The Splits

Hailing from Helsinki, Finland, the Splits are a female-fronted punk rock band whose tough but streamlined sound has won them an international following. The Splits were formed in 2010 by four friends who had never been in a band before -- lead singer and guitarist Helena, guitarist and vocalist Kiti, bassist Maiju, and drummer Aiju. Not long after they'd started rehearsing -- and before they'd started playing out -- the Splits went into a low-budget recording studio to record a demo with another friend, Jussi, behind the controls. The demo was good enough that another friend passed a copy along to the German punk label <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22P+Trash+Records%22">P Trash Records</a>; unaware that the label had heard the tape, the Splits were more than surprised when the label contacted them and offered to release the demo as their debut album. <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Airiston+Punk-Levyt%22">Airiston Punk-Levyt</a>, a Finnish label, followed suit by putting out a 7" single on the band, and America's <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Dirtnap+Records%22">Dirtnap Records</a> distributed the German LP in the United States. The Splits launched a tour of the United Kingdom and Europe, and soon became friendly with a like-minded British band, <a href="spotify:artist:11g4nVBWW31gAIkaso6bEX">the Love Triangle</a>, leading to a joint tour for the two groups. While the Splits' initial burst of recognition was more than encouraging, the personal lives of the members hit a rough patch in 2013, as they dealt with romantic disappointments, bad break-ups, and homelessness. Aiju left the band when she discovered she was going to have a baby, but Jussi, the producer of their recordings, stepped forward to play drums with the group, and the Splits channeled their frustrations into their songs. In May 2015, the Splits bounced back with a strong second album simply titled II. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi