I bury this lifeline inside my fist

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Apulanta – Helsinki; April 30th 2011

Ever since first hearing Apulanta on CD I have wanted to see them live. There was something about their music that I thought would work great in front of an audience and the live CD I have sure sounded good. Having come to Helsinki to visit friends for vappu (Mayday), I finally had the chance … and walked away somewhat disappointed.

So what happened? Was it because I was standing on the stairs and not in the crowd as usual? Was it because said crowd was so much lamer than I had expected? Was it because I didn’t understand any of what they were saying or singing? Was the mood just wrong? Or could it have been the setlist that included many old songs but few hits?

Overall it was very relaxing. We got there in time for the doors to open, walked in, picked out spots on the stairs and waited. People filed in, dressed up for vappu and in party mood. The place filled, but didn’t feel too crowded, even tough it was sold out – we still had room to stand comfortably.

The show started and I waited for the music to grab me, carry me. I took a few pictures and got annoyed about the overuse of the fog machine (what is it with the Tavastia lately?). Looking at the crowd I wondered when they would go completely nuts, jump and dance as my friends had predicted they would. They seemed rather tame to me.

The concert proceeded, the songs washed over me. There were some that I love, I jumped a bit and even sang along a little, smiled. Still, it was hard to keep the excitement up, because they played so much stuff I didn’t recognize or remember. It was certainly enjoyable to watch them, but nothing more. The final kick that I am always waiting for at concerts was missing.

I did have fun watching the crowd, grinned at the worm-shaped balloon someone had brought to make them play ‘Mato’ (worm) and was happy for them when they actually did. I enjoyed hearing ‘Kirous’, ‘Koneeseen  kadunnut’ and ‘Vauriot’, but I also missed ‘Kaivo’ and some other songs I had been hoping for.

They are a good live band and I am sure this gig was a treat for long-time fans with so many old songs being played, but for the crowd that was there and especially for me, it seemed the wrong selection of songs. Would I go to see them again? Probably, everyone deserves a second chance! Would I say this was a great gig? Nah, it was OK, but not more.

I’ll never be the boss, just lower management I guess

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Ezio – Matrix, Bochum; 27.04.2011

After seeing them in Cologne in March with the full band, it was time for only Ezio & Booga tonight. Cologne was a good gig, with many fun songs, but tonight was really special. They dug up some stuff that I have not heard in years and somehow the mood and the atmosphere were so much better than a month ago.

I arrived in time for the doors to open and was almost the only one at first. Saw Booga, complimented him on his new hairstyle (rastas) and was happy to see more people show up. By showtime it around 8:30 p.m. the place was filled.

The walked to the small stage through the crowd, grabbed their guitars, said “Hello” and started with ‘A small dream’. Somehow the spark was there from the start. The audience was really into it and by the second song, ’30 and confused’, everyone was singing along loudly. They both liked that, continued with ‘Supermarkets’ and then ‘Braver than you are’.

In between songs, Ezio talked a lot, made me laugh really hard too. He started telling us “I though this place was gonna be hard to find. In Dusseldorf at the train station I said ‘Two tickets to Bokkum’ and the guy just stared at us. You know, English people don’t change pronunciation when they are not understood, they just speak louder, so I said ‘TWO TICKETS TO BOKKUM’. Then we varied pronunciation and eventually arrived at Boochum.” XD

They played a great mixture of songs, old and new and for some reason the atmosphere was very special. We heard ‘Bicycle’ and got ‘the Further we stretch’ early on – great sing along from the audience on every song – people knew all the words. When Ezio asked us what we wanted to hear, we said ‘Oranges’, ‘Moonstruck’, ‘Angel Song’ and ‘Song for the tempted’ so he told us “Usually we wait for something reasonable and then just play it. None of that was reasonable.” (laughter) So a woman suggested “‘Bruce Springsteen’ then” and we got that. But there were many surprises too ‘Steal away’, ‘Mermaid Song’ and even ‘Cinderella’ – some songs I had not heard in a long time..

In-between the talking continued. Ezio told a story about being on holiday in Bad Münstereifel at the hotel were Heino lives. “He’s a nice guy”, then his sound guy showed him videos on youTube – he proceeded to mimic Heino. So funny. He talked on until some rather drunk woman yelled “Shut up and play!” His reply? “Yeah, I remember my first beer too.” XD

Booga was in a great mood as well. There was a lot of spontaneity in the show, great songs and much fun. ‘One more walk round the dance floor’ made an appearance, juts like ’59 yard’. Ezio sang the line “One day you’re gonna die” in different styles and we were to follow. First he did Johnny Cash, then (according to our wishes) Heino and after Booga did Skooby Doo – barking. We all enjoyed it.

It all ended with two encores, before they left us. Happy faces all around. Before I left, I thanked Ezio and Booga for the wonderful concert. They too agreed that it was a special night

The songs that were played (probably not complete)

A small dream
30 and confused
Supermarkets
Braver than you are
Bicycle
The Further we stretch
I still want you
Bruce Springsteen
Steal away
One more walk around the dance floor
Cinderella
Mermaid Song
Just to talk to you again
Saxon Street
Call me tomorrow