Apocalyptica

There aren't many rock bands on this planet that wouldn't like to be regarded as unique. Of course, in these tims of nostalgia and endlessly recycled ideas, very few actually deserve that description. Finland's “Apocalyptica” deserve it more than most. Utterly original in every respect, these classically trained merchants of genre-shattering metal sound quite unlike anything or anyone else in musical history.
Formed in the early '90s “Apocalyptica” chose an entirely individual path from day one. A few years earlier, while students at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, these young virtuosos joined a cello band that specialized in playing music by everyone from Bach to Hendrix. However, Eicca Toppinen and his three comrades had something louder in mind. All fans of heavy metal, they decided to form their own band. Toppinen wrote some unique arrangements of songs by Metallica, Slayer and other metallic legends and the group embarked on a series of shows at student balls. As their services became more and more in demand, “Apocalyptica” took the bold step of playing a gig at a bona fide heavy metal club...

Origin: Helsinki, Finland
Genre(s): Cello metal, Symphonic metal, Instrumental rock
Years active: 1993 – present

Apocalyptica’s:
Eicca Toppinen – Cello
Paavo Lötjönen – Cello (1996–present)
Perttu Kivilaakso – Cello (1999–present)
Mikko Sirén – drums (2003–present a permanent band-member since 2006)


Wrote by: Angela Martins
Posted by: Bruno Catita and Isabel Brito da Luz