ominous force and drags the listener beyond, with the ritualistic interludes accentuating the trancelike atmosphere. To anyone longing after the late German necromancers of darkness, damnation and death – here’s a treat for you.

Line-up updated!
YESMEANSYES > GOD FORSAKEN
FLORIDIAN HIPPIES > KUSIPÄÄ


After their strong return to the stage at last year’s Finnish Death Metal Maniacs Fest, we’re more than pleased to invite the Ostrobothnian death/doom pioneers GOD FORSAKEN for another round! This time the band will be performing with a special line-up, featuring the bass talents of local scene veteran Lord Gravehill, known from their contemporaries Ater, among others. From the forceful death metal pummeling of their early Putrid years to brand new material keeping on with the melodic melancholy of the ’92 debut full-length “Dismal Gleams of Desolation,” God Forsaken will take you on a captivating ride of timeless doom and gloom.



KUSIPÄÄ from Oulu join us to ruin your fun already at Thursday’s worm-up. No death metal here, but sheer hateful and nihilistic hardcore violence. Fuck the world, and fuck you.

Bad news! What is the actual reason of this change?

I'd like to go to this just to see Rippikoulu and Lantern but I don't think a trip to Finland is in the cards this year.

Same in my case this year.
Anyway, besides Death Metal Maniacs it`s worth to go and see this country. I was there several times and spent copuple of months.
Great country, good people, incredible nature.

With only a bit over two months to go until the 5th edition of Finnish Death Metal Maniacs shall drown Korso in disgusting gore and suffocating darkness, it is time to publish the daily schedules for the fest! Sadly, the Jupperi scum Coprofagi have had to pull out of the line-up, but we have added a Surprise Act in their stead, only to be unveiled at the event. Who will it be? Secure your tickets and let's find out!





As far as I know, Yesmeansyes had to cancel because of a serious health issue.

Floridian Hippies posted about the cancellation on their FB: https://www.facebook.com/FloridianHippi ... MRJ9Z7ohvl

As for Coprofagi's reason for their recent cancellation, I have no idea.