Poets of the Fall – venus Nightlife, Turku; May 28th, 2016
“You’re having quickie in Turku” m friend C. joked about my trip to this Poets of the Fall concert, because I was arriving Saturday just in time for a coffee before getting in line and leaving Sunday morning. Well, it may have been a short trip, but it sure did not lack great music, passion and fun! The concert was so relaxed and easy-going it took me to a zone where I completely lost track of time and place, only existing in a state that felt like dreaming, wide awake.
Arrived in Helsinki at 3 pm, hopped straight on a bus and was in Turku three hours later. Got ready, met up with C. and had some time to chat before we got in line at the venue. Compared to Oulu the previous week, people arrived late here and everything was rather relaxed. Once we got in, only the front row was filled and despite knowing that Finish people often arrive late, we were a bit worried the place would remain empty. We passed the time chatting and I got to know the woman to my left whom I had seen at other gigs before. Once Einari checked the gear and put drinks on stage we started wondering about one of Marko’s drinks, because the bottle had a smiley on it. Shortly before the gig started we realized it was a regular Pepsi in some special edition bottle. The things you learn… More people arrived and right around midnight the floor was not empty any more. Good!
When I saw Nina making a last check of the stage, I mentally started counting down. Moments later the intro began and we were clapping, calling the band on stage. No matter how many times I see them, this first moment is always beautiful. I know all the little gestures, I know how they will smile, point or raise their hands in the air to greet us and yet it always feels subtly different. This one moment contains everything that will make the gig: the general atmosphere of the concert, the mood of the audience and my own, the form the band is in. Those first minutes are usually an indication of how the show is going to be and I had a good feeling about this one. 🙂
Usually I stand on the left side of the stage, but this night I was dead center. A terrible spot for taking pictures of Marko because of the microphone stand getting in the way, but boy did I have a good view. 😀 From where I stood I could see Jari and Captain very well in the back and whenever Marko was not in front of me Ollie, Jaska or Jani were. It was a perfect spot for watching them work up close. And I never get tired of watching them work, paying close attention to fingers moving across strings. 🙂 This night, Captain especially made me smile, because he did so much air drumming. Only later I noticed I did the same. In fact we might have even done it in unison a few times. 😀
The current setlist is a great mixture of songs to rock out to, jump, dance and those to listen to, eyes closed, breathing every word. I was so happy to be back. In the years I have listened to and followed Poets of the Fall around the globe, their songs have been the soundtrack of my life. While there have always been songs that were more important than others, most of them seem the perfect match at one point or another. Which of their albums I like best and which song means the most, largely depends on my mood and the place in life I am currently at. Right then and there, so many songs took on a special meaning that I belted them out at the top of my lungs, singing my heart out, lost in the words and the music. It must have shown on my face judging by the smiles I got from stage. 🙂
Taking pictures was a bit difficult at times, because I was often too close for doing that. I kept trying to get a good one of Marko, but didn’t have much luck. At one point he even leaned forward, striking a rockstar pose for me, but he got so close that I knew it was impossible to get a picture so I just cracked up laughing. It was awesome! During ‘Rogue’, he was over by the side of the stage take a selfie with a guy who stood there. Ollie, Jaska and Jani were on the move a lot as well, the latter often doing kicks and almost hitting me in the head once with his bass. Ollie not only checked out everyone else’s playing, he was also flying high in the air at times. It always amazes me just how high he can jump. 🙂
To my left stood S., whom I had seen before but not spoken to until that night. We had chatted a bit while waiting and she was just as excited as C. and I were. During a few songs, when the guys played solos she showed her appreciation by forming a heart with her hands. She also did it when they said goodbye and Captain showed a heart back to her as he walked off. <3
I could hardly believe how quickly it was over. Why does time always move so fast when things are great? It was a wonderful night overall that ended with drinks and chats for C. and me before we said goodnight.
Setlist (as I recall):
Miss Impossible
Locking up the Sun
Temple of Thought
Sorry go Round
Rumors
Rogue
Diamonds 4 Tears
Dreaming wide awake
Given and Denied
Jealous Gods
Stay
Late Goodbye
Daze
Carnival of Rust
Lift
Illusion & Dream