Passion colors everything – On the road

Poets of the Fall – Tampere; February 26th, 2016

The first concert of the year is always special, because it sets the tone for everything that will follow in the coming months, even more so, when it is the first concert of the year I travel for and the first one by my favorite band. I had been looking forward to seeing Poets of the Fall in Tampere, had missed them since their last show at the Virgin Oil in December, wondered which songs they would choose and was happy to see my friends again. What can I say? The guys delivered everything I could have asked for any more. It was a beautifully energetic show that left fans and band with big smiles on their faces. 😀

After an uneventful trip to Tampere I met up with C. for dinner, ran into Ollie and Captain who said hello and told us about rehearsing and trying to remember songs. We joked about giving them pointers and singing the melodies to them. 😀 Desire for food satisfied, we hung out in the hotel lobby with I., U. and friends until it was time to get in line. Everything and everyone was relaxed and looking forward to the show. 🙂 More waiting inside, watching Jari, who had had another gig before, set up the drums and wondering if they’d start at midnight or later.

When they walked on stage, the regular club music was still playing and we looked at each other like “Isn’t it time to shut that off now?” So instead of walking on stage one by one, the band just took their places and waited a little bit. A big smile spread on my face just seeing them. Finally, the music was turned off and the intro started to big cheers. It was brand new, it rocked and I had no idea which song it would lead up to. Not even when they were already playing. Only when Marko started singing I recognized ‘Miss Impossible’ – yep, it had been a while since I’ve heard that one. Either way, it was a perfect start to the show!

The entire setlist rocked and the audience rocked with it. Only once in a while they had a slower song thrown in for everyone to catch their collective breath. The atmosphere was wonderful. It was clear the guys were having fun and the audience was enjoying it just as much. I looked into so many happy, even elated faces that night. People were singing, clapping, dancing and totally lost in the music, watching every move on stage. It was a perfect setlist too, every song in the right place and many old friends and favorites making a re-appearance.

After ‘Miss Impossible’ the next happy surprise came with ‘Sorry go round’. I recognized it immediately, every line coming back to me in an instant. During this song and so many others it happened that the guys smiled at me when they saw me sing along. It felt like being home again after long travels. ‘Given and Denied’ was another song I had missed. When it started, Marko missed the first few lines and Jari could not stop laughing about it for the rest of the song. It was beautiful and anyone who didn’t know the song would not even have noticed, because Marko was totally cool about it. 🙂

So many times the guys joked with each other, stood by each other’s side, smiling, admiring each other and also teasing each other. Of course they all got the chance to show off their skills and did, putting everyone in the spotlight now and then. I love how they give everyone room to shine, while at the same time joking about Marko’s role as the frontman who needs to be the center of attention. They always play to each other’s strength and show so much mutual respect that its a joy to watch. Of course they don’t take any of this too seriously, so there is always room for making fun of each other in a good natured way.

Energy was flowing between the band members and between audience and stage the entire night. It was clear the guys had missed this as much as I had. I wish I could remember all those little moments that made me smile during the night, but most of them have faded already. Ollie waled over to center stage to play several times and often stood right in front of C. and me when he did. Once, however, he walked past us, then looked back for a brief moment and smile before concentrating on his solo again. During ‘Given and Denied’ , Jari wrote something on a piece of paper that he alter showed to Ollie, both of them laughing. I’d give a lot to know what it said. Jani had fun raising the bass high in the air and urging us to clap along, Captain played air drums at one point and Jaska just looked tremendously happy all night.

Sadly, even the best show has to end and with ‘Illusion & Dream’ the last song rolled around much to quickly. This song made me a fan and will always have a special place in my heart. Strangely, I completely backed out on the song title at first and kept asking myself “What is this song called” while singing along every word at the same time. While singing the chorus, I wondered how I could have forgotten. 😉

Once the guys had walked off stage, the audience cheered for minutes, but despite our best efforts we did not bring them back. So it was time to gather our wits, take a deep breath and walk out. Everyone agreed it was an awesome show. On the was out we ran into Jani and Marko, got goodbye hugs and told them how much we had liked it. Some of us left, C. and I stayed, had a nice chat with Nina, spent some time winding down and finally said goodnight. See you tomorrow!

Setlist (to the best of my memory, out of order)

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

Daze
Late Goodbye
Carnival of Rust
Lift
Illusion & Dream

pictures of this concert