Interview with King Of None

King Of None is a stoner rock band from Helsinki, Finland. It was formed in 2013. Their characteristic
sound combines heavy riffs and raspy vocals.
Alan – Hi band, introduce yourself a little.
Aleksi - Thank you Alan and happy to talk to you. You crystallized it perfectly. We are five guys, born and raised in Finland on our mission to serve sonic experience to the fans of heavy psychedelic soundscapes.

Alan – You were formed in 2013 – have you been together since then? I read that you still play in the same line-up.
Aleksi  - That’s correct. We are a group of friends with ties going back to the times of innocence when everything was full of color and air was fresh. We have known each other for over 20 years. The band could not exist without any of the members. With time comes wisdom, but also turmoil which requires the band to grow in music as well as in friendship.

Alan – Your work focus. Stoner psychedelic rock. Well, it seems to me that you still have glam in your work, can you tell us what u think?
Aleksi  - That’s an interesting take! Never really thought about it, although Aleksi and Juho have been known to enjoy that type of music from time to time.

Alan – The first three mini EP albums to compare with the last album, called In The Realm. You have changed your approach to playing a little. Tell us more about it.
Aleksi  - Well in the beginning we were heavily inspired by the stoner legends Kyuss. One might hear the resemblance in our first EP ‘King of None’. The second EP ‘Troubles by the Score’ was heavier and a step away from the Kyuss elements. In our third release ‘Weightless Waters’ we steered more towards progressive soundscapes and experimented with more complex song structures.  With ‘In the Realm’, we wanted to create an album that encompasses different types of songs and widens the King of None sound palette. For sure, the album contains some of our best tracks yet so we have been very happy with the result. The feedback from the listeners reflects our feelings.

Alan – Did the album In The Realm start you off / move you forward? I read only praise for the change / approach to current playing in German zines.
Aleksi  - It certainly did in some ways but there is a whole lot of work for us to do so we can reach larger audiences. It was a step in the right direction for sure, but challenging family matters hindered our touring itch. I’m sure with the next release we can aim to set our sights for a proper tour.

Alan – With the shift in playing, have you gotten to play abroad more? And where have you been abroad? They gave concerts.
Aleksi  - Sadly we haven’t been abroad in a long time. The aforementioned family matters kept us on our home turf for the time being. We will do everything to allow us to play more shows abroad. We have our eyes set on our neighbours in Sweden and Estonia.

Alan – Are you planning to visit Europe this year? Where will you appear?
Aleksi  - This year we’ll remain in Finland and work on our next album until the end of year with a few shows here and there at home.

Alan – Speaking of travelling, the zine is for Czechs and Slovaks. Do you know these two countries? Their music scene?
Miiro - Not that familiar with Czech or Slovak bands or the rock music scene but I have few friends who live in Czechia and I have also visited Ostrava and Prague a few times. Nice country and would love to play there. Brutal Assault would be nice to play or at least visit.

Alan – What are you planning with the band for 2025? Video clips, special shows?
Aleksi  - Hopefully we are going to release our next album. Can’t promise anything though, it’s still very much in the making and the songs have taken their shape. We’ll work on the songs during the winter. When the snow subsides, we’ll see what we have in our hands.

Alan – Album In The Realm, great, I love it. This was a success.
Aleksi  - Thank you, it means a lot to us. It was a great experience for us and of course the first collaboration with Argonauta Records. Cheers to them for handling the release well.

Alan – While traveling, touring, what surprised you the most?
Aleksi  - It has to be the friendliness of the listeners of this type of music. You make friends instantly when you're open to new people and experiences. It’s also been very humbling to hear other bands we respect praise our efforts and music.

Alan – While we are talking about touring, did you experience any funny moments with the band? Something to make you laugh?
Aleksi  - Well, we were going to Estonia to play a gig which was on Saturday. We - the forward thinking bunch - decided to travel to Estonia already on Friday to experience the beautiful Tallinn. As it happens, after a long dinner, hanging around in the spa with a bar and nightlife of Tallinn, everyone in the band was too inebriated to drive to the venue come the morning. Miiro, who was wise and went to bed relatively early (after leaving a very hard to understand voice message about having a hotdog from the gas station) was eligible to drive and we reached the destination in time.

Alan – How is playing in Finland? In the Czech Republic, for example, there is not that much support for bands that play stoner rock.
Aleksi  - The scene in Finland is doing okay, for now. I’d say there used to be a boom of Stoner before the time of the pandemic but it has settled down. Still, the gigs are plenty, but the amount of venues has been drastically reduced. There is a lot of competition for the weekend slots.

Alan – Where was the best place you have played at? And why?
Aleksi  - Kallio Block Party - A free, street festival in the heart of Helsinki. The festival takes over a district and most of the roads are closed off for cars. There are multiple stages scattered around the area where different genres are represented. The event gathers about 10k visitors depending on the weather. A really close second is a DIY festival called Aavikko (The Desert) organized by the fine people of King Coyote, where we were invited to play in the middle of nowhere in a quarry with stoner rock aficionados.

Alan – Which band/bands do you remember the most that you played with?
Aleksi  - Craneium, King Coyote, Roadog, great people to play with and some of the most fun we’ve had on the road.

Alan – Currently, is there any band that surprised you a lot?
Aleksi - Nestor is my go to answer. It’s not in our genre, but it’s just a marvelous recreation of 80’s AOR magic.
Miiro - Bestia! Pagan Black Metal horde from Estonia. They have been rocking quite a while now. Debut release 1.1.2000. I saw them at Käbliku Rock n Roll Festival in July. Lots of variety in their discography.
Juho - Faetooth, US doom band which impressed me with their debut.
Juho - An Australian band called Endless Valley whose latest album “Kashkasir” is trippy, riffy and chill. Would love to see them live, but seems unlikely for them to travel to Finland.
Patrick - Roxferry! If you’re into intense, riff-heavy rock with a punk core and authentic live energy, Roxferry is definitely worth a listen.

Alan – Regarding the band, what do you consider to be the biggest highlight? what have you achieved?
Aleksi - Releasing the full length album with a proper label has to be one. We had been working DIY for so long and we were a bit burned out by the process. That’s when we found Argonauta Records who really made everything easier for us. Also, the aforementioned Kallio Block Party gig is definitely a memory we will cherish. 

Alan – Thanks for the interview. I'll keep my fingers crossed for the future, for everything to go well.
Aleksi - Thank you. It was our pleasure. Stay heavy!
https://www.facebook.com/kingofnone
https://www.argonautarecords.com