- Features:
* Eurosonic 2007 - Islaja, Lapko, Rubik and Bloodpit - Finland Ready to Rock Groeningen
* Midem 2007 - The Ultimate Finnish Classical & Jazz Showdown
- Business
- Live News
- Behind the Scenes
- Behind the Numbers
Eurosonic 2007 - Islaja, Lapko, Rubik and Bloodpit - Finland Ready to Rock Groeningen
We Finns love Eurosonic and Eurosonic loves us. The New Year has come with a new appetite for fresh Nordic sounds.
Islaja (FONAL RECORDS) @ the Grand Theatre Up, 10:15pm
“Everything about the new Islaja album is beautifully strange, from the Finnish vocals to the sparse and inventive instrumentation.” 5/5 - Tiny Mix Tapes
Lapko (FULLSTEAM RECORDS)
@ the Vindicat, 11:45pm
“Lapko is one of the most interesting Finnish bands of the Decade” - Tuhma Magazine
Friday, January 12:
Rubik (FULLSTEAM RECORDS)
@ De Spieghel, 10:15pm
“Rubik are friggin’ awesome.” - Music Week
Bloodpit (MERCEEDEES)
@ De Beurs, 00:15am (Friday night)
These Finnish chart toppers are a must hear!
Midem 2007 - The Ultimate Finnish Classical & Jazz Showdown
After succesfully hosting last year’s opening night at Midem, this year we Finns are ready to present our very best in classical and jazz, two of our most celebrated genres.
2007 marks the 50th anniversary of the death of Jean Sibelius. Accordingly, Pekka Kuusisto (ONDINE), the foremost Sibelius interpreter and Sibelius competition winner, will kick off the Finnish Classical extravaganza at 8:00pm at the Palais des Festivals’ Theatre Debussy. The virtuoso will salute the most beloved violin masterpieces of Jean Sibelius, who still stands as Finland’s biggest generator of performing rights royalties.
International Jazz Festivals Organization (IJFO) chose Finnish jazz for the main slot in the Midem Jazz program. The Finnish Jazz Night begins at 9:30pm in the Salon Diane Barrière at the Hôtel Majestic.
The Jukka Eskola Quintet (RICKY-TICK RECORDS), 9:30pm
Eskola and his troupe are the cream of the Finnish jazz scene.
UMO Jazz Orchestra 10:30pm
UMO is rated as one of the world’s most appreciated big bands, with the current members among the top jazz musicians in Finland.
Iiro Rantala New Trio (ROCKADILLO RECORDS) 11:30pm
This famous Finnish trio is made up of renowned pianist Iiro Rantala, guitarist Marzi Nyman and human beatbox Felix Zenger.
BLACK DRINKS, FINNISH CHEF AND AIR GUITAR - Sounds like a party…
For those in the know, The Infamous Finnish Black Monday Party takes place on Monday, January 22 at 5:30pm. A great warm-up for the classical and jazz nights! Want to know more? Email: info@musex.fi
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Business
The Finnish world music ensemble Värttinä (HOEDOWN ARTS) has reached another milestone. Songlines Magazine has ranked their album Miero the second best of 2006. Go Värttinä!
Luomo+s (HUUME RECORDINGS) Paper Tigers is nominated for electronic album of the year by Playboy Magazine. The other four nominees are ok too… Check it out for yourself (but you know who to vote for!):
http://www.playboy.com/magazine/features/music-poll-2006/index.html
SPINEFARM RECORDS’ epic heathen metal orchestra Moonsorrow is taking over German metal media by storm! Their fifth full length album V: Hävitetty (which translates into Fifth Chapter: Ravaged) has already been named Album of the Month in Rock Hard, Germany’s biggest metal/rock magazine. The album also grabbed the second position in the Soundcheck section of Legacy, Germany’s leading extreme metal magazine. V: Hävitetty will be released worldwide on January 15.
The red-hot dark rockers Bloodpit (MERCEEDES), who are about to showcase at Eurosonic this Friday, have inked an international deal with SONY BMG. Bloodpit’s management will still be in the safe hands of MERCEEDEES who have also signed a deal with Underwater Sleeping Society, one of the most talked about Indie Rock bands in Finland. MERCEEDEES will handle the international rights management and licensing of Underwater Sleeping Society’s highly anticipated second album, All Other Lights Go Out.
Finnish world music quartet Loituma’s (DIFFERENT LEVEL) hit single Ieva’s polka will be released by Universal Music Germany in January. In summer 2006 Loituma’s a cappella song found huge global success on the internet. Media around Europe paid attention to the phenomenon, causing major labels to notice the value of the song. In summer 2006 Ieva’s polka was licensed out in several countries and companies in Europe and Asia.
The Finnish energetic metal-rockers Defuse (TUHMA RECORDS) will release their debute album in Italy January 2007. The release will be accompanied with a four date Italian tour.
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Live News
Tarot (KING FOO), one of the first Finnish metal groups to gain international renown, will give a rare tour in Germany on February 5 - 14. The support act for this ‘Crows Over Germany Tour’ is Diablo (POKO RECORDS), another heavyweight act hailing from Finland.
Also appearing in Germany, the music and visuals spectacle Leningrad Cowboys (SONY BMG) will have five shows plus additional gigs in Prague, Czech Republic on February 2 � 13. The relentless garage rockers Boomhauer (STUPIDO RECORDS) will also be playing in Fürth, Berlin, Darmstadt and Cologne on February 20 - 24.
Death/thrash metallers Amoral (SPINEFARM) will visit Italy for three gigs in Cuneo, Bassano del Grappa and Prato on February 1 - 3, while the much buzzed-about ambient pop group Rubik (FULLSTEAM RECORDS) will appear twice in Stavanger, Norway, on February 8 & 9.
Leading world music group Gjallarhorn will bring their tradition-based, yet innovative sounds to Belgium on a five-date tour occurring on February 2 - 8. Another top world music name, the accordion futurist Kimmo Pohjonen (ROCKADILLO RECORDS), will give two solo concerts in Granada and Seville, Spain, on February 20 & 21.
Moonsorrow (SPINEFARM RECORDS) has announced a tour in Canada and Germany to promote the release of their new album V: Hävitetty. Appearances at the biggest European metal festivals will follow in the summer. Tour dates here.
Värttinä (HOEDOWN ARTS) will be entertaining the Americans on six different occasions in January. Tour dates here.
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Behind the Scenes
Home sweet home. Even a metalhead has a soft spot for home in his heart. Or it could be that it’s Finland that is so irresistible. What are we rambling on about? The band that gave love metal to the world, HIM, has decided to record its new album in Helsinki (the previous one was completed in Los Angeles). Singer Ville Valo said it’ll be a treat to be able to go home and sleep in his own bed after a day of recording. This autumn he had the first chance in a long time to hang around in Helsinki, rent DVDs and eat pizza at home. It felt refreshing and led to this decision. Awwww, that’s so sweet, Ville!
Behind the Numbers
One of the strengths of Finnish music is its diversity. This was proved again by year-end polls in music magazines. In various music magazines and popular culture-oriented publications, albums of the year included the earthy, country rock of the Jolly Jumpers, Scandal by melancholic rockers Lapko and the Finnish-language musings of half-goofball, half-serious singer-songwriter Risto. On the other hand, the biggest seller was, not so surprisingly, Eurovision Song Contest winner Lordi, whose The Arockalypse sold triple-platinum, over 90 000 copies. That’s more than this year’s second and third biggest selling Finnish albums combined.