Browsing: Tuska

“Empath” – that’s Devin Townsend’s new album to be released tomorrow (March 29th) promoted by his tour beginning the very same day in Helsinki (tour dates here) ! Shows all over Europe follow, such as Thursday April 4th in Berlin or Saturday April 6th in Prague! In May and June he will conquer the stages in North America and return to Europe in November for more shows! Devin Townsend. I have never been a friend of genres and all the more names that simply exceed the dimension of this term by their unique style I find most inspiring. Devin Townsend…

The hard facts and plans of Raskasta Joulua It is particularly rare to get some hard facts on the finances of such project or any tour. These things are usually not spoken of. But already before the actual interview when I kind of had a social cup of coffee with Erkka he was very much straightforward, neither hiding his opinion nor facts. I very much appreciate this and all the more my big, big thank you, Erkka! „Yeah“, I confirm. There is one more thing I’d like to know. Back at the end of the Turku show I had attended,…

Meeting Erkka Korhonen  – The voices of Raskasta Joulua „How did you get to all these new singers you’ve taken into the band over the years?“ He frowns. „Earlier we would approach people because we had to. We would like back in 2006, when we started expanding the line up live because we did ten shows. We did the new album. It was six singers at that point. And when we started going into that yearly thing, we would always have to look how is Nightwish gonna tour. How is Sonata Arctica gonna tour? What’s gonna happen? We need at…

Some time before I heard of Raskasta Joulua for the first time, I ran into some amazing 80’s cover songs from a band called the Northern Kings. One thing was for sure: these guys had amazing voices but also great humor. Check out yourself: Northern Kings, ‚I Should Be So Lucky‘ The core – in my perspective – of the  Raskasta Joulua vocal band is a group of singers or even more friends: Jarkko Ahola (Teräsbetoni), Tony Kakko (Sonata Arctica), JP Leppäluoto (Charon, Poisonblack) and Marco Hietala (Nightwish, Tarot). They are the Northern Kings! So speaking with Erkka Korhonen on…

Meeting Erkka Korhonen I had the pleasure of seeing some gigs with Erkka and the last of those had ended in an unexpected meet & greet session after a most memorable Raskasta Joulua concert. Interestingly, I found out during this interview that Erkka still remembers this particular day quite vividly although it is is some years back by now. Raskasta Joulua has become a really big event with more than impressive line-up and this year even some guest vocalists. We met in a café near the Tuska venue. It felt horribly early to me although it was not too far…

I had some really great opportunities this summer, and I hope you’re not getting bored by me pointing out yet again that I met an outstanding personality. But, shit, they are! Each of them! And each for different reason! So perhaps some might remember the show of Amorphis in late summer 2016 during the Helsinki Festival at Huvilatelta where they performed a unique gig headed: An evening with friends. One of these friends was Pekko Käppi, who is mastering a medieval instrument called jouhikko. The combination of the progressive Amorphis songs with this medieval instrument was no less than perfect…

Not too long ago I noticed that Antti Karhu, formerly The Man Eating Tree, had a new band, named Post Pulse. I found their just released first album named “Halls of the Damned” and listened to it. It is quite different from The Man Eating Tree, of course. It is aggressive stuff! Straightforward, honest and pure. Interesting. As they listed Helsinki as the band’s base I got in touch. Fun and heavy as hell We’re nobody Love at first sight Folk Metal from The Woods? Metal after Death = Post Pulse This is what I live for Superheroes on my…

“Rise of the Messenger” “Reality Illusion” “Darker World” “Don’t Talk to Strangers”   During this summer I have met numerous, very impressive musicians. Each of them is impressive in his own fashion. And there is no way to tell one more or less impressive as their achievements are hardly to be compared. Each of these musicians is very passionately in what he is doing. But perhaps none is as devoted to do literally everything as Jarkko is. This is not meant to talk small the contribution of the other band members in particular or any other musician in general.…

I met Björn Strid in the back stage oft he Tuska Metal Open Air Festival which is actually not the best place to take an interview. Apparently the organizers are incapable of providing a rather quiet room for interviews. So we sit more or less literally behind the stage with noisy traffic from the road beyond the festival area making it even harder to understand my interviewee. While Björn still complains on the heat of the last weekends, he spent on festivals in continental Europe I am very willing to exchange the rainy cold from Nummirock weather for one of…

The festival ended with a range of more than interesting gigs. Yet after another three nights in a row short in sleep and days crowded with information, music and meeting musicians and managers, I was simply too tired to attend everything I had planned. I am quite confident that Mastodon gave an impressive show without my attention. The weather had changed completely. It was warm, still windy and sun shone from a cloudless sky. It felt as if the sun was burning after the last days of rain and dark clouds. Good, old Udo Dirkschneider and his band shred the…

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