Rotten Sound

Rotten Sound
Rotten Sound live at the Kuopio Rockcock, in 2008
Background information
Origin	Vaasa, Finland
Genres	Grindcore, deathgrind, crust punk
Years active	1993–present
Labels	Spinefarm, Willowtip, Relapse
Associated acts	…And Oceans Throes of Dawn
Website	www.rottensound.com
Members
Keijo Niinimaa Mika Aalto Kristian Toivainen Sami Latva
Past members
Masa Kovero Ville Väisänen Pekka Ranta Juha Ylikoski Mika Häkki Kai Hahto Toni Pihlaja

Rotten Sound is a grindcore band from Vaasa, Finland, formed in 1993. The band comprises vocalist Keijo Niinimaa, guitarist Mika Aalto, bassist Kristian Toivainen and drummer Sami Latva. The band has released eight studio albums and "earned a reputation for being one of the most intense bands on the Scandinavian death metal/grindcore scene".

History

Formation, Under Pressure and Drain (1993–2000)

Rotten Sound was founded by guitarist Mika Aalto in Vaasa, Finland, in 1993. The group started recordings in 1994, releasing the single Sick Bastard through Genet label. Their subsequent underground releases, between singles and EPs, included 1995's Psychotic Veterinarian on SOA, 1996's Loosin' Face on Anomie, and 1997's Splitted Alive on IDS.

Rotten Sound's first full-length album, Under Pressure, was released by Repulse Records (a Spanish label) in 1998 and was followed by Drain (also on Repulse) in 1999. This album was also the debut of second guitarist Juha Ylikoski. In early 2000, the band signed with American Necropolis Records, a subsidiary Deathvomit label for release the EP Still Psycho, which included a cover of Carcass's "Reek of Putrefaction". Paul Kott of Allmusic praised the album saying, "Rotten Sound does a good job, and although the audio production does leave something to be desired, the finished product is well worth listening to for any fan of earlier death metal and more recent grindcore. The video segments are very well-produced, with fantastic live audio recording, multiple camera angles, and good edits." The band toured in Europe to promote the album, along with label mates Hateplow, In Aeturnum and Malevolent Creation.

Murderworks and Exit (2001–2005)

Rotten Sound release their second full-length, Murderworks, in 2002. The Allmusic reviewer Alex Henderson stated, "This 2002 release gives the listener no room to breathe; from start to finish, Murderworks is an exercise in sensory assault for the sake of sensory assault." For the album's promotion, the group headline a European tour, titled Murdering Europe, with support of two Czech bands, Fleshless and Lykathea Aflame. They also toured Europe during June 2003, along with Hateplow and Debauchery. In May 2004, Rotten Sound teamed up with Circle of Dead Children, Phobia and Strong Intention for US Grind the East Coast tour. The band's fourth studio album, Exit, was recorded at Soundlab studio in Örebro, Sweden with engineer Mieszko Talarczyk and mastered at the Cutting Room. Shortly after their release, the album peaked at number 22 on the Finnish album charts. In March 2005, the band teamed up with Disfear for a co-headline Scandinavian tour.

Cycles and Cursed (2006–present)

In 2008, Rotten Sound released Cycles and in 2011, Cursed.

Members

Current members

• Keijo Niinimaa (aka "G") – vocals (1993–present)
• Mika Aalto (aka "Q") – guitar (1993–present)
• Kristian Toivainen – bass (2010–present)
• Sami Latva – drums (2006–present)

Former members

• Juha Ylikoski (aka "J") – guitar (1998–2001)
• Masa Kovero – bass (1994)
• Pekka Ranta – bass (1998–2000)
• Mika Häkki (aka "H") – bass (2000–2003)
• Toni Pihlaja – bass (2003–2009)
• Ville Väisänen – drums (1994)
• Kai Hahto (aka "K") – drums (1995–2006)

Discography

Studio albums

• 1997 - Under Pressure (Repulse/Revenge)
• 1998 - Drain (Repulse/S.O.A.)
• 2002 - Murderworks (Autopsy Stench/Necropolis/Century Media/Relapse)
• 2005 - Exit (Spinefarm/No Tolerance/Willowtip)
• 2008 - Cycles (Spinefarm)
• 2011 - Cursed (Relapse)

Extended plays

• 1995 - Sick Bastard (Genet)
• 1995 - Psychotic Veterinarian (S.O.A.)
• 1996 - Loosin' Face (Anomie)
• 2000 - Still Psycho (Necropolis/Merciless)
• 2006 - Consume to Contaminate (Spinefarm/Power It Up)
• 2010 - Napalm (Relapse)

Splits

• 1997 - Spitted Alive Split with Control Mechanism (I.D.S.)
• 2001 - 8 Hours of Lobotomy Split with Unholy Grave (M.C.R.)
• 2003 - Seeds of Hate Split with Mastic Scum (Cudgel Agency)

Singles

• 2011 - Curses (Fullsteam Records)

Compilations

• 2003 - From Crust 'Til Grind (Century Media) (Contains tracks from Sick Bastard, Pyschotic Veterinarin, Loosin' Face and Still Pyscho)

DVDs

• 2004 - Murderlive (Spinefarm)
• 2010 - Live at Obscene Extreme 2007 (Relapse)

External links

• Official website
• Rotten Sound discography at MusicBrainz
• Rotten Sound discography at Discogs
• Rotten Sound INTERVIEW