7 posts tagged “finland”
Well it's been far too long since I've been tourtured by the editing features of Vox, and I see Vu's plastered the place with Morrisey again, so I guess it's time for some more randomness; a baby star and a walrus. I'd noramlly post a live vid, but apparently the performers are only 4 like, so I'll just leave it at that then...
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The band's been long in retirement when the phenomenon hit and were soon asked for tour reunion, as well as in talks of re-releasing and remixing "Ievan Polkka". All this fuss for one song ?
So let's take a look at the song and why it's so popular.
First of all, the song isn't an original, it's based on an old 17th century Russian folk song, "Savitaipaleen polkka". The traditional song was then translated to Finnish in the 1930s by Eino Kettunen, which are the lyrics and melodies are based on on the Loituma's version.
As the internet have demonstrated, there are many different recording of this song, what I think I liked about Loituma's version is that there are actually no music in their recording. It should also be noted that they often would make up new/different lyrics, ala a cappella scat-style. Combined that with the harmonies and you can see why people just love this song.
While this is not an end-all to all things "Ievan Polka", I have compiled some recording and videos and variance of this song:
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The Russian rap song is quite interesting, mixing hardcore rap-style with an old Russian folk song, while the Sukellusvene has no lyrics and sounds pretty loungey.
My favorite on here is a brief singing by Miljah, who looks surprisingly cute waving her leek.
Bonus: You can download a free Loituma Girl application for your iPhone.
PS I was going to do a podcast on this song, but based on all the variations, I've decided to just keep it as an article. It's okay, I have a ton of other songs I can talk about :)
03/15/2009 01:47:40 ♥ vu (
)
♥weheartmusic.com♥podcast.weheartmusic.com♥news.weheartmusic.com
So I'm at home right now with a lack of voice, upset stomach, tireness, violent coughs, uncontrollable running nose, all the wonderful things you get with a flu. I know there is a scientific explanation for these random mucas, but I have always wondered why it happens and why our body can't just, you know, stop the mucas from just coming out.
So picture this: tissues plugging my noses - sexy, huh?
(It is 11am).
Anyway, I'll be taking it easy today, maybe re-read The Watchmen as I just saw the movie in theater over the weekend and was really impressed. As an old comic book fan (especially when it comes to the genius of Alan Moore), I loved it - but I am not so sure about the general population that is interested in a 'popcorn' flick, you know? The movie is dialogue-heavy, but Zack Snyder balanced it extended action sequences.
Rorschach is awesome in the movie. Anytime he's on screen and speaking his lines, he's just mesmerizing.
There were a few things that was left out, which is understandable as you need to keep the movie to a decent time. The murder of the original Nite Owl, the throwing of the Nostalgia perfume bottle, the back story of the cops investigating the new Nite Owl, as well as the origin of the ink-shifting fabric were left out. Understandably that these are minor details, and I can understand the omissions. Still.... it's amazing what they were able to squeeze in, just the title sequence of the original Minutemen handled a lot of the back stories of the original heroes in the 40s.None of you seem to understand. I'm not locked up in here with you. You're locked up in here with ME!
So, if you like comics, this movie was made for you. For the rest of you - the movie might not be compelling enough to get to you into the theaters.
(It is now 1am, been laying in bed for the rest of the day, can't rest anymore. May drive to walmart to pick up some Tylenol Flu and food as I haven't eaten all day.)
Despite my previous efforts in telling you that BMG Music Club is a great way for people to discover new music - I was just informed that as of June 30, 2009, that BMG will cease to exist. They are switching their efforts over to yourmusic.com.
I did went to the new website to check it out.
PROS:
CONS:
So there's several things I think is wrong with this program, but I won't go into all the details. Let's just put it this way: I'm just not fond of reoccurring paying for something (especially if currently I already have more than enough advance music promos to write about).
I think if you're a teenager with a $7 budget for music per month, this will be awesome for you. Me? Not so much the awesome.
(It is now Tuesday, also did not venture out to Wal-Mart...)
I have said that Guitar Hero and such games are a great way for bands to monetize on their music. I think Metallica is smart in making this happen.
Fans can now rock out to 28 Metallica's tunes, as well as 21 additional songs chosen by Metallica (some of them includes Queen, Thin Lizzy, Social D, and Motörhead). It looks like a solid game in terms of music content.
I'm not a fan of pre-ordering games (it's like you're so committed to it, you know?), but you do get a bonus item(s) if you pre-order from certain store. The details on Guitar Hero Hub said you get a 2nd drum peddle at Gamestop, tattoo arm for Best Buy, and drumsticks at Game Crazy.
03/10/2009 10:21:04 ♥ vu ()
♥weheartmusic.com♥podcast.weheartmusic.com♥news.weheartmusic.com
A while back, in a discussion with a fellow W♥M writer, I told him that I've always liked "themed" posts. One of my idea was to do a special kitchen utensils article, about bands' names involving 'spoon' or 'fork' or 'knife'. At the time, it sounded really cool, I mean, far out, wouldn't it be a blast to have these bands go on tour together?
Well, it sounded cool at the time. When it came to executing the article, I found myself for the lack of time and commitment (especially because I've been spending so much time devoted to watching DVDs and reading nowadays).
I started doing research on utensil bands, and, of course, most of these bands refused to accommodate any requests that I made regarding correspondence.
Anyway, I have settled on focusing on these bands below. I present to you, the perfect Utensil bands!
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SPOON
spoontheband.com ♥ myspace.com
My friend, Robin, told me that Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga was the "best album of the year". That was in 2007. Of course, with a recommendation like that, I had to check them out. At least give it a try, you know? She's not
wrong, but given the sheer amount of music released in '07, she can't
be right either? I will have to say that for an indie rock album, I did enjoy the various brass instruments thrown in there on "The Underdog". And I did like Britt Daniel's vocals, which sounds like a lazy Paul Westerberg. They are not afraid of experimenting with unconventional noises either, like the piano-driven "The Ghost Of You Lingers" features weird loops and feedback, giving a sense of a spirit in the song. Picking between two of the best song on Ga ("Eddie's Ragga" and "You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb"), I decided to go with the former. It looks like this Texan band is playing mostly in California (they seem to really love the Fillmore):
20 Sep 2008 Hollywood Bowl Los Angeles, CA 22 Sep 2008 The Fillmore San Francisco, CA 23 Sep 2008 The Fillmore San Francisco, CA 24 Sep 2008 The Fillmore San Francisco, CA |
fork.fi ♥ myspace Not quite acapella (there are actual music) and not quite glam, this is a Finnish pop band, consisting of two boys (Winston Chill and Miles Precious) and two girls (Chiq LaDesire and Angel d'Ville) and something called "The Greg". Looking at their website, it looks like they've released two albums, but in fact they have over four albums, with the latest called Games We Play from 2007. As a cover lover, I was drawn to their 2005's Cover to Cover, an all-covers album. Of course, I don't have any of their albums, so here's a video for for Fork's version of the Bon Jovi's classic, "You Give Love a Bad Name".
Having seen the entire thing, I can only describe this as cheesy. Especially when the Metallica guy shows up! |
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THE KNIFE
theknife.net ♥ myspace.com
The Knife is a pretty electronic duo (Karin Dreijer Andersson and Olof Dreijer) from Sweden, who I've previously briefly mentioned their Christmas Raindeer song. Mostly beats and electronic, Andersson does lend her vocals on 99% of their songs - at least from what I've heard on their 2006 album Silent Shout. If you happen to get the limited edition version of this album, it comes with a bonus live disc - featuring one of their best-known song, "Heartbeats" done live. I will also mention that not only are they loved in the US by Pitchfork (they named Silent Shout best album of 2006), but also in their home country where they won six Swedish Grammies:
What is amazing is that they were nominated for six - and had won all six! It looked like it was a busy year for the duo in 2006 and 2007, but surprisingly, currently, the band is on a three-year hiatus as Olof is determined to make his DJ stuff as "Coolof". I'm certain you'll hear from The Knife once again in 2010. |
SPOONFORK
spoonthefork.com ♥ myspace.com
Also from Sweden and also a duo, is the garagey/indie rock band, Spoonfork. Their 2008 debut album, All Is Well from Gourmé Records, is receiving rave reviews all across the board. Spoonfork's biography lists that they started just last year by one-man-musician Oscar Lundin. I suppose it wasn't long before he recruited his friend, a "classical guitarist" named Adam Olson. Between the two of them, they create this kind of White Stripes/The Strokes sounding music, but with lots of bass and guitar riffs. In true punk attitude, all their songs were recorded with one take, resulting in some raw rock and roll. This is what I like about talented bands, the ability to play and record something in one take. If there are any imperfections/mistakes, it only adds to the charm of the song. Although, as I previously mentioned, these guys are from Sweden, Oscar Lundin's vocals styles sounds as if he's from Missippipi - so their songs tend to come off like southern rock. Most of the songs I enjoyed aren't particularly radio friendly, especially the 9-minute epic "The Undertaker" and "Bustin' Heads for Dr Death" (both songs seem to be inspired by horror movies). The later song, "Dr Death" sounds as if it is actually two songs. It sounds to me like during recording, Lundin thought "fuck it, I'm going to continue playing the song and who knows where it's going to go!" If you like what you heard, you can pick up their album on CD Baby and while you're at it, download their free The Zombie EP via Gourmé Records.
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In an effort to help out Soup, who is getting a ton of stuff from me, I've picked out a few metal bands to review - mostly because of their international appeal.
As you know, metal is huge everywhere, so here are a few from different countries:
Headbangers, rejoice, Germany's Headhunter is back after 13 years with the release of Parasite Of Society, out in Germany a few days ago on May 23rd. US fans will have to wait until the official release date of June 10th, from Candlight Records.
Listening to the album, it sounds as if this power/thrash metal band never really left the 90's, which is just fine for fans of this band. Believe me, just doing brief research on this band, I came across so many blog entries from fans who were absolutely were looking forward to this album for so many years. From my understanding, this new album is more "power" than previous efforts.
Also, this
really suprises me, but their songs are sung in English, not German. I
did enjoy their storytelling songs, particularly "18 and Life", which
tells the story of poor Ricky who joined the army (as it turns out, this is a Skid Row cover song, see comments below).
They also show off their headbanging badge too, of course, doing such songs as "Parasite Of Society" and "Doomsday for the Prayer" (singer Schmier seems to be channeling Axl Rose here).
The newly reformed trio will make a special appearance at Wacken Open Air Festival on August 1st. Parasite of Society is available now in Germany, early June for US.
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Puerto Rico's most famous metal band is undoutably Dantesco. As their name suggests, "Dantesque", I believe they're named after the poet, Dante from Florence, Italy, who wrote The Divine Comedy. They've just released Pagano on April 24th on Cruz Del Sur Music (I would link to their website, except google seems to think that this website "may harm your computer").
I like the weird horn at the beginning of "Aguila de Sangre" (Eagle of Blood), and the song has a nice epic feel, being about seven minutes long. Plus check out the guitar shredding in the middle of the song.
Since all the songs are in Spanish, I couldn't really tell you too much about the meaning of the song, but I reckon if you like doom metal, this might be right up your alley.
By the way, interestingly enough, there is a song called "De La Mano De La Muerte" (Of the Hand of Death), which should've appeared on their debut album of the same name... but somehow is on this second album. Listening to it, the song really doesn't belong on their release - mostly because this is a (quieter) acoustic song, whose only purpose seems to be a nice break between the other heavier songs.
Currently, the band is planning on playing a few dates, mostly in the Florida area, although the venues are still to be determined:
- 07/10/08 Jacksonville, Florida
07/11/08 Orlando, Florida
07/12/08 Miami, Florida
07/13/08 Tampa, Florida
If you're going to pick up Pagano, check out that there is a Limited Edition Slipcase version that includes an embroidered patch that was released April 11th prior to their appearance at the Up the Hammers Greek Festival.
Finland's Teräsbetoni have been in the news lately. Their third album Myrskyntuoja
reached the top 40, mostly based on their amazing music video for
"Missä Miehet Ratsastaa" (Where All The Men Ride Forth) for Eurovision
2008. The video is about these norsemen/vikings who found themselves
in the modern age, where they find themselves becoming a metal band... it looks more like a wonderful movie rather than a
music video (well, that is at the beginning of the video...)
Maybe Christopher or someone in the UK can let me know if Teräsbetoni's been eliminated yet.
I got a press release that also mention that lead singer, J Ahola, is preparing Northern Kings' album Reborn for a June 16th release. From the description, they're a rock operatic supergroup comprising of four heavy metal singers.
Looking at the track listing, it seems they're all cover songs, the most interesting covers includes "Creep" (Radiohead), "We Don't Need Another Hero" (Tina Turner) and "In The Air Tonight" (Phil Collins).
Links:
official-headhunter.com
myspace.com
metalhordes.com
myspace.com/dantescoepico
terasbetoni.com
| Soup wrote: Sun, May 25, 2008 at 2:25 AM |
Actually, you'd be surprised. It's not uncommon for metal bands from non-English speaking countries to sing in English because it makes it easier for them to get their music out to English speaking countries, who tend to be really enthusiastic about metal. Bands that don't do that tend to have trouble "making it" in the UK and the US. But a few examples off the top of my head: Emperor (Norway), Mayhem (Norway), Running Wild (Germany), Sepultura (Brazil), and literally countless others.
I totally want to hear a metal band covering Tina Turner. That sounds awesome.
| crankypants wrote: Sun, May 25, 2008 at 11:16 AM |
Didn't Skid Row or one of those late 80s/early 90s bands have a song called 18 & Life?
Ricky didn't join the army in that one though....
Albums
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Husky Rescue, an ambient/pop band from Helsinki, Finland, has a new remix album coming out 22 October 2007. The collection called Other Worlds seems to just collect a lot of previously unavailable live tracks and rare b-sides and remixes. However, the song that they let me preview and use is called "Shadow Run", remixed by Arveene & Misk, is actually from their Caravan EP.
Some of the remixers includes Serge Santiago, Bonobo, Fink, Evil 9, Emperor Machine, Tunng and Vector Lovers, none of whom I've heard of. I'm sure if you're big into DJs/remixers, you can probably correct me.
The band was started by bassist, Marko Nyberg, who started writing music under that Husky Rescue name (which I thought of Antarctica, a Japanese movie that was later adapted as Eight Below).
Nyberg's idea for the band was to be influenced by movies, photograpphies, and arts. So for the debut album, he collaborated with 20 musicians and Country Falls was released in 2004.
Check out this creepy video for "City Lights", and watch more Husky Rescue videos on Stage6. While you're at it, also check out W♥M Videos (where you can access previously mentioned music videos).
Husky Rescue is currently on Catskills Records and on Minty Fresh for the US (although there's practically no information on them on the flash-based website).
10/04/2007 21:04:52
vu
my♥posts
vu@weheartmusic.com
www.husky-rescue.com
Albums
Footnotes [1] From "Now We're REALLY Underground" |
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See as we don't have any bands from Finland, I've decided to pick a Finnish band called LAB today. They are a "gothic rock" band on Sony/BMG, but I think they're more Alternative Rock from the 1999 to 2005 era. They sound similar to Daisy Chainsaw[W♥M], so if you like them, you'll love LAB.
Looking at their album covers, you can start to see a trend: the direction of the band seems to be in Christianity imagery of Angels and Devils. Their third album featured a topless Ana in a Christ like on-the-cross position, an imagery that would never be accepted in America (good thing none of their albums was ever released here).
Of course, none of their songs actually deals with religion.
Sadly, the only international fame they've received is being on the soundtrack to Vivendi Universal's FlatOut Video Game. The song is "Beat the Boys", which I've included here for you to listen to.
The other song I've picked out is "Killing Me", which is from their debut album, Porn Beautiful.
As far as I know, the band is no longer around. According to their last post entry (sometime in 2005), the band was dropped by BMG/Sony[1].
August 30, 2007 8:02 AM
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labplanet.net
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