Q: Last year you played in Australia and New Zealand. How was it?
A: It was a good tour and a great experience.
It was amazing to travel to these countries. We booked a tour with many off-days. We only played 9 shows in 2 ½ weeks. This gave us time to get to know the country and the people better.
Despite the time, touring was quite hard since we had to drive several thousand kilometers for the 9 shows.
The clubs we played in can be compared to the clubs in Germany.
It was a great experience for us, and due to the off-days, it was a mix of touring and vacation.
Q: Why did you tour in Australia and New Zealand? Do you have fans there?
A: We love to tour and want to explore the world. We are into crazy places.
A few years ago we played in Japan and also in the USA.
Our albums are distributed in those countries through Poison City Records.
Over the years, we have made friends in Japan and the USA. They supported and helped us during the tour.
The story of how we ended up in Australia and New Zealand is quite crazy. Someone ordered a few shirts from us. The guy was from Australia and asked us if we would be interested in coming over to play some concerts. It turned out that the guy was a booker himself and had already booked bands like AGAINST ME. He wanted to set up a small tour for us and assured us that he could make it happen. However, he told us that he couldn't guarantee that we would recoup all the costs. The flights alone cost €6,000! But it was worth flying over. We had a lot of radio interviews. The promotion was great. That way, we never played in empty clubs. For one gig, we even went to Tasmania. That's the furthest place you can get to from Finland. It's completely on the other side of the world. That was pretty crazy.
Q: Let's talk about the current album “Language of the Lost.”
I think the keyboard is a bit more subdued this time. On your last album “Black Wave Rising,” the keyboard was very dominant. Why did you change your sound?
A: With the current album, we wanted to combine and bring together the best elements of the last albums.
For us, the most important thing was the songwriting. We spent a lot of time perfecting the songs. We only wanted to include the best pieces on the album. Choosing the songs for the album was a long and exhausting process. We had a lot of good pieces. It's hard to part with seemingly good material.
It was important for us not to release a second “Black Wave Rising” album. On “Black Wave Rising,” the keyboard was very dominant and perhaps a bit too much in the direction of New Wave.
With “Language of the Lost,” we wanted to create a more multifaceted, timeless album. We consciously moved away from the simpler song structures of punk and rock. We wanted to make the music more personal.
On “Language of the Lost,” the keyboard is not the carrier of the melodies.
It only enhances the melodies.
Q: Your new album has a striking title. To what extent do you speak the language of the lost?
A: I think the whole album is about the alienation and distancing of people on this planet and in the society we live in.
I personally don't understand many things that people talk about. The development that the world as a whole is making is not the development I wish for.
The values that are currently lived and seen in the media as the ultimate are not my values. The things that are important to most people are unimportant to me. I feel like an outsider. I don't speak the language of the masses.
Music is an escape from all of this. I feel like a stranger on my own planet.
The title of our new album represents the language of our music.
If you go to Japan, for example, you don't understand a word of the language there. Still, there are people who like your music. With these people, you quickly find a common wavelength. You have a personal connection with these strangers.
Q: I've heard that the punk scene in Finland is currently growing.
Is that true?
A: Right now, the scene is actually very good. There are a lot of punk rock shows, many people go to the shows, and bands of various styles play concerts together. The music styles are not strictly separated at shows in Finland.
The genres mix. That's good. Many new bands are being formed. These new bands usually don't just copy anymore but are looking for their own style, for something unique.
Helsinki, Turku, and Tampere are the largest cities in Southern Finland. These are also the cities where the scene is concentrated. Of course, there is a lot going on in some smaller places, but it's not comparable to the scene in the big cities. Because of this, there are also many bands that only play in Southern Finland. We don't do that. We play all over Finland, from Lapland where there are hardly any venues to the south. For the release of “Language of the Lost,” we played 15 concerts in Finland.
Aside from the big cities, Joensuu in Eastern Finland is a good city for us. Antti (guitarist) and I come from there. We also founded our other band “Wasted” there.
In Rovaniemi in Lapland, we also do really well. We've played there 10 times already, even though that's a total of 1800 kilometers each time.
Q: How has the economic crisis affected Finland?
A: I think just like other countries in Europe. Many factories have reduced production, laid off people, and are trying to further cut costs, for example, by relocating production abroad.
It's terrible, but also interesting to see where this development is heading and where it will all end.
Q: When I listen to your music, I often think of films by Aki Karusmäki. Do you like his films and the atmosphere he conveys in them?
A: I like Aki Karusmäki's films, but I wouldn't call myself a fan of his. I think Aki Karusmäki describes very well the melancholy and depression that many Finns suffer from. Of course, he also exaggerates. Most Finns probably won't like his films. I don't know any Finn who likes his films.
In a very special, perhaps quirky way, I like the dark and the melancholic. Happy music does nothing for me. All people have problems and struggle through their lives every day, but they are forced to always be friendly and not talk about their problems. They can't show their true feelings. I hate this attitude. I want to be sincere with other people and not hide my feelings and emotions.
When emotions and feelings are hidden, something always builds up inside, and when it finally erupts, it gets ugly.
These are the themes I sing about in my songs to not go crazy myself.
Q: Many people in Germany think that Finns are a bit strange and that they spend half their lives just drinking alcohol and going to the sauna. Is that true?
A: Well, going to the sauna and drinking alcohol is the only way to survive five months of complete darkness. In Northern Finland, the sun doesn't rise at all during the entire winter, and you have -20 degrees. Come to Finland in winter, and you'll understand what I mean.
Q: Your last tour only took you to Germany. Do you have fans in other European countries as well?
A: So far, we have primarily toured in Germany. This is also because Rookie Records has released our last two albums. As a result, we have many fans in Germany. However, we have also played in the Czech Republic, Austria, Sweden, and Denmark. Our current album will also be released in the UK, Spain, the Netherlands, and a few other countries. With this, we hope to win over some people there and be able to tour there in the near future.
