Interviews

Going solo is never easy, but with the voice of an angel and a character to boot, Tarja Turunen has released ‘My Winter Storm’, a mixture of metal, rock, and opera that will satisfy fans in all three camps. Managing to catch the Finnish goddess before her first solo gig in London, I made it clear that this interview was not about Nightwish, but her future and dreams. In the short space of time we had to talk, we discussed the new album and the current tour, not to mention Christmas and a bit of dressing up too!

Thanks for spending time doing this interview.
No problem!

Are you excited about playing in England again?
Very much - I’m really excited about it, and in a way I’m already a bit sad because it’s the last show in this warm-up tour this evening in London. I’m so looking forward to it because this tour has been fantastic. These are session musicians, and not a band like I had before, which was structured. We have had so much fun together and a great time, so tonight will be a great show. I’m really looking forward to it.

What’s this tour a warm-up for?
This whole thing was for me - I wanted to have shows immediately after the release of the album. I wanted people to see me and hear my music. Also, when some people come to my concerts they don’t even have the album yet, so I wanted to see the reception. It was really important for me to do this now and not later. Of course I will have a proper tour to come next year. In April we are planning to start a tour that will take me several other places - Europe, America, Asia and South America for longer and longer periods. We will take it relaxed and cool, and we can be healthy and happy working with these guys who are amazing, so I’m happy!

Who are the session musicians and how did you pick them?
Well, the bass player [Doug Wimbish] and guitar player [Alex Scholpp] had already recorded on my album. I chose most of the musicians for my album mainly because of their background, sound and how they are as musicians. I knew the album was not only going to be a heavy metal or classical album, or one that can be classified in any category. The diversity within the songs is big, so I also needed musicians who would have the skills to modify their playing in different kinds of songs and they really do that. Mike Terrana came to the picture in 1998 when he was the new drummer of Rage, and Nightwish were having the first European tour supporting them. We got to know each other from then but we always saw each other at festivals. We had a good vibe and he always told me that ‘if you ever need a drummer I will drum for you’. I gave him a call and asked him to come and he’s been really nice. We have seven people on stage…
 
It’s crowded then!
It’s a big group of people but the vibe is good.

What kind of reception has the new album got? You’re number one in Finland so it must be good!
Very good news! Also number 3 in Germany - for me it’s a blast, and a really important moment. Because of course it’s my first album so I feel it very personally; it’s a personal success to think that all the hard work and paid off, and this is a great moment in my life as I am growing a lot as an artist and a person in this process. I cannot complain as this is a good beginning, even though yesterday I was talking with some fans and they saw it as a continuum for me.

Who or what are your influences on this album?
Mainly the people have been my biggest influence. There has been a big blast of energy behind me and I call the people my ‘winter storm’. They have been the biggest influence holding me there and kicking my ass and it’s very important. Also, I have been reading Paulo Coelho’s books a lot, and I like his view of life in general. I like how he talks about living in a dream. He has helped me for
   
many years with his way of seeing things, which helped me to understand myself better. It’s very important to feel that inner good feeling. Life can sometimes be pretty tough for an artist considering the moment you are living in. Bad vibes from the environment get to you. Now I understand that there is nothing bad in life that can’t make you stronger, but can make you understand who you are and what you want to do with your life, and I live my life in a way that I am following my dreams. Not in the way that they can come true though - it would be very sad if I had big goals in life, such as singing in the Royal Albert Hall, and then I do it, and it’s gone! I don’t have those kinds of dreams, I have dreams to live and stay positive. Like, I’m really looking forward to tonight’s concert - that is my dream once again. There will be some familiar faces for me but also hopefully some new people.

You always seem very happy on stage…
Very.

How much have you gone for a metal or rock sound on the new album, or is it more classical? With what kind of ratio are the genres applied?
The album is a mixture of things. As an artist, there is nothing better that the opportunity to go on stage and headbang with hard-sounding guitars. I love it so much that I feel it in my bones and it bursts out as a massive sound. I love it, it’s fantastic, but on the other hand a couple of songs later are so smooth and quiet with beautiful melodies and harmonies, giving people a different perspective and atmosphere. That is a challenge for me that I have being doing for many years. I love that contrast. I love that if I do a solely heavy metal concert, I can go to an opera festival two days later and do an opera concert.

You sung at the Finnish Independence Day concert [on 6 December at Tapiola LänsiAuto Arena]…
Yeah!

How did that go?
That was in the middle of this tour. It was quite hard for me to prepare that concert because I got the scores a couple of days before the concert. Jumping on live broadcast television celebrating 90 years of independence, it was great and I was honoured to be part of it because it is a great country to live in, but to be chosen as a voice of Finland on that particular day was a big thing for me.

Are you a metal fan, or is your listening more opera-based?
Both. Actually I do not listen to much opera music. I listen to classical music when I need to relax. It depends a lot on mood. I go to metal concerts as well as classical concerts, and I love both of them. When I need some energy in the morning I can put a metal CD in my player, because it gets me going! Classical music will send me off the road! [Laughs] Seriously, my interest in both sorts of music, I have been doing them for so many years that neither of them tells the complete story of me as an artist, but together they do.
 
So why did you choose Alice Cooper’s ‘Poison’ of all the tracks in the world to cover?
Good question! [Laughs] This happened because it was a coincidence - I wanted to have one cover for the album and it was so difficult to make the decision. You wouldn’t believe how much good music is composed and how many great artists there are. Always when I was searching for a song, I was led to the 80s and my teenage years when I was listening to hard rock. I was having some trouble! In May or April, I was driving along in Finland and on my car radio they were playing Alice Cooper four or five times in one day. I was laughing about how when I was driving they were playing this song again and again, so I started playing around with crazy ideas. What if I do a cover of this? What kind of cover should it be? How should I make it fit around the sound of the album for me as a singer. There were many things I was playing around with. And it was definitely not an easy song - there are hundreds of backing vocals and guitar riffs. I said to myself I don’t have any guitar solos on my album, just cello solos. So there will be a cello solo in this one too! The record company truly loved this song, and my idea of it, and it started to work. It was a good thing, I really like this track.    
 
You’re obviously making it big on your own. Is this what ‘I Walk Alone’ is about?
‘I Walk Alone’ is about the way I am walking with my people, my ‘winter storm’. I don’t want people to understand it in a wrong way. I am not feeling that I am walking alone. I wouldn’t be there without them. To be realistic, they are my ‘winter storm’, and the song is talking about that, and how important they are for me.

Did you enjoy dressing up for the video?
Ah, girly stuff! [Laughs] No, I really loved that. We were shooting the video for two days, preparing for the makeup and everything. I got ideas for all these characters and I wanted the director to make the story around these characters. I wanted it to be connected to the album and the artwork with the album, so it was a very nice thing and we had a great photo shoot for these characters. It was a nice thing and a fantastic thing to do.

You released a solo Christmas-themed album. Can we expect any Christmas songs tonight?
Christmas is near! Christmas is in a couple of days, my God! [Laughs]. You will probably hear only one song from my Christmas album. I was playing one song on my own - you would have loved it - alone on the piano in the shows before, so let’s see if I play this tonight or another song.

Keeping us guessing then! Again, thanks for your time. Do you have any last words for the readers of Live4Metal?
I really want to thank you for your support. It has been fantastic to receive all the messages, letters and support. It has been so important for me. Next year I hope and truly wish that we can work out a bigger tour in England, and probably also go to Scotland, so let’s see. I want that, so I hope to see you