Clandestine Blaze

Clandestine Blaze is a one-man Finnish black metal band from Lahti, formed in 1998 by Mikko Aspa. Aspa cites Darkthrone, Burzum, Beherit and Bathory as key influences. Aspa is also currently involved in many other projects, such as Stabat Mater, Creamface, Fleshpress, AM, Grunt, Clinic of Torture, Alchemy of the 20th Century, and Nicole 12. Aspa is also the owner of Northern Heritage, a record label that has released albums by Baptism, Mgła, Behexen, Deathspell Omega, Drudkh, Hate Forest, Ildjarn, Peste Noire, and Satanic Warmaster, among others. In addition, Aspa is the owner of CF Productions (which produces the pornographic Erotic Perversion magazines and Public Obscenities videos) and Freak Animal Records (a power electronics / noise label). Clandestine Blaze has performed a few live shows in 2015 and 2016 using a session lineup. With regard to future touring plans, Aspa said: "I won’t even consider any offers beyond the level of Steelfest, which is the best festival I’m currently aware of. I’d prefer small, closed networks completely cut off from the music industry." Aspa's power electronics project Nicole 12 has also been controversial for its themes of sexual predation. The cover of the Nicole 12 album Substitute appears to depict a nude photograph of an underage girl; while Aspa acknowledged that it is the project's "most controversial" cover, he claims that the image is actually of a 27-year-old woman but heavily distorted so that listeners "feel as if they are doing something wrong."