Beat a Go Go

Destruction, Metal Camp 2004 (photo by Taisija)

So, here we are again in sweaty-red-hot-boiling beautiful  summer - the season of summer festivals and thundering summer storms.  One of the most beautiful places you can find to get all this together is Tolmin - Sotocje where stormy bands will attend the fifth Metal Camp, July 3-9.
The place where the festival happens is between two rivers and you have a feeling like you find yourself in a mystical fairy tale where a turquoise green river rules and all around are high mountains.

Perttu and Taisija in Ljubljana (photo by Jan)

This time I met Perttu Kivilaakso at The Devil's Courtyard, one of the smaller atriums in the festival complex of Križanke, a beautiful summer theater in Ljubljana.  Paavo Lötjönen was giving the interview to one Slovenian radio station on the other side of this interesting place ... Perttu checked my recorder to see if everything is OK, and laughing to me in an ally way remembering what happened in Graz nearly a year ago.  In Graz after a sound check of Apocalyptica (which was in the middle of our interview) my recorder didn't work any more. I couldn't figure out what was wrong -  it was like it was cursed! .....I have to admit that I was »walking a half meter over the floor« leaving the hall where the sound check of Apocalyptica was.  Of course, being alone in the concert hall, with maybe the most unique metal band on the Earth, and to see them playing was like finding myself in a magical dream, with the charismatic Eicca the conductor of the ceremony...Well, I think every lover of great music can understand these feelings.  I was at many soundchecks in my life but this one was very special.  I feel it was a beautiful gift for me.  And of course, it was hard to wake up from this dream ... So, Perttu, as a real gentleman (maybe even a knight),  was taking care of my recorder and somehow bewitched it to start working again. After that, he responded to the rest of my questions and literally recorded it as well.  I am still very grateful to him.

Stam1na, Tuska 2005 (photo by Toni Välisalo)

Tuska is a lucky bastard when it comes to weather. For all the years I've been there, it's been incredibly hot. If it has rained, it's rained during the night and the metal audience could have happily partied for three whole sweaty days.

No, I'm not whining, I'm happy about that. Summer, sweat, shorts and long days belong together. And if there happens to be a rock festival, it surely is two thumbs up. Festivals are the best - there's nothing like a summer festival. At least there's nothing like it in Finland. But when you combine rock, festival and summer, there is nothing to beat that. Not in Finland anyway.