Helsinki Unseen

Photos by Elsa Wellamo.

French musician Gautier Serre is better known as Igorrr, a difficult-to-define, boundary-breaking musical beast. The band’s popularity was evident from the fact that Helsinki’s Kulttuuritalo was nearly sold out by the end of the evening. The latest album, Amen, received a 9½/10 rating from Imperiumi, and my own expectations for the show were high as well, having heard numerous glowing reports about Igorrr’s live performances.

Thoughtcrimes

The opening quartet walked confidently onto the stage without any elaborate introduction. The vocalist, proudly representing New York City, let out a roar to kick things off, and a barrage of blast beats immediately followed. The band’s music proved difficult to categorize, but it was undeniably heavy and diverse.

The group was founded by former The Dillinger Escape Plan drummer Billy Rymer. Various shades of metalcore could be heard throughout the set, while vocalist Rick Pepa’s erratic and ferocious delivery perfectly matched the band’s abrupt tempo changes.

The band also displayed a sense of humor. One song opened with a brief snippet of the pop classic Hands Up before abruptly launching into a grindcore-style assault. As far as stage presence went, most of the action came from the vocalist, who ran, flailed, and gestured wildly whenever he wasn’t busy screaming, as though ICE agents were somewhere in the crowd looking for him.

The other musicians’ laid-back attitude toward performing was somewhat puzzling. One guitarist took off his long-sleeved shirt during the second song, while the bassist spent part of another tune tuning his instrument as the others kept playing. Whether this reflected an unusual New York attitude toward live performance or simply efficient use of downtime remains a mystery.

DVNE

Scottish five-piece DVNE served as the evening’s second support act. The band seems particularly fond of the number three, having released three EPs, three full-length albums, and three live records thus far. A quick dive into Reddit discussions and online reviews suggests they are held in very high regard among progressive metal fans.

The works of Frank Herbert’s Dune have been a major influence on the band, and their slow, heavy, progressive music felt like an armored vehicle crossing a vast desert. Their lengthy compositions traveled through a variety of emotional landscapes. The song Eleonora, for example, featured wistful clean vocals, sorrowful screams, and furious roars. Midway through, the track settled into a calm passage where the drums sounded like tiny branches tapping together while synthesizers and guitars drifted quietly in the background. Eventually the storm returned, carrying the song toward a conclusion of distant, echoing guitar melodies.

Judging by the audience’s applause, DVNE’s set resonated more strongly than that of the previous band. The group avoided unnecessary stage banter and let the music speak for itself. They played no more than four songs, but each one was given plenty of room to breathe. Fans of Mastodon and The Ocean should definitely take notice.

Igorrr

Beautiful piano music echoed through Kulttuuritalo as the headliner’s stage was prepared. The atmosphere was filled with anticipation, particularly for a first-time attendee like myself. Two risers stood on stage: one for the drummer and another for Gautier Serre, whose setup included synthesizers, a guitar, and several percussion instruments. Behind them loomed two enormous hooded figures fitted with smoke machines. The venue had clearly been transformed for a theatrical ritual.

The opening song, Daemoni, began with a slow, rumbling bass line accompanied by a rattling side texture. The sensation was oddly familiar, like driving a worn Toyota Corolla loaded with camping gear on a Saturday evening. Soon the volume expanded until the bass could be felt deep in the bones.

A vocalist dressed in black makeup and gold jewelry stepped onto the stage, chanting ominously in a dark, prayer-like manner reminiscent of a wandering mystic. Before long, he was joined by mezzo-soprano Marthe Alexandre, dressed in a light, flowing gown. Their contrasting voices immediately became one of the evening’s defining elements.

Within Daemoni alone, rhythms shifted from slow to fast, industrial darkness gave way to the grandeur of classical music, and Marthe’s vocals tied the disparate elements together. It was impossible to predict where the performance would head next. Changes in genre, tempo, and atmosphere arrived constantly.

Originally conceived as Serre’s solo project, Igorrr has evolved into a full band, and its sound remains unlike anything else. The closest comparison might be imagining Dødheimsgard and Mr. Bungle collaborating while sprinkling in electronic dance music, Middle Eastern influences, and the majesty of classical composition. To keep things from becoming too serious, the songs also featured cowbells, recorders, and strange animalistic cries appearing at exactly the right moments.

The second song, Spaghetti Forever, further demonstrated the band’s unpredictability. Beginning with acoustic guitar, it quickly transformed into a dark, mid-tempo EDM pulse powered by the combined screams of the vocalists. The vocals were processed live to create the same glitching effect heard on the records, adding yet another industrial layer.

Then, without warning, the audience found itself immersed in beautiful and melancholic violin melodies. Just as everyone settled into that atmosphere, the electronic monster returned alongside the male vocalist’s savage screams. Heavy guitar riffs arrived like a chainsaw before giving way once again to pounding electronics. When the acoustic guitar finally reappeared, echoing the song’s opening, it felt possible to breathe again and wonder what exactly had just happened over the previous four minutes. Sacré bleu!

The third piece, Nervous Waltz, proved no gentler. It showcased Igorrr’s flair for baroque-inspired music before being crushed beneath electric guitar riffs, dark electronic textures, and eventually a relentless blast-beat storm. Only with the fourth song, Downgrade Desert, did the pace remain relatively moderate throughout.

During the performance, Gautier remained at his instrument-filled workstation for the entire set. Other musicians, including touring guitarist Martyn Clément, simply disappeared into the darkness whenever they were not needed. This unusual arrangement focused attention on both the music itself and the performers who remained visible.

Another striking feature of the performance was the complete absence of stage banter. There were no speeches, crowd interactions, or even requests for applause. The only notable gesture came near the end of the show, when the growling vocalist split the audience down the middle with his arms in preparation for a massive wall of death.

Each song could warrant its own detailed analysis, but the music’s complexity is difficult to capture fully in words. Both the writer and photographer from Imperiumi were left awestruck. Igorrr proved to be a live experience worth seeking out.

The performance was an assault on both ears and eyes, yet one that contained remarkable beauty and structure amid its dark chaos. Despite operating in the realm of experimental music, it is easy to imagine Igorrr’s popularity continuing to grow and leading the band onto even larger stages in the future.

Experiencing Igorrr at Kulttuuritalo felt like a privilege.