5 Things You Need To Do In Helsinki

Turisas vocalist Mathias Nygård gives us his take on 5 Things You Need To Do In Helsinki:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sva2-qnf45A




Done and done. The only thing on that list that I have not done is try Fisherman's Friend infused vodka. New weekend project? Perhaps.

Packing For Festivals

Planning on going to a metal festival can be a daunting task. At least, I found it a little daunting several years ago when I travelled overseas to attend a few festivals. Festivals that one can drive to are a totally different story, as the luxury of having one’s vehicle allows you to pack as much as you possibly need and can cram into a vehicle laden with fellow metalheads and coolers full of beer. If you are using a different method of transportation, such as a plane or train into another country, there are several things the unseasoned festival-goer might want to consider. I’m basing this list from my own personal experience, with what I wish I would have taken and what I would take now. I am basing my advice off of someone who will be traveling by plane and bus/train to the festival.

Most festivals have a campground. With some, you have the option of staying in a nearby town in a hotel or hostel, but that’s missing out on half of the experience of a festival. 

If you own a lightweight, backpacking style tent, this is ideal. Again, the keyword is light. If you own a heavier tent, it will also work. Just be prepared to carry the extra weight and account for it in your luggage by either taking less other stuff, or paying overweight luggage fees. A wheeled duffel bag or hockey bag makes transportation of a heavier tent much easier. 

Unless you plan on being completely wasted for the entire festival, you will probably want something reasonably comfortable to sleep on. A sleeping bag by itself doesn’t provide much cushioning from the ground. Typical air mattresses might be an okay option, but they’re heavy and take up a lot of room. If you take one, make sure you have a foot pump, as you probably won’t have access to electricity. If I ever make the festival trek again, I will be investing in a lightweight, compact, backpacking mattress such as an Exped. It seems like the best option, along with a light, compressible backpacking sleeping bag and sleeping bag liner. You could always use just the liner if it gets too warm to use the full sleeping bag at night. If your mattress needs a small, battery operated pump, such as is compatible with some Expeds, make sure you pack it. Many camping mattresses are self inflating, or can be blown up by mouth.

Exped MegaMat. Light weight and about as comfortable as you can get. 

A backpacking stove is another option I would look at, although I can foresee that this could potentially be more hassle than it’s worth, as you can not transport the fuel on an airplane. Depending on which country your festival is in, you could pick up fuel (such as propane canisters) there, or even buy a small stove. Taking backpacking meals may or may not be an option to go with the stove. Due to regulations about transporting food items across borders, this may or may not be a viable option. Buying some food (and potentially a cheap cooler to keep it in) on the way to the festival might be the best option.

Hydration tablets. Add to water and cure your hangover.

Hydration tablets or powder could be a lifesaver at festivals. Along with Advil, or a similar painkiller, and some sunglasses, they could save you from the worst of hangovers. In the heat and sun, they would not be a bad idea, hungover or not. They’re lightweight and come in small containers. All you need is a bottle of water and the majority of festivals seem to have water bottle refill stations. I would hope that the airport security would realize that they’re hydration tablets and let them go unscathed, but I guess you never know.

Sunscreen seems like a given, but is something that would be easy to forget in the midst of remembering to pack everything else. Bringing it from home might be a good idea as reading bottles and trying to figure out their contents when all of the labeling is in a language you do not speak can be interesting. On a similar note, having a cheap rain poncho is also a good idea. Garbage bags with holes cut for your head and arms work in a pinch too. If you have a good, light rain jacket and are responsible enough not to wreck it when enjoying the festivities, bring it along. 

Remember to pack enough clothes to last the entire weekend without having to wash anything. You’re probably going to want to plan to bring shirts, bottoms and undergarments for each day as they’re either going to get sweaty, get wet and muddy or have beer spilt on them. Plenty of socks and at least two pairs of footwear would be ideal. A little bit of rain can turn festival grounds into a giant mud pit in a hurry. 

One of those travel towels that seems impossibly tiny and dries fast might be an option as well. Personally, I’d probably make room for a reasonable sized towel, or two to allow dry time. Towels come in handy if there’s a swimming area, or when you’d like to take a shower, but seem to be something that people commonly forget. 

If you’re someone who wears make-up, bring along a decent sized, but still reasonably compact mirror. It’s much easier to apply make-up, or just make sure you’re looking decent, it a mirror that is larger than the palm of your hand. 

    A camera is a must have. A mobile phone is a must have for some. But what do you do when the battery dies and  you do not have access to electricity to charge the battery? Something I wish I would have known about are devices that use a small solar panel to gather electricity and then use a USB or similar type connection to transfer the power to your battery. While they’re not cheap, they’re not incredibly expensive either and I could find more than one use for one. 

Solar powered battery chargers, available
and compatible with most devices. They
are an excellent idea. 

Figure out ahead of time if the camping area for the festival allows you to bring outside alcohol in and what the restrictions are. It seems that most camping sites will allow you  to bring your own alcohol, but it must remain in the camp site and not be allowed in the actual festival area. Fair enough. Personally, I would avoid glass bottles. Mostly because I don’t want to step on broken glass. Most festival websites have this information    available.

Speaking of broken glass, a small first aid kit is always a good idea. While there are always first aid areas somewhere, having your own small kit can’t hurt. Even just some band-aids and some kind of antiseptic or disinfectant. Vodka works surprisingly well as a disinfectant. A small bottle of hand sanitizer doesn’t take up much space, could be used as a disinfectant in a pinch and is a good option after touching toilet doors that are inevitably pretty dirty. 

A supply of your own toilet paper could be a lifesaver. It seems to always be a hot commodity and in short supply, whether in the campsite or at the festival grounds themselves. It seems to run out a few hours after the gates open. Having your own stash could prevent a lot of embarrassment. If you’re planning on taking a small backpack or bag into the festival, put some toilet paper in it. You’ll thank yourself later. 

Proof of age to get into beer gardens and some cash. Some festivals operate on ticket system where you buy your tickets that can be redeemed and used as cash ahead of time. Others use cash for food, liquor and merchandise purchases. Ensure that you have more than you think you’ll spend as ATMs are often in short supply. The best thing to do is to take out cash at a bank before heading to the festival. VISA and Mastercards generally work in most countries. To avoid huge cash advance fees, take out large amounts of currency at once (and hope you don’t lose it). 

Locks for your tent are another option worth considering. Use them to lock your zippers together, sealing the door, while you are away from your campsite. While it won’t stop someone from getting into your tent if they really want to gain access, it will prevent coming back to find an unexpected guest passed out in your tent. Just make sure that everyone you want to have access to your tent knows the combination or has a key. 

A small, LED light for inside your tent is handy. Bring a second and use it as a flashlight. 

While those who camp often or are seasoned festival goers probably already know these simple things, it never hurts to have a list prepared. Sometimes the small things can make all the difference, and going without can make the experience less than comfortable. Do your research, figure out what you can and cannot bring. Be mindful of weight limitations on airlines and what is manageable on busses and trains. Plan ahead and things should work alright. Those are my suggestions.

Five Festival Picks

With summer well upon us, it brings to mind the plethora of metal festivals that are offered every year. From small events to enormous gatherings, there are several to choose from. Europeans seem to be the winners in this game as there are an endless variety of festivals and the travel distances are shorter. While it’s unlikely that I will be able to personally attend any of these festivals any time soon, here are my top five picks for metal festivals to attend based on personal line-up choices and travel destinations:

1. METALDAYS

Location: Tolmin, Slovenia

Mid-July

Formerly going by the title of METALCAMP, the line-up for this festival has proved to be stellar for the last several years. Not to mention the location. Judging by photos, the festival grounds must be some of the most picturesque that one can imagine. The grounds themselves boast two beaches and lie between the Tolminka and Soca rivers. Camping is also free with a valid festival pass, with an additional minimal fee if you’d like to arrive a few days early. METALCAMP always has plenty of bands that I want to see and tends to have the best line-up (for me personally), especially as the festival continues to grow.

2. Tuska Open Air Metal Festival

Location: Helsinki, Finland

End of June / Beginning of July

Having missed this particular gem by a single day on both instances when I traveled to Finland, it is still high on my list of festivals to attend. Tuska generally manages to draw a few big-name acts and several equally good, lesser-knowns. Until 2011, Tuska was located in central Helsinki, in Kaisaniemi park. This location was fantastic due to the close proximity to excellent accommodation options, restaurants, and everything else that one could possibly want to do while in Helsinki. I feel as though I missed a great opportunity by missing out on Tuska while it was staged in Kaisaniemi. 

3. Summer Breeze

Location: Dinkelsbühl, Germany

Mid-August

Summer Breeze is another of those festivals that always seems to have a fantastic line-up. The festival takes place on an airfield, and at under a hundred euros for a full festival pass, including camping and shuttle buses, the cost of the festival itself is not going to break the bank. 

4. Wacken Open Air

Location: Wacken, Germany

Beginning of August

Wacken Open Air is the festival that is on every metal-head’s must-go-to-once list. Arguably the most recognized metal festival, bands from every area of metal can be found playing Wacken. Wacken has managed to sell out and set attendance records several times in it’s history, with visitors totaling often totaling over 80,000. This festival creates a small city around itself, complete with merchandise markets and anything else a metal head could ask for. 

5. Brutal Assault Festival

Location: Fortress Josefov, Czech Republic

Mid-August

Brutal Assault caters to the more extreme side of metal. The festival actually takes place inside an old army fortress, offering undoubtably one of the most unique festival experiences. With pre-cautions about the inherent dangers of being set up inside a fortress and the option for guarded campsites, one may wonder about the safety of attending Brutal Assault. Either way, if proper measures are taken beforehand, it seems to be an experience that would be worth undertaking. 

Honorable mention:

70 000 Tons of Metal

While this isn’t quite your typical festival, as it’s offered on a cruise ship, this is another that I’d like to give a try. Happening in January and sailing from Miami, it offers four days of music, including one stop in a port. Having participated in the inaugural (and potentially final) Barge to Hell Cruise, I would like to give 70 000 Tons a try. With a new cruise ship promised to replace the tired one currently used, and an increased capacity, it promises to be a better experience than Barge to Hell. 70 000 Tons always sells well (opposite to what Barge did), and everyone seems to have an excellent time. Hopefully with a new ship will come vastly improved dining and improvements to make the expensive price tag carry more value for the money.

'For Your Own Good'

My potential for anticipation of the new Turisas album, slated to drop later this summer, may have just waned to a barely flickering flame. 

Listening to a new track, 'For Your Own Good', I fall into the category of disappointed fan. I suppose some people are excited about the band stepping in a new direction, but I'm not. I loved Turisas because of Battle Metal and The Varangian Way. Stand Up And Fight was a footstep in the wrong direction and if this song is any indication, this album will be a complete stumble in that non-desirable category. The ending to the song isn't too bad, but the rest makes me wonder. 

 I typically like a band because they sound a certain way. Especially a band like Turisas who worked so diligently to create personas and a brand to incorporate with that sound. I understand feeling constrained as a creative person, but that's what side-projects and other bands are for. I know a lot of people tend to disagree with me, and that's fine. 

Either way, give the track a listen and see what you think:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRym6gz4bVA

Children Of Bodom - Halo Of Blood Review

Halo Of Blood opens with ‘Waste Of Skin’, a track definitely reminiscent of earlier material by the Finnish band. The lyrical content of the album leaves an impression of devouring darkness; something one can almost come to expect from a Finnish band.   A return to the older Bodom sound that holds appeal for many long-time fans is evident. 

Influence from Hatebreeder era Bodom is strong in several of the songs. With a modern twist thrown into the old sound, previous promises regarding the feel of this album have been fulfilled. ‘Bodom Blue Moon (The Second Coming)’ seems to be a bit of a throw-back to ‘Bodom Beach Terror’ (From the Hate Crew Deathroll album).  ‘Dead Man’s Hand On You’ is far removed from any other original Bodom material, creating an interesting addition to the album that will either be loved or maligned. It’s a risky move for a band used to delivering hard and heavy melodies. While it works for what it is, it almost feels like a cover song just because of how atypical it sounds amidst the faster paced songs on the album. ‘Damaged Beyond Repair’ feels somewhat abrasive, and is probably my least favorite track. That being said, the rest of the material is quite solid. 

 Having not been a huge fan of either Relentless, Reckless Forever or Blooddrunk, I am impressed with Halo Of Blood. Having only had the opportunity to listen to it a few times from start to finish so far, I’m finding that I enjoy the entire album. It’s certainly no Hatebreeder, Follow The Reaper  or Hate Crew Deathroll, but it’s a step in the right direction. Some of that striving too hard to appeal to a mass Americanized metal market has disappeared. Staying true to the roots that many long-time fans love proves to be a game plan that can’t go wrong. 

Feast (On More Metal)

This year looks as though it will continue to be a fantastic year of new albums being released.

Annihilator, legendary Canadian thrashers, will be releasing their fourteenth studio album. I have not been an Annihilator fan for too long, but only because I had never discovered them. Their first two studio releases, Alice In Hell and Never, Neverland are two of my favorite thrash albums. With the promise of more good riffs and 3D cover art (at least on some versions), this might prove to be the release of the year for thrash fans. August 27th is the date for North America.


Turisas, Finnish battle-metallers, have also announced that they will be releasing another album in August. Battle Metal and The Varangian Way are both great albums, full of catchy anthems. I was looking forward to more of the same with their last release, Stand Up and Fight, but was left slightly disappointed. The new album, titled TURISAS2013, (creative, I know) is described by vocalist Mathias Nygård:

"When it comes to the production it's just the opposite of the polished and massive ‘Stand Up And Fight’. It's raw and dry and in your face, but still maintaining that TURISAS-largeness."

I'm crossing my fingers that it's more like the first two Turisas than the last one. Considering all of the line-up changes that the band has gone through recently, I'd like to see a return to Turisas' roots (and possibly get a chance to see them live again).

Speaking of seeing bands live, I'm excited that I now hold tickets to a Wintersun tour, and will soon be acquiring Finntroll tickets as well. The only bad things about all of the awesome-ness surrounding releases and live shows this year? It's difficult to find time to write reviews of new albums and it's a little tough on the wallet as well.

Over and out, for now.


(Images borrowed from the respective band's Facebook pages, as well as Blabbermouth)

Metal As Motivation To Learn a Language

‘To Really Understand Hevibändi, It Helps to Know the Language’

Heavy-Metal Fans Inspired to Study Finnish, Norwegian; ‘Poetic and Obscure’

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323855804578511381869336080.html

This article, along with the accompanying video, appeared on the Wall Street Journal’s website about a week ago. It proves to be a bit of an enlightening read to those who have not spent countless hours already researching and perusing the subject area. For someone such as myself, it’s old news, but still interesting that the Wall Street Journal would be posting such an article. That in itself says something. And by ‘something’, I mean that the metal fan, or even the casual reader uninitiated into metal music, should ultimately draw their own conclusions regarding the piece and what it speaks to in the wider picture. 

The article outlines how students are now studying languages, specifically Finnish and Norwegian, because heavy metal has drawn them to study these languages. As pointed out by the author, these languages are not particularly useful in the traditional sense. They’re not spoken on a widescale basis outside of the countries that they originate in, and are not integral in the business world (such as learning a language of a major foreign trade partner might be). 

Why are people bothering to study these languages then? According the article, a passion for nordic/Finnish metal has drawn students in. Several of the students mentioned in the article are writing dissertations and theses based on northern metal. 

While I can’t speak to how new this phenomenon is, I’d hazard a guess that it’s growing in popularity. When I first began listening to some of the bands mentioned in the article, as well as several not mentioned, it was somewhat difficult to find another metal head that was listening to, or had heard of, some of these bands. Now everyone in the metal scene seems to know about them. Social media, YouTube and similar mediums have probably played a large part in this, as it’s becoming more and more simple to be hooked into electronic devices and have information instantly at your fingertips. When pre-teens have smartphones and constant connectivity, I suppose it should not be surprising. I find it somewhat disheartening, as I never felt left out as a youngster without videogames, instant video streaming or the need to be connected twenty-four hours a day. But again, that’s my opinion, which I am sure has become obvious to those whom I choose to surround myself with. 

Children of Bodom set at Rockperry
Festival in Vaasa, Finland. (My own photo).

This article makes me wonder what I’ve managed to accomplish in the last several years. At one point, I was very motivated to learn Finnish as I’d travelled to that country and had taken in a few different metal festivals while there. I studied Swedish for a year and a half, as I had to take classes in another language as a part of educational requirements. I could have chosen a different language, but I  was drawn to Swedish because I listen to several bands that write the majority of their lyrics in that language. Unless you can fully immerse yourself in a language, I’ve found that it’s incredibly difficult to learn or to maintain. While it is possible with online access to newspapers, interviews and other media sources in these languages, unless you have the time to seek them out and the time to dedicate to studying, the task of learning or maintaining a level of fluency and understanding becomes significantly more difficult.

I am left wondering just how these students have managed to incorporate heavy metal into post-secondary studies. In my own personal experience, this was next to impossible as most of the instructors were not open minded enough to even consider the possibility that a ‘headbanger’ could compose an intelligent thesis or topic of study outside the ‘normal’ realm of study. If I could have delved into and incorporated metal music more than I did in my own studies, I probably would have been much more motivated. When you are not overly interested in most common-place, “safe” subjects, being taken seriously and finding any kind of dedication to the subject matter is not easy. Classrooms tend to be an exercise in obedience and a place to impose societal norms rather than the open-minded, atmosphere of critical thinking that they are touted to be by institutions. 

Festival atmosphere. Rockperry Festival, Vaasa, Finland.
(My own photo)

The fact that others are obviously finding ways around this makes me reflect on my own education with more disdain than what I normally hold for it. Are these people motivated by doing something they are passionate about? It seems likely. There was a time when I used to be incredibly passionate about metal. Spending hours researching, listening to music, checking festival line-ups, reading books and watching interviews was not something that was unusual for me several years ago. Now I feel lucky if I can find the time to dedicate to sit down and properly absorb a new album after I’ve picked it up. Gone are the days when I can dedicate that much time to something that does not directly lead towards accomplishing the mundane tasks  integral to following the routine of ‘normal’ existence. When it becomes a struggle even to find the extra money to buy a new album, considering going to a festival in Europe becomes next to impossible. Planning a theoretical trip used to be fun, now it’s disappointing before it even makes it to the planning stage as I realize it will probably never happen. 

Beer gardens at Rockperry Festival, Vaasa, Finland.
(My own photo)

The reality that I spent several years of my life studying topics that I become increasingly disinterested in in the pursuit of attempting to find a career is harsh. I should have stepped outside the boundaries of ‘normal’ and forged forward by integrating something I was passionate about into my studies. My main motivation for pursuing a post-secondary education was the hope that it would lead to a comfortable career in which I would have time and money to enjoy other activities. That plan failed miserably, so I would not have lost anything by doing what several of the people in this article have done. Am I jealous that they were able to do this? I would be lying if I said I wasn’t. Am I resentful that I was not able to do? Sure. It would be nice to be able to find the time to engross myself in things that I enjoy, heavy metal included, once again. Whether or not it will happen is something that will have to be seen.