{"id":50413,"date":"2016-10-31T00:00:44","date_gmt":"2016-10-31T00:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=50413"},"modified":"2016-12-05T18:19:05","modified_gmt":"2016-12-05T18:19:05","slug":"feature-sonata-arctica-10-16-pt2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/feature-sonata-arctica-10-16-pt2\/","title":{"rendered":"SONATA ARCTICA – Shooting Among The Stars, Part Two (October 2016) | Features \/ Interviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\n\n
<\/td>\n\n
<\/p>\n\n\n
\n
Sonata Arctica (l-r): Pasi Kauppinen, Tommy Portimo, Tony Kakko, Elias
Viljanen and Henrik Klingenberg<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Nations have to collectively agree on measures, but having said nations agree on impactful enough measures is notoriously difficult. \u201cWe need to respect this planet,\u201d Tony submits. \u201cUnfortunately, it\u2019s such a big thing, and it\u2019s a financial thing. It\u2019s mostly the financial things that are causing all this shit. Greed, basically. We are just used to having too much, and more and more all of the time. It\u2019s really sad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, certain nations are spearheading the cause for change in specific instances. For example, in early October, Germany\u2019s federal council, the Bundesrat, passed a resolution calling for a ban on combustion engine cars by 2030. \u201cThose are doing good things for the climate, but still,\u201d Tony muses, stopping short. \u201cUs robbing the planet and destroying nature in other ways, it might be enough to destroy everything. The pollution thing though, of course it\u2019s good. If we manage to get rid of normal cars with combustion engines, and factories do not pollute, and we just left as tiny a carbon footprint as possible, that would be good of course.\u201d<\/p>\n

A comment upon the future state of the environment, The Ninth Hour<\/em>\u2019s cover artwork concept was devised by the vocalist himself. \u201cI came up with the concept, and kind of drew a basic stick figure image of what I wanted to have there,\u201d he laughs. \u201cToxicAngel, he actually drew the whole thing the way it was supposed to be. We actually talked for a couple of hours, like maybe five or six hours or something on the phone \u2013 like we usually do when we are creating the album covers. <\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes I have no idea of what I want to have there, but this time I actually had a good idea and solid thoughts about what\u2019s gonna be there. He was happy with it, and of course I was happy with it. Usually, he\u2019s actually complaining. \u2018This is shit. I don\u2019t like the cover,\u2019 blah blah blah. This time though, I was amazed when he actually really liked it. This one turned out really well, so it was win-win. We both won this time.\u201d<\/p>\n

A familiar presence is that of the wolf on The Ninth Hour<\/em>\u2019s cover artwork, as was the case with Pariah\u2019s Child<\/em>. \u201cAfter the Stones Grow Her Name<\/em> album, someone actually mentioned that it doesn\u2019t have any wolves in any form,\u201d Tony divulges. \u201cYou can\u2019t see a wolf on the cover or even mentioned in the lyrics or anything, so it was a totally wolf-free album. I made sure that we were going to reintroduce a wolf again, because it has been our symbol \u2013 our token animal \u2013 for a long time. So, we needed to have a wolf of course (laughs). We are Sonata Arctica, and are synonymous with wolves some people think (laughs). Ever since like the third album, it has become like my safe point I can always come back to if I don\u2019t come up with anything else. <\/p>\n

\u201cWith the lyrics, I can go and write a wolf story. A wolf is a symbol, like a metaphor for many other things, and so I can go and write a wolf story. Or then with the album cover, if I don\u2019t come up with anything else, we can put a wolf in some environment that fits the mood of the album. Or like merchandise, where we need to have a wolf shirt on every tour, because obviously people have grown to expect it. Also, I love those wolf shirts. It\u2019s our thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Several of The Ninth Hour<\/em>\u2019s cuts are environmentally aware, but not all lyrically delve into such topics. \u201cThere are two or three songs on the album that are really closely bound to the album cover, name and everything,\u201d the singer explains. \u201cThey\u2019re environmentally aware, if you will, but I\u2019m not trying to preach. I\u2019m just making observations and being worried, saying how things are unfortunately, and where I think we are headed. That\u2019s not the only thing on this album, though. This isn\u2019t, like someone has said, our tree-hugging album (laughs). There are Sonata Arctica-styled human relationship stories that I enjoy writing, and of course there is \u2018White Pearl, Black Oceans \u2013 Part II\u2019, and even some political things here and there (laughs) \u2013 especially the song \u2018Fairytale\u2019. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s drawing inspiration from the forthcoming United States presidential elections and kind of seeing the whole thing sarcastically, and making some points about how things are really, really. Crimes are happening in the elections all the time. Having criminal people running for the presidency? It\u2019s just amazing how such things can even happen, but hey, I\u2019m happy to live in Finland (laughs). It\u2019s scary, though. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re actually gonna be there touring in North America at the time of the elections, so it\u2019s gonna be interesting. We\u2019re definitely gonna play \u2018Fairytale\u2019, at least until the election is done (laughs). After that, I think that song might be a little bit outdated, but still. It will be exciting, interesting, because there are a lot of Donald Trump-isms on that song \u2013 throwing darts here and there. Depending on who\u2019s gonna be elected, it\u2019s gonna be a funny or dangerous song (laughs). I don\u2019t know. It depends, but still. I\u2019m doing everything there in more or less a tongue-in-cheek fashion, so it\u2019s nothing really serious, but then again…\u201d<\/p>\n

Whether the tune \u2018Fairytale\u2019 is listened to in a serious fashion depends upon the respective listener. \u201cExactly,\u201d Tony concurs. \u201cSome people are really, really stiff, and totally serious about these things. For a lot of people, that\u2019s not a joke at all. If you talk shit about either candidate, they might actually get pissed about it. You never know. The world is a weird place, so you shouldn\u2019t make jokes about something that you don\u2019t fully understand.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even if one feels they have an understanding, it is perhaps best not to speak in jest given how serious many individuals view the subject. \u201cYeah, exactly,\u201d the mainman agrees. \u201cReligion and politics; those are two really, really dangerous things to mess with.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\n\n
\n
<\/p>\n\n\n
\n
Tony Kakko<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

\u2018White Pearl, Black Oceans \u2013 Part II\u2019, meanwhile, acts as a sequel to its inaugural instalment, of which can be found on Reckoning Night<\/em>. \u201c\u2018White Pearl, Black Oceans \u2013 Part II\u2019 completely continues from the point where the first one left off, where it ended,\u201d Tony discloses. \u201cFrom the ocean, you have waves and everything, and so it starts building up from that. I was checking my Instagram account, and it was like 2014 or 2015 that I actually mentioned for the first time that I was working on \u2018White Pearl, Black Oceans \u2013 Part II\u2019. That was just like an intro or whatever, though, and it wasn\u2019t anything solid until April this year when I started writing the song (laughs). <\/p>\n

\u201cStill though, I already put myself into a position where I had to get that song done and write it because of that announcement. People got totally excited about it, obviously, and so if I didn\u2019t come up with it, they would\u2019ve hung me maybe, and that would\u2019ve been bad (laughs). Still, in some ways it was kind of a difficult and demanding task to undertake, writing a sequel to a song that has such a strong and important meaning for a lot of people. There\u2019s tons of fan fiction that has been written around \u2018White Pearl, Black Oceans\u2019. People have drawn cartoons and what not, so it means a lot to many people. So, you can\u2019t take such things really lightly \u2013 you need to do your best work with it, obviously. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you start writing a sequel to a song where you have actually killed two of the main characters, that\u2019s not the best possible starting point for any sequel I think (laughs). I had to revive the characters first and start working from there and maybe find my way towards a happy ending, which I think we have there right now. I think it turned out really well. It continues and takes the story to some place, and it\u2019s a little bit more mellow \u2013 it\u2019s not as heavy as the first one is. I think it\u2019s a little bit more beautiful in some ways, with more beautiful melodies and such, so I\u2019m really happy with it. From what I\u2019ve heard, a lot of people seem to like it as well. So, I can congratulate myself I think. I didn\u2019t ruin it too bad, anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n

Generally speaking, the frontman largely recorded his contributions for The Ninth Hour<\/em> in solitude. \u201cI more or less recorded all of my parts \u2013 the keyboards and the vocals that I did \u2013 at home,\u201d he tells. \u201cI did a few lines at Studio57 (Alaveteli, Finland), where everything else was more or less recorded. The guys stayed in the studio, and I stayed at home. I wrote songs every chance I had and when I actually finished writing one song, I would immediately send the demo track to the guys. They would start learning it first and then record their tracks, and then send me some demo recordings of what they had done with the song. I just told them where something was good, and where something was bad. <\/p>\n

\u201cSo yeah, when I created the demos, they were quite detailed in some parts. Maybe I had a really solid idea of what I wanted to have there for bass lines or guitar riffs and such in some parts, but I also left some moments and chances for the guys to do their own thing. It\u2019s nice when everybody gets to influence and do their own thing on the album. It makes it more personal for everybody, obviously. I don\u2019t want to be a dictator; I\u2019m just the captain of the ship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Albeit recording in solitude, Tony nevertheless remained in contact with Sonata Arctica\u2019s members. \u201cThrough the internet, the phone,\u201d he lists. \u201cThe internet, more or less. We use WhatsApp and such things (laughs), emailing the demos and everything. It\u2019s really easy these days, but that\u2019s not the way I want to work. When you lose that human interaction when you\u2019re doing something like working with art, it\u2019s pretty bad, and I hope this is the last album that I have to make in this way. Next time, I want to stay in the studio with the guys and work on it together, and have all of the songs ready already when we go into the studio. That was actually the case with Pariah\u2019s Child<\/em>; I had all of the songs ready when we went into the studio. We had the luxury of rehearsing all of the songs for a month, so it was really pleasant studio time and recording sessions compared to The Ninth Hour<\/em> sessions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sonata Arctica doesn\u2019t really jam to compose fresh material, per se. \u201cWe rehearse before all of the tours and, if we are happy and lucky enough (laughs), before we go into the studio,\u201d the songwriter expounds. \u201cWe didn\u2019t have time to do that unfortunately, but then again, we were on the seven-week North American tour before that. So, we knew that everybody was in shape to do their stuff. It was a matter of learning the songs and recording them, so it was easy in that sense. The band was really tight after that tour.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sharing words with respect to the recording process for The Ninth Hour<\/em>, Tony additionally has words to share with respect to his vocal performance. \u201cI think I voice act, and play more with my voice on this one,\u201d he critiques. \u201cThat\u2019s something that I\u2019ve done increasingly with each album more and more; using my voice in different ways, and trying to find new ways and new sounds for myself to use. Finally, a few years ago, a few albums back, I started realising that I need to lower the register a little bit to allow myself to use my instrument \u2013 my voice \u2013 the way that it sounds the best. I\u2019m not a Judas Priest, (Rob) Halford-type of high singing person at all. It\u2019s something that I can do, but it doesn\u2019t serve much purpose \u2013 it\u2019s not a natural thing for me. <\/p>\n

\n\n\n
<\/td>\n\n
<\/p>\n\n\n
\n
Sonata Arctica (l-r): Elias Viljanen, Tony Kakko, Pasi Kauppinen, Tommy
Portimo and Henrik Klingenberg<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI think on this album, I\u2019m using my natural register much more than I\u2019ve done in the past, which I am really happy with. When you do these songs live, you don\u2019t strain yourself as much, and you sound much better. Still though, you have these high moments here and there. You sing really high and sing really low, and just do everything, and it\u2019s really satisfying obviously. I think most guitar players also enjoy playing some more mellow moments, and not shredding like crazy all of the time. Variety keeps things interesting and fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Digipack versions of The Ninth Hour<\/em> include a cover interpretation of \u2018Run To You\u2019. Written by Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance, its original rendition (by Adams) was featured on November 1984\u2019s Reckless<\/em>. \u201cThat was fun,\u201d the wordsmith recalls. \u201cThat was the one day that I was actually in the studio with the guys. Elias (Viljanen, guitars) started playing this riff downstairs in the studio room, and I was like \u2018Hey… Let\u2019s do a cover of this one.\u2019 Owning the studio, Pasi (Kauppinen, bass) immediately said \u2018Yeah, let\u2019s do that,\u2019 and we started recording it. Like 18 hours later, we had the whole song ready. He just had to mix it, but the song was recorded and ready. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a really fast process, and a lot of fun. I didn\u2019t really pay any attention to the lyrical side of the song until I took the lyrics from the internet and started reading them. I thought \u2018Oh my god. This is so dirty\u2019 (laughs). I didn\u2019t imagine it that way, really. It\u2019s a song about making love, but I didn\u2019t imagine that it would be so awful (laughs). If you haven\u2019t paid attention to the lyrics, it\u2019s pretty nasty.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sonata Arctica\u2019s individual rendition is inevitably heavier in nature. \u201cWe added some Sonata Arctica spice to it, but obviously the original is always the original,\u201d Tony acknowledges. \u201cI think the original is better, but ours is our own. It\u2019s not a blueprint, really, but close to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mixing for The Ninth Hour<\/em> was handled by bassist Pasi Kauppinen. \u201cI think he wants someone else to mix the next album, because it\u2019s a lot of stress,\u201d the entertainer laughs. \u201cHe records the album, he plays the bass, and then he mixes the album. He\u2019s also taking part in the mastering process, so it would be healthy to have someone fresh \u2013 someone with a fresh mind and fresh ears, and everything \u2013 to mix the next album. <\/p>\n

\u201cPasi can then concentrate on the bass, and recording the stuff. I think the reason that this album was so stressful to record and create from the get-go is because there was such a tight schedule and everything. So, he was really, really stressed. I feel sorry for him, but I\u2019m happy with what he did. There are some things that we could have done differently, but I was in the same place that he was really \u2013 really tired, and lacking vision already in some sense. <\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t tell the big picture any more; I was so into the tiniest details of the album, and so was he. I could just see the pixels of the music basically, or hear them (laughs). Still though, we are really happy with the album; now that we had time between that process and the release, the album sounds really good and we are happy with it. Definitely mind, the process \u2013 the mixing and the recording and everything \u2013 had an impact on Pasi as well (laughs). I think he wants to do this next one in a different way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA warm sound\u201d Tony desired from the mix. \u201cA similar thing to what we had with Pariah\u2019s Child<\/em> \u2013 nothing more, nothing less,\u201d he reasons. \u201cI\u2019m not really that well trained. Mixing, it\u2019s not really my thing, the sound and everything. I\u2019m more into the art itself; I care for the balance of things and the art side, the melodies and everything. Those are my thing, but how the guitars sound and whatever, I often really don\u2019t have an opinion about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

A music video was filmed for the track \u2018Life\u2019, which was recorded partly in Finland and partly in Iceland. \u201cWe didn\u2019t go to Iceland,\u201d the musician highlights. \u201cThere was a group of people who travelled there, and shot the material that was used. We worked with Ville Juurikkala, the director. He actually also shot the promotional pictures, which we shot in Los Angeles while we were on tour with Nightwish. We decided to do the video with him as well, and it was really pleasant. We found this beautiful, secluded location, with a lot of nature and these huge boulders by the lake. It was a nice day, and a fairly easy process. <\/p>\n

\n\n\n
\n
<\/p>\n\n\n
\n
Tony Kakko<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cWe had these quadcopters so we could get all of this footage and so on, and so yeah. It kind of goes well together with the lyrics of the album. It says the same things. There was this older lady \u2013 this grandma-type figure \u2013 and a tiny baby there. They were actually a real grandmother and a child. I\u2019m not going to tell you who they are, but still, they are actually family. There are two generations there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Life\u2019 is more positive in lyrical tone, compared to most Sonata Arctica tracks. \u201cI really struggle with writing lyrics that have a positive message,\u201d Tony confesses. \u201cFor some reason, it\u2019s much easier for me to write depressing, more moody, emotional lyrics. Whenever I get around to writing songs like \u2018Life\u2019 for example though, it\u2019s a huge struggle, but I\u2019m really happy when I go there. It gives me a chance to really do something different. On the previous album Pariah\u2019s Child<\/em>, we had this song called \u2018Love\u2019, and I think that\u2019s the first really positive ballad that I\u2019ve ever written. I didn\u2019t kill anybody there, and it actually was this really happy, \u2018Let\u2019s love each other forever\u2019 type of song (laughs), and with a happy ending and everything. I also wanted to have one song like that on this album, and \u2018Life\u2019 was it. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s trying to tell a story or bring a message for people who are depressed in some ways and just staying alone in their home, and thinking of doing terrible things to hurt themselves. That maybe you should reach out and find a friend, and go to some place where there are a lot of people. You\u2019re bound to find someone who actually could and will care about you, and you\u2019ll be happier with people. We are an animal that needs to be in a pack; we\u2019re happier that way. We\u2019re meant to be in a pack. I don\u2019t know how else I would actually put it. It\u2019s just trying to give tools to people that are fighting with personal issues like self-confidence \u2013 the lack of it, actually \u2013 and depression, or whatever. You\u2019re not alone; go and reach out, because life is better alive, like the song says (laughs). Don\u2019t do anything stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whether further music videos will surface to promote The Ninth Hour<\/em> is unclear. \u201cI\u2019m thinking of making one on my own, like I did for the cover of Genesis\u2019 \u2018I Can\u2019t Dance\u2019 from a few years back,\u201d the vocalist reveals. \u201cI don\u2019t think there will be another really official video though, like \u2018Life\u2019. I don\u2019t think we\u2019re gonna do another one for this album, unless we do more lyric videos maybe. If I have time and have the chance though, I\u2019d like to do something while we are on tour.\u201d<\/p>\n

A live video will likely surface. \u201cYeah, of course,\u201d Tony replies. \u201cWe might actually also record a live DVD at some point, but that won\u2019t be until 2018 at the earliest. We might actually record multiple shows in different locations, and use bits and pieces. Plus, it\u2019s gonna have one special thing that we\u2019ve been planning, but there\u2019s really no point in telling anything because it\u2019s not cast in stone yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

From mid-March 2017 until late that month, Sonata Arctica tour across the United Kingdom as part of a European trek. \u201cWe\u2019re gonna have a lot of shows in the UK, and I\u2019m happy about that,\u201d the singer enthuses. \u201cOn the previous run \u2013 which was like a tiny, two-week run \u2013 we only had one show, and that was in London. Now, we\u2019re going all over the place, so it\u2019s gonna be really, really great. I\u2019m very happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Ninth Hour<\/em> was released on October 7th, 2016 via Nuclear Blast Records.<\/p>\n

Interview published in October 2016. All promotional photographs by Ville Juurikkala.<\/em><\/p>\n

1<\/a> | 2<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sonata Arctica (l-r): Pasi Kauppinen, Tommy Portimo, Tony Kakko, Elias Viljanen and Henrik Klingenberg Nations have to collectively agree on measures, but having said nations agree on impactful enough measures is notoriously difficult. \u201cWe need to respect this planet,\u201d Tony submits. \u201cUnfortunately, it\u2019s such a big thing, and it\u2019s a financial thing. It\u2019s mostly the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[289],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-50413","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sonata-arctica"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50413"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50413\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50485,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50413\/revisions\/50485"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}