SIMO SAKARI AALTONEN
— Writer & Composer —

SIMO SAKARI AALTONEN — Writer & Composer —SIMO SAKARI AALTONEN — Writer & Composer —SIMO SAKARI AALTONEN — Writer & Composer —
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SIMO SAKARI AALTONEN
— Writer & Composer —

SIMO SAKARI AALTONEN — Writer & Composer —SIMO SAKARI AALTONEN — Writer & Composer —SIMO SAKARI AALTONEN — Writer & Composer —
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2023 News

1 January 2023 — Season 5 of podcast

Started season 5 of my podcast What Now with Simo. As with season 4, all episodes of this season will feature some other audio elements than only speech, whether music or environmental sounds or both. In the first episode (5.1: “Nordic Insights, Future Plans, and Past and Present”) these include the ambience of a café, where I had stopped for tea. With this season I also introduced new cover art featuring an image from my upcoming visual art project Sky Mandalas.

2022 News

24 December 2022 — 10,000 listens to What Now with Simo

23 December 2022 — Pierre Estève 2022–2023 Special — Part 1

23 December 2022 — Pierre Estève 2022–2023 Special — Part 1

Announcing with great pleasure and happiness that with the first of our new episodes with Pierre Estève, my podcast What Now with Simo has just passed 10,000 listens on audio streaming alone. Counting also YouTube listens, this milestone was already passed a little while ago, but now, on Christmas Eve of 2022, the official count on my podcast hosting site for audio-only listens has gone past 10,000. With thanks and appreciation to everyone who has listened — a perfect Christmas gift!

23 December 2022 — Pierre Estève 2022–2023 Special — Part 1

23 December 2022 — Pierre Estève 2022–2023 Special — Part 1

23 December 2022 — Pierre Estève 2022–2023 Special — Part 1

Released the first of the two new episodes of What Now with Simo featuring Pierre Estève. As with our earlier episodes in 2021 (see the Podcast page), all the music in these episodes was composed and performed by Pierre and can be bought on Bandcamp.

12 December 2022 — Remastered podcast episodes

23 December 2022 — Pierre Estève 2022–2023 Special — Part 1

28 November 2022 — Two new episodes with Pierre Estève coming soon

Remastered every episode of my podcast and compiled each season so far into YouTube videos (playlist link), giving the early episodes (1.1 to 3.9) the lo-fi treatment they needed — to match my earliest intention of having those episodes be like something you heard from a single-speaker radio, old tape recordings, or even a telephone, perhaps late at night — and the later episodes the best hi-fi stereo quality they called for.

28 November 2022 — Two new episodes with Pierre Estève coming soon

28 November 2022 — Two new episodes with Pierre Estève coming soon

28 November 2022 — Two new episodes with Pierre Estève coming soon

Happily announcing two new episodes of What Now with Simo featuring Pierre Estève and his fantastic music. The background image for this banner is from his beautiful and inspiring Flowers of Change project. You can find our earlier, 2021 episodes here: Part 1 and Part 2.

25 October 2022 — Season 4 finale of podcast

28 November 2022 — Two new episodes with Pierre Estève coming soon

10 June 2022 — Land of Youth & Beauty: Early Poems

Published the season 4 finale of my podcast: episode 4.16: “Creative Basics, Visions, and Fog”. In it you can you also hear in fragments parts of an ongoing composition of mine called “In the Fog, Deep”.

10 June 2022 — Land of Youth & Beauty: Early Poems

28 November 2022 — Two new episodes with Pierre Estève coming soon

10 June 2022 — Land of Youth & Beauty: Early Poems

Published my first collection of poetry, Land of Youth & Beauty: Early Poems, as a hardcover and an ebook. See the Writing page for more.

19 May 2022 — Added two extra tracks to album

25 March 2022 — Started uploading podcast episodes to YouTube

19 May 2022 — Added two extra tracks to album

Updated the album with two new tracks:


1) My reading of the H. P. Lovecraft poem “The Garden”, as featured in the 2nd anniversary episode of my podcast What Now with Simo. The reading follows the music-only track “Lovecraft’s Garden”.


2) An “Extended Peaks Version” as the last track of the album. This version includes all the repeats as in the episode itself, whereas the album’s opening track, the “Single Peaks Version”, is a condensed take without repeats.


I also made one tweak: shortened the silence at the end of the first track. Other than these changes, everything else remains the same, including the price of the full album. Here is the album link again.


For the amended album blurb, please see the Music page.

17 May 2022 — Released first album

25 March 2022 — Started uploading podcast episodes to YouTube

19 May 2022 — Added two extra tracks to album

Released my first album of music, Passages Dark and Light, on Bandcamp. The album blurb reads:


“Passages Dark and Light is my first album. It consists of the full soundtrack of the 2nd anniversary episode (4.9) of my podcast What Now with Simo.


For this episode I created a more serene version of the theme tune as well as the extended piece ‘Passages Dark and Light’ made up of peaks and valleys. The first track presents a version of this with just the peaks without the meditative guitar valleys.


‘Lovecraft’s Garden’ accompanies in that anniversary episode my reading of H. P. Lovecraft’s poem ‘The Garden’.”


That 2nd anniversary episode is available for example on YouTube.

25 March 2022 — Started uploading podcast episodes to YouTube

25 March 2022 — Started uploading podcast episodes to YouTube

24 March 2022 — Presentation video for At Dawn: Early Short Stories

I recently decided to start uploading all future and earlier episodes of my podcast also to my YouTube channel. This process will take a long time, but the latest two are already up, including the extra long and extra musical 4.9: “2nd Anniversary Special”.


That one is also the first of my episodes to be recorded with my new Shure Super 55 Deluxe microphone, and my voice has never been captured better. If you have a smart TV with a good sound system and capable of accessing the YouTube app, that’s one of the best ways to experience the episodes.

24 March 2022 — Presentation video for At Dawn: Early Short Stories

24 March 2022 — Presentation video for At Dawn: Early Short Stories

24 March 2022 — Presentation video for At Dawn: Early Short Stories

The presentation video for my collection of short stories is now viewable in various places, including this site, my YouTube channel, and the Amazon product page for the hardcover (scroll down there to find it).

9 February 2022 — At Dawn: Early Short Stories

24 March 2022 — Presentation video for At Dawn: Early Short Stories

9 February 2022 — At Dawn: Early Short Stories

Published my first collection of short fiction, At Dawn: Early Short Stories, as a hardcover, a paperback, and an ebook. See the Writing page for more.

2021 News

2 November 2021 — Season 4 of podcast

1 June 2021 — An Iceland Symphony at #1 on Amazon

1 August 2021 — Pierre Estève soon on podcast

Started season 4 of podcast What Now with Simo with episode 4.1: “Welcome Aboard, a Look Back, and a Look Forward”.

1 August 2021 — Pierre Estève soon on podcast

1 June 2021 — An Iceland Symphony at #1 on Amazon

1 August 2021 — Pierre Estève soon on podcast

A special 2-part episode of What Now with Simo coming up featuring composer, sound artist, multi-instrumentalist, sculptor, poet, and adventurer Pierre Estève (you can hear and purchase his music on Bandcamp).


We’ll record our discussion early in the first week of August 2021. Please send in any questions you’d like me to ask him before the evening of Tuesday the 3rd. (See the banner larger at the bottom of the Podcast page.)

1 June 2021 — An Iceland Symphony at #1 on Amazon

1 June 2021 — An Iceland Symphony at #1 on Amazon

1 June 2021 — An Iceland Symphony at #1 on Amazon

An Iceland Symphony, Op. 1 hit #1 on Amazon’s list of Hot New Releases in the category of Opera & Classical Songbooks before I had even made an official announcement about the book’s publication! Waiting for those preview pages to become available on the product pages.

31 May 2021 — An Iceland Symphony sheet music

8 January 2021 — Podcast transcript book for season 2

1 June 2021 — An Iceland Symphony at #1 on Amazon

My first book of sheet music: An Iceland Symphony, Op. 1: A Theatrical Symphony for All Ages. It’s available on Amazon as both a paperback (8.5 x 11 in) and ebook.

1 April 2021 — Discussion with David Lee Homb

8 January 2021 — Podcast transcript book for season 2

8 January 2021 — Podcast transcript book for season 2

I had the great pleasure of having a wide-ranging and fascinating discussion with actor and writer David Lee Homb — well known to adventure gamers for his role in Sierra’s groundbreaking horror adventure game Phantasmagoria — for a special two-part 1st anniversary episode of What Now with Simo. David has also kindly given permission to include a full transcript of our talk in the next book of transcripts. (See the banner larger at the bottom of the Podcast page.)

8 January 2021 — Podcast transcript book for season 2

8 January 2021 — Podcast transcript book for season 2

8 January 2021 — Podcast transcript book for season 2

Published the book of transcripts for the second season of my podcast What Now with Simo. Available as both a paperback and en ebook. And here is the page for the series on Amazon.

1 January 2021 — Start of podcast season 3

1 January 2021 — Start of podcast season 3

1 January 2021 — Start of podcast season 3

What Now with Simo podcast cover art for season 3.

Episode 3.1 of What Now with Simo. Starting with this episode, my journey through the history of recorded music, films, TV, books, comics, and more will be featured regularly, starting with January 1952. An associated playlist of carefully selected items will also get built up on Spotify as I go along.

2020 News

17 December 2020 — Podcast passed 5,000 listens

17 December 2020 — Podcast passed 5,000 listens

17 December 2020 — Podcast passed 5,000 listens

My podcast What Now with Simo has just passed 5,000 unique listens. This number excludes partial request, bots, and repeat listens. Last episode of season 2 on the way, then the book of transcripts for season 2, and season 3 starting 1 January 2021.

3 November 2020 — Art & Love, Vol. 1

17 December 2020 — Podcast passed 5,000 listens

17 December 2020 — Podcast passed 5,000 listens

Published Art & Love, Vol. 1 as paperback and ebook. The first in a new series of non-fiction books, a keystone series in my future legacy.

18 September 2020 — Podcast on Amazon

17 December 2020 — Podcast passed 5,000 listens

7 September 2020 — Started sharing exceptional record cover art

My podcast What Now with Simo is now also on Amazon’s main site. I was one of those they contacted prior to launching their podcasting platform.

7 September 2020 — Started sharing exceptional record cover art

7 September 2020 — Started sharing exceptional record cover art

7 September 2020 — Started sharing exceptional record cover art

My odyssey through the history of recorded music has reached the 1950s, the decade when everything in music blossomed and exploded, including record cover art. From now on I’ll be sharing exceptional and sometimes questionable or ludicrous examples of this art form on Facebook.

22 August 2020 — The Ray Bradbury Theater intro

7 September 2020 — Started sharing exceptional record cover art

22 August 2020 — The Ray Bradbury Theater intro

For the 100th birthday of one of my very favourite writers, Ray Bradbury, I was invited to record this guest podcast episode for the Cabrera Brothers’ Free Bundle Originals. A very personal introduction to a series that has accompanied me through life at important moments like a dear friend, from childhood to Paris and beyond. Recorded raw, straight from the heart.

29 July 2020 — Wrote guest blog for Zoo Digital

7 September 2020 — Started sharing exceptional record cover art

22 August 2020 — The Ray Bradbury Theater intro

I was invited to write this guest blog for the company I translate films and TV series for. I discuss some of the challenges and joys involved, and how this work also feeds into my development as a writer.

10 July 2020 — Featured in Finncon Artist Alley

10 July 2020 — Featured in Finncon Artist Alley

10 July 2020 — Featured in Finncon Artist Alley

My books featured in the Artist Alley for this year’s virtual Finncon — due to the virus, not a physical one this time around. This was my first time being involved as more than a guest.

9 July 2020 — Joined the Asylum team

10 July 2020 — Featured in Finncon Artist Alley

10 July 2020 — Featured in Finncon Artist Alley

I joined the Senscape team to work under designer and main writer Agustín Cordes on Asylum, a horror adventure game of epic proportions and quality.


I’ll be contributing writing as well as revising texts under his brilliant direction. I previously worked with Agustín on the free horror adventure game Serena, which was a pleasure from beginning to end.

23 May 2020 — Podcast transcript book

10 July 2020 — Featured in Finncon Artist Alley

23 May 2020 — Podcast transcript book

Published word-for-word transcripts of the first season of my podcast What Now with Simo in book form. Available both as a handsome 6x9-inch paperback and an ebook, and including an introduction and some footnotes.


This is the first in this series of books, which will build up into a library as time passes. A chronicle of my life, thoughts, and daily musings, and a record of my having been here.

24 March 2020 — Started podcast

24 March 2020 — Started podcast

23 May 2020 — Podcast transcript book

I started my podcast What Now with Simo:


“A freeform, wide-ranging podcast on any topics foremost on the host’s mind at the time of recording. Particular favourite topics include creativity and all the arts — music, films, screenplays, fiction, poetry, comics, games, comedy, and everything in between. Messages from listeners welcomed for possible inclusion in an episode. Note that sending a recording for inclusion in an episode of this podcast does indeed implicitly give me permission to do so.”

Copyright © 2020–2022 Simo Sakari Aaltonen for all text and images. All rights reserved.

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