Uniklubi Documentary: „Irti Potilaasta“
Filmed in Tampere, 29.07.2008
© 2008 Universal Music Oy & Deerhouse Productions Oy / Lumbago Records under exclusive license to Universal Music Oy
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Note: Part I translated by Nightingale, uniklubi.net/forum, originally posted as an interlinear translation (i.e. the translation was in square brackets under each line), but to make it easier and more readable, I only used the English version here.
Disclaimers [by Nightingale]: The Finnish text is by no means 100% exact; I’ve omitted some „I’m-trying-to-find-the-right-word“ -repetition and the word order may not be exactly as spoken. As the guys speak quite freely, using their own dialects, a direct translation would be awkward. Therefore the translation is in „normal“ language. I decided to do the translation in an „interlinear“ way, i.e. the translation is in square brackets under each line.
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Shot at Deerhouse Studio in Tampere 29.7.2008 and on the road during the years.
Teemu: Hello. Welcome to Unipluugen’s Kiertää kehää tour. This is the start. Hasta la vista!
*Rakkautta ja piikkilankaa*
Pasi: I think that it was ’99 when I was drinking beer with Jussi in the woods of Hämeenkyrö and there we decided that let’s start a band.
Jussi: Janne had a band called Wompuco. I and Pasi went to Wompuco’s gigs and digged it and decided „Whatta hell“, that we want to have that sort of thing, too. That we need to get to play.
*Rakkautta ja piikkilankaa*
Pasi: It was some sort of alcohol-free party, at school, when Jussi was on 7th grade. We were asked to play there and the band didn’t have any name back then. I and Jussi looked at some dictionary for options, then it was Pincenez, i.e. eyeglasses without bows, but it just came from somewhere. At that time we played all those covers, Nirvana, Guns N‘ Roses and maybe there were some of our own songs there, too.
Jussi: In the beginning it was just me and Pasi rehearsing, we hadn’t found the other guys for the orchestra. The very first songs, like the one called Synkkä maailma [Gloomy world], that had quite fierce lyrics, very pathetic, very over-the-top. Everything felt right.
Jari Latomaa: I have this studio here, the then-owner of the studio called me one beautiful day that he’s received a good demo, it was the one of Kylmää. That way those young guys… we changed the line-up a little… or they did change it.
Pasi: It was probably in Koskilinna [a venue for freetime activities, located in Hämeenkyrö] when Teemu joined our band. Then it felt like the pieces were coming together, so to speak and we got some new energy…
Teemu: Well, I joined in the band autumn 2001. And in fact, I had had no band activities for half a year, as Ikaalinen isn’t exactly so virile a city…
Janne: I had spoken to Jussi that it would be nice to do something together and now that there came a change to become the guitarist… I was raising my hand.
Antti: Yes, I must admit that when I went to my first rehearsal, I was one huge question mark, that I didn’t really… I had seen the band maybe a couple of times when they still had their previous drummer and I wasn’t too convinced but I knew that they have good songs and a good vocalist and as Janne, whom I had known already for a few years, was playing in that orchestra, I was thinking, that of course I’m going to check this out. It was probably already during the first rehearsal, that I got the good feeling that this is what I want to do. Then we just started to wait for getting the first gigs.
Pasi: The one in Amadeus bar was probably one of the first gigs. We were pretty beer-orientated so…
Janne: The producer alledgely came onto the door and turned around right away. He couldn’t listen to us as it sounded so horrible.
Teemu: Yes, my first gig was when Jaakko was still in drums, he’s also from Ikaalinen. I must be in Hämeenkyrö, in some school event where people are forced to participate even they couldn’t be less interested about us than, say, about one kilogram of shit. Before the gig, or when driving towards Hämeenkyrö we were like, „let’s show those Hämeenkyrö hillbillies how the things must be done“. Then later, at that time when we were playing the song „Totta vai Tarua“, I was very impressed by that song made by us, or by Jussi, by the band. The gig was recorded on video and I watched that one song over and over again for so many times that the tape actually got damaged and is of no use now.
Pasi: Then I went to army in 2003 and before I had even started the military service I called them that I would need some days off as I have two gigs the following week. They said that one can’t get days off right away but yes, I got those days off. I was there for two days and then off to the gigs I went.
Teemu: I remember that Jallu was at that time at school in Porvoo. He had been there for about two months and when we got the first info that some record company MIGHT be interested, Jallu resigned from the school the very same day. When it comes to us, it seems that we don’t have a „Plan B“.
*Luotisade*
Pasi: After I had completed the military service, Universal started to be interested in us, they came to see a gig and we signed the contract. The first album was released in 2004 and since then it’s been quite a circkus. [sic!]
Kun suosiota alkoi tulla..
When the success began
Jussi: The first year was about enjoying to the fullest. But it’s natural: a young orchestra hitting the summer festivals, able to hang around here and there… it’s something one must enjoy.
Antti: Especially in the beginning it was new and wonderful to hang around in V.I.P tents the passports hanging from our belts. Yes, it was cool.
Janne: Hello, hello, the opening of festival summer.
Teemu: Yes, in the beginning when I got access to that attractive backstage area I was quite dumbstruck staring my own idols and those bands I love as they were really there. It’s a bit hard to explain but it was really cool and sometimes my behavior was like… some drinks first and then I went to tell those people how I’ve always loved their music. Sometimes when waking up with a hangover I thought that maybe I could have left certain things unsaid but you must go thru that phase to learn.
Pasi: I’d say that for many people it’s at first brand new enthusiasm, like a little guy getting into new playgrounds but we’ve always aimed at playing good gigs, playing well and looking good on stage etc.
*KMMA*
Esikuvat
Idols
Antti: I think that especially in the beginning we all listened to quite different artists but probably Guns N‘ Roses was the common factor, a band that everybody liked.
Janne: Nirvana was great. Lots of rock from the turn of ’80/’90s and I still listen to those bands this day. Guns N‘ Roses and Ugly Kid Joe and such bands which all the others regards as big jokes but I still listen to them.
Teemu: I saw a poster where a good-looking young guy is wearing biking shorts and he’s surrounded by a horde of chicks. I guess that you must be a moron if you don’t want that yourself.
Translating Uniklubi 