Heavy music

Finland has more metal bands per capita than anywhere else, and the infrastructure shows it: rehearsal rooms are cheap and plentiful, engineers know how to mic a loud drummer, and audiences turn up on weeknights. On the Rocks and Semifinal carry most of the smaller bills; the larger touring packages go to the halls.

Electronic

The club scene runs later and smaller than in Berlin or Stockholm, partly because licensing closes most rooms at four. What that produces is a compressed, dense night rather than a sprawling one. Kaiku is the anchor; a rotating set of warehouse events fills the gaps in summer.

Jazz and improvised music

A small, serious circuit centred on Storyville and a handful of restaurant stages, plus a steady stream of graduates from the Sibelius Academy who play free-improv sets in rooms that hold forty people. Sunday and Monday are the nights for this.

Songwriters and folk

Korjaamo, a converted tram depot, handles most of the folk and world programming, including several festival weekends a year. The songwriter circuit is quieter and moves between cafes and the smaller bars, often with no cover charge.

Summer

From June the indoor calendar thins out as festivals take over. Several venues close for two or three weeks; the ones that stay open programme lightly. If you are visiting in July, check before travelling across town.