Ramo Teder and Marko Veisson formed Puuluup in 2014 around a shared obsession: the talharpa, an ancient bowed lyre once played almost exclusively on Estonia’s Swedish-speaking Vormsi Island, and all but extinct by the twentieth century. They call their own sound “zombie folk” – routing the instrument’s horsehair strings through loopers and effects pedals until the resurrected instrument sounds like nothing else in folk music. One critic put it well: if Wes Anderson invented an Estonian folk duo, it would be Puuluup.

Their songs – sung in Estonian, in invented languages, in whatever the moment calls for – pair absurd storytelling with deadpan, gloriously awkward choreography, turning tradition into something closer to performance art. That combination has carried them to festival stages in over 40 countries, from WOMAD to Sziget to Colours of Ostrava, and even into the Eurovision Song Contest finals.

Estonian Music Awards 2022: Band of the Year, Album of the Year

Viimane suusataja: Golden album 2022 (Estonia)

Award of Estonian Cultural Capital 2020 for bringing exotic winds and enriching unique Estonian folk music.

Estonian Music Awards 2019: winner of Best Ethnic/Folk Album of the Year + nominated as the Best Album of the Year.

Awards in three different categories by Estonian Traditional Music Centre (2019), including award by Raadio 2 (Estonian Public Broadcasting).

Nomination for the best newcomer title by Estonian Traditional Music Center in 2014 and for the best neofolk group in 2015 and 2016.

Thursday evening is ushered in by Puuluup, an Estonian duo that self-identify as “neo-zombie-post-folk.” They wring the most bewildering array of sounds from their talharpas, a form of Northern European lyre, whether by drumming, bowing, plucking, or brushing them. From such seemingly rudimental equipment, the rhythms that they loop and the melodies that they harmonize are immediate crowd-pleasers; by the time they demonstrate the two-step dance-along for one of their closers, the growing audience need no convincing. It’s folk, it’s contemporary, it’s funny, and it’s danceable. It’s a perfect launching pad for the weekend.

Max Pilley, Under the Radar (April 15, 2019)

Marko and Ramo, using loops in a kind of folk (zombie folk, as they see it), with electronic sounds and an extensive pedalboard, move the audience with traditional dances from their homeland, dressed in formal attire, and with extravagant songs in an unexpected and pleasantly fun way. There’s something magical about discovering a group with such magnetism.

“Etnosur: Un Festival Total” Un Clavo Ardiendo. Juan Megías Pellejero. 11.08.2025

Dressed in suits, they immediately got the crowd going, with humor dialed up to maximum levels, including Veisson speaking in Hindi and Marwari. From teaching a bit of choreography to running around the massive courtyard area, Puuluup were the unmissable act of Jodhpur RIFF, because they didn’t take themselves seriously but they took their music very seriously.

Rolling Stone India 2024