There is no telling what the future will hold for us. We may believe specific hopes and dreams are impossible, but they suddenly become reality.
Gazing down from outer space to the Land of a Thousand Lakes, two Finnish women, Noora Louhimo and Netta Laurenne, lived in separate lives in separate bands. Louhimo has been making a considerable impact on the international Metal scene with Battle Beast, while Laurenne is making her way with her band Smackbound. Ironically, living in Tampere at the same time for a decade, the two knew of each other, but never considered collaborating… or did they?
The story goes that much like two children who are afraid to approach each other to ask about getting together outside school, Louhimo and Laurenne had long-time dreams of singing together. Unbeknownst to one another, in privacy, they carried an admiration for one another’s styles until around 2020 when Laurenne mustered up the courage to reach out to Louhimo and ask if she would be interested in working together. Fearing rejection and embarrassment, Laurenne was instead given an emphatic yes from Louhimo, and thus a new partnership was forged.
A stroke of fate, soon the two ladies went to work on music, put together some original songs, and released them as a 2021 debut album called The Reckoning. A thunderous mix of classic Heavy Metal with modern Hard Rock appeal, their two voices extraordinarily complemented one another. Realizing they had something special, the ladies vowed to get together again to make more music, and now, in 2025, that promise is fulfilled with their sophomore album under Laurenne/Louhimo, which they call Falling Through Stars.
Released on April 18, 2025, through Frontiers Music s.r.l., the new album finds them at a new level of comfort with one another in terms of exploring different ways to approach the music. Harmonizing with ease, sharing leads, and supporting one another as backing vocals when needed, the two have formed a deep bond musically and as friends.
Featuring co-production by Netta Lurenne and her husband, Nino Laurenne (who also provides rhythm guitar and the solos), Falling Through Stars is a dynamic collection of songs exploring various styles. To begin with, the title track is an intense introduction with an emotion you can grab hold of. This is while others like “Damned,” “To the Dark,” and “The Dark” offer just as much energy with choruses that are large and lively.
However, offering diversity, songs like “All for Sale” are surprising yet perfectly stripped back and “Let the Light Be Free” has an almost Alice in Chains like feeling, This is side by side with others such as “Wait” with its bombastic ‘80s Metal bombastic style, and “David Bowie & Clyde” with a beautiful sentiment about the sisterhood Laurenne and Louhimo share in life and music.
It is one thing to say that Netta Laurenne and Noora Louhimo are individually influential ladies of Rock-n-Roll, but putting them together has been nothing less than flawless. Working in solitude, egos are checked at the door, and they are giving the music exactly what it needs without outshining the other. Metal that strikes a nerve, Cryptic Rock gives Laurenne/Louhimo’s Falling Through Stars 4 out of 5 stars.
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