S. P. Keltaniemi

S. P. Keltaniemi

S. P. Keltaniemi is one of the two vocalists of Lahoava. Her journey into singing began in her teenage years through metal music—especially Nightwish—and her passion gradually grew into a steadily deepening skill. Although Keltaniemi has taken a few vocal lessons, she is mostly self-taught. Like A. S. Kivineva and S. P. Tuomisto, she was part of the band Kalman Varjot in her youth, as well as Vancyria, and later the duo Chaos Research.

Her musical roots lie in early gothic metal and female-fronted bands such as Theatre of Tragedy and Leaves’ Eyes, but her current listening spans black metal, dark ambient, EBM, industrial, dark wave, pagan folk, and medieval-themed music. Keltaniemi doesn’t readily name favorite bands, but one enduring love has been the Finnish band Sara.

As an artist, she is versatile: she earns her living as a tattooist and occasionally creates clothing, jewelry, and ceramics. Her life revolves around hands-on creation, a connection to nature, and a deep engagement with history—folk magic traditions, historical reenactment, and her own herb garden all play a central role. She is both a folk witch and an herbal witch, and her home is a pale pink, approximately 300-year-old, late Art Nouveau-style haunted house in Koskenkorva. The band’s sigil, or magical seal, is her design, and she holds the deepest knowledge in the group when it comes to the occult forces behind social media algorithms.

There’s a touch of both Moominmamma and Little My in Keltaniemi, and she doesn’t shy away from clarity or direct speech—nor from dark humor. She finds the scents of soapwort, wild rosemary, bird cherry, and tar intoxicatingly beautiful.

Photos:
Aani Visuals
Special thanks for providing the shoot location:
Yli-Lauroselan talomuseo and Korvalaanen Oy