i finally picked up the new Metal Maniacs. i'm at work now so i can't scan it
but, there's nothing really going on here right now, so i'll type it out for y'all since it's not really all that long. if you want, i can still scan it later and send it to you guys if you want.
FARMAKON
The Art Of Expression
By: Adrian Bromley
Heading into your teenage years is always and exciting yet scary time. I was a rambunctious teenager thirsty for metal, rebellion and Dungeons & Dragons. It was obvious I was normal but like most at this age, life is a whirlwind of choices. This was my time of self-discovery. I feared falling into a life of simplicity but eventually discovered my passion for expressionism through writing and literature--an escape of sorts from music, partying and killing orcs with a roll of the dice. Over the next few years, I harnessed my love for writing, eventually taking upon a large workload of writing in high school(including the school paper) and eventually into journalism school. Freelance writing was the next step and here I am today.
So how does this all relate to Farmakon's A Warm Glimpse debut(Elitist Records)? Good question...but a simple answer. It's about taking chances and not being afraid to pursue life's dreams. Avoiding the norm is an integral part of growth. Flushing your life with multiple opinions and paths to follow is essential in finding lifetime satisfaction. Listen to the multiple ideas on the band's debut--a fiery combination of death metal, melody and jazz--and you can sense the drive and determination of a young band. Guitarists Lasse Paunonen/Toni Salminen. drummer Riku Airistu and vocalist/bassist Marko Eskola just go for it. And it works with amazing results. Salminen spoke with Metal Maniacs about taking chances and everything that comes with it.
Metal Maniacs: It seems quite obvious from the getgo that the band wanted to incorporate multiple styles/ideas within the music. Was it a challenge to make it all come together? Were certain ideas/sounds abandoned because they wouldn't work with the song? These songs are so thick with so many influences.
Toni Salminen: When Marko formed the band in 2001, there was no principal idea what we were to play. This style of playing just happened along the way. The main idea was not to put as many genres of music in our songs as we could, but rather to make music with no boundaries. If one of us comes up with an idea and it could be used in the song, despite the style, we just incorporated it. Of course, some ideas get dropped but new ones always emerge. It's difficult sometimes to get the song sound to work out. There's some stress sometimes but the result usually pays off.
MM: Did you ever want to play straightforward death metal or was it always a crusade to play something some obscurely "different"?
TS: Farmakon's sound just happened, really. I don't think any one of us would be pleased playing just straightforward death metal. It would be quite boring. We are in a state of constant change and none of us really know what'll come next with our music and that's what makes this whole thing interesting.
MM: Elitist Records is known to have a diverse roster. How did you hook up with them?
TS: We recorded our demo because we just wanted to have a recording of the 3 song project we had worked on. We uploaded the songes to MP3.com to hear other's opinions. It was just for fun mainly and we had no itention of trying to get signed with this material at all [so] it caught us off guard when we were approached out of the blue by a label. So yeah, a week or so after we uploaded the songs Lee[Barrett, owner of Elitist Records] emailed us after listening to ask us to sign. We were quite shocked. I pissed my pants - metaphorically speaking of course - when Marko phoned me that we might have a record deal here. I think we fit in with the Elitist roster quite well and I'm very pleased to be on a label with so many good bands.
MM: A lot of people who listen to metal music have a short attention spans and tend to lose interest when there's too much going on within a song. Do people ever find it difficult to get into your music?
TS: I think it is hard to get into our kind of music in general if you are not used to whacky stuff already. If you are, then I think it is quite easy. People need to be open-minded and have a love for diverse music. That's all there is to it. I also think that the short attention span goes with all genres of music and not just metal. It takes a lot of work, vision and effort to be that kind of artist that people will listen to time after time. Many people have said that our record is very--I'm not sure how to say this--re-listenable. In A Warm Glimpse there are so many layers and stuff you will discover still after many listens. Personally, I like music with a lot of things going on and new ideas just mixed up.
MM: What were the main influences when the band started off and can you still hear those influences?
TS: Opeth. That's the "main" influence and the reason this band was built. You see, Marko fell in love with this band when i forced him to listen to Still Life and he decided to learn how to growl like Mikael [Åkerfeldt] just to piss me off. I've been an Opeth fan since Morningrise. Anyway, Marko put together this band to play the first three songs he wrote, starting this whole thing. The influences are still there. They will always be there in some way, I mean, not intentionally anymore, of course, but the subconscious us a very strong thing to fight against sometimes, y'know?
MM: Where does the band name come from? Like the music, the name too is bizarre/different.
TS: It's Greek for "a substance that in small doses is a cure and also a poison when taken to much." It also means "love potion." We were actually recording our demo in Pirkka Rännäli's studio back in August 2001 and Pirkka asked what was the band's name. Marko just threw out the name Farmakon which he had dug out from some Greek book and we were all pretty pleased with it. I think it fits our music pretty well.
MM: If you could describe Farmakon to someone who does not know the music, how would you describe it?
TS: Eclectic, groovy, melodic, progressive, open-minded, brutal, weird, beautiful, ugly and interesting death metal with acoustics, clean vocals and occasional slap bass. How's that?
MM: Not bad...How important is Pirkka Rännäli to the band? Tell me about your work with him and how he helps with the "sound" of the band?
TS: Well, I've known Pirkka since 1998 when i first went into a real studio with my first band Obscurity to record two songs for a compilation record. I talked with Pirkka about recording Farmakon's demo at a reasonable price and also, I knew he's a man really into his work. He does it [well]. Everything was arranged and after the demo we did a promo and finally the album. He has these solid principles about playing it "real," like they did back in the '70s. He goes on with his pure rock principles and they've infected our music for sure. In many ways [he] has been a mentor to us and we thank him for it. He takes his job very seriously, can be a real pain in the ass, and can make things stressful, but it's only because he wants to get the best out of a recording. Outside of the studio environment, I think he might just be the funniest guy I know.
MM: I'm syre you must be tired of some of this music by now having recorded it and worked on it in the studio. Are you at all working on new material? Is it similar?
TS: Yeah, I have grown a bit tired of the music [laughs]. Playing the same songs for two years will do that to you. We're working on new material right now and we've talked about playing a bit more straightforward, but i really have no idea about how it'll turn out. I think our second record will still follow the same paths we have done with this album, though. The new songs have jazzy riffs here and there and a bit of bossa nova, as well as quirky metal attacks, but it's too early to say where the new album will take us. We'll see.:Spin:
that's all of it, including all the grammar errors :Spin:
but, there's nothing really going on here right now, so i'll type it out for y'all since it's not really all that long. if you want, i can still scan it later and send it to you guys if you want.
FARMAKON
The Art Of Expression
By: Adrian Bromley
Heading into your teenage years is always and exciting yet scary time. I was a rambunctious teenager thirsty for metal, rebellion and Dungeons & Dragons. It was obvious I was normal but like most at this age, life is a whirlwind of choices. This was my time of self-discovery. I feared falling into a life of simplicity but eventually discovered my passion for expressionism through writing and literature--an escape of sorts from music, partying and killing orcs with a roll of the dice. Over the next few years, I harnessed my love for writing, eventually taking upon a large workload of writing in high school(including the school paper) and eventually into journalism school. Freelance writing was the next step and here I am today.
So how does this all relate to Farmakon's A Warm Glimpse debut(Elitist Records)? Good question...but a simple answer. It's about taking chances and not being afraid to pursue life's dreams. Avoiding the norm is an integral part of growth. Flushing your life with multiple opinions and paths to follow is essential in finding lifetime satisfaction. Listen to the multiple ideas on the band's debut--a fiery combination of death metal, melody and jazz--and you can sense the drive and determination of a young band. Guitarists Lasse Paunonen/Toni Salminen. drummer Riku Airistu and vocalist/bassist Marko Eskola just go for it. And it works with amazing results. Salminen spoke with Metal Maniacs about taking chances and everything that comes with it.
Metal Maniacs: It seems quite obvious from the getgo that the band wanted to incorporate multiple styles/ideas within the music. Was it a challenge to make it all come together? Were certain ideas/sounds abandoned because they wouldn't work with the song? These songs are so thick with so many influences.
Toni Salminen: When Marko formed the band in 2001, there was no principal idea what we were to play. This style of playing just happened along the way. The main idea was not to put as many genres of music in our songs as we could, but rather to make music with no boundaries. If one of us comes up with an idea and it could be used in the song, despite the style, we just incorporated it. Of course, some ideas get dropped but new ones always emerge. It's difficult sometimes to get the song sound to work out. There's some stress sometimes but the result usually pays off.
MM: Did you ever want to play straightforward death metal or was it always a crusade to play something some obscurely "different"?
TS: Farmakon's sound just happened, really. I don't think any one of us would be pleased playing just straightforward death metal. It would be quite boring. We are in a state of constant change and none of us really know what'll come next with our music and that's what makes this whole thing interesting.
MM: Elitist Records is known to have a diverse roster. How did you hook up with them?
TS: We recorded our demo because we just wanted to have a recording of the 3 song project we had worked on. We uploaded the songes to MP3.com to hear other's opinions. It was just for fun mainly and we had no itention of trying to get signed with this material at all [so] it caught us off guard when we were approached out of the blue by a label. So yeah, a week or so after we uploaded the songs Lee[Barrett, owner of Elitist Records] emailed us after listening to ask us to sign. We were quite shocked. I pissed my pants - metaphorically speaking of course - when Marko phoned me that we might have a record deal here. I think we fit in with the Elitist roster quite well and I'm very pleased to be on a label with so many good bands.
MM: A lot of people who listen to metal music have a short attention spans and tend to lose interest when there's too much going on within a song. Do people ever find it difficult to get into your music?
TS: I think it is hard to get into our kind of music in general if you are not used to whacky stuff already. If you are, then I think it is quite easy. People need to be open-minded and have a love for diverse music. That's all there is to it. I also think that the short attention span goes with all genres of music and not just metal. It takes a lot of work, vision and effort to be that kind of artist that people will listen to time after time. Many people have said that our record is very--I'm not sure how to say this--re-listenable. In A Warm Glimpse there are so many layers and stuff you will discover still after many listens. Personally, I like music with a lot of things going on and new ideas just mixed up.
MM: What were the main influences when the band started off and can you still hear those influences?
TS: Opeth. That's the "main" influence and the reason this band was built. You see, Marko fell in love with this band when i forced him to listen to Still Life and he decided to learn how to growl like Mikael [Åkerfeldt] just to piss me off. I've been an Opeth fan since Morningrise. Anyway, Marko put together this band to play the first three songs he wrote, starting this whole thing. The influences are still there. They will always be there in some way, I mean, not intentionally anymore, of course, but the subconscious us a very strong thing to fight against sometimes, y'know?
MM: Where does the band name come from? Like the music, the name too is bizarre/different.
TS: It's Greek for "a substance that in small doses is a cure and also a poison when taken to much." It also means "love potion." We were actually recording our demo in Pirkka Rännäli's studio back in August 2001 and Pirkka asked what was the band's name. Marko just threw out the name Farmakon which he had dug out from some Greek book and we were all pretty pleased with it. I think it fits our music pretty well.
MM: If you could describe Farmakon to someone who does not know the music, how would you describe it?
TS: Eclectic, groovy, melodic, progressive, open-minded, brutal, weird, beautiful, ugly and interesting death metal with acoustics, clean vocals and occasional slap bass. How's that?
MM: Not bad...How important is Pirkka Rännäli to the band? Tell me about your work with him and how he helps with the "sound" of the band?
TS: Well, I've known Pirkka since 1998 when i first went into a real studio with my first band Obscurity to record two songs for a compilation record. I talked with Pirkka about recording Farmakon's demo at a reasonable price and also, I knew he's a man really into his work. He does it [well]. Everything was arranged and after the demo we did a promo and finally the album. He has these solid principles about playing it "real," like they did back in the '70s. He goes on with his pure rock principles and they've infected our music for sure. In many ways [he] has been a mentor to us and we thank him for it. He takes his job very seriously, can be a real pain in the ass, and can make things stressful, but it's only because he wants to get the best out of a recording. Outside of the studio environment, I think he might just be the funniest guy I know.
MM: I'm syre you must be tired of some of this music by now having recorded it and worked on it in the studio. Are you at all working on new material? Is it similar?
TS: Yeah, I have grown a bit tired of the music [laughs]. Playing the same songs for two years will do that to you. We're working on new material right now and we've talked about playing a bit more straightforward, but i really have no idea about how it'll turn out. I think our second record will still follow the same paths we have done with this album, though. The new songs have jazzy riffs here and there and a bit of bossa nova, as well as quirky metal attacks, but it's too early to say where the new album will take us. We'll see.:Spin:
that's all of it, including all the grammar errors :Spin:
What a laugh!
