Only one and the shadow of that one /
I've grown to love Amorphis, almost as much as Nightwish in their glory days (1999's Oceanborn, that is). I'm always in for piano intros, delayyy guitars, folk music influences, overall melancholy mood and Kalevala-related lyrics (the only band I know to have those, anyway), so there are some good reasons to like the band. I also like the singer, Tomi Joutsen's voice; normally I'm put off by deep male voices, but his is so soft and expressive that it's a pleasure to listen to. Anyway, the point is, I saw them live at Nosturi, Helsinki last weekend, and the gig was a big improvement to their Easter gig at Pakkahuone. This time, the house was sold out and the crowd was quite the opposite of apathetic, and though only a few songs were played from their latest album Skyforger, those few sounded great. There was some heavy singing-along to their radio hits such as House of Sleep, as well as headbanging throughout the gig. Also, got to see (well, the last 10 minutes of) Ari Koivunen's new band Amoral warming up Amorphis, and was surprised to learn the guy can actually growl despite his rather high-pitched voice (which I admit to liking, so suck it).
Also saw the Picasso exhibition at Ateneum, and it wasn't really worth the outrageous admission price, but since I'd determined to educate myself in terms of the genius's art I couldn't just not go despite the price. There were some of his famous works on display and some funny drafts and stuff, but the big hits, such as Guernica or Ladies of Avignon, were missing. I never got great kicks out of Picasso's art and some works of his just made me yawn, but from an objective point of view I can see why his influence on Western art was so huge.
Bought a few CDs from Hullut päivät as well (6 euros is a fair price for quality CDs imho). Some more Leonard Cohen (cause I'm a wannabe intellectual who reads Nietzsche), Björk (cause I'm a wannabe intellectual who reads Nietzsche), Wishmaster (the only Nightwish CD not yet in my possession), soundtrack for Twin Peaks (gotta love anything Twin Peaks) and some classical piano. I actually plunged into the chaos of Hullut päivät for the sake of cheap flights, and 450 e for New York there and back seemed like a good deal, but I can't afford any overseas trips for some time. Too bad.
Which leads me (not) to another cultural experience. Hadn't been to the theatre for years and years, but now me and a friend of mine went to see Puhdistus by Sofi Oksanen, which is perhaps better known as the book that won all possible awards in Finland - and for a good reason. I really recommend reading the book, which is powerful and intensive in itself, but this original theatrical play was even more so since it's not just your imagination doing the picturing and coloring. The first scene almost scared the crap out of me, and the tension didn't relieve for a second throughout the play. The author has some very accurate psychological insight, and the mechanisms of fear were explored to the core. The intimacy of the venue and the small size of the stage made it all feel more real. Not necessarily a good thing.
Moving on to some current topics: Margaret Atwood didn't win the Nobel Prize for literature this year, either. She'd deserve it for Handmaid's Tale alone (you must read it, all of you!). Instead, some unknown author who belongs to a minority, had been repressed by the government and therefore escaped from her country won the prize. These qualities seem to be a requirement for winning the Nobel for literature these days. As for Obama's Peace Prize - that sure puts some pressure on him to actually finish what he's started, and hopefully, finish what he didn't start but his predecessor did. As for winning the prize "for not being Bush" - that's unfair: he kind of did ensure world peace by winning over McCain and especially that Palin lunatic. Who knows where the world would be now if Palin had got access to nuclear weapon launch codes?
Also saw the Picasso exhibition at Ateneum, and it wasn't really worth the outrageous admission price, but since I'd determined to educate myself in terms of the genius's art I couldn't just not go despite the price. There were some of his famous works on display and some funny drafts and stuff, but the big hits, such as Guernica or Ladies of Avignon, were missing. I never got great kicks out of Picasso's art and some works of his just made me yawn, but from an objective point of view I can see why his influence on Western art was so huge.
Bought a few CDs from Hullut päivät as well (6 euros is a fair price for quality CDs imho). Some more Leonard Cohen (cause I'm a wannabe intellectual who reads Nietzsche), Björk (cause I'm a wannabe intellectual who reads Nietzsche), Wishmaster (the only Nightwish CD not yet in my possession), soundtrack for Twin Peaks (gotta love anything Twin Peaks) and some classical piano. I actually plunged into the chaos of Hullut päivät for the sake of cheap flights, and 450 e for New York there and back seemed like a good deal, but I can't afford any overseas trips for some time. Too bad.
Which leads me (not) to another cultural experience. Hadn't been to the theatre for years and years, but now me and a friend of mine went to see Puhdistus by Sofi Oksanen, which is perhaps better known as the book that won all possible awards in Finland - and for a good reason. I really recommend reading the book, which is powerful and intensive in itself, but this original theatrical play was even more so since it's not just your imagination doing the picturing and coloring. The first scene almost scared the crap out of me, and the tension didn't relieve for a second throughout the play. The author has some very accurate psychological insight, and the mechanisms of fear were explored to the core. The intimacy of the venue and the small size of the stage made it all feel more real. Not necessarily a good thing.
Moving on to some current topics: Margaret Atwood didn't win the Nobel Prize for literature this year, either. She'd deserve it for Handmaid's Tale alone (you must read it, all of you!). Instead, some unknown author who belongs to a minority, had been repressed by the government and therefore escaped from her country won the prize. These qualities seem to be a requirement for winning the Nobel for literature these days. As for Obama's Peace Prize - that sure puts some pressure on him to actually finish what he's started, and hopefully, finish what he didn't start but his predecessor did. As for winning the prize "for not being Bush" - that's unfair: he kind of did ensure world peace by winning over McCain and especially that Palin lunatic. Who knows where the world would be now if Palin had got access to nuclear weapon launch codes?