Helsinki, Finland · cello metal · symphonic metal

Apocalyptica

1 upcoming festival →

Classically trained Finnish cellists who started by covering Metallica and never stopped headbanging — symphonic metal where the strings genuinely shred.

Apocalyptica formed in Helsinki in 1993 among cellists trained at the Sibelius Academy, originally a quartet of Eicca Toppinen, Paavo Lötjönen, Max Lilja and Antero Manninen. Their debut, Plays Metallica by Four Cellos, released in 1996, consisted of eight Metallica arrangements for cello and established the group's approach of playing metal on classical instruments without guitars or bass.

Antero Manninen left in 1999 and was replaced by Perttu Kivilaakso, who alongside Toppinen and Lötjönen has anchored the lineup since; Max Lilja departed in 2002. The band's sound moved from covers toward original writing on albums such as Cult and Reflections, adding drums, including sessions from Slayer's Dave Lombardo, before Mikko Sirén joined full-time as drummer in 2005.

Guest vocalists became a regular feature, among them Corey Taylor of Slipknot and Stone Sour on "I'm Not Jesus" and Till Lindemann of Rammstein on a German-language cover of David Bowie's "Heroes." These collaborations, alongside originals sung by Ville Valo and Lauri Ylönen, pushed the band further into symphonic and alternative metal while keeping the cellos as the lead instrument.

Apocalyptica has sold more than four million albums over its three-decade career, with "Nothing Else Matters" and the collaborative single "I Don't Care" among its best-known songs. The catalogue runs from strict cello arrangements of other bands' material to fully original symphonic metal, all built around the same three-cello core.

Read more

cello metalsymphonic metal