Interview with Symfonia
http://www.imperiumi.net/index.php?act=interviews&id=1361
© Imperiumi.net MMVII. Interview: Mape Ollila Photos: Jussi Eerola
Timo Tolkki looks tired. November 7th has been a long day, Tolkki has been working the whole day at photo sessions of his new band: morning in the freezing winds of Suomenlinna, afternoon in the Klaus K. hotel in Helsinki.
Yesterday it was the same thing. The photographer has been busy as he has taken over a thousand shots of the group who have gathered together for the first time.
The writer representing Imperiumi has arrived to help Timo with making of a video presentation of the band for their website and besides to that, aiming to make the first ever interview ever with the new super group.
I try to stay off the way while the stylist hurries around changing clothes of the band members in the Rake hall of the hotel Klaus K. where the guys pose for group and individual promo pictures.
More coffee is consumed than anybody's stomach will bear. Just like the course of a normal photo and video session anywhere: idling, then waiting to face more idling. Despite the drummer and bassist suffering from flu and the rest band members being exhausted after a long day, the group seems to ooze confidence.
Tolkki, who is known for his unconsidered expressions declared about ten years ago that he'll never put on leather pants again after he'd turned forty, seems to be wearing black "lederhosen" again on his notably thinner figure at the photo session.
Timo has also taken his new guitar with him at the photo session; a white beauty, decorated with gold-colored bridge and tuning mechanism, a diagonal violet stripe over the body and the familiar Stratovarius-era fleur-de-lis with a slightly renewed design.
It's clear that Symfonia will be the last metal band for Timo, but what on earth is driving the 44-year-old to once more taking the lead of a new band project?
- A couple of years ago I took the time and listened to through my whole discography starting from Fright Night until this day. All Stratovarius and my solo CDs plus all tracks I made with other bands. I had to borrow the CDs from a friend because I don't have everything saved. After I had listened through roughly 200 tracks I got a feeling that I have still something to say in musical terms and at this point of my career I feel that it is time to kind of crystallize what I as a musician actually am.
- I got tired of playing heavy- and especially power metal. After leaving Stratovarius I have walked on the musical paths I was meant to go, but which were not exactly what I as a musician am about. This band is a kind of homecoming for me.
Forming Symfonia got a start when Tolkki found out that the former vocalist André Matos of the Brazilian band Angra, who toured with Stratovarius in late 90's, was currently living in Sweden. Matos who started his singing career at the age of 14 by fronting a band called Viper, was performing at the Finnish Metal Expo last year with his solo band and the first phone discussions about a possible new band were conducted around that time.
Tolkki and Matos had not kept regular contact during the years, until about a year ago Tolkki asked the vocalist to visit his home for a week. During the visit they got to know each other better and in the national Finnish way had deep conversations while bathing in the sauna. The mutual respect towards each other's musical abilities made joining in the new project just a formality for Matos.
According to his own words Matos who stated with playing piano, ended as the vocalist of Viper because he was the "least bad singer" in the band.
Teen band Viper grew into a national phenomenon in Brazil. Later when fronting Angra and Shaaman Matos also gained international fame, but eventually non-musical issues ruined both bands. Currently the solo band of Matos is remarkably popular in Brazil.
When off the stage, Matos who lives currently in two time zones, appears tired. He travels with his solo band in his home country and parties the nights along the way in the large Brazil.
While staying at home in Skåne, Sweden, he'll get to sleep as well as any father of an year-old baby. Because the country changes every month, it's not a wonder that the vocalist stays in chronic state of exhaustion. But everything is different on stage, because André thinks that the duty of the frontman in a live performance is to be 100% present and convincing. Else the band will be in deep shit.
- You can't forge the energy on stage. The crowd will see if you fake. Every good "genuine" vocalist will receive energy from the crowd and return it back. One must be present with all of his soul. For me it's extremely important that I'm able to concentrate alone before the show by doing my own things.
- I am very strict about my rituals. I will tune my mind before the gig to a state where I'll be ready to give it all. To me it is like a transfer rite. Performance is a special occasion for the audience, but also for the performer, because performing live will give a better kick than any drug.
Matos will bring along traditional know-how about music because he is also an educated classical composer, arranger and conductor. Some of his knowledge will transfer to the sound of Symfonia. Matos enjoys making orchestrations and arrangements because he thinks that classical music, which by many is told to stay in museums, will find most of it's new spirit and audience among the heavy metal crowds.
But before all, besides singing, André will be responsible of the lyrics in Symfonia. The vocalist who writes lyrics also for his solo band does not see in the situation any danger of repeating himself.
- Lyrics of my solo band handle mostly personal feelings and philosophy. In Symfonia our aim is to give to the listeners positivity, strength and hope. We have a clear concept for our lyrical themes. Of course there may be room for some philosophical pondering, but our lyrical frame exists already.
- Timo let me see some lyrics which presented the energy that we will create. This will give me a whole new angle into writing lyrics. It'll be awesome to be able to observe lyrics through a "different window" than before. I feel that our aim is to lift the listener off the usual, into something better.
Tolkki will sign Matos's view.
- I have written plenty of philosophical stuff in recent years, but I'm tired of preaching any more. Now it'll be the time to tell stories. The music I've written for Symfonia absolutely demands a different angle in the lyrics.
Matos who is a thoughtful and somewhat believer in faith meets the new band with curious excitement. André does not believe in accidents and his opinion is that there must be a meaning behind these particular musicians' paths joining in this band just now. From the new band the vocalist expects musical genuineness and common experiences to induce means for delivering positive energy to their audience. If Symfonia will succeed in it, the rest will happen by itself.
After the "swede" vocalist Tolkki found the next pieces for the band in Norway.
Ex-Stratovarius bassist Jari Kainulainen moved to Norway years ago and played in the Swedish progmetal band Evergrey for three years and on one of their CD (Torn). He also was a member of Killing Machine for a short period. Jari thinks that Evegrey is a great band but they didn't seem to advance much in any direction.
The American band Killing Machine turned out to become such a tragicomedy after only two months that Jari decided to hit the gas pedal before founding himself forced to pay for their management's ingenious ideas.
- I was at my cabin, just arrived from fishing - right, we were in Norway - and going through my emaíls. The management of Killing Machine had sent all these mails that we are now in a state where us, the band should pay for the opener slot of the next tour by ourselves. I did inform them that while things got a twist in this direction, then I'm out of the band. The very next morning I got a mail from Timo asking to have a talk with me. Then we did talk, sorted out the old things and I joined the band. I didn't see much sense to dig the old shit any more.
Jari says that his bass playing hasn't changed during the years with Evergrey, but there has been some development in his stage presence. While in Stratovarius Jari remained mostly in the role of a bystander, in Evergrey he realized that moshing and delivering a more aggressive appearance on stage was actually fun. Now Jari has got the drive and he wants to show off - both to the crowds and to his new bandmates.
Tolkki says that it was Kainulainen he wanted on base guitar to begin with. He knows that his selection will remind everyone about how he supposedly fired Kainulainen from Stratovarius. The headlines about the incident told a partial truth, but only a partial truth. There were also family reasons, picking on minor issues among persons in the band and Jari getting tired of his role - but let us leave it to the media who are interested in digging shit.
- When Jari came to Finland to record bass tracks on the demo, I got a really add feeling, Tolkki reveals.
- We had not met in five years, but in studio it felt like we only had a break between tours or something, like the five years never passed by. It felt like we had played together only yesterday, but still something had happened between us. As human beings we both had grown. Now it has been extremely fun recording demos with everyone. I have a really strong faith in the progress of this project now.
Kainulainen tells that recording the three demo tracks for Symfonia was, as corny as it may sound, like coming back home.
Tolkki knows Jari's style to play and now playing together was more relaxed than ever. Of the whole band I think Jari is the one with the most burning craving for the real action.
Yes, Symfonia has recorded a demo, which musically means almost complete return to the positive, dramatic Visions–Destiny–Infinity-era Stratovarius sound. The plan is to put twelve tracks on the upcoming CD and work with them will begin shortly. The band has yet signed a release in Japan only, but other areas are under negotiations. The release of their debut album has been aimed at the end of March 2011.
Bur let us return to the line-up for a while. Also the drummer was found in Norway.
Tolkki heard somewhere that Uli Kusch (ex-Helloween, ex-Masterplan) had settled his home only 150 km from Oslo. The punctual German joining the new band was easy, because since Beautiful Sin and Ride The Sky he hadn't done almost anything to mention in music except playing on the debut CD of Issa. Despite of that, he was recruited to be the backbone of the whole regiment named Symfonia.
- As a drummer my view is that the band has to follow the drummer, not vice versa.
- But it's all about interaction. I'm the type of drummer who is dependent on the rhythm guitar, but on the general level drummer must be the core of band playing live. This will create stress for the drummer, but when the stage sound is right and nothing disturbing happens on stage, I'm positive that I'll always be able to create the basement on which the band can relax when perfoming.
Kusch has been around in metal 27 years already and he thinks the past years could make quite a movie. Yet he feels that with Symfonia he is on a kind of studying excursion, because the past years did not teach quite everything. Every day in a new environment an in a new band will teach something new.
On the technical side there hardly won't be much new left that someone could teach to Kusch, but Tolkki interrupts us by throwing a screwball and asking whether Uli thinks there is space for emotions in drumming. First Kusch looks a bit confused but then answers the question with such an overwhelming emotion that only a pedant, disciplinal German will be able to give on the subject:
- The whole meaning of music is to create emotions. Ballads will raise emotions in people. Heavy and depressive music will raise alternative emotions and this all the drummer must be capable to strengthen. The musician himself must also be in love with his instrument.
Talking about emotions might be somewhat rare subject for Uli who is better known for his exact beat than tenderness. I guess Tolkki threw his question in at least semi-mischievous way. Kusch who has sometimes become known as a control freak, tells that in recent years he has learned to relax and have confidence in what surrounds him, because desire to control everything leads only into frustration. With Symfonia he is more than satisfied for the fact that he can be "only" the drummer without responsibility of anything else in the band.
Unlike most drummers, Kush is also a composer. He finds his inspiration from whatever there is around him: hanging old band posters in the training room, new bandmates or maybe from more than ordinary stage lighting.
Some Norwegian influence has stuck in him as he thinks that even fishing can be musically inspiring. But the utmost environment of inspiration for Uli is a campfire at which the drummer says he'll burn away his problems and will recharge himself for new duties. With Symfonia Kusch thinks he'll settle down first and feel how he'll adapt to the sound, then later if anything will turn up on the composing front, he'll see what will happen. About that issue Uli is not going to take any stress.
For now, the drummer thinks it'll be enough for the band to form into a tight unit.
After recruiting other players from abroad Tolkki had made a decision that the keyboard player has to come from Finland. The question rather remained: who was available.
- When I recruited the band members I had the idea that every member must be a previously known name on the scene. The music industry has changed so that record labels, promoters and even fans demand names. I didn't want to repeat the journey I did in the last three years with unknown musicians.
- With Mikko Härkin we have said hello many times on the street, but didn't keep contact since the tours Stratovarius and Sonata Arctica made together. When I found out that Mikko was available, he was my pick without a doubt for this band because he is not only a really technical player but also has emotion in his playing, which is very important aspect to me. Mikko wrote a cool unisono for guitar and synth to our demo already, and it turned out to be quite difficult for me to play. With Jens Johansson unisonos were easy to play because I always knew what he'd play. But this unisono I had to learn note by note because Mikko plays different scales than Jens did.
According to Härkin Jens Johansson is the origin of all heavy metal keyboarding and everybody else, himself included are only imitators of Johansson. Mikko admires Jens's freedom to do almost anything with his instrument and Johansson was one of the main reasons for Härkin when he chose keyboards for his own instrument.
Mikko started playing music long before his teens, though. When he was five, his grandfather encouraged him to play the piano by purchasing him the blue-covered book "Mikael Aaron's piano school" which is familiar to most beginner piano virtuosi. Mikko advanced to the influences of classical music along with the Aaron's second book and has delved deeper in the subject in later times, even though he does not consider himself as an educated musician.
- All music is similar in the terms that one has to know the scales, Mikko says. After learning the minor- and major scales you can enlarge your understanding without limits even when you don't take part in formal training.
Mikko, who thinks Bach and Mozart were the greatest geniuses of music history, advanced is career from KenZiner to Sonata Arctica, Wingdom and Mehida, and he also carried the responsibility of composing music in the latter two bands. Mikko finds amusing that when he was young he did dig Stratovarius and Masterplan and wished he could meet members of the bands, but he'd never believed that he would be touring with one and later join in a band with members from both of aforementioned bands. Maybe it is why the usually extremely calm Mikko now keeps bubbling in excitement.
- I think that this album will turn out to be very interesting. Sure I have played power metal before, but with this band I'd like to bring something new and personal into playing power metal; maybe soundwise, but of course within the frame set by the band's style. Maybe my focus will be in upgrating my own skills, because I consider myself somewhat outdated as a keyboard player. Keyboard players in current bands set the norm level of their skills really high. They can do anything the top keyboarders of previous generation were capable of and then develop their own style on top of it. Bringing genuinely new or own into this music will be very hard nowadays - but at least I am going to try. I'd like to create a new interesting view into the sound of Symfonia. We have got such classy musicians in the band, hence I will take this challenge with great excitement.
Tolkki: - Now I have such a dream team, I can't wait to get in the studio. Writing songs for this band is an ideal situation for me. When I'll write vocal lines to Andre Matos, I can do it without limits. I can write anything. It couldn't be any better. There is a Brazilian, a German and Scandinavians which means that we come from different cultures, but we also have in common the fact that we all have seen so much when playing with different bands. For this band it means mutual understanding and respect. It will create positive energy, which will reflect in our music.
It can be heard at the Finnish Metal Expo at Kaapelitehdas, Helsinki on Feb 18. 2011 where Symfonia will play the first time live in public.
The band is planning a tour, too. Because of the contract signed with the Japanese record label, the band will start their tour in Japan and China, but after South America and the [European] summer festival season, in fall 2011 they should have time for touring in Europe. But all this is still in the phase of making plans.
- A heavy metal band has to perform live. If you won't, then you can declare the band dead. We couldn't play live with my previous band because promoters didn't have enough interest in booking us. We got no festival gigs or anything. We tried most everything, but there simply wasn't interest.
- Sonata Arctica kindly offered us a warm-up slot on their tour, but it would have meant a 50K expense (in euros) and the record label did not support us which made it impossible. We have been reading how it was Tolkki who didn't want to go touring, but actually it was about money, or more precisely the lack of it.
The recording of the upcoming CD will begin in Sweden in three weeks with Kusch's drums. Most parts of of the recording will be done in Finland. Time for recording vocals will be in December and it wll happeen probably in a rented house somewhere in Skåne, near Matos's home. Most likely the mixing will be done in San Remo, Italy where Timo has previously mixed CDs for Vision Divine.
Timo has written all tracks for the upcoming record, but now when there are four members capable of composing music responsibilities may be divided on more equal basis on the next CDs.
Tolkki: - I hope that other members will also compose for the band. The situation will be like with Stratovarius, meaning that everyone is entitled to contribute songs - but I have always been strict about songs fitting in the view I have about the band's style. A band must have a clear style. But in the end it'll always be whether the song sounds good in my ears or not. It's not about my ego or anything, but every band must have a leader who holds the band's ropes together. You can't please everybody and the life is not a favourite contest.
- With this band I feel the same spark which I felt last time ages ago. I have a clear vision about this band. I'll be open to ideas, and I have also learnt from the past mistakes so much that we will talk about everything with this band. If anything bothers someone, we have agreed to bring it instantly up on the table for discussion.
- In the previous bands the communication channels did not always work too well. Especially for us Scandinavians direct communication is sometimes difficult. Now with this band I feel excitement and meaningfulness after a long time. Energy. Writing the songs was really easy.
What can be achieved with Synfonia ?
- I have never thought about achievements, because it doesn't fit to my way of thinking. Achievements do not belong to music. I have always only written songs, later we have recorded and published them. After that we have toured and performed the songs. Along the road all kinds of things has happened, but in the end only music matters; the records we have published.
- I was born to be a musician and this is what I do. I have an internal drive for it because I can't express myself in any other way. Another thing, after all the years I see myself before all as an entertainer. I am able to travel the world and give people emotions. It'll bring a good feeling when you still can give hope for people in these days.
- When I last year travelled in South America doing guitar seminars and got to hear amazing stories from my fans about what they have got from my music, I realized how big influence a musician can have on his audience. When you decide to use the power in a positive way, you can become a servant with a meaning to the public and thus give good energy to people who can ease their everyday life a little with it. Metal audience admires musicians. If you also spend time with fans, talk with them and make apparent that they are important to you... Only that has a meaning.
- A record is born from the need to express oneself. The energy of the upcoming record will be born from this band. I hope that people will read also the lyrics and gain something from it to themselves. This band is about serving the audience. About giving. When people will get something from Synfonia to themselves and will leave after the gig with a smile on their face, it'll be the greatest goal I can imagine.
André Matos is one of the few metal musicians who has got a gold record in Japan. He got it with Angra from the Holy Land -album, but he will also share the idea that music is not about achievements.
- I can't even remember where I stored the gold record. When we talk about bands, numbers will make it easier to understand things. Unfortunately we live on a music market where quantity does not equal with quality - and vice versa. I do not intend to dismiss my gold record, but it's meaning to me will pale in front of the fact when I know that some of the songs which I made and perform are very important to certain people.
Mikko Härkin will stress the same thing.
- People will come to a gig in order to get some change to their ordinary life. A heavy metal band will of course also present their technical skills and perform catchy songs, but the real rask of a performing artist is to make the audience "lift the feet off the ground" for a little while. That is our goal.
Tolkki closes the interview with the conclusion:
- Music is the most important - everything else happening around it basically equals bullshit. I have a feeling that this will become the kind of an album which people wish to hear from Timo Tolkki.
After listening to the three demo tracks I begin to feel the same.
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