As more and more folk metal bands began cropping up, the central theme of respecting nature and communing with one’s surroundings seemed to dissipate, and it seems like now that the genre largely consists of party-folk metal bands and the more brutal black/death-folk style of bands. Does that bother you at all that the original message no longer seems to matter?
CANE: Of course not, because it is still there for us. We are based on that, and if other bands don’t agree or abide by it, we really don’t care. However, there are lots of good bands in Finland, but it takes good music to get you really noticed.
JONNE: Yeah, ultimately good songs get through! People are generally good at expressing what they like and don’t like, so the good stuff will always rise.
So what works better for you as far as spreading the “gospel of Korpiklaani,” a headline tour or one of those Paganfest-styled package tours?
CANE: Well, we’ve headlined in each situation, so it’s all good with us! [Laughs] The first Paganfest tour in Europe, we were on, but we weren’t headlining. And I think that was actually more fun, because we played earlier and had more time to hang out and be among the fans.
What dictates how a Korpiklaani album is going to sound? Is it based on how you are feeling at the time, or is it based on a grander thought process?
JONNE: The next Korpiklaani album is going to be a little bit darker, and there will be no songs like “Vodka.” There will be a lot of sing-along stuff, though. I’m just at a point where I have to look at where I have been and look further ahead. I really don’t want to repeat myself.
I always get pissed off when people complain that an album doesn’t have another “Happy Little Boozer.” I mean, what the f*** do you want? You already have one!
But the new album is really catchy. I promise you, it will be hit after hit! [Laughs] We are also planning to release it as a double album – the first disc will be in Finnish, and the second disc will be all the same songs in English.
Wow, I’m not sure how that will sound, because I’ve always felt the emotion of Korpiklaani music comes through better when you are speaking your own language.
JONNE: Absolutely!!! You obviously know something, because that is the absolute truth! But as far as I know, no other band has released one album in two languages at the same time. I thought it would be a cool idea. And it’s going to be the same price as one album. We’re not going to try to get any extra money for it.
So what kind of winter holidays do you celebrate over in Finland?
JONNE: One hell of a Christmas, and one hell of a New Year’s Eve!
CANE: But Christmas is primarily for our families.
JONNE: Yeah, the most fun for me at Christmas is seeing how happy it makes my kids. I feel happy seeing them happy.
CANE: And it’s still a holiday! [Laughs]
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