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Music Interview : Anssi Kela     When and how did you decide to become a musician / singer? Since I was a child I always had a feeling, that when I´ll grow up, I´ll be a musician of some sort. Both my parents were professional musicians so threre were always music in the house when I grew up. I couldn´t think of anything else to do, so I don´t think that I actually had a choice! It was either music or sitting home watching tv... Was the choice to become professional difficult to make? Why? I have been very lucky to become a professional musician, because I´ve actually never studied music. I was always just doing my own thing; playing my own music with a band. I really don´t know anything about the theoretical side of music and I can´t read music. So it was pretty much all or nothing. If I wasn´t going to make it with my own music, I´d propably had to find some other profession. What musicians or artists did have a major influence in your life / work? In recent years my main motivation has come from three sources: Neil Young is really my biggest hero and has been a huge influence in my music. (I don´t know if one can actually hear that, but there is always some Neil in my songs...) Bruce Springsteen has also influenced a great deal. Especially at the lyrical side - listening to Springsteen´s lyrics has sparked many of my songs. Third major influence has been the work of Raymond Carver, an american short story writer and poet. I´m in many ways a disciple of Carver´s and my lyrics represent a same kind of "ragged realism". What are the positive and negative aspects of being a musician / singer (in Finland)? Propably it´s the same things that in every other country as well. Finland has of course a very small population, being a nation of only a six millions, so the music business is pretty small also. There is no Hollywood -style glamour; no red carpets and limousines (and no big money...). But at the same time Finland is actually geographically quite big so when you go touring, the distances can be pretty long. A lot of sitting in the tourbus... I´ve been very succesful here in Finland so lot of people keep asking me if I´d like to change my lyrics to english and have a go at different countries. But I´m very happy where I am right now. Finland is small, but it´s enough for me! How could you qualify your style of music? I would say I´m a traditional singer/songwriter with some modern sounds. I have very strong roots in american singer/songwriter -tradition, building from early delta-blues singers like Charlie Patton and Robert Johnson as well as early country artists such as Jimmy Rodgers and Hank Williams. I feel that I´m a part of that tradition - only doing it with my own language and with a finnish cultural viewpoint. Have you ever considered the possibilty to change totally your style of music? If so, what style of music would you choose? I started playing and doing my own songs back in 1986. Since then I´ve tried out many different styles in music. I´ve played heavy metal, funk, reggae, punk, ska, blues... You name it - Ì´ve played it! I think this is a very healthy way for any young musician to develope and find own style and own way of expressing himself. You try out different styles and as you mature as musician you can blend all these influences to make something which is unique. I don´t know if you can hear any of those styles I mentioned in my music today, but it´s all there - it´s useful information which I can always go back to when I´m searching for inspiration. But to finally answer your question: no, I haven´t really thought about changing my style. It took me years to find out where I´m good at and now I´m sticking to it! What are stories/topics you tell/treat in your songs? I really like to tell stories in my songs! I like simple lyrics that are about something. At some point I got tired of listening to lyrics which I didn´t understand. There are a lot of songs where the lyrics are very beautiful and poetic, but when you actually start to think about them, you don´t know what the hell these songs are all about! I´m a simple man and if I don´t understand what I hear, I remain untouched. I believe that the most touching songs are the ones where you can put yourself in singers position and reflect your own life. So I try to make that kind of songs: I write about everyday things; like walking a dog or driving around with your friends. These are very simple things, but they are common to us all and therefore everyone can identify to them. What is your favorite song in your repertoire and why? I guess it´s a song called Nummela, because it´s so personal. It´s really my life story, wrapped in five minutes... My childhood, the wild things I did growing up, the death of my father, meeting my wife, getting married - it´s all there, so it´s a very special song to me. Do you tour regularly? Do you actually prefer performing your music live or in a studio? During the last 16 months I´ve toured quite much doing more than 200 shows. Now I´m having a break from touring and preparing my next album. I like both; the work in the studio and performing my music live. These are two very different worlds but I enjoy both of them. During the process of making an album, what is the moment that you prefer? One of the best things is of course the moment when you see your album for the first time at the shelfs of a recordstore. The making of an album is usually quite long and sometimes painful process and there are moments when you tend to loose your faith thinking, that this record will never be finished! But I also like those magical moments in the studio when something totally unexpected happens and it sounds really good! What kind of music / What artists do you currently listen? Of course Bruce Springsteen´s new album... (It´s excellent, by the way!) I also really like a couple of songs on System of a Down´s Toxicity so I´ve been listening to that as well. What are your actual and future projects? Right now I´m healing my left wrist, which got hurt a couple of weeks ago in an accident during a karting race (my hobby...) As soon as I´m able to play guitar again, I´ll continue working with my next album which is due next spring. A stupid question but... what is among all the songs you've been listening in your life the BEST song? Why? Really an impossible question to answer! The favourites always keeps changing, but right now I would say that Bruce Springsteen´s River is the greatest song of all times! Internet is something interesting for musicians because it gives them the opportunity to touch a larger audience but it is also a threat for them (regarding the copyrights). What is your opinion regarding this medium? It has two sides. On the other hand it´s great because it allows artists to contact with an audience you normally wouldn´t come across. For example: I´ve had some contacts from Germany where people have downloaded my music and liked it. You can´t buy my albums in Germany so it´s nice to know that my music is spreading - even if the language sounds strange! The problem is when people stop buying records ´cause they can get them free from the internet. If this keeps happening, one day there won´t be any more music to download! Do you use computers or home studios during the process of making an album or a song? Not that much. I like making records "the old way". I have a home studio with 24-track digital equipment, but I still need to press the red REC -button and then play the real instruments. I don´t like the fact that music has become more and more about editing and less and less about playing! Interview by Vincent Lefrançois - 2002

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