COB Interviews
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happilemon
Member
bodomfinland
New Metal Member
It seems that someone is pissing about me.Please accept my apology,I didn't meant to raise your temp.Ok,no more shits anymore,I promise.
happilemon
Member
You did though..that's exactly what you wanted! Pointless spamtrolls do have that effect on me. Anyway,yeah whatever it's fine 
mocobhc
Member
... dunno what exactly you did happilemon, but it seems as if you deserve a 'thank you' for doing it, so here you have one
bodomfinland
New Metal Member
Text To Enter To Win An Alexi Guitar...
Yesterday at 9:16pm
Text WINCOB to 30303 to be entered to win an Alexi Laiho signature guitar courtesy of ESP and Spinefarm Records. Automatically receive $1.00 off a 'Blooddrunk' ringtone. Text COB2A to get that.
from facebook
Yesterday at 9:16pm
Text WINCOB to 30303 to be entered to win an Alexi Laiho signature guitar courtesy of ESP and Spinefarm Records. Automatically receive $1.00 off a 'Blooddrunk' ringtone. Text COB2A to get that.
from facebook
sleeper666
MetalMutha
short interview clips from all the bands from last year's Gigantour - Alexi and Janne appear several times at various
moments throughout the video
http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/gigantour-2008-on-metal-edge-tv/11135398
moments throughout the video
http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/gigantour-2008-on-metal-edge-tv/11135398
mocobhc
Member
^Yeah that´s nice. I always thought that Jackie is one of the few female interviewers who does a decent job. And she´s got two nice COB pics with her at her website http://fullmetaljackieradio.com (pics no. 81 and 114). Anyone around who managed to listen to Alexi´s appearance at her radio show about a week ago btw??
Necroraven
Member
- Nov 21, 2007
- 2,193
- 1
- 36
Again I don't know if this has already been posted but it's a Janne interview with Highwire Daze:
Children Of Bodom played the Milwaukee Metalfest 2000, and pretty much blew away all of the competition with their dynamic show. Named after a real life unsolved murder which happened at a lake called Bodom near Espoo City (where the COB members are from), the band is on the verge of releasing their third album here i n the States. Entitled Follow The Reaper, it shows Children Of Bodom more manic than ever and promises to be one of the best metal releases of 2001! I recently spoke with keyboardist Janne Warman (aka Wirman) at 6AM my time. It was the middle of day in Finland, and his long day of interviews was just beginning...
Highwire Daze: Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Children Of Bodom, and tell me how long the band has been together?
Janne Warman: I'm Janne and I play keyboards in Children Of Bodom, and we have been playing now for three or four years. We have released three studio albums plus a live album from our Tokyo gigs in Japan.
HD: First of all, how did you feel about the show you did at the Milwaukee Metalfest?
Janne: Well, when you go to another country to play a gig and you don't have your own crew or equipment, it's pretty hard to do a good show. But the audience was great and the feeling was really good, so I think it was a good gig after all, though we had some technical problems.
HD: What were your impressions of the US audiences and the States in general?
Janne: I think that the US audience was really aggressive. I think they liked our performance. We are pretty aggressive onstage too! In general, it was a good gig and a very nice experience to play in the US.
HD: You guys seemed really tired during the autograph session but really got it together live.
Janne: The autograph session lasted something like two and half hours - the line was like from Milwaukee to Chicago - it took so f*cking long. But, we left after that and it was okay.
HD: Do you guys do anything to prepare for a live show, especially when you're on tour and really tired?
Janne: Not much. Alexander plays a lot of guitar before a show as a warm up. I don't have a possibility to do that because my keyboards are onstage and I don't know if I would like to do that. I just eat and take it easy for a while. We don't do anything together before the gig - everybody does his own thing and then we go onstage and have a blast.
HD: And then you plug in your keyboards and hope that they work! Janne: Yeah!
HD: So before we talk about Follow The Reaper, I wanted to ask you about your Live In Japan album. What made you decide it was time to release a live recording?
Janne: Because when we were in Tokyo playing, we heard they were going to record those gigs anyway. So we thought that might be a good chance to release some live material. Then we got back home in Finland and went to the Finwork studios and listened to the tapes. And they were okay, there was nothing really bad in it - of course there were some mistakes in playing, but in general it sounded pretty cool. So we thought, "Let's release it as a live album."
HD: Why didn't Nuclear Blast release it here in the States?
Janne: I have no idea. It was meant to be a limited thing, so maybe that was why.
HD: What were the Japanese fans like when you met them?
Janne: Well, in Japan, the age group was totally different. We have these 30-40 year old dudes wearing suits, and they'd come to our shows and wanted autographs. In Japan, the audiences there are not only young kids who like to go crazy. The age of the people is very wide in Japan - not just young people who want to go crazy.
HD: That must be pretty funny seeing that.
Janne: Yeah, it was pretty surprising. When we were going in and out of our rooms in the hotel, there were always some people in the lobby waiting for us to get autographs. And there we noticed these guys in suits who had all of our albums and wanted to get our autographs - we were really surprised!
HD: How much of Follow The Reaper was done when you played the Milwaukee Metalfest?
Janne: We had the ideas of the songs, but they needed a lot more arranging and a lot more riffs. But we had many ideas for the songs already at that time.
HD: How does Follow The Reaper compare with the other Children Of Bodom albums?
Janne: There is something definitely that has happened since Hatebreeder. After Something Wild, our style evolved in a more straightforward way. We don't have any more of these strange, meaningless parts that we had on the songs on Something Wild. I think the songs have a little bit more sense in the way that they're not so complicated. The songs are a little bit more straightforward, but there are some fast parts, but they're not so totally mixed up.
HD: Which songs on the album are you the most excited about playing live? Janne: Sh*t, I can't remember the names! The number three track…
HD: Children Of Decadence?
Janne: Yeah! And the number four track Everytime I Die, because in Finland, we released a video of it, and it had some success on Finnish TV. And then the last song Kissing The Shadows because it has the killer solo part at the ending of it.
HD: When you released Hate Me as a single, how did it sell?
Janne: Hate Me was the first song from the Follow The Reaper album that was totally ready. I think we just wanted to release some new material before releasing the album. Hate Me was the first new song we did, so we just released it as a single.
HD: How much did you contribute in the songwriting department?
Janne: Actually, not much. I like to write all the music, but when (Alexi) comes to our training sessions with his ideas - we all arrange the songs very much. I like to write all the music, but everyone of us is very much involved with the arranging of the songs.
HD: You've pretty much toured all over the world at this point. What are some of the strangest things that have happened to you or the band?
Janne: There has been a lot of strange things going on. One of them was in Finland, when the engine of our bus exploded. That was quite nice! And we had some other stuff going on also - like wrecking some hotel rooms in Germany and sh*t like that. There's always something happening to us when we're on tour. We're pretty lively people.
HD: In Finland, what is the current metal scene like, and are there any places for metal bands to play?
Janne: Yes, yes there are. In the capital of Finland, Helsinki, where we all live very near here - there's two big, new, very well equipped clubs to play gigs. And even on the countryside of Finland, there are nice places. In Finland, we have a pretty good situation in that way.
HD: How long have you been playing keyboards and what made you take up that instrument?
Janne: I've been playing keyboards only for the three or four years that Children Of Bodom has been together. I was playing piano before that. I started that when I was five years old, and graduated from Helsinki Pop Jazz Conservatory when I was sixteen. But then I quit playing totally, because I didn't want to play anymore. And then Children Of Bodom's first album was about to be recorded and they needed a keyboard player. The band's name wasn't Children Of Bodom at the time. But the band needed a new keyboard player and asked me to join and that's how we formed Children Of Bodom. And then we did the first record.
HD: Prior to being in Children Of Bodom, what kind of music were you into?
Janne: I studied at the Pop Jazz Conservatory, so I was mainly a jazz piano player before that.
HD: What bands do you like now and are influenced by?
Janne: Right now I'm into 80's hard rock, like Ozzy Osborne and shit like that. But I also like these technical progressive heavy metal bands like Symphony X. I listen to a lot of different styles, so I play many different styles also - I've been playing everything from jazz to heavy metal.
HD: Are you influenced by classical music at all?
Janne: A little. Actually, that's one thing that I realize now I should have been playing more when I was younger - because a lot of fast, heavy metal things demand this good classical finger work technique which I don't fully have - so I have to make my own things. But I've been now trying to catch up and play some classical stuff.
HD: Tell me about your other band Warmen.
Janne: That's my solo project band. It started off as a joke. These guys who play the drums and main guitars on Warmen - we were just hanging out and they said "Hey! When you do a solo album, we want to play on it." And I was like, "Yeah, sure, okay." And then half a year after that, I was like, "Hey, what about if I really do it?" And I asked Spinefarm if they would release it if I recorded it, and they were like "Hell yeah!" And then I just called up those two guys and said, "Hey! Let's do it right now!" And I started writing music and we recorded the album. And it's been out for half a year now.
HD: What does the music of Warmen sound like?
Janne: It's mainly instrumental, but we have two songs with vocals. Kimberly Goss from Sinergy is singing on two songs. It's progressive, instrumental heavy metal with some 80's influences - not so complex songs after all.
HD: Have you ever played live with Warmen?
Janne: Yeah, a few times in Finland, but not much. It went pretty well actually. We played at Spinefarm's birthday party, a big gig in Helsinki where Children Of Bodom also played. And then we had one television show.
HD: Any chance of seeing Children Of Bodom again here in the States?
Janne: There have been some plans about touring the States in April, so I hope that comes true.
HD: With Nuclear Blast America now being released through Century Media, will COB be released through CM too?
Janne: Yeah, we will.
HD: What was your favorite CD of 2000 and why?
Janne: That's a tough one! Arch Enemy - no, that was released in 1999. (After much thought) Maybe Britney Spears, "Oops I Did It Again."
HD: (much laughter) Any reason why?
Janne: It's so very well produced and has killer songs. I cannot now come up with anything better.
HD: You are kidding, aren't you? (Janne sounded so serious up to this point.)
Janne: Yeah, yeah, yeah. (laughs)
HD: So that comes to my next question. Who do you think is better - Britney Spears or Christina Aguilara?
Janne: I think Britney. Yeah.
HD: Well, that was a pretty predictable answer. Are they popular over there?
Janne: Yeah, they are! Yeah, like hell! The only thing kids over here are listening to is Britney. She's huge over here now.
HD: What do you think about annoying musical trends like the Backstreet Boys and N'Sync?
Janne: I just hate the fucking boy bands. Usually what it is - it's five guys who look like gays and they know the dance moves. But in the studio, someone else does all the songs of course and does the music and they totally try to sing. And the live act is all playbacks, and I hate that shit. We have a lot of boy bands here in Finland also. I just hate it!
HD: From boybands to Bodom. If there was one thing you'd like someone to remember after hearing your music, what would it be?
Janne: I would like them to remember that there are also some very skilled musicians behind Alexi's screaming. Because the vocals are pretty aggressive and some people can't hear anything beyond the vocals. I would like people to notice the playing behind the vocals.
HD: Do you have any messages for Children Of Bodom fans here in the States?
Janne: Just keep it up and I hope that we will come over there to see you soon.
Watch for Follow The Reaper by Children Of Bodom, to be released in the States February 2001 from Nuclear Blast Records!
Children Of Bodom played the Milwaukee Metalfest 2000, and pretty much blew away all of the competition with their dynamic show. Named after a real life unsolved murder which happened at a lake called Bodom near Espoo City (where the COB members are from), the band is on the verge of releasing their third album here i n the States. Entitled Follow The Reaper, it shows Children Of Bodom more manic than ever and promises to be one of the best metal releases of 2001! I recently spoke with keyboardist Janne Warman (aka Wirman) at 6AM my time. It was the middle of day in Finland, and his long day of interviews was just beginning...
Highwire Daze: Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Children Of Bodom, and tell me how long the band has been together?
Janne Warman: I'm Janne and I play keyboards in Children Of Bodom, and we have been playing now for three or four years. We have released three studio albums plus a live album from our Tokyo gigs in Japan.
HD: First of all, how did you feel about the show you did at the Milwaukee Metalfest?
Janne: Well, when you go to another country to play a gig and you don't have your own crew or equipment, it's pretty hard to do a good show. But the audience was great and the feeling was really good, so I think it was a good gig after all, though we had some technical problems.
HD: What were your impressions of the US audiences and the States in general?
Janne: I think that the US audience was really aggressive. I think they liked our performance. We are pretty aggressive onstage too! In general, it was a good gig and a very nice experience to play in the US.
HD: You guys seemed really tired during the autograph session but really got it together live.
Janne: The autograph session lasted something like two and half hours - the line was like from Milwaukee to Chicago - it took so f*cking long. But, we left after that and it was okay.
HD: Do you guys do anything to prepare for a live show, especially when you're on tour and really tired?
Janne: Not much. Alexander plays a lot of guitar before a show as a warm up. I don't have a possibility to do that because my keyboards are onstage and I don't know if I would like to do that. I just eat and take it easy for a while. We don't do anything together before the gig - everybody does his own thing and then we go onstage and have a blast.
HD: And then you plug in your keyboards and hope that they work! Janne: Yeah!
HD: So before we talk about Follow The Reaper, I wanted to ask you about your Live In Japan album. What made you decide it was time to release a live recording?
Janne: Because when we were in Tokyo playing, we heard they were going to record those gigs anyway. So we thought that might be a good chance to release some live material. Then we got back home in Finland and went to the Finwork studios and listened to the tapes. And they were okay, there was nothing really bad in it - of course there were some mistakes in playing, but in general it sounded pretty cool. So we thought, "Let's release it as a live album."
HD: Why didn't Nuclear Blast release it here in the States?
Janne: I have no idea. It was meant to be a limited thing, so maybe that was why.
HD: What were the Japanese fans like when you met them?
Janne: Well, in Japan, the age group was totally different. We have these 30-40 year old dudes wearing suits, and they'd come to our shows and wanted autographs. In Japan, the audiences there are not only young kids who like to go crazy. The age of the people is very wide in Japan - not just young people who want to go crazy.
HD: That must be pretty funny seeing that.
Janne: Yeah, it was pretty surprising. When we were going in and out of our rooms in the hotel, there were always some people in the lobby waiting for us to get autographs. And there we noticed these guys in suits who had all of our albums and wanted to get our autographs - we were really surprised!
HD: How much of Follow The Reaper was done when you played the Milwaukee Metalfest?
Janne: We had the ideas of the songs, but they needed a lot more arranging and a lot more riffs. But we had many ideas for the songs already at that time.
HD: How does Follow The Reaper compare with the other Children Of Bodom albums?
Janne: There is something definitely that has happened since Hatebreeder. After Something Wild, our style evolved in a more straightforward way. We don't have any more of these strange, meaningless parts that we had on the songs on Something Wild. I think the songs have a little bit more sense in the way that they're not so complicated. The songs are a little bit more straightforward, but there are some fast parts, but they're not so totally mixed up.
HD: Which songs on the album are you the most excited about playing live? Janne: Sh*t, I can't remember the names! The number three track…
HD: Children Of Decadence?
Janne: Yeah! And the number four track Everytime I Die, because in Finland, we released a video of it, and it had some success on Finnish TV. And then the last song Kissing The Shadows because it has the killer solo part at the ending of it.
HD: When you released Hate Me as a single, how did it sell?
Janne: Hate Me was the first song from the Follow The Reaper album that was totally ready. I think we just wanted to release some new material before releasing the album. Hate Me was the first new song we did, so we just released it as a single.
HD: How much did you contribute in the songwriting department?
Janne: Actually, not much. I like to write all the music, but when (Alexi) comes to our training sessions with his ideas - we all arrange the songs very much. I like to write all the music, but everyone of us is very much involved with the arranging of the songs.
HD: You've pretty much toured all over the world at this point. What are some of the strangest things that have happened to you or the band?
Janne: There has been a lot of strange things going on. One of them was in Finland, when the engine of our bus exploded. That was quite nice! And we had some other stuff going on also - like wrecking some hotel rooms in Germany and sh*t like that. There's always something happening to us when we're on tour. We're pretty lively people.
HD: In Finland, what is the current metal scene like, and are there any places for metal bands to play?
Janne: Yes, yes there are. In the capital of Finland, Helsinki, where we all live very near here - there's two big, new, very well equipped clubs to play gigs. And even on the countryside of Finland, there are nice places. In Finland, we have a pretty good situation in that way.
HD: How long have you been playing keyboards and what made you take up that instrument?
Janne: I've been playing keyboards only for the three or four years that Children Of Bodom has been together. I was playing piano before that. I started that when I was five years old, and graduated from Helsinki Pop Jazz Conservatory when I was sixteen. But then I quit playing totally, because I didn't want to play anymore. And then Children Of Bodom's first album was about to be recorded and they needed a keyboard player. The band's name wasn't Children Of Bodom at the time. But the band needed a new keyboard player and asked me to join and that's how we formed Children Of Bodom. And then we did the first record.
HD: Prior to being in Children Of Bodom, what kind of music were you into?
Janne: I studied at the Pop Jazz Conservatory, so I was mainly a jazz piano player before that.
HD: What bands do you like now and are influenced by?
Janne: Right now I'm into 80's hard rock, like Ozzy Osborne and shit like that. But I also like these technical progressive heavy metal bands like Symphony X. I listen to a lot of different styles, so I play many different styles also - I've been playing everything from jazz to heavy metal.
HD: Are you influenced by classical music at all?
Janne: A little. Actually, that's one thing that I realize now I should have been playing more when I was younger - because a lot of fast, heavy metal things demand this good classical finger work technique which I don't fully have - so I have to make my own things. But I've been now trying to catch up and play some classical stuff.
HD: Tell me about your other band Warmen.
Janne: That's my solo project band. It started off as a joke. These guys who play the drums and main guitars on Warmen - we were just hanging out and they said "Hey! When you do a solo album, we want to play on it." And I was like, "Yeah, sure, okay." And then half a year after that, I was like, "Hey, what about if I really do it?" And I asked Spinefarm if they would release it if I recorded it, and they were like "Hell yeah!" And then I just called up those two guys and said, "Hey! Let's do it right now!" And I started writing music and we recorded the album. And it's been out for half a year now.
HD: What does the music of Warmen sound like?
Janne: It's mainly instrumental, but we have two songs with vocals. Kimberly Goss from Sinergy is singing on two songs. It's progressive, instrumental heavy metal with some 80's influences - not so complex songs after all.
HD: Have you ever played live with Warmen?
Janne: Yeah, a few times in Finland, but not much. It went pretty well actually. We played at Spinefarm's birthday party, a big gig in Helsinki where Children Of Bodom also played. And then we had one television show.
HD: Any chance of seeing Children Of Bodom again here in the States?
Janne: There have been some plans about touring the States in April, so I hope that comes true.
HD: With Nuclear Blast America now being released through Century Media, will COB be released through CM too?
Janne: Yeah, we will.
HD: What was your favorite CD of 2000 and why?
Janne: That's a tough one! Arch Enemy - no, that was released in 1999. (After much thought) Maybe Britney Spears, "Oops I Did It Again."
HD: (much laughter) Any reason why?
Janne: It's so very well produced and has killer songs. I cannot now come up with anything better.
HD: You are kidding, aren't you? (Janne sounded so serious up to this point.)
Janne: Yeah, yeah, yeah. (laughs)
HD: So that comes to my next question. Who do you think is better - Britney Spears or Christina Aguilara?
Janne: I think Britney. Yeah.
HD: Well, that was a pretty predictable answer. Are they popular over there?
Janne: Yeah, they are! Yeah, like hell! The only thing kids over here are listening to is Britney. She's huge over here now.
HD: What do you think about annoying musical trends like the Backstreet Boys and N'Sync?
Janne: I just hate the fucking boy bands. Usually what it is - it's five guys who look like gays and they know the dance moves. But in the studio, someone else does all the songs of course and does the music and they totally try to sing. And the live act is all playbacks, and I hate that shit. We have a lot of boy bands here in Finland also. I just hate it!
HD: From boybands to Bodom. If there was one thing you'd like someone to remember after hearing your music, what would it be?
Janne: I would like them to remember that there are also some very skilled musicians behind Alexi's screaming. Because the vocals are pretty aggressive and some people can't hear anything beyond the vocals. I would like people to notice the playing behind the vocals.
HD: Do you have any messages for Children Of Bodom fans here in the States?
Janne: Just keep it up and I hope that we will come over there to see you soon.
Watch for Follow The Reaper by Children Of Bodom, to be released in the States February 2001 from Nuclear Blast Records!
children of COB
Deadnight Drinker
Necroraven
Member
- Nov 21, 2007
- 2,193
- 1
- 36
EddyRX10
rtard
WildChild_666
New Metal Member
Not an interview but Alexi blamming Janne for a technical error during the show in LA
Last edited by a moderator:
Andry_Wildchild
Member
Ess en
Member
Both of those last two interviews were really good. I thought it was especially cool when Dave Mustaine was saying how he likes to watch alexi and roope play.
sleeper666
MetalMutha
Interview with Alexi Laiho by Wojtek Gabriel, February 2009
10 years ago a young Finnish band appeared on the metal scene and immediately got a lot of publicity. I don't know why they were labelled as melodic death metal, because their music and also the vocals had nothing to do with the style I consider death metal. Nevermind. The young Finns were aggressive, melodic and had great technical abilities. It wasn't something very rare, but they also had their own style and that's probably why they made it through and why their popularity grows with every album. They're a really big band now and you can notice it when you see, that they are supported by the legendary Cannibal Corpse. Before one of the shows I met with Alexi Laiho, the band's brain. It wasn't the best interview I've ever done, because of his attitude, which was something like, "Let's finish, I have no time..." Shit happens, but anyway I managed to ask about a few things, which you may find interesting.
NE: When I read a couple of reviews of "Blooddrunk" I found out that they appear worse in comparison to the reviews for the first 3 or 4 albums. But the recent album has sold the most units. Isn't it strange?
I don't know. The reviews have been a lot better than for "Are You dead Yet?". From my point of view it's not weird at all.
NE: Like you said, the reviews are now better than for "Are You Dead Yet". You've also mentioned in interviews that you're more satisfied with the last album. Does it mean that "Are You Dead Yet" was a mistake and that you went in the wrong direction with that release?
No. Certainly it was not a mistake. It was just representing the band at that time, you know? Some people didn't like it, but it attracted a lot of new fans. Some people were not familiar with our earlier stuff, or who had heard it but didn't like it, they liked "Are You Dead Yet?" A lot of people, no matter what you do, if it's a new album, they always say it sucks. They always think that the older ones are better.
NE: The title "Blooddrunk" is related to self destruction. You used to cut yourself when you were young and a lot of young people do the same thing. What pushed you to do so?
All this fuckin' shit in this world. If you just open your eyes it's not really hard to see. I don't really want to get into it, it's such a long story. A lot of bad shit happened to me in my life and I just got a little fucked in my head. I had some difficult times.
NE: I like the fast compositions but my favourite song from the last album is "Banned From Heaven". Why have you not recorded slower songs on your albums? I feel that they work for you.
Yeah, sometimes. I don't know. I never actually thought about it. It's just the way it turned out. All the songs came up really spontaneously. For this album there was one slow song, which usually has been the case. It's always been more about faster, aggressive sort of stuff in Children Of Bodom.
NE: You said that you would never play "LoBodomy" live. What's wrong with the song?
I don't remember that. We said a lot of stupid shit like that, haha... maybe we will, but not in the near future.
NE: "Roadkill Morning" is a song about hangovers. I don't understand one thing about that number. There's a sound of photo camera shutter at the end. Do you take photos of each other when you get up after a heavy night of drinking?
No, haha... That it something you would have to be Finnish to understand. It's kind of a long story too. It's a joke that nobody gets really. As a matter of fact you are the second person ever to ask about that which is weird, you know? I've done I don't know how many fuckin' interviews after "Blooddrunk" but you're the second one to ask about that.
[NB: Zarok (SOB) was the first, in his interview with Alexi last year:
"Zarok: By the way, what's this noise at the end of "Roadkill Morning"?
Alexi: Dude! You're the fucking first one who noticed that!
Zarok: Really?
Alexi: Yeah, man! I wanted to tell people that we were gonna make a contest out of it just to ask people if they know what the hell it is. Anyway, you can hear a horse running and somebody is taking a picture of it. This all comes back to the Waltari song "Hevosenkuva" which means "Picture Of A Horse" and this song has a riff that we "ripped off" at the very end of "Roadkill Morning" as a joke. After that one of us would say "Hevosenkuva" but instead of that we just sampled this fucking horse running and it was actually me behind the microphone pressing the button of my cellphone to make a sound of a picture that's shot. I know it's fucking stupid but so far nobody ever got it and I'm surprised."]
NE: I read a short interview you did with Slayer in some guitar magazine. Do you often do interviews or was it just a one off?
No, that was just a one time thing.
NE: In regards to Slayer, your recent album is quite thrashy, actually more so than any of your previous work. Do you think you may have been influenced by Slayer while touring with them?
I think we've always been influenced by them. Every single fuckin' metal band out there has been influenced by Slayer somehow. I'm sure it affected me a lot, not consciously of course.
NE: A lot of extreme metal bands use triggers to make the drums sound cleaner and more powerful live. You don't. Why?
I don't like it. Especially when it's overtrigged it sound annoying to me. Especially when you don't know how to play it, it just sounds fuckin' horrible. But this is really just a matter of taste. We have just found good enough bass drum sound and we really don't need the triggers.
NE: Your music is very technical. Do you ever have any problems playing some of the solos or riffs live?
Not really. I mean everybody has off nights every now and then, but we of course practice the shit before we hit the road. It's usually OK. Some singing parts are hard sometimes. When it's really hot in the venue, no oxygen at all and some singing parts are really fast, it can get pretty though on you. But there's nothing you can do about it, you just need to do that and hope that you're not gonna fuckin' die.
NE: I'll give you three names now and just tell me the first words that come to your mind. Steve Vai?
Of course I think about guitar. He was the main reason I started paying guitar.
NE: Zakk Wylde?
Drinking beer? Haha!
NE: Jeff Waters?
I always think that he's one of the best and one of the most underrated guitar players out there.
NE: A few questions about cover songs. Do you think you may have lost some die hard fans after covering a Britney Spears song?
Well, if they did, then they were not die hard fans.
NE: You often choose songs that will surprise people. Not many expect an extreme metal band to cover Billy Idol, The Ramones and Kenny Rogers. Is it you who comes up with those unusual ideas?
It's just all of us, we just talk about it. We just try to do something different. It would be so boring and so obvious for us to do Slayer cover or any other metal cover. It's just more fun to take something totally fuckin' crazy and put it into metal.
NE: As a kid you were into American glam rock. Coming from Finland, why didn't you actually follow in the footsteps of Hanoi Rocks?
It was the same thing that my older sister was doing. She got me into glam rock and then she started listening to harder metal and I was pretty much listening to what she was listening too. And then I got into the aggressive stuff, Slayer, Sepultura, and then death metal, black metal... Nowadays it's just like I can listen to fuckin' Poison or Darkthrone, it doesn't matter. I'm still into all the 80's shit and still into the extreme stuff of course.
NE: On the other hand you played violin as a child. How important is classical music to you nowadays?
It's affected a lot on my playing of course, but at the moment I don't think it does have a big affect on our music. We had a lot more classical influences back in the day.
NE: How many times have you seriously injured yourself? Did you break your bones only when you were drunk or in some other circumstances as well?
I broke some bones skateboarding when I was younger and I was sober. I've broken my ribs, two of them, my wrist, my shoulder, my finger. This was drunk stuff. My toe that was actually sober. I was on the stage and I was running, and the lights went black and I just hit the fuckin' monitor.
NE: A guy at a signing session asked you once to punch him in the face. Was it the strangest request you have ever had from a fan?
I can't thing of anything else right now, I believe, yeah. But I did punch him in the face, not really hard though.
NE: Now, can you tell me more about one of your bar fights, when you were drunk and tried to help a girl being beaten by a guy?
You heard the whole funkin' story totally wrong. We came out from a bar, me and some friends and we saw that there was a fight... Where do you read all this fuckin' shit? Probably the Internet I assume. Anyway, we were totally drunk and there was some sort of hassle going on. Somebody was beating somebody. We checked it out and I saw this fuckin' crazy dude beating up a girl. I went there and said, "What the fuck? What are you doing?" and then I just started fighting with him. I was drunk and couldn't fight and he got me pretty good. I dropped and the guy took off. When I got up I realised that the person who was getting beaten up by this junkie dude turned out to be a dude not a chick, haha! So I wasn't defending a chick, I was defending some fuckin' glam rock dude, haha!
NE: The band has existed as Children Of Bodom for 12 years now and you've had only one line-up change. I heard that Alexander Kuopalla's departure had something to do with his girlfriend?
Yeah. He just hooked up with some girl and then a couple of weeks after that he was a totally different person. He just wanted to become a family man and have nothing to do with music anymore. That's what he said.
NE: You've been nominated for the Emma Gaala awards in Finland. You're part of 3 categories. Which one of them would you like to win the most?
I guest the Best Finnish Group, but I don't really care about that that much.
NE: You toured the UK in June of last year, then in December and again now, so it's your 3rd tour in 8 months. Why did you decide to tour the same country again after just 3 months?
You've got to ask our management. When you get good exposure at some point, you have to go back there and to the same thing just so that you don't disappear all of a sudden and people forget about you. Now we can come back as a headliner, with better production and do a better show.
NE: The position of a band on a bill depends on sales. But tell me, doesn't it feel strange to be supported by a legend like Cannibal Corpse?
Well, that's just how the world works. What can I say? It's cool. We totally get along with the guys and it's awesome to have them on the bill. I'm not gonna fuckin' cry about it. I think it's totally awesome that all of a sudden you notice that a band like Cannibal Corpse is opening up for you.
NE: Are you planning any releases for 2009 or will you concentrate on touring only?
I think we'll be touring until November or something like that and then after that we'll start working on new material pretty much.
NE: You're celebrating your 30th birthday in 2 months and you're playing a show in Vancouver. Are you going to do anything special for this occasion?
I don't even know where we're playing, I think you know better, haha! I don't know... Maybe we'll get drunk... But there's nothing special about that. We'll see...
NE: The 50th anniversary of the Bodom Lake murders will happen in June next year. As you took the name after those events, will you release something to coincide with the date?
Maybe, maybe... you never know.
10 years ago a young Finnish band appeared on the metal scene and immediately got a lot of publicity. I don't know why they were labelled as melodic death metal, because their music and also the vocals had nothing to do with the style I consider death metal. Nevermind. The young Finns were aggressive, melodic and had great technical abilities. It wasn't something very rare, but they also had their own style and that's probably why they made it through and why their popularity grows with every album. They're a really big band now and you can notice it when you see, that they are supported by the legendary Cannibal Corpse. Before one of the shows I met with Alexi Laiho, the band's brain. It wasn't the best interview I've ever done, because of his attitude, which was something like, "Let's finish, I have no time..." Shit happens, but anyway I managed to ask about a few things, which you may find interesting.
NE: When I read a couple of reviews of "Blooddrunk" I found out that they appear worse in comparison to the reviews for the first 3 or 4 albums. But the recent album has sold the most units. Isn't it strange?
I don't know. The reviews have been a lot better than for "Are You dead Yet?". From my point of view it's not weird at all.
NE: Like you said, the reviews are now better than for "Are You Dead Yet". You've also mentioned in interviews that you're more satisfied with the last album. Does it mean that "Are You Dead Yet" was a mistake and that you went in the wrong direction with that release?
No. Certainly it was not a mistake. It was just representing the band at that time, you know? Some people didn't like it, but it attracted a lot of new fans. Some people were not familiar with our earlier stuff, or who had heard it but didn't like it, they liked "Are You Dead Yet?" A lot of people, no matter what you do, if it's a new album, they always say it sucks. They always think that the older ones are better.
NE: The title "Blooddrunk" is related to self destruction. You used to cut yourself when you were young and a lot of young people do the same thing. What pushed you to do so?
All this fuckin' shit in this world. If you just open your eyes it's not really hard to see. I don't really want to get into it, it's such a long story. A lot of bad shit happened to me in my life and I just got a little fucked in my head. I had some difficult times.
NE: I like the fast compositions but my favourite song from the last album is "Banned From Heaven". Why have you not recorded slower songs on your albums? I feel that they work for you.
Yeah, sometimes. I don't know. I never actually thought about it. It's just the way it turned out. All the songs came up really spontaneously. For this album there was one slow song, which usually has been the case. It's always been more about faster, aggressive sort of stuff in Children Of Bodom.
NE: You said that you would never play "LoBodomy" live. What's wrong with the song?
I don't remember that. We said a lot of stupid shit like that, haha... maybe we will, but not in the near future.
NE: "Roadkill Morning" is a song about hangovers. I don't understand one thing about that number. There's a sound of photo camera shutter at the end. Do you take photos of each other when you get up after a heavy night of drinking?
No, haha... That it something you would have to be Finnish to understand. It's kind of a long story too. It's a joke that nobody gets really. As a matter of fact you are the second person ever to ask about that which is weird, you know? I've done I don't know how many fuckin' interviews after "Blooddrunk" but you're the second one to ask about that.
[NB: Zarok (SOB) was the first, in his interview with Alexi last year:
"Zarok: By the way, what's this noise at the end of "Roadkill Morning"?
Alexi: Dude! You're the fucking first one who noticed that!
Zarok: Really?
Alexi: Yeah, man! I wanted to tell people that we were gonna make a contest out of it just to ask people if they know what the hell it is. Anyway, you can hear a horse running and somebody is taking a picture of it. This all comes back to the Waltari song "Hevosenkuva" which means "Picture Of A Horse" and this song has a riff that we "ripped off" at the very end of "Roadkill Morning" as a joke. After that one of us would say "Hevosenkuva" but instead of that we just sampled this fucking horse running and it was actually me behind the microphone pressing the button of my cellphone to make a sound of a picture that's shot. I know it's fucking stupid but so far nobody ever got it and I'm surprised."]
NE: I read a short interview you did with Slayer in some guitar magazine. Do you often do interviews or was it just a one off?
No, that was just a one time thing.
NE: In regards to Slayer, your recent album is quite thrashy, actually more so than any of your previous work. Do you think you may have been influenced by Slayer while touring with them?
I think we've always been influenced by them. Every single fuckin' metal band out there has been influenced by Slayer somehow. I'm sure it affected me a lot, not consciously of course.
NE: A lot of extreme metal bands use triggers to make the drums sound cleaner and more powerful live. You don't. Why?
I don't like it. Especially when it's overtrigged it sound annoying to me. Especially when you don't know how to play it, it just sounds fuckin' horrible. But this is really just a matter of taste. We have just found good enough bass drum sound and we really don't need the triggers.
NE: Your music is very technical. Do you ever have any problems playing some of the solos or riffs live?
Not really. I mean everybody has off nights every now and then, but we of course practice the shit before we hit the road. It's usually OK. Some singing parts are hard sometimes. When it's really hot in the venue, no oxygen at all and some singing parts are really fast, it can get pretty though on you. But there's nothing you can do about it, you just need to do that and hope that you're not gonna fuckin' die.
NE: I'll give you three names now and just tell me the first words that come to your mind. Steve Vai?
Of course I think about guitar. He was the main reason I started paying guitar.
NE: Zakk Wylde?
Drinking beer? Haha!
NE: Jeff Waters?
I always think that he's one of the best and one of the most underrated guitar players out there.
NE: A few questions about cover songs. Do you think you may have lost some die hard fans after covering a Britney Spears song?
Well, if they did, then they were not die hard fans.
NE: You often choose songs that will surprise people. Not many expect an extreme metal band to cover Billy Idol, The Ramones and Kenny Rogers. Is it you who comes up with those unusual ideas?
It's just all of us, we just talk about it. We just try to do something different. It would be so boring and so obvious for us to do Slayer cover or any other metal cover. It's just more fun to take something totally fuckin' crazy and put it into metal.
NE: As a kid you were into American glam rock. Coming from Finland, why didn't you actually follow in the footsteps of Hanoi Rocks?
It was the same thing that my older sister was doing. She got me into glam rock and then she started listening to harder metal and I was pretty much listening to what she was listening too. And then I got into the aggressive stuff, Slayer, Sepultura, and then death metal, black metal... Nowadays it's just like I can listen to fuckin' Poison or Darkthrone, it doesn't matter. I'm still into all the 80's shit and still into the extreme stuff of course.
NE: On the other hand you played violin as a child. How important is classical music to you nowadays?
It's affected a lot on my playing of course, but at the moment I don't think it does have a big affect on our music. We had a lot more classical influences back in the day.
NE: How many times have you seriously injured yourself? Did you break your bones only when you were drunk or in some other circumstances as well?
I broke some bones skateboarding when I was younger and I was sober. I've broken my ribs, two of them, my wrist, my shoulder, my finger. This was drunk stuff. My toe that was actually sober. I was on the stage and I was running, and the lights went black and I just hit the fuckin' monitor.
NE: A guy at a signing session asked you once to punch him in the face. Was it the strangest request you have ever had from a fan?
I can't thing of anything else right now, I believe, yeah. But I did punch him in the face, not really hard though.
NE: Now, can you tell me more about one of your bar fights, when you were drunk and tried to help a girl being beaten by a guy?
You heard the whole funkin' story totally wrong. We came out from a bar, me and some friends and we saw that there was a fight... Where do you read all this fuckin' shit? Probably the Internet I assume. Anyway, we were totally drunk and there was some sort of hassle going on. Somebody was beating somebody. We checked it out and I saw this fuckin' crazy dude beating up a girl. I went there and said, "What the fuck? What are you doing?" and then I just started fighting with him. I was drunk and couldn't fight and he got me pretty good. I dropped and the guy took off. When I got up I realised that the person who was getting beaten up by this junkie dude turned out to be a dude not a chick, haha! So I wasn't defending a chick, I was defending some fuckin' glam rock dude, haha!
NE: The band has existed as Children Of Bodom for 12 years now and you've had only one line-up change. I heard that Alexander Kuopalla's departure had something to do with his girlfriend?
Yeah. He just hooked up with some girl and then a couple of weeks after that he was a totally different person. He just wanted to become a family man and have nothing to do with music anymore. That's what he said.
NE: You've been nominated for the Emma Gaala awards in Finland. You're part of 3 categories. Which one of them would you like to win the most?
I guest the Best Finnish Group, but I don't really care about that that much.
NE: You toured the UK in June of last year, then in December and again now, so it's your 3rd tour in 8 months. Why did you decide to tour the same country again after just 3 months?
You've got to ask our management. When you get good exposure at some point, you have to go back there and to the same thing just so that you don't disappear all of a sudden and people forget about you. Now we can come back as a headliner, with better production and do a better show.
NE: The position of a band on a bill depends on sales. But tell me, doesn't it feel strange to be supported by a legend like Cannibal Corpse?
Well, that's just how the world works. What can I say? It's cool. We totally get along with the guys and it's awesome to have them on the bill. I'm not gonna fuckin' cry about it. I think it's totally awesome that all of a sudden you notice that a band like Cannibal Corpse is opening up for you.
NE: Are you planning any releases for 2009 or will you concentrate on touring only?
I think we'll be touring until November or something like that and then after that we'll start working on new material pretty much.
NE: You're celebrating your 30th birthday in 2 months and you're playing a show in Vancouver. Are you going to do anything special for this occasion?
I don't even know where we're playing, I think you know better, haha! I don't know... Maybe we'll get drunk... But there's nothing special about that. We'll see...
NE: The 50th anniversary of the Bodom Lake murders will happen in June next year. As you took the name after those events, will you release something to coincide with the date?
Maybe, maybe... you never know.
children of COB
Deadnight Drinker
sleeper666
MetalMutha
^ you're welcome! and here's an old one with Alexi and Kimberly, from 2002:
Today I had the honor to do a SINERGY interview with Kimberly Goss, but since she lost her voice after the show, she let Alexi Laiho help her out. Being a huge fan of Alexi, it sure was a nice surprise and maybe a good time to ask some things about CHILDREN OF BODOM too.
Tom: Hello Kimberly and Alexi, great gig you did tonight. You guys really got the crowd moving, how are things going on tour?
Kimberly: We've already had great shows on this tour, the crowd is very much alive. Yesterday Paris was awesome and the same counts for tonight!
Tom: Let me congratulate you with your latest album Suicide By My Side, what are the responses so far?
Alexi: We had a great response on that album, scored high rates on a lot of magazines.
Tom: Compared to Beware The Heavens, though I like that album; you sure got more aggressive.
Kimberly: Yeah, actually I don't like that Beware The Heavens anymore, but live we can't do without it. In the past it was mainly me, Alexi and our bass player that wrote the songs. But nowadays everyone contributes to the songs, making it more intense.
Tom: Looking at some of the lyrics and of course the album title Suicide By My Side, I sense a lot of depression. Are those lyrics based on your own life? Kimberly: Yes they sure are. After the second album I was in a black hole, a time everybody meets sooner or later, didn't had anything to do with the band. I was never so far to actually commit suicide, I chose to express my feelings in the lyrics. Anyway I'm over it now.
Tom: You sure have heard of the Ozzy Osbourne trial, caused by two fans that killed themselves after listening to Suicide Solution. Don't get me wrong, in my opinion an artist can write/sing whatever he/she wants. But aren't you afraid that some people would get the wrong idea?
Kimberly: Yes, I sure know the Suicide Solution trial, but in my opinion that song has nothing to do with making those guys to kill themselves. We have smart fans and they know how to handle our songs. I even received some mailings telling me that it actually helped a lot of people to get through their dark period. So in a way it even saved lives.
Tom: Well that's a good thing! Are there plans to do a videoclip of the new album?
Kimberly: Well actually we did one, but it sucks! We were on a tight budget, so it's a low quality home video, that will probably never get released.
Tom: You might add it to your next album as a bonus, it's something a lot of bands do.
Kimberly: Yeah seems a good idea, if we get it in our budget.
Tom: Being on a tight budget, does it mean that you'll be changing label in the future? I sure am happy with Nuclear Blast for being on the guestlist tonight and the opportunity to do this interview.
Kimberly: Nuclear Blast sure is a great company and they've done terrific things for us. But being on a tight budget happens with lots of bands, not much to do with the record company. So we're happy where we are.
Tom: Maybe a live dvd/cd?
Kimberly: Alexi knows more about that one.
Alexi: Yeah, we've talked to the record company about doing a live DVD, but nothing decided yet.
Tom: Since you're touring right now, will you be appearing this summer on some festivals?
Kimberly: Well actually we played on some last year, so next summer it's CHILDREN OF BODOM's turn to play at some festivals.
Tom: Yes I've noticed that you hardly play some shows together, what's the reason for that?
Alexi: Well playing 2 shows/night sucks. If I get on stage I always give 100% and you just can't do that twice a night. Well I used to do it in the past, but I still prefer one good show, so I can relax afterwards. But you can count on COB to play at some festivals next summer!
Tom: And I sure will be there too! I still remind the last COB show here in the Biebob, with Arch Enemy, Dark Tranquillity and headliner In Flames. You really ruled! After your show, most of the people left, because things couldn't get better during In Flames.
Alexi: Weird situation, I actually didn't know that, but great to hear we're appreciated here.
Tom: By the way, loved your new guitar, another Randy Rhoads but with cross inlays, reminds me on the signature version of Black Sabbath.
Alexi: Yeah the guitar rules, but it isn't mine, I wish it would though, but I borrowed it.
Tom: So how are things at Children Of Bodom, did you write some new songs yet.
Alexi: Actually we recorded a new album, that will be mastered somewhere next week. It will be released in Finland beginning of January and should be here soon after.
Tom: And what's to expect of the new COB album?
Alexi: Well I could say like I do on every album, that it'll be way heavier than the previous one. But people who heard it already told me so.
Tom: Will there be neoclassical pieces in it, like you did on Hatebreeder?
Alexi: No, I think the classical melodies are a bit vanished. I never planned to do them on Hatebreeder either, but they fitted with the songs. Like you noticed, they were missing on Follow The Reaper and I don't think we'll be doing them again. But there sure is a lot of keyboard stuff in it, things we've never done, and a lot of fast licks and guitar battles.
Tom: Looking forward to it! Now back to SINERGY. Kimberly, I know you played in a lot of bands in the past (Therion, Dimmu Borgir, Ancient..) do you work on other music now, besides SINERGY.
Kimberly: No, I only concentrate on SINERGY, it's a big responsability already.
Tom: Are you able to live out of SINERGY, or do you have a casual job besides the band.
Kimberly: No, I don't have a casual job, so in a way I can live out of SINERGY, but have to scrape things together to get around.
Tom: Is Kimberly Goss an artist name, or your real one? Because I found something interesting on the net about a murdercase in the UK. Some criminal on parole murdered the plaintiff's wife, named Kimberly Goss. I actually have the article with me, here you are.
Kimberly: Yeah, I heard something about that, can I keep it? Anyway, Kimberly Goss is my real name, has nothing to do with that case, is accidental. But she died in '89 and I seem very much alive, right! *lol*
Tom: Looking at the metal scene, most of my favorite bands come from up north, do you think Europe has the leading position in metal music? Because haven't seen a great American release in a whole time!
Alexi: Yeah I can sure agree on that one!
Kimberly: I think I'm going to kill you both! *lol* (Kimberly comes from the US - Cal)
Alexi: America is only boys bands and Limp Bizkit, Papa Roach shit, not much happening over there. And there sure are a bunch of talented bands in Europe!
Tom: As it seems we didn't see 2 women on stage tonight, what happened with Melanie?
Alexi: Don't look at me, had nothing to do with it, wasn't there at the moment.
Kimberly: No, but it's something the band needed to do to guarantee the future of SINERGY. Don't get me wrong, Melanie sure is a great person, wouldn't want to say anything bad about her! But playing in SINERGY wasn't really her style, maybe a bit too technical for her.
Tom: She did have some expierences with the Iron Maidens.
Kimberly: Yeah, she sure could play, but still you can't compare both bands.
Tom: So tell me something about your new bassplayer? How did you meet him, was he a friend?
Alexi: Lauri is a session musician that we used on the previous tour in Japan. We still were in touch and we managed to get him in the band now, he sure is a great player.
Tom: After loads of line-up changes, do you think you now have the winning team?
Kimberly: I really hope so, if not the permanent team, it sure is the most talented SINERGY up to date right now. You know in a band it's hard to find the right people and to get them motivated all the time. Like our guitarist Roope, eventhough he wasn't on the first album, has been a member since the first gig.
Roope: Yeah, I did the very first SINERGY show in Japan, was fucking great!
Kimberly: So who'll tell about the future?
Tom: I know you did several cover versions in the past like Iron Maiden's Number Of The Beast and ABBA's Gimme Gimme Gimme. Will you be doing more of those in the future?
Kimberly: No, don't think we'll be doing some more in the future, because ours mainly sucked! Musically they're great, but my voice isn't good on those, I actually never practiced those songs, would come into the studio and see how things turn out.
Tom: Were you asked to do those cover versions or did you come up with those yourself?
Kimberly: We were asked everytime to do those, actually we did 5 covers, 2 of them we could decide which song of the artist, and 3 of them were decided by Nuclear Blast. To be honest I don't like The Scorpions, but it's something we had to do for the company.
Tom: I read something about a show in Finland, with only cover songs.
Alexi: Yeah it's a show just to relax, in our homecountry with a lot of friends in the audience. Mainly classic metal and some glamour bands like Bon Jovi.
Tom: Did you just say BON JOVI???
Alexi and Kimberly: *lol*, yeah we did!
Tom: Well, I'll finish this interview now, so Kimberly can give her voice some rest, because looking at your schedule, you still have a long way to go. I sure enjoyed talking to you guys and wish you the best for the rest of the tour.
Kimberly: Sorry again for my voice, so it was harder to do this interview.
Tom: Hey, no problem, if I were shouting like you on stage tonight , I would have lost my voice forever!
Alexi: Thanks for the interview dude and take care, we'll see you on a COB show next summer.
11/2002
Today I had the honor to do a SINERGY interview with Kimberly Goss, but since she lost her voice after the show, she let Alexi Laiho help her out. Being a huge fan of Alexi, it sure was a nice surprise and maybe a good time to ask some things about CHILDREN OF BODOM too.
Tom: Hello Kimberly and Alexi, great gig you did tonight. You guys really got the crowd moving, how are things going on tour?
Kimberly: We've already had great shows on this tour, the crowd is very much alive. Yesterday Paris was awesome and the same counts for tonight!
Tom: Let me congratulate you with your latest album Suicide By My Side, what are the responses so far?
Alexi: We had a great response on that album, scored high rates on a lot of magazines.
Tom: Compared to Beware The Heavens, though I like that album; you sure got more aggressive.
Kimberly: Yeah, actually I don't like that Beware The Heavens anymore, but live we can't do without it. In the past it was mainly me, Alexi and our bass player that wrote the songs. But nowadays everyone contributes to the songs, making it more intense.
Tom: Looking at some of the lyrics and of course the album title Suicide By My Side, I sense a lot of depression. Are those lyrics based on your own life? Kimberly: Yes they sure are. After the second album I was in a black hole, a time everybody meets sooner or later, didn't had anything to do with the band. I was never so far to actually commit suicide, I chose to express my feelings in the lyrics. Anyway I'm over it now.
Tom: You sure have heard of the Ozzy Osbourne trial, caused by two fans that killed themselves after listening to Suicide Solution. Don't get me wrong, in my opinion an artist can write/sing whatever he/she wants. But aren't you afraid that some people would get the wrong idea?
Kimberly: Yes, I sure know the Suicide Solution trial, but in my opinion that song has nothing to do with making those guys to kill themselves. We have smart fans and they know how to handle our songs. I even received some mailings telling me that it actually helped a lot of people to get through their dark period. So in a way it even saved lives.
Tom: Well that's a good thing! Are there plans to do a videoclip of the new album?
Kimberly: Well actually we did one, but it sucks! We were on a tight budget, so it's a low quality home video, that will probably never get released.
Tom: You might add it to your next album as a bonus, it's something a lot of bands do.
Kimberly: Yeah seems a good idea, if we get it in our budget.
Tom: Being on a tight budget, does it mean that you'll be changing label in the future? I sure am happy with Nuclear Blast for being on the guestlist tonight and the opportunity to do this interview.
Kimberly: Nuclear Blast sure is a great company and they've done terrific things for us. But being on a tight budget happens with lots of bands, not much to do with the record company. So we're happy where we are.
Tom: Maybe a live dvd/cd?
Kimberly: Alexi knows more about that one.
Alexi: Yeah, we've talked to the record company about doing a live DVD, but nothing decided yet.
Tom: Since you're touring right now, will you be appearing this summer on some festivals?
Kimberly: Well actually we played on some last year, so next summer it's CHILDREN OF BODOM's turn to play at some festivals.
Tom: Yes I've noticed that you hardly play some shows together, what's the reason for that?
Alexi: Well playing 2 shows/night sucks. If I get on stage I always give 100% and you just can't do that twice a night. Well I used to do it in the past, but I still prefer one good show, so I can relax afterwards. But you can count on COB to play at some festivals next summer!
Tom: And I sure will be there too! I still remind the last COB show here in the Biebob, with Arch Enemy, Dark Tranquillity and headliner In Flames. You really ruled! After your show, most of the people left, because things couldn't get better during In Flames.
Alexi: Weird situation, I actually didn't know that, but great to hear we're appreciated here.
Tom: By the way, loved your new guitar, another Randy Rhoads but with cross inlays, reminds me on the signature version of Black Sabbath.
Alexi: Yeah the guitar rules, but it isn't mine, I wish it would though, but I borrowed it.
Tom: So how are things at Children Of Bodom, did you write some new songs yet.
Alexi: Actually we recorded a new album, that will be mastered somewhere next week. It will be released in Finland beginning of January and should be here soon after.
Tom: And what's to expect of the new COB album?
Alexi: Well I could say like I do on every album, that it'll be way heavier than the previous one. But people who heard it already told me so.
Tom: Will there be neoclassical pieces in it, like you did on Hatebreeder?
Alexi: No, I think the classical melodies are a bit vanished. I never planned to do them on Hatebreeder either, but they fitted with the songs. Like you noticed, they were missing on Follow The Reaper and I don't think we'll be doing them again. But there sure is a lot of keyboard stuff in it, things we've never done, and a lot of fast licks and guitar battles.
Tom: Looking forward to it! Now back to SINERGY. Kimberly, I know you played in a lot of bands in the past (Therion, Dimmu Borgir, Ancient..) do you work on other music now, besides SINERGY.
Kimberly: No, I only concentrate on SINERGY, it's a big responsability already.
Tom: Are you able to live out of SINERGY, or do you have a casual job besides the band.
Kimberly: No, I don't have a casual job, so in a way I can live out of SINERGY, but have to scrape things together to get around.
Tom: Is Kimberly Goss an artist name, or your real one? Because I found something interesting on the net about a murdercase in the UK. Some criminal on parole murdered the plaintiff's wife, named Kimberly Goss. I actually have the article with me, here you are.
Kimberly: Yeah, I heard something about that, can I keep it? Anyway, Kimberly Goss is my real name, has nothing to do with that case, is accidental. But she died in '89 and I seem very much alive, right! *lol*
Tom: Looking at the metal scene, most of my favorite bands come from up north, do you think Europe has the leading position in metal music? Because haven't seen a great American release in a whole time!
Alexi: Yeah I can sure agree on that one!
Kimberly: I think I'm going to kill you both! *lol* (Kimberly comes from the US - Cal)
Alexi: America is only boys bands and Limp Bizkit, Papa Roach shit, not much happening over there. And there sure are a bunch of talented bands in Europe!
Tom: As it seems we didn't see 2 women on stage tonight, what happened with Melanie?
Alexi: Don't look at me, had nothing to do with it, wasn't there at the moment.
Kimberly: No, but it's something the band needed to do to guarantee the future of SINERGY. Don't get me wrong, Melanie sure is a great person, wouldn't want to say anything bad about her! But playing in SINERGY wasn't really her style, maybe a bit too technical for her.
Tom: She did have some expierences with the Iron Maidens.
Kimberly: Yeah, she sure could play, but still you can't compare both bands.
Tom: So tell me something about your new bassplayer? How did you meet him, was he a friend?
Alexi: Lauri is a session musician that we used on the previous tour in Japan. We still were in touch and we managed to get him in the band now, he sure is a great player.
Tom: After loads of line-up changes, do you think you now have the winning team?
Kimberly: I really hope so, if not the permanent team, it sure is the most talented SINERGY up to date right now. You know in a band it's hard to find the right people and to get them motivated all the time. Like our guitarist Roope, eventhough he wasn't on the first album, has been a member since the first gig.
Roope: Yeah, I did the very first SINERGY show in Japan, was fucking great!
Kimberly: So who'll tell about the future?
Tom: I know you did several cover versions in the past like Iron Maiden's Number Of The Beast and ABBA's Gimme Gimme Gimme. Will you be doing more of those in the future?
Kimberly: No, don't think we'll be doing some more in the future, because ours mainly sucked! Musically they're great, but my voice isn't good on those, I actually never practiced those songs, would come into the studio and see how things turn out.
Tom: Were you asked to do those cover versions or did you come up with those yourself?
Kimberly: We were asked everytime to do those, actually we did 5 covers, 2 of them we could decide which song of the artist, and 3 of them were decided by Nuclear Blast. To be honest I don't like The Scorpions, but it's something we had to do for the company.
Tom: I read something about a show in Finland, with only cover songs.
Alexi: Yeah it's a show just to relax, in our homecountry with a lot of friends in the audience. Mainly classic metal and some glamour bands like Bon Jovi.
Tom: Did you just say BON JOVI???
Alexi and Kimberly: *lol*, yeah we did!
Tom: Well, I'll finish this interview now, so Kimberly can give her voice some rest, because looking at your schedule, you still have a long way to go. I sure enjoyed talking to you guys and wish you the best for the rest of the tour.
Kimberly: Sorry again for my voice, so it was harder to do this interview.
Tom: Hey, no problem, if I were shouting like you on stage tonight , I would have lost my voice forever!
Alexi: Thanks for the interview dude and take care, we'll see you on a COB show next summer.
11/2002
Thanks for the interviews, sleeper! Both were a good read.
If someone is still wondering about the "Roope's" green Jackson thing, here's actually the reason why the mistake was originally made for SOB..
When we were making the first out-of-control version of the site, I read some interview where Alexi told that he borrowed one of Roope's Jacksons for the Sinergy tour, but he indeed just meant that Roope's Iommi Cross RR which he used for some shows. There's some photos of him with it and an "Ozzy Fucking Osbourne" tee, maybe someone can find & post them.
We mistook 'the borrowed guitar from Roope' to be Alexi's green striped Jackson which he used live for the very first time for this tour. Maybe he bought it second hand after his custom shop Jacksons were stolen after Spinefeast just to get his hands on some decent guitar?
Then the part I can't remember properly anymore, but I'm quite sure I'm at least very close:
I'm pretty sure Alexi also had another guitar on this tour which he got from Musamaailma. If I remember right the music shop lent him some RR model for this tour and sold it after it, actually to someone who used to post here back in the day.
So, why three guitars for one tour? The neck of one of the guitars broke during the tour, and if I'm not wrong there were also some other problems with the guitars.
If someone is still wondering about the "Roope's" green Jackson thing, here's actually the reason why the mistake was originally made for SOB..
When we were making the first out-of-control version of the site, I read some interview where Alexi told that he borrowed one of Roope's Jacksons for the Sinergy tour, but he indeed just meant that Roope's Iommi Cross RR which he used for some shows. There's some photos of him with it and an "Ozzy Fucking Osbourne" tee, maybe someone can find & post them.
We mistook 'the borrowed guitar from Roope' to be Alexi's green striped Jackson which he used live for the very first time for this tour. Maybe he bought it second hand after his custom shop Jacksons were stolen after Spinefeast just to get his hands on some decent guitar?
Then the part I can't remember properly anymore, but I'm quite sure I'm at least very close:
I'm pretty sure Alexi also had another guitar on this tour which he got from Musamaailma. If I remember right the music shop lent him some RR model for this tour and sold it after it, actually to someone who used to post here back in the day.
So, why three guitars for one tour? The neck of one of the guitars broke during the tour, and if I'm not wrong there were also some other problems with the guitars.
