Mikko Herranen / Polanski
03. October 2014, The Circus, Helsinki, Finland
You could expect beforehand that the presentation of the second solo CD of Mikko Herranen – multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, producer and featured at “The Voice of Finland” – would attract quite some people… The club was pretty full when
Polanski
started playing. The usual diffidence towards an unknown warm up act was dropped quickly. No wonder…
Polanski rocked the hall with their Grunge-meets-Stoner sound. Some Psychedelic Rock, then taking a bow to Nirvana, well, the front man himself looked already like an homage to Kurt Cobain. It´s hard to believe that this was their second gig ever, and the band also celebrated the released of their debut CD (produced by Herranen) this evening. More about Polanski in the STALKER Fresh Act section…
Mikko Merranen
I have met Mikko several times before, for example as Kilt drummer or handling tech at MyGrain gigs, in his home country he had been known before because of his earlier bands RUST or Velcra, before the TV-Show The Voice Of Finland transformed him into a Magazine cover boy – and he didn´t even win the contest…
“Pahan ajan apokalypsi” is the name of the solo album following “Kylmä maailma” which reached Finnish Top 10 in 2012. And basically this was the first time I saw Mikko as a singer – live on stage and not on TV – well, if I don´t count the short appearance at On The Rocks Samettiklubi some days before. And WOW what a show! There´s no doubt that he is an excellent singer, but I had never expected such a lot of action on stage, despite Mikko´s visual impairment – chapeau!
His songs mirror his development as a musician, as well as his diversity as an artist – there is classic Hardrock, Melodic Metal with Folk elements, some Thrash Metal or even Extreme Metal, Rock ballads and even a dose of Rap (the final song). A likeable front man, a rock singer who does not shy away from showing vulnerability (performance-wise or in his statements between the songs). The acoustic part was tmy personal highlight, also because the sound mix in the hall was simply way too loud when the whole band played. Let´s hope the second CD will also reach the charts, as in my opinion soem songs have hit potential (e.g. Katkeran kaunis).
Setlist:
Orjalaiva
Kauppias
Kuolemantanssi
Liekki
Häviäjät
Lasinen maa
Katkeran kaunis (acoustic)
Hukkumislaulu (acoustic)
Kuka on kotisi (acoustic)
Yksitoista miestä
Pakkomielle
Muurahaiset
Häpeän olla ihminen
Pahan ajan apokalypsi
Hiekkakello
Baariperjantai
Maailma on muovia
