Charon – 22-07-2011

Interview with: Charon
By: Sabine van Gameren & Elvira Visser

A few months ago the band Charon made public that they would not continue any further with the band. A few more shows were scheduled and when the band played at the Tuska afterparty we chatted up with the guys to talk about this, the future and their favourite memories.

Obviously, most of the fans want to know: why? The band explained that a little on their own website, but it is a decision that hasn’t come from one day. The beginning of the end had come already in 2005 when the band was doing various gigs and hardly worked on new material. “I think it was too late when we started writing again” vocalist Juha Pekka Leppäluoto says. He explains that he does not felt bounded anymore by the music he made for Charon. “I think we made two albums during that time, but nothing felt honest to me.” When hearing that we were very curious if the band has any plans with this material, releasing it as some sort of album or DVD just for the fans or maybe leaving it for what it is. JP tells us that they have not really given that much of a thought but some of the material has been used already. One of the songs he wrote ended up in a play based on the book of Finnish writer Minna Canth called ‘Anna Liisa’. It has a song with quite some piano parts in it and therefore not all the songs could be used like that. JP tells about the story: “It is a really harsh story about a girl who kills her own child”.

When we talk a little further we wonder what else is coming up for the guys. Obviously some of the guys have their projects and all but JP enthusiastically calls out for writing Christmas songs. This may sound a little strange in July which got us into explaining the band about the American Christmas in July principle, where people start buying their Christmas gifts already. JP comments on that “I buy them the night before”. Which made us smile, but Teemu added: “You get them much cheaper when you buy them in January” which brought everyone into a big laughter. Back to the Christmas songs, and JP explains that some TV show asked him about 6 years ago to do some Christmas songs. And that is something he does. Of course arranging the songs take a bit and that was why it came up. In the end we conclude that one door closes and another one opens.

This brings us to the point where we like to go back in time and catch up with some of the bands memories. When we asked about the band’s best memories they come with some. Their first record release gig which they organized themselves and they built their own stage for. “At first we built it wrong. It was too narrow” says JP and we wondered if the guys got it from Ikea. In the end about 150 people showed up which they seem to have great memories of. Some of the other events they mention are the first show they did in Russia and the time they were support for Sentenced in Tavastia which was a dream come true for the guys.
When talking about gigs there is also the category gigs went wrong and the guys tell about their example from that when they were touring in Europe. “We were playing somewhere in Germany. Then we had to leave to Belgium. 1600 kilometers drive in a bus and we went to a fucking pub/club. The food was in a bucket. They said ‘Warm it in the micro’. The backstage was above the stage and you could see the stage through the floor.” Some one of them was also sick and the electricity went down as well. According to the band there were only about 15 people in there, but overall JP jokes about it: “All people asked me an autograph”.

Links:
Charon Official