Poets of the Fall – Pakkahuone, Tampere; December 16th, 2022
Their gig in Tampere was my last Poets of the Fall show of the year and I had rather high expectations. So far Tampere shows had always been great and this close to Christmas there might even be a few surprises. It turned out to be a solid show, but I walked away a little disappointed, because it had not blown me off of my feet. Then again, it had to follow Budapest and that was a tough one. 😉
The trip was full of delays, but I somehow still managed to catch the train I had originally intended and met B. there. We got to rest a little bit at our hotel before braving the cold and going to the venue. Tampere had full on winter and was covered in snow. despite the temperatures we were not the first people in line, but close enough to get a front row spot.
After freezing for longer than necessary and some clever scheming to keep those who wanted to push in away from the door, we were finally inside and slightly left of the center. So far so good. After a while I even got warm and watched as the venue slowly filled up. Unfortunately, just as the show was starting, I got a text telling me part of my flight back on Sunday was cancelled. This lead to me being distracted and having a hard time getting into the show. Damn you Lufthansa, it’s all your fault.
When the intro started, I wasn’t fully there yet (i.e. my mind was elsewhere), but I cheered along with everyone else and willed myself to forget about the flight news. I screamed as the guys walked on stage and was especially happy to see Jari with them. He was all smiles too.
‘Requiem for my Harlequin’ always makes for a good start and I followed the guys around stage with my eyes. They kept the high power with ‘Dreaming wide awake’ and not only did we see Olli fly high in the air, but witnessed Marko using his mic stand to pretend play guitar on it. Jaska and Jani were on the move too and I wished I could see everyone at once. Of course the talk was mostly in Finnish, but hey, I know what Marko is saying anyway. I remember E. asked me at one point if I understood and I rarely do, I just cheer when everyone else does. 😉
‘Temple of Thought’ is always a highlight and I still sing along at the top of my lungs. It wouldn’t be the same if I didn’t. Was I feeling it yet? Not fully, but I don’t want to blame the guys for me being distracted. They sure looked like they were having fun so it’s entirely possible that it was just me. I still enjoyed the songs a lot and smiled as I watched them give each other space and play during ‘Rogue’.
“Are there Firedancers in the house” Marko asked and I understood that even in Finnish. The song may not be my favorite on the album but it kicks butt live. I looked over at A. and smiled, because this song will always be connected to Bob the dragon now. During ‘My Dark Disquiet’ I watched Marko turning the controls on Jaska’s guitar and then Jaska playing guitar with his teeth.:D There was so much going on, I#m sure I missed some of it.
‘Sounds of yesterday’ is always beautiful and I think it was then that Marko sat at the front of the sage looking down on us. Of course there was Jani, Jaska and Olli standing in a half circle, playing together and then bumping fists and Captain and Olli “catching notes”. I’ve seen it many time snow, yet never remember when exactly during the show that happens.
For ‘Choice Millionaire’ everyone on stage jumped and when they did the whole arms up and down movement, we all noticed that Glen was missing. ‘Chasing Echoes’ is always a highlight. <3 Finally I felt the show and especially loved singing along to the “little things that make the world” part of ‘Stay forever’. I smiled as Jaska,, Jani, Olli and Marko all sat down in front of the keyboards during that song. It always makes for nice pictures.
Soon they were back for ‘The Sweet Escape’. Marko, Captain, Olli and Jani were all wearing Santa hats and Jaska had changed into his golden pants. Only Jari didn’t play along. 😉 There was a lot of playing with those hats like Jani trying to make the top of it swing around and Captain playing with the top of Olli’s hat. I could not help but laugh at all that. Olli was the only one to keep the hat on until the very end though. 🙂
‘Daze’ flew by and much too soon we had arrived at the last two songs. I love that they always play ‘Lift’ and ‘Carnival of Rust’, but wish they were not always the final songs. For the last time this year I sang along, watched them play and tried to capture all the moments until the final notes rang out. They waved, hugged each other and posed for a final pictures with us. Last time to cheer and they left. I truly wished I could follow them to the cruise then next day, but it wasn’t possible so this was it.
We hung out, talked and Jani came by for a chat. During the show I had shaken Tiia’s hand at one point and would have liked to say goodbye, but didn’t see her again after the show. Eventually our group went for drinks. It was a nice ending to the tour to sit with my friends and chat over Nachos and Lonkero, before going back to our hotel. Here’s to many more.
B. and I spent a relaxing day in Tampere before returning home on Sunday and in the end, only my second flight was canceled so I had to take a longer train ride than planned. It was exhausting, but these are the things I do for the bands I love. see you next year!
Setlist
Requiem for my Harlequin
Dreaming wide awake
Temple of Thought
Rogue
Firedancer
My Dark Disquiet
Sounds of yesterday
Choice Millionaire
Chasing Echoes
Stay forever
The Sweet Escape
Daze
Lift
Carnival of Rust