Founded in Kajaani, the long-running Heavy Metal Perse has been active for a quarter of a century. At Hellsinki Metal Festival, the group will celebrate its 25th anniversary with a special performance.

Performing traditional heavy metal in Finnish, the band combines powerful riffs, melodic elements, progressive touches and folk influences. Their distinctive Finnish lyrics were pioneering when the group started out and remain an essential part of their identity.

Heavy Metal Perse’s most recent album, Jumalia paossa, reached the official sales charts in Finland, and Inferno magazine named it the domestic album of the year. The release also received positive feedback internationally, from the United States and Germany to Japan.

Recently, the band has been working on new material, but the Hellsinki Metal Festival anniversary show will focus on fan favourites along with some rarely performed album tracks.