Oka

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Interview : Ville from Oka

When and how was your band created?
It all began in autumn 1998 as a side project with two friends of mine, Markus and Pekka, who played in a band called Waydown at the time. Well, a lot has changed from those days and Oka has evolved into something different than it was in the beginning.

Where is the name of the band coming from?
I think it reflects our purpose to create touching music that includes somewhat "thorny" elements. Oka is Finnish for thorn.

What musicians or artists did have a major influence in your life / work?
The Beatles was the first big thing for me when I was about 6 or 7 years old. Their music sounded so fascinating that I thought it would be cool to become musician someday. Teenage years I was of course into heavy metal, but ever since high school I've been listening to just whatever music that moves me regardless of genre. Depeche Mode and Skinny Puppy have probably influenced me the most in last 10 years or so.

What are the positive and negative aspects of being a musician in Finland?
I don't consider myself as "real" musician since I have non-musical day job. But if I were, I would need to work really hard to make a living. That might, however, be common problem with musicians around the world no matter what country they are living in. Positive about Finland is that domestic music is still highly appreciated here even when globalization seems to drive the music charts and radio stations homogeneous everywhere.

How could you define your style of music?
It's mostly quite mellow pop/rock. We are big fans of so-called perfect pop songs but sometimes we like to break the rules a bit to make it more interesting for us, and hopefully for our listeners too.

During the years how has your musical style changed?
We started as semi-acoustic trio with male singer. Then we moved on towards bigger mode of expression, meaning electric guitars and drums. Recent change took place 2-3 years ago when the prevailing line-up got strengthened by keyboard player and female singer.

How do explain these changes?
I can't. Things just happened.

What are topics you treat in your songs?
People may interpret the lyrics in different ways but to me our songs are often about loneliness or being afraid of loneliness.

What is your favorite song in your repertoire and why?
Kelkanvetäjä. It's an epic song that sort of summarizes my attitude towards life: You must keep on doing what you do despite of all the difficulties you might face on the way.

Do you actually prefer performing your music live or in a studio?
Definitely live, it's more exciting.

During the process of making a song, what is the moment that you prefer?
When you get that feeling of inspiration and you start working on some idea or sketch hoping that it will develop into a great song.

A stupid question but... what is among all the songs you've been listening in your life the BEST song?
Today it's Destroy Everything You Touch by Ladytron. I don't know what tomorrow brings along…

What is your opinion, as a musician, regarding internet?
For small bands like us, it's really important channel to introduce our music to the public. I believe that Internet will replace old-fashioned record stores in the future.

What are your projects ?
We are about to release our first full-length record now. It's been a lot of work since we have done it independently. Next we are looking for playing some concerts and starting to work on new material.

What "image" do you have of French music?
French music has a kind of sophisticated and cultivated touch usually…

Is there one French song that you prefer? If so, what song is it?
Oh no, I don't seem to remember any right now… I like many French electronic bands like Daft Punk and Air but they sing in English, don't they?

Interview by Vincent Lefrançois - 2006