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BACK
 KALMAH
– At one with their music
By Adrian 'The Energizer' Bromley
NET-only
From
the ashes of Finnish thrash-metal band Ancestor (which formed in
1992) comes Kalmah, a unique blend of melodic death metal and diverse
folklore stylings. Not your usual cup of tea when it comes to metal
music, but metal fans who latch onto this album will be pleased
they did.
Singer/guitarist/founder Pekka Kokko talked to UNRESTRAINED! about
their debut disc Swamplord for Spinefarm (licensed through Century
Media) and why he loves nature. We begin…
"Things seem to be going good for us now, with the whole distribution
through Century Media. They will surely help get the name out,"
Kokko says. "Even though this record has been out a year, it
is relatively new in North America and other places where we weren’t
before. Some think we should go ahead and record a new record of
material. We won’t do that. We are pleased with this record
and think it will do well for us."
As mentioned above, the music of Kalmah -- rounded out by guitarist
Antti Kokko, bassist Timo Lehtinen, drummer Janne Kusmin and keyboardist
Pasi Hiltula – is a rather unique experience. While inspired
by the likes of Megadeth, Iron Maiden and Paradise Lost, the band
works hard to add their unique feel to the music of Swamplord. About
the new album, he says, "This album offers a lot of melody,
especially within the guitars. I am inspired by nature mostly when
it comes to material here on the album. There are a lot of great
areas of nature to take in here in Finland. I like to go wander
in the forests and take it all in. We think our music is very personal
to us, but still those who listen to what we do will get a lot of
out it."
What is so inspirational about nature for you?
"I like the quietness of it. The beauty of it. I like it all.
It inspires me when it comes to making music."
And obviously, other musicians and bands must inspire you too. Am
I right?
"Bands like Megadeth, Paradise Lost and Pantera. All of those
bands had a big impact on me growing up in the 90s and making music.
I like old Megadeth. It had so much power. They seemed to have lost
that over the years. And the good thing is that with all of these
influences we don’t sound like any of those bands."
After several listens of the Kalmah disc, you can easily pick up
on the talent of this band. They are good musicians, who work hard
to create their music. Kokko says their hard work and conviction
made it easy in the studio to assemble their debut disc.
"We have trained a lot for this music. It all came together
quite well in the studio. Our music style is based on lots of training.
This isn’t just to show off what we can do, rather to show
how we can play and what we can get out of the music when the five
of us come together."
He continues, "It was a great experience to work in the Tico-Tico
Studio and make Swamplord. We knew a lot going in, but we know even
more now. That will indeed help us out when it comes time to make
the second album for Kalmah."
Are you known in Finland?
"Not really. We are still quite an unknown band and we are
fine with that, we just want to make a name for ourselves and keep
putting out good records. A lot hard work is needed, but I am sure
it will work out." <br><br>
The problem that faces a lot of bands nowadays, and Kalmah is no
exception, is the use of numerous musical styles and other eccentric
ideas that might throw off listeners or confuse them. Is there too
much going on with Kalmah’s music?
Kokko comments, "I don’t think so. I personally think
there should be a lot of variety within any kind of music you create.
While play simple music? Add some creativity to it. We express our
music through a lot of different ideas and instruments.
"I’ll tell you one thing, Adrian. There is nothing more
exciting that having a lot of ideas and not being afraid to use
them in your music," he finishes. "Kalmah is ready to
explore a lot of ideas – Swamplord is just the beginning."
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