UTU (eng. “fog”) is the result of a fruitful collaboration between five musicians from diverse backgrounds. True to its name, UTU’s music evokes the experience of misty weather above the sea as well as stormy waves. The band dives into the deep end of the sonic spectrum, drawing from art music, trip-hop, electronic music, and ambient, yet without bowing to any specific genre. At the helm of the band is Petra Poutanen, a versatile musician and composer renowned for her unique vocal style. Petra’s solo project is known as Pelkkä Poutanen.

In December 2024, UTU released their new album, Love Collection: By the Ashes That Used to Be the Everlasting Fire. The album is a collection of songs about love and the blinding force of human needs. When past loves are properly buried, the graves provide the perfect dance floor.

The album has already garnered rave reviews. Unxigned described it as “a masterful achievement and a reminder that love’s truest essence is often found in its strangest, most vulnerable forms.” Loudness wrote: “Love can be cruel, love can burn like fire, but in the end love is healing. And so is this album. It takes you by the hand and leads you through hell to show you the bright and clear sky in the end. And I am more than willing to go through all of this again and again to experience the record’s purifying effect. I guess that’s how real art works.”

UTU are:
Petra Poutanen – vocals
Aku-Pekka Kurjenniemi – drums, percussion, drum programming
Katri Antikainen – cello, electric cello
Tony Sikström – piano, synths, bass, programming
Jussi-Pekka Parviainen – guitar,  lap steel