ORIGINALLY from Kuopio, the Rubik crew settled in the capital during the early 2000s and now has its training ground at the legendary Helsinki venue, Kulttuuritalo. Made up of four core members, with a group of around 30 other people who have a part in what makes the sound of Rubik to varying extents, the band rose to the attention of this nation of ours during the year 2007 in the wake of their debut album Bad Conscience Patrol.

From the very beginning Rubik was hyped to the extent that could easily put on damaging pressure to starting musicians, but Artturi Taira, the lead man of the group, assures that the band was never affected by the high hopes of the early days.

TURKU-based indie pop band Cats on Fire has enjoyed a growing following in Finland and overseas alike. The band was established in 2001 and has since released a bunch of EP’s and two records, The Province Complains and Our Temprance Movement. A few months back Cats on Fire released a compilation Dealing in Antiques with a mix of songs from way back and a few pleasantly surprising new tracks. This summer the four strong band spreads its wings and tours across the seas with, unfortunately for us, no gigs to their name in Finland. SixDegrees caught up with Mattias Björkas, the band’s lead singer, on the eve of the big tour.

How would you feel, knowing that while you’re deep asleep, someone could enter your mind and steal secrets from your subconscious? This is the peculiar idea that Christopher Nolan addresses in his new film Inception. Dom Cobb is a master in this field of theft and sought-after by many players in the sneaky world of corporate espionage. But being the best has its price. Cobb has lost everything important to him and is constantly on the run. However, a last ray of hope for redemption arises if he successfully completes his last job: instead of stealing an idea he has to insert one. But, as usual, the last task is the most dangerous one. NR

PREMIERE 16 JULY

This documentary transports the audience right back to the 1960s and into the world of the legendary band The Doors. This is the first feature documentary on the band and reveals some previously unseen and historic footage of Jim Morrison and the rock quartet’s life. When You’re Strange has been featured at the Sundance, Berlin, Deauville and San Sebastian Film Festivals and been touted as a crowd pleaser providing new insight into the revolutionary impact of the band’s music and legacy. With the narration by the charming Johnny Depp, this documentary is a must see – even if you’ve never been a big fan of the band, though how could you not? PN

PREMIERE 2 JULY

Oh gosh, not another teenage flick! My first thoughts exactly. But not to worry, Youth in Revolt is not just another High School Musical. Based on C.D. Payne’s series of books that have gained a cult status, this film gives a sympathetic and entertaining depiction of the disenchanted life of Nick Twisp – played by the ever-so-endearing Michael Cera (known from Juno). Nick is the antihero of his own life in which nothing exiting happens. But when he meets the girl of his dreams he decides to jump into action. The geeky youth creates himself an alter-ego, François Dillinger, to help him with his pursuit - and this is when things start to get interesting.

FINNISH singer-songwriter Maija Vilkkumaa is one of the most established Finnish artists around. She has been a constant favourite among Finns for more than ten years and has just confirmed her status with her sixth album Kunnes joet muuttaa suuntaa already enjoying gold sales after its first week on release.

What is the secret behind your success?

I don’t actually think about “success” – that would drive me insane! I make the kind of music that I like. Writing songs is not that hard, but surviving with my own thoughts sometimes is. I don’t like to let myself get away with things, but on the other hand, one can’t be too hard on herself. I move forward with intuition and passion!

HELSINKI electro pop duo TV OFF have been steadily gaining momentum with frequent live appearances, some buzz-worthy digital singles, performances as far out as London and Tokyo, and their own monthly club night, but coming up with an album release has taken its sweet time. Their debut LP The Music Machine is finally out on 12 May.

”We started working on it about 2.5 years ago, but we set out with the notion that we want to do it right the first time,” says the duo’s male half Markku. ”It was part meticulousness and part healthy perfectionism.”

Actor Jeff Bridges won the Best Actor’s award in both the Oscar’s and the Golden Globe for his role in this film as Bad Blake, a faded country music legend who has had way too many marriages, far too many years on the road and one too many drinks way too many times. Bad has a grown son he has not seen for years and whose whereabouts he has no clue of. He tours from one backwater town to another playing his old hits in run-down joints, drifting further and further from his big comeback dream. All seems to be on the downhill slide for Bad, but when a young journalist enters his life things begin to change.

PN

PREMIERE 14 MAY

With the recent flurry of comic book films coming out of Hollywood, many beloved super heroes have received a rotten treatment. Amid the junk and clutter, gems like the first Iron Man film shine all the brighter. Casting a respected actor like Robert Downey Jr as the lead and amping up the humour and pure awesomeness, Iron Man was the closest thing to a Marvel comic come to life since the comic giant inaugurated their motion picture division. The second instalment brings back old Cold War era Marvel villains in another extravaganza of powered armour suits, race cars, hot Russian spies, big-ass explosions and proper badassitude.

Music blogs are the medium of the day. it seems Five years ago MySpace was all the rage, bringing us Lily Allen and (ahem) Sean Kingston. Well, that’s completely passé now. Today savvy pop fans are scouring a quagmire of music blogs for the hottest new MP3s instead.

In this new order, blog aggregators – sites that collect the headlines and compress thousands of articles from blogs around the world into a continuous feed of music news – wield great power for stirring buzz around certain artists.

In that regard Helsinki indie rockers Kiki Pau were momentarily the most hyped Finnish band in February, when their digital single An Old Song shot to the top ten of...