Shiraz Lane – 27-06-2015

Interview with: Hannes and Miki
By: Aoife Towell

On Saturday, the second day of the infamous Tuska, I caught up with Hannes and Miki of Shiraz Lane to get to grips with the minds behind the faces and see how these youngsters are planning their world domination. Having predominantly toured Finland and with a stint in Japan just completed, my Irish ears had not yet been introduced to their work bar online research and their set at the festival earlier in the day. I wanted to know how I should return home and spread their word for them, so I asked them to tell me what they were all about.

“I would say that we are hard rock with a message” explained the fresh-faced Hannes, lead singer of the group. “I write all the lyrics and I can’t say anything I don’t mean.” Admittedly I had felt a hippy-meets-political empowerment emanating from them during the performance, but I wasn’t expecting a response as serious and defiant as this one. On stage they’re having fun, flicking their hair and smiling at the girly screams. “If we stand as one, we can be the change, but some don’t want to be the change.” So, they have a little something more to them than looks. There might be more substance here than I had given them credit for!

I put it to the two boys that I had overheard someone describing them as an ‘innocent Guns ’n’ Roses’ – did they see that as a negative thing? “No, not at all” Miki claimed, “but we don’t want to be another band, we want to be ourselves”. The rhythm guitarist seems quiet, but his few words are worthy. “Yeah, there’s more to it” chimed in Hannes. “When we write our songs, we jam and we pick stuff from other genres that other hard rock bands don’t. That’s what will make us last.”

– So you’re the rock ’n’ roll Gandhi?!

“Yeah, that’s good!” agreed Miki. “I think it’s a real shame that the hippy movement died off because they had a real message and they were true people that wanted to save the world but then the government blocked them.” “If I die on stage” vowed Hannes “at least I have tried to make a change.” How very poetic. Look out for that lyric on their next record! Their humility is palpable, and at every break in conversation they adamantly reiterate that they are well-meaning change-makers that think no one is better than anybody. There could be something to learn from their ambitious teachings whether you’re willing to look up to a bunch of barely-twenty-somethings or not.

At this stage I’m surprised Hannes can even talk so much after the grand screamage from yesterday’s set. Man did that baby face have me fooled. Does he do anything to look after his vocal chords?

“I do all I can. They guys are really annoyed by me and all the sounds I make!” Cue a few samples of squawks and rumbles for my benefit, which given time, could grow admittedly infuriating. “At home, when I’m warming up, I have two cats who start to do nasty stuff to each other!” A fellow cat lover! I have to know more. What are their names? “Blackie G and Stripey G. I’m a Swedish talking Finn and I speak Swedish to them, so the ‘G’ is like ‘gumme’, it doesn’t really mean anything… The guys are always like ‘what the fuck are you saying?!’”

“Actually it does, it kind of means tonsils…” added Miki. Ooooook! Gonna have to trust you on that lads… At least they admit to being a bit weird. I only hope the cats had someone somewhat sane looking after them while the band flew off to Japan back in May. Speaking of which…

“Japan was great! The Japanese can’t be crazy during the day, so when the gig comes up, they go insane. I love the Finnish audience as well, but they need to drink a little bit before they get crazy. The Japanese are so conservative during the day, so when the gig comes up, it’s OK to be a fan. During the intermissions of the gigs at the festival, they were all reading and sitting down and totally quiet, but when the gig is on it’s mayhem. Really weird, but cool at the same time!”

Post-Japan, the band’s plan is to squeeze a couple of intimate gigs in around Vantaa and Oulu before jetting off to the legendary Wacken Open Air in Germany and giving the wider Europe a taste of their 80s-inspired compositions. But what about the rest of us? Any wider exposure in the works?
“I’d love to go to the UK” boasts Miki.
My ears prick. I feel like I should warn them before the Irish backlash, which I am so familiar with, bites them in the ass; “You know, if you go to the UK, you have to come to Ireland, because people think Belfast covers it and it just doesn’t!”

“I’ve actually been to Ireland once, in Dublin!” beams Miki. “Respect Phil Lynot!!!”

Yup, he wins at life.

– Tours aside, what’s next?

“Writing new songs for the debut album” Hannes says enthusiastically. “We don’t know when it comes out yet because we have no fucking clue, but hopefully during the next year.” Miki adds; “Yeah, we are going to have the backbones of the songs ready probably but I don’t think we are going to have everything set up perfectly, we are going to go with the flow as well.” They are now so excited about talking about their studio process that they are talking over each other, which is more inspiring than confusing. “I see music as like a canvas” – Hannes gets all insightful on me here – “just throw colours at it and see what comes out”.

So it sounds like there’s nothing predictable whatsoever about the upcoming ventures that Shiraz Lane can offer, other than a meaningful and hippy-fuelled message behind it! I can’t say that sentiment has left me with anything to be desired, as the great Oscar Wilde put it; “Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative” (that one’s for you, Hannes). Music is nothing without the element of surprise, and this group has been nothing short of surprising every step of the way. Besides, what better source than the self-proclaimed “innocent shitty hippies with a message”? And if you think you’re better than that, in Hannes’ wisest words I’ve heard all year, you can “go fuck yourself.” Albeit peacefully.

Shiraz Lane support Santa Cruz on the Vagabonds world tour in Finland between the 4th and 25th September this year, until then you can keep up with their adventures on Facebook; http://www.facebook.com/ShirazLane