Poets of the Fall – Tampere-Talo, Tampere; October 19th, 2018

After the strange Poets of the Fall concert in Helsinki the previous night, A., K. And I left for the Tampere in a subdued mood, but ready to see how the second Finnish show would work out. Since this was another seated gig, I went there with high hopes, but no expectations. This one turned out to be completly different from the show in Helsinki. It was brilliant, fun and completely blew me off my feet. Whatever had happened the previous night, the ghosts from the very recent past no longer lingered and everything was restored to what it should be: A great night among friends. That was worth traveling to Finland for. <3

We arrived in Tampere about an hour before the doors opened and on the way to the venue debated whether it was going to start at 7 or 8 pm, because there was conflicting information. While we had some food 7 was confirmed, so we quickly bought some stuff for a potential after party and went onwards to the venue. It already looked super nice as we walked in and we sat surprisingly close to each other. A. and I had bought our tickets together, but K. had bought hers from S. and they ended up sitting right next to us. The hall was smaller than the one in Helsinki, but the stage looked about the same size. Our seats were off to the right side, but with a great view. I had a good feeling about this.

We did not have to wait long for the show to start and from the moment the guys walked on stage it was completely different than the night before. Right away Marko motioned for us to get up and we gladly followed. I turned to A. and said “That’s more like it!” We were dancing along with ‘Dreaming wide awake’ and neither of us could stop smiling. Looking over to S. and K. I saw the same look on their faces. 😀 Whenever any of the guys looked at us they were smiling too. Marko was on the move all the time, going from one side ofthe stage to the other, saying hello to everyone. I think It might have been during ‘Dancing on broken Glass’ that song that he walked into the audience, all the way to the back. On the way down, he stopped by S.’s side for a moment and leaned on her. <3

Like us, S. and her friend K. were still standing, just on the opposite side of the front row. Eventually we sat down again for ‘False Kings’ and ‘Temple of Thought’ so we would not block the view of the people behind us too much. It did not keep me from singing along though or from enjoying the songs. The band had raisers on each side of the stage and used them well. With our position we had a great view of all the guys, but especially of Ollie, which was in front of us for much of the show and smiled just as much as we did. <3 Jani visited quite frequently too and watching them play together was pure joy. Jani and Ollie both were standing with Captain at times, rocking together, moving arms in unison and in tune with the melody. 🙂

Jari was sitting behind glass, just as he had the previous night and looked rather happy in his cage. I loved watching him, especially at times when he got up and was beating the drums like a madman. He perfectly can do subtle playing as well though. I always amazes me, just how talented every member of this band is. Once again they all proved what they can do during ‘Rogue’ and once again they pointed at each other to make sure everyone knew just who to look at. Marko walked into the audience again and this time he stood with me for a little while, arm in arm, nodding his head to the music. I looked at him briefly, smiled and turned my attention back to the stage. It felt like sharing a special moment with a friend. <3

For ‘Standstill’ we sat down again, enjoying the beauty of the song. It is perfect for an acoustic setting. At first one guitar was missing, but Ollie, Jani and Marko waited patiently for Jaska to come along. All the guys seemed very affectionate that night. A few times they looked at each other and then hugged. It was that sort of a night. 🙂 ‘The Sweet Escape’ was amazing and had us standing up again. I loved that song and I especially lovethe guitar solos in the end. At the start of the song Marko motioned for us to take out or phones and switch on the light. It looked gorgeous to see the entire hall lit up. Sometimes you just cannot sit down, especially once you’ve been allowed to stand. 😉 We moved over to the stairs so, not blocking anyone’s way. 🙂 Tiia, who’d been walking the hall and taking pictures dropped by, hugged me and gave me a peck on the cheek. It was unexpected, but oh so lovely. I hugged back, gave her a big smile and then made a little room as she sat behind me on the stairs.  I turned my attention back to the stage and the next time I looked behind me she was gone.

‘Brighter than the sun’ had us dancing some more and ended with an awesome bass solo, where Marko sat down on the floor to watch Jani play. Only for ‘Cradled in Love’ we settled down again. For the second time that night Marko motioned for us to take our phones and again there was a see of bright lights everywhere. Also there where stars in the ceiling. It fit perfectly. The whole atmosphere in the venue was beautiful. I felt perfectly happy all night and saw so many sweet little moments happening on stage. Granted, I have forgotten most of them now, but a few things just had me go “aww” when they happened and several times I looked at A. who shared the sentiment. The guys seemed to enjoy every moment and Glen looked very happy too. He was going along with the music more than once. 😀

So many times one of the guys was walking close to the front of the stage, getting in touch with people so to speak and it worked. The audience was so much more into it than the previous night. Jani was throwing a few kisses, Ollie just gave everyone his brightest smile. Marko was shaking a few hands here and there while he was walking along the front.  During ‘My Dark Disquiet’ he was coming my way and I thought “Oh shit! I don’t know all the words yet”. Luckily he looked at me for exactly the lines that I know. Phew! 😉

Everything was right that night and all the emotions I felt seemed to be reflected elsewhere, either on the faces of my friends around me or in every note the guys played and every gesture they made. ‘War’ was the perfect song for my mood. It is the perfect song for almost every mood and I sang along with all my might. For ‘Sleep’ then, things got more quiet again and I just watched Marko with his lamp. At first I tried capturing pictures, but my phone is not equipped for that. Thus I enjoyed. Once in a great while I even looked at Captain playing keyboards, but mostly my eyes were drawn to the light. 😉

‘Lift’ brought the show to a close and this time I jumped. Jaska was checking on me and smiled when he saw me do it. Everything back to normal. 😀 By now, pretty much everyone in the hall was standing up and cheering loudly. I cannot stretch enough how good that felt and how the energy that came from the audience reflected back on the guys. I think the band drew from us and then gave back tenfold what they received. It just kept getting better.

When they came back out for ‘Daze’ nobody had to instruct us to stand up or clap and dance. we all just did. It rocked and continued right through ‘Locking up the sun’ with many people turning back time. I alternated between jumping and trying to capture pictures of the guys rocking. Totally multitasking and totally failing. 😀 At one point Ollie was watching me trying to get my phone to work while I was still jumping. I did not manage to switch the camera on, shrugged and put it back in my pocket. This was the concert I had been waiting for and this was the concert I wanted for Finland after the awesome UK shows. Well done guys!

Finally, we sat down again to enjoy ‘Carnival of Rust’ and then watch a final sea of light for ‘Choir of Cicadas’. Happy faces everywhere, on stage and off. The guys said goodbye and I wanted to hug them all. I did not get that chance, but Ollie came over to shake our hands. <3 Tiia took the usual stage selfie and this time I was not hidden behind the guys for once. 😉 All was good, I did not want the night to end and felt high on emotion when we walked out.

K., A., S. and I were all happy with the concert and everyone else we spoke to agreed that it had been brilliant. Those who had attended both nights said that this one was so much better. We talked about it for long afterwards and figured that just like us the band must have felt that something did not go right the previous night so the learned and did things differently. And this is why we love them. <3

On the way home we had drinks and chips and shared happy memories from this gig and previous ones. After all, the Poets had brought us together, made us all part of the same family and for this we are just as grateful as for the music. Thank you all for the wonderful company. Until next time.

Poets of the Fall Ultraviolet Tour 2018: Seven gigs down, five to go. Next stop: Frankfurt

Setlist

Dreaming Wide Awake
Dancing on Broken Glass
False Kings
Temple of Thought
Rogue
Standstill
The Sweet Escape
Brighter Than the Sun
Cradled in Love
My Dark Disquiet
War
Sleep
Lift

Encore:
Daze
Locking Up the Sun
Carnival of Rust
Choir of Cicadas

Ultraviolet Tour 2018: Seven shows down, five to go