Holy Light

STUD was founded back in 1986, when four musicians who had already played in several different bands teamed up to form one of the period's most aggressive, skilled and loudest bands.

On the very same year the biggest record company in Finland, Finnlevy, published the first STUD-single Mä haluun elää / Viimeinen yö. After publishing the single STUD toured frequently, especially the metropolitan area.

The original line-up was ultimately short-lived, and as a new singer came in, the language was changed to English. In 1987 STUD attended Finland's Rock Championship contest, where they achieved a place in the finals, which was quite an achievement for a heavy rock band.

Touring expanded across the border, when STUD among the few Finnish bands toured Estonia's largest cities, at a time when Estonia's independence was still around the corner.

At the end of the decade, after a new change of singer STUD tried to record a full-length album, but failed to make a deal with a record company, since new, darker music, had increased popularity in Finland. STUD made their last gigs in 1989, after which the band broke up.

Now STUD is back. Original line-up Ari Toivanen (vocals), Mika Kansikas (guitar), Pasi Hietanen (bass, replaced by Matti Jalonen in Feb 2013) and Stenda Kukkonen (drums) met in February 2012 to record a new album. The recordings continued through spring and summer until the record was ready in September.

STUD decided to publish a single prior to the album. A single containing Lovers In The Night/Out of the Darkness has earned airplay in radio stations around the world.

STUD's debut album Out of the Darkness is released in October 2013 and has already gained rave reviews as one of the best albums of the year from a "new" band. The album contains 11 hard hitting songs.

STUD's been also busy doing gigs and gaining interest in internet and social media as well. New songs have been included in a live setlist, so that a follow-up for the debut album could be seen in 2014.