Psytrance in Finland: interview with Anni Murtosaari

Anni Murtosaari is one of the driving forces behind the gothic-hippie-industrial-psytrance scene in Finland.

How many parties do you do per year, what are they called, and where do they take place?

Uffff. Last year I counted 30 gigs, because I do many genres. The basic setup I produce each year is: the Kosmos Festival pre-party tour in spring in five different cities, the Underground Keskimaa Gathering near Jyväskylä, the anime convention afterparty in Kuopio, Kosmos Festival in Ristiina, the Underground Bermuda Gathering in eastern Finland, the Psyyskuu club night/underground party in Kuopio, and the Club Infektio gothic events (four times a year).

Last year we also did the Assembly Rave during the biggest computer festival.

Who are the crew members at the parties you organize in Finland, what are their names, and why do you like working with them? What are their (good) qualities?

Oh, I work as part of almost all the organizations in Finland. We have many crews in many cities. But when we organize our own parties, we like to bring good workers with us. I normally invite people from my old hometown: Suvi makes food and plays as a DJ, Kim serves chai, Pyry works as stage manager, and Niki does lasers, visuals and lights (we have a shared studio here and do gigs together).

My boyfriend Jukka helps me with all kinds of things. And for deco I have different people in many cities who lend a hand. As for choosing whom to work with: they all know their place and their talent, and they're motivated to get things done. The main goal is to produce quality parties. We've had people who say "let me help", and the helping ends up as hanging around and partying while the others are working. Thanks for the help, m8.

When we do gigs in different cities, the top-notch organizer here, in my opinion, is Miika Löytynoja. He can handle any situation with good humor and keep things together. He's also a team member of Kosmos Festival, the biggest psy festival in Finland. We've done many deco gigs together, and his deco group is called Taiga Art.

Good point. Do you put an emphasis on a certain diet?

Freegan. I try to choose vegetarian options when possible, but if someone offers me food, I don't refuse to eat meat. And if the food is going to be thrown away, everything goes. The main goal is to change people's opinion that vegetarian food can't be good and tasty.

By the way, at that event the band members said they only eat meat. Well, we had a dinner bringing all the artists together, and most of us were vegans. I made a mushroom and soy bolognese, and the "meat eaters" went back for a third round. Life goals.

Same thing when we did a party on Gran Canaria: we prepared one huge kettle full of food and served it to the crew from my friends' car. Keeping the boogie healthy has been one of my biggest goals over the last few years. A friend from the DJ collective of our old hometown is a chef by profession, and she organizes parties here. Dinner and breakfast are included in the party ticket. So you don't have to choose what to spend your money on, and you're not lost if you forgot to buy snacks.

Here the forest parties are like 50 km away, in the middle of the woods. No shops, nothing.

The video shown is from a party in a gothic club in Finland. Please tell me more about it!

Club Infektio is originally a gothic club! But for NoiZu's anniversary we decided to bring his soundscapes into it. He combines psy, hardcore and industrial. In Tenerife, for example, he played only psytrance. It depends on the audience. That kind of hybrid concept got noticed internationally after the event. People from bigger acts like Juno Reactor commented that this is needed.

We hadn't seen this kind of party here in Finland before. Normally those two groups, hippies and goths, party separately. But we had people from many different scenes: hippies, goths, fetish people, otakus, hardstyle ravers. And everyone was enjoying a good atmosphere. If a party is made with love and effort, it really reflects on the audience. And if it's made with stress and the aim of making loads of money, that shows too. Of course you have to include all these things somehow: you have to make some money to cover all the fees, accept that people come to let loose, and stress out a bit to get the best result.

But our main goal is to keep people happy and well. That's why food and hot drinks were served during the party alongside the usual bar. Keep the sugar levels up and people happy.

What are your plans for the future? Do you have any new formats or concepts in mind?

I'm planning to focus more on interactive things, combining visuals and deco. Focusing more on decorating. And helping others organize parties by giving good advice, because all my time now is dedicated to art. The Infektio party was organized by my boyfriend Jukka, and it was his first production. I was his left hand telling him what to do, because I had organized a lot of parties before.

Thank you, Anni, for your time. I hope there will be more psytrance parties in Finland.

Jukka's page – he plays music as NoiZu: https://www.mixcloud.com/NoiZu/