Korpiklaani
Encyclopedia
Korpiklaani is a folk metal
band from Finland
who were formerly known as Shaman.
folk music group under the name of Shamaani Duo, an "in house restaurant band" created by Jonne Järvelä
in 1993. An album of folk music (Hunka Lunka) was released under this name before Järvelä relocated and formed a new band Shaman. The folk metal act Shaman was based on the folk music of Shamaani Duo. Two albums were released in 1999 and 2001 before Shaman changed their name to Korpiklaani. The change in name was accompanied by a change in the music. The traditional yoik
vocals and the use of the Sámi language
were dropped while the synthesizer was replaced with real folk instruments. Jonne Järvelä credits his work with Finntroll
as the catalyst for the shift in emphasis from folk to metal. Their song lyrics are often related to alcohol and partying.
According to Jonne Järvelä, Korpiklaani's music would be seen as "old people's music with heavy metal guitars" in Finland.
There has been some collaboration between Korpiklaani and Finntroll, as Samu Ruotsalainen of Finntroll provided session drums for their debut album Spirit of the Forest
and Järvelä provided the yoik
ing for the title track of Finntroll's album Jaktens Tid
.
There is also collaboration between Korpiklaani and the Finnish ethnic rock band Poropetra
. Hittavainen from Korpiklaani also plays in Poropetra, and Juha Jyrkäs from Poropetra writes the Finnish lyrics on Korpiklaani albums using the Kalevala
-metre. Jyrkäs has also played some kantele
in two Korpiklaani songs, Kädet siipinä and Tuli kokko, under the pseudonym "Virva Holtiton".
Korpiklaani released a sixth studio album in the summer of 2009, titled Karkelo ("Party" in English).
They released their new album Ukon Wacka
in early February 2011.
The name Korpiklaani means "Forest Clan" in the Finnish language
. In spoken language "korpi" means dark old forest. In biology it refers to nutritious type of swamp which has trees.
In September of 2011 Korpiklaani announced that Jaakko "Hittavainen" Lemmetty would be leaving the band due to personal health issues which made the constant touring and recording impossible. His replacement is violist Teemu Eerola. Korpiklaani's first concert with this new line-up since 2005 was on Baroeg Open Air 2011 in Rotterdam(NL)
band formed in 1993 which is notable for the heavy use of original native Sámic
music elements and lyrics in Sámi. The most widely used elements are the shamanic drum
, yoik
and humppa
. Besides yoik, the vocals vary from clean to rather aggressive growling.
The musical style of Shaman is quite distinctive, especially in the slow songs, due to its entrancing atmosphere created by the monophonic, "narrow" synth
sound making the deep contrast to the spacious sound of the acoustic guitar, the shamanic drum and yoik singing.
The first recording released under the name of Shaman was the demo single Ođđa máilbmi (New World in Sámi). The video clip shot for the song featured a wolf breaking free from its cage and running into the forest. Besides the single CD the song was included to the band's first full-length album Idja (Night in Sámi, 1999) as well.
In 2003 Jonne Järvelä disbanded Shaman, and formed Korpiklaani, with the music style to a more conventional folk metal
with folk
/thrash
vocals instead of yoiking. The last album of Shaman Shamániac (2002) already featured much of the future Korpiklaani style. In fact, the song, "Vuola lávlla", has the same music as the Korpiklaani song, "Beer Beer".
Shaman had no permanent line up except the frontman Jonne Järvelä.
Folk metal
Folk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music...
band from Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
who were formerly known as Shaman.
Biography
While other folk metal bands began with metal before adding folk music, Korpiklaani started with folk music before turning metal. The roots of Korpiklaani can be traced back to a SamiSami people
The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...
folk music group under the name of Shamaani Duo, an "in house restaurant band" created by Jonne Järvelä
Jonne Järvelä
Jonne Järvelä is the vocalist/guitarist of the Finnish band Korpiklaani and of former project Shaman. He is known in the Verga folk metal scene for his yoiking and contributed the yoik on the Finntroll album, Jaktens Tid. He once was a member of the Sami music group Angelin tytöt.- See also...
in 1993. An album of folk music (Hunka Lunka) was released under this name before Järvelä relocated and formed a new band Shaman. The folk metal act Shaman was based on the folk music of Shamaani Duo. Two albums were released in 1999 and 2001 before Shaman changed their name to Korpiklaani. The change in name was accompanied by a change in the music. The traditional yoik
Yoik
A joik, , luohti, vuolle, leu'dd, or juoiggus is a traditional Sami form of song.Originally, joik referred to only one of several Sami singing styles, but in English the word is often used to refer to all types of traditional Sami singing...
vocals and the use of the Sámi language
Sami languages
Sami or Saami is a general name for a group of Uralic languages spoken by the Sami people in parts of northern Finland, Norway, Sweden and extreme northwestern Russia, in Northern Europe. Sami is frequently and erroneously believed to be a single language. Several names are used for the Sami...
were dropped while the synthesizer was replaced with real folk instruments. Jonne Järvelä credits his work with Finntroll
Finntroll
Finntroll is a folk metal band from Helsinki, Finland. They combine elements of black metal and folk metal. Finntroll's lyrics are mostly in Swedish, the only exception being the song "Madon Laulu" on Visor Om Slutet...
as the catalyst for the shift in emphasis from folk to metal. Their song lyrics are often related to alcohol and partying.
According to Jonne Järvelä, Korpiklaani's music would be seen as "old people's music with heavy metal guitars" in Finland.
There has been some collaboration between Korpiklaani and Finntroll, as Samu Ruotsalainen of Finntroll provided session drums for their debut album Spirit of the Forest
Spirit of the Forest
Spirit of the Forest is a folk metal album by Finnish band Korpiklaani. It was released in 2003 through Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Wooden Pints" - 3:42# "Before the Morning Sun" - 4:25# "God of Wind" - 3:14# "With Trees" - 8:06...
and Järvelä provided the yoik
Yoik
A joik, , luohti, vuolle, leu'dd, or juoiggus is a traditional Sami form of song.Originally, joik referred to only one of several Sami singing styles, but in English the word is often used to refer to all types of traditional Sami singing...
ing for the title track of Finntroll's album Jaktens Tid
Jaktens Tid
Jaktens tid is a folk metal album by the Finnish band Finntroll. It was released in 2001 by Spinefarm Records.-Track listing:There is a bonus song on the final outro track: after approximately half a minute of silence, a drunken-sounding polka-type song begins...
.
There is also collaboration between Korpiklaani and the Finnish ethnic rock band Poropetra
Poropetra
Poropetra is an ethnic rock band from Finland, founded in 2002.Poropetra is ancient Finnish and it means the same as Elk of Hiisi from Finnish mythology...
. Hittavainen from Korpiklaani also plays in Poropetra, and Juha Jyrkäs from Poropetra writes the Finnish lyrics on Korpiklaani albums using the Kalevala
Kalevala
The Kalevala is a 19th century work of epic poetry compiled by Elias Lönnrot from Finnish and Karelian oral folklore and mythology.It is regarded as the national epic of Finland and is one of the most significant works of Finnish literature...
-metre. Jyrkäs has also played some kantele
Kantele
A kantele or kannel is a traditional plucked string instrument of the zither family native to Finland, Estonia, and Karelia. It is related to the Russian gusli, the Latvian kokle and the Lithuanian kanklės. Together these instruments make up the family known as Baltic psalteries...
in two Korpiklaani songs, Kädet siipinä and Tuli kokko, under the pseudonym "Virva Holtiton".
Korpiklaani released a sixth studio album in the summer of 2009, titled Karkelo ("Party" in English).
They released their new album Ukon Wacka
Ukon Wacka
Ukon Wacka is the seventh album by the Finnish folk metal band Korpiklaani, released on February 4, 2011 through Nuclear Blast. The title refers to an ancient pagan sacrificial feast, dedicated to Ukko...
in early February 2011.
The name Korpiklaani means "Forest Clan" in the Finnish language
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
. In spoken language "korpi" means dark old forest. In biology it refers to nutritious type of swamp which has trees.
In September of 2011 Korpiklaani announced that Jaakko "Hittavainen" Lemmetty would be leaving the band due to personal health issues which made the constant touring and recording impossible. His replacement is violist Teemu Eerola. Korpiklaani's first concert with this new line-up since 2005 was on Baroeg Open Air 2011 in Rotterdam(NL)
Shaman
Shaman was a Finnish folk metalFolk metal
Folk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music...
band formed in 1993 which is notable for the heavy use of original native Sámic
Sami people
The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...
music elements and lyrics in Sámi. The most widely used elements are the shamanic drum
Shamanism
Shamanism is an anthropological term referencing a range of beliefs and practices regarding communication with the spiritual world. To quote Eliade: "A first definition of this complex phenomenon, and perhaps the least hazardous, will be: shamanism = technique of ecstasy." Shamanism encompasses the...
, yoik
Yoik
A joik, , luohti, vuolle, leu'dd, or juoiggus is a traditional Sami form of song.Originally, joik referred to only one of several Sami singing styles, but in English the word is often used to refer to all types of traditional Sami singing...
and humppa
Humppa
Humppa is a type of music from Finland. It is related to jazz and very fast foxtrot, played two beats to a bar . Typical speed is about 220 to 260 beats per minute. Humppa is also the name of a few social dances danced to humppa music. All dances involve bounce that follows the strong bass of the...
. Besides yoik, the vocals vary from clean to rather aggressive growling.
The musical style of Shaman is quite distinctive, especially in the slow songs, due to its entrancing atmosphere created by the monophonic, "narrow" synth
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
sound making the deep contrast to the spacious sound of the acoustic guitar, the shamanic drum and yoik singing.
The first recording released under the name of Shaman was the demo single Ođđa máilbmi (New World in Sámi). The video clip shot for the song featured a wolf breaking free from its cage and running into the forest. Besides the single CD the song was included to the band's first full-length album Idja (Night in Sámi, 1999) as well.
In 2003 Jonne Järvelä disbanded Shaman, and formed Korpiklaani, with the music style to a more conventional folk metal
Folk metal
Folk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music...
with folk
Folk metal
Folk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music...
/thrash
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...
vocals instead of yoiking. The last album of Shaman Shamániac (2002) already featured much of the future Korpiklaani style. In fact, the song, "Vuola lávlla", has the same music as the Korpiklaani song, "Beer Beer".
Shaman had no permanent line up except the frontman Jonne Järvelä.
Current members
- Jonne JärveläJonne JärveläJonne Järvelä is the vocalist/guitarist of the Finnish band Korpiklaani and of former project Shaman. He is known in the Verga folk metal scene for his yoiking and contributed the yoik on the Finntroll album, Jaktens Tid. He once was a member of the Sami music group Angelin tytöt.- See also...
– vocals, guitar - Teemu Eerola – violin
- Kalle "Cane" Savijärvi – guitar (Voice of WildernessVoice of WildernessVoice of Wilderness is the second full-length album by folk metal band Korpiklaani. It was released on 1 February 2005 through Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Cottages and Saunas" - 3:16# "Journey Man" - 2:33# "Fields in Flames" - 3:52...
and onwards) - Matti "Matson" Johansson – drums (Voice of WildernessVoice of WildernessVoice of Wilderness is the second full-length album by folk metal band Korpiklaani. It was released on 1 February 2005 through Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Cottages and Saunas" - 3:16# "Journey Man" - 2:33# "Fields in Flames" - 3:52...
and onwards), also member of FalchionFalchion (band)Falchion was a Finnish heavy metal band formed in 2002. Their debut album, Legacy of Heathens, was released in 2005. The vocalist and lead guitarist Juho Kauppinen and drummer Matti Johansson perform with the Finnish folk metal group Korpiklaani, as the accordion player and drummer, respectively... - Jarkko Aaltonen – bass (Tales Along This RoadTales Along This RoadTales Along This Road is the third full-length album by the Finnish folk metal band Korpiklaani. It was released on 21 April 2006 by Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Happy Little Boozer" – 3:35# "Väkirauta" – 3:44...
and onwards) - Juho Kauppinen – accordion (Tales Along This RoadTales Along This RoadTales Along This Road is the third full-length album by the Finnish folk metal band Korpiklaani. It was released on 21 April 2006 by Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Happy Little Boozer" – 3:35# "Väkirauta" – 3:44...
and onwards), also member of FalchionFalchion (band)Falchion was a Finnish heavy metal band formed in 2002. Their debut album, Legacy of Heathens, was released in 2005. The vocalist and lead guitarist Juho Kauppinen and drummer Matti Johansson perform with the Finnish folk metal group Korpiklaani, as the accordion player and drummer, respectively...
Former members
- Ali Määttä – percussion (pre-' only)
- Arto Tissari – bass (pre-Tales Along This RoadTales Along This RoadTales Along This Road is the third full-length album by the Finnish folk metal band Korpiklaani. It was released on 21 April 2006 by Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Happy Little Boozer" – 3:35# "Väkirauta" – 3:44...
only) - Toni "Honka" Honkanen – guitars (pre-Tales Along This RoadTales Along This RoadTales Along This Road is the third full-length album by the Finnish folk metal band Korpiklaani. It was released on 21 April 2006 by Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Happy Little Boozer" – 3:35# "Väkirauta" – 3:44...
only) - Samu Ruotsalainen (of FinntrollFinntrollFinntroll is a folk metal band from Helsinki, Finland. They combine elements of black metal and folk metal. Finntroll's lyrics are mostly in Swedish, the only exception being the song "Madon Laulu" on Visor Om Slutet...
) – drums (Spirit of the ForestSpirit of the ForestSpirit of the Forest is a folk metal album by Finnish band Korpiklaani. It was released in 2003 through Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Wooden Pints" - 3:42# "Before the Morning Sun" - 4:25# "God of Wind" - 3:14# "With Trees" - 8:06...
only) - Hosse Latvala – percussion drums
- Veera Muhli – keyboardsSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
- Toni Nãykki – electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
- Henri "Trollhorn" Sorvali (as Henri Trollhorn Urpon poika Sorvali) – keyboards
- Janne G`thaur – bass
- Tero Piirainen – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
s, keyboards, backing vocals - Juke Eräkangas – drums, keyboards, backing vocals
- Ilkka Kilpeläinen – bass, backing vocals
- Jaakko "Hittavainen" Lemmetty - violin, jouhikko, woodwinds
Korpiklaani
- Spirit of the ForestSpirit of the ForestSpirit of the Forest is a folk metal album by Finnish band Korpiklaani. It was released in 2003 through Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Wooden Pints" - 3:42# "Before the Morning Sun" - 4:25# "God of Wind" - 3:14# "With Trees" - 8:06...
(2003) - Voice of WildernessVoice of WildernessVoice of Wilderness is the second full-length album by folk metal band Korpiklaani. It was released on 1 February 2005 through Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Cottages and Saunas" - 3:16# "Journey Man" - 2:33# "Fields in Flames" - 3:52...
(2005) - Tales Along This RoadTales Along This RoadTales Along This Road is the third full-length album by the Finnish folk metal band Korpiklaani. It was released on 21 April 2006 by Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Happy Little Boozer" – 3:35# "Väkirauta" – 3:44...
(2006) - TervaskantoTervaskantoTervaskanto is the fourth full-length album by the Finnish folk metal band Korpiklaani. It was released on June 26, 2007 through Napalm Records.-Track listing:# "Let's Drink" – 2:44# "Tervaskanto" – 3:55# "Viima" – 3:34...
(2007) - Korven KuningasKorven KuningasKorven Kuningas is the fifth studio album by the Finnish folk metal band Korpiklaani. It was released on March 21, 2008 through Nuclear Blast Records. A record deal was signed with the company in September 2007. The cover was painted on this album, unlike the last few album covers, which were...
(2008) - Karkelo (2009)
- Ukon WackaUkon WackaUkon Wacka is the seventh album by the Finnish folk metal band Korpiklaani, released on February 4, 2011 through Nuclear Blast. The title refers to an ancient pagan sacrificial feast, dedicated to Ukko...
(2011)
Singles
- "Oðða Mailbmi" (1998)
- "Keep on Galloping" (2008)
- "Vodka" (2009)
- "Ukon Wacka" (2010)
- "Tequila" (2011)
External links
- Official website
- Korpiklaani at Napalm RecordsNapalm RecordsNapalm Records is an Austrian independent record label focused on heavy metal and hard rock.Originally, Napalm Records focused mainly on black metal acts such as Abigor and Summoning and folk metal bands such as Falkenbach and Vintersorg....