The Helsinki-based ghost punk and goth garage band Hauntees released their debut album Shadows Forming today. Dark and brooding, the record plays like the soundtrack to a road trip across a desert. Along the way, you stop at smoky saloons and pass abandoned gravestones. The sound carries the bitter dust and shimmering heat of sun-scorched sand dunes.
Seasoned with melancholy and minimalism, the songs on Shadows Forming range from cinematic instrumental music (Phantom Road) to stripped-down spellbinding blues (Spell) and ‘80s synth-tinged dance punk (Self-Defense). The album also features a hauntingly peculiar Misfits cover (London Dungeon).
Hauntees’ debut album is a powerful entrance — this band is here to stay.
“Hauntees is not a hobby, a job, or a voluntary choice for us. It’s something we simply have to do,” the band states without a trace of sarcasm.
“The album sounds perfect, even though we were a bit nervous about it,” the band explains. “It was recorded and mixed multiple times in different locations by Ville-Matti Koskiniemi and Miikka Sipilä. As a final touch, we had it mastered by American engineer Taylor Deupree, whose work ties the whole album together beautifully despite the diversity of songs, arrangements, and moods.”
Three support shows with Toody Cole & Her Band have been confirmed in Hauntees’ post-release tour schedule. The legendary Dead Moon founding member will tour with her band at the turn of May and June, performing in three cities in Finland.
Although Hauntees was formed in 2024, its members have deep roots in the Helsinki garage rock scene. Their musical history includes bands such as The Patsy Walkers, Borderline, Charm Bags, Goo-Hags, and Lariots.
The album’s opening track All Over Again, released as a single in January, has also gained attention in several international media outlets and received radio airplay on shows such as the UK-based The Autopsy Report Rock & Metal Radio Show, California’s Punk Rock Demonstration, Florida’s Sonic Scout Radio, and Georgia-based indie station OTAT 24/7 in the United States.
Shadows Forming is available on digital streaming platforms as well as on vinyl, which can be ordered, for example, from Record Shop X.
Hauntees Live:
27 Mar – Helsinki, Loose w/ Rain Diary, Black Totem & Hateful Chains
28 Mar – Turku, Nirvana w/ Black Totem & Hateful Chains
7 May – Helsinki, Lepakkomies w/ Plastic Tones, Korupuhe
Toody Cole & Her Band Tour
30 May – Helsinki, Tähti w/ Hauntees, Goblin Shark
31 May – Hämeenlinna, Suisto w/ Hauntees, Sörnäinen
1 Jun – Tampere, Vastavirta w/ Hauntees, Goblin Shark
Thoughts Words Action 