Finnish band Without Warning explore the dark and the light in an intriguing sound that fuses modern metal with electronic elements and they describe as “modern, interesting and catchy.”
The band started out when guitarist Juuso Javanainen “spontaneously decided” to start his own project due to his love for modern metal. He quickly found drummer Lauri Tuomenoksa, who originally came in as a guitarist, and started out with the name 7 Second Warning.
They spent plenty of time searching for a vocalist before Michaela Tuomenoksa, who’s Lauri’s wife, stepped in with the mindset that she probably wasn’t going to become an official member. However, her superb voice fitted the band well and she was convinced to stay. They were joined by bassist Joakim Keuru and the quartet released three singles before realising they were missing a crucial part. So they completed the lineup with second guitarist Aleksi Rintala, who’d already worked with them on composing, mixing and mastering tracks.
And on the sound they’ve honed since, the band tell us: “Very modern in a sense that we emphasize electronic elements in our music. We take inspiration from various bands but still sound like ourselves. We don’t want to limit our creativity too much and shape our music according to what we are inspired by. But to narrow it down – strong instruments, light and growly vocals. A lot of energy.”
Our latest taste of this is the band’s fourth single R.P.B.P. (red pill, blue pill), which portrays what Aleksi brings to the band as he composed the track. It opens up with a cool little electronic sound before bursting into a huge wall of crushing guitars. That gives way to a moody opening verse then chunky guitar chords and synths and growling vocals are followed by Lauri’s delicious vocals through the chorus “Above or below, Accidental or intentional, Mechanical mind, Dispose the mankind” then a growl of “You won’t get out alive.”
A second verse and chorus drop into plodding electronic noise that’s joined by a repeating guitar note before crushing guitars and heavy vocals bring the track to a close.
On the single, the band tell us: “The response has been amazing. Our listeners have said this is the best song so far. We are overwhelmed with love and support, and we feel like our journey has just begun. This song really captivates our identity and the musical style we want to continue with. If you haven’t heard the song yet, you should expect a very pleasing and modern mix of heavy and electronic elements.”
That follows their first three singles, which began with Delusion but of which we particularly enjoy the sound of Insanity. It starts out with a darting synth line that continues under heavy guitars. Lauri’s engaging vocals take over in a verse that builds into a deliciously catchy chorus. And the track goes out with an electronic section giving way to a huge final chorus. Check it out in the video here:
There’s also the more intense Black Venom, which opens with stabbing electronic noises and heavy guitars, which drop into laid-back vocals with chunky guitars building a dark atmosphere. And it flows into a typically powerful, engaging chorus. Check it out in the video here:
The Without Warning sound is heavily influenced by modern metal, with Juuso naming the likes of I Prevail, Spiritbox and Bad Omens as key influences. While Aleksi says he takes inspiration from leading producers and songwriters like Eric Valentine, John Feldmann, Matt Bellamy and Dan Lancaster.
And onw aht inspires them to write music, Aleksi says: “Anything and everything that is catchy. Whether it’s melodic, rhythmic or lyrical. I love to take influences from all kinds of genres, and most of the songs I write don’t start with a guitar on my lap figuring out different riffs. I think great songs need to have something that grabs your attention and makes you wonder what comes next.
“Also, maybe the most important thing to me is that music has to have emotion and relatability. In this day and age, it’s the only thing that an AI can’t recreate.”
While Juuso adds: “I listen to a lot of modern metal and follow the evolution of the style to keep up with new and fresh sounds. It inspires me to compose catchy elements but still look for something to make our sound stand out. The lyrics our vocalist writes give inspiration and direction to find the correct ambience to the song.”
There’s plenty more to come from Without Warning through 2023. The band played their debut show on 28 January, have a festival booked in for the summer and will be focusing on more live shows throughout the year. And they’re planning to record an EP, but it’ll likely be a while off yet.
The band adds: “We all are very passionate about what we do and we really commit our time and effort, creativity and skills to Without Warning. Music is what gives us a lot of fulfillment and we are excited to see what the future holds for us. Only the sky’s the limit, as they say. We tend to cross those limits though.”
You can follow Without Warning on Facebook and Instagram, and check out their music on Spotify, Bandcamp, Apple Music and YouTube.
Listen to Without Warning on our Spotify playlists GigRadar Electro and GigRadar Metal
GigRadar 