Turisas
Turisas | |
|---|---|
 Turisas performing at Jalometalli 2008 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Hämeenlinna, Finland |
| Genres | Folk metal, Viking metal, symphonic power metal |
| Years active | 1997-present |
| Labels | Century Media |
| Members | Mathias Nygård Jussi Wickström Olli Vänskä Robert Engstrand Jaakko Jakku Jesper Anastasiadis |
| Past members | See former member section |
| Website | www.turisas.com |
Turisas is a Finnish battle metal band from Hämeenlinna. It was founded in 1997 by Mathias Nygård and Jussi Wickström and named after an ancient Finnish God of war.
Turisas is a folk metal band, incorporating elements of power metal and symphonic metal along with frequent harsh vocals. Turisas is known to play most of their solos on electric violin, as opposed to traditional guitar solos. The album title Battle Metal has given rise to the term "battle metal" being used as a description of Turisas' genre (used mainly by Metal Hammer magazine and its readers) but it is not yet recognised as a canonical metal subgenre.
Battle Metal (2004–2007)
On October 28, 2005, guitarist Georg Laakso was badly injured in a car accident and due to the extent of his spinal cord injuries, on July 12, 2006 issued a statement of his permanent resignation from the band on the official website. Nevertheless, the band continued to work on their second album, titled The Varangian Way, which was released in early 2007. Jussi Wickström recorded all guitars on the album.
Mathias Nygård revealed in the January 2007 edition of Terrorizer magazine that the touring musicians Hannes Horma, Olli Vänskä, Janne Mäkinen and Antti Laurila had been added to the band as full-time members, taking them up to an 8-piece act. It later turned out that of the two accordion players, only Mäkinen had become an official member. Laurila is no longer a touring musician for the band. On February 19, 2007, keyboardist Antti Ventola posted a message on the Turisas discussion forum announcing that he and the band had parted ways. This was later confirmed by the rest of the band. Mathias Nygård performed the keyboards on The Varangian Way and Turisas are presently using backing tracks to replicate them on stage.
The Varangian Way (2007–2010)
In January 2008, accordion player Janne "Lisko" Mäkinen disappeared mysteriously in Amsterdam. For the upcoming tour dates in spring 2008 Turisas announced Netta Skog as a step-in accordionist. She had already helped the band on the European tour in October–November 2007.[1] Netta was soon after added to the band on a full-time base.
After a string of festivals in the Summer of 2008, in September the band started a long tour through the United States and Europe in support of DragonForce. This tour ended in March 2009, and the band then took part in a new European tour with Cradle of Filth and Moonspell, dubbed the "Filthfest Tour 2009", in April and May 2009.[2] The band played at Wacken Open Air in early August 2009 and also played at Bloodstock Open Air in Mid August 2009.[3] The band took time off at the end of 2009 to make a new album and then planned to return as fully-fledged band no longer supporting others. In 2010 the band concentrated on finishing the recordings of the upcoming third album. Still, the band did a short tour in Asia and Australia in May 2010, including headline concerts in Sydney and Melbourne, two gigs in China, a gig in Shanghai World Expo 2010 and a gig in Japan.
Stand Up And Fight (2011–2012)
As of March 2010, Turisas announced they were in the studio working on a new album; at that time, the band documented the recording process in a series of studio diary videos on YouTube.[4] The title for the latest album, Stand Up and Fight, was revealed on November 11, 2010: the album was released through Century Media on February 28 in Europe and March 8 in North America.[5] A new song off that album: "The March of the Varangian Guard" was performed at the band's Finnish gigs in October 2010 [6] On 17 December 2010, the title track "Stand Up And Fight" was released as a free download on the band's website.
The band took part in tours in Mexico and North America with Cradle of Filth, the other supporting bands being Nachtmystium and Daniel Lioneye beginning in January 2011 [7] and in Europe with Die Apokalyptischen Reiter from March through April 2011.[8] Their England tour came with Crimfall as the supporting band, as well as other local supporting bands. 2012 saw them headline the North American "Paganfest: America Part III" tour with Alestorm, Arkona and Huntress in tow.
4th album and further lineup changes (2012)
In November 2012, the band announced that drummer Tuomas "Tude" Lehtonen and bassist Jukka-Pekka Miettinen had both left the band. They were replaced by Jaakko Jakku and Jesper Anastasiadis, respectively. They also announced that the had started work on their 4th album, and that the album would be released in May 2013 [9]
Discography
Albums
- Battle Metal (2004)
- The Varangian Way (2007)
- Stand Up and Fight (2011)[10]
- Untitled 4th album (May 2013)
Singles
- "To Holmgard and Beyond" (2007)
- "Rasputin" (2007)
- "Supernaut" (2010)
- "Stand Up and Fight" (2010)
DVDs
Demos
- Taiston Tie - The Battle Path (1998)
- Terra Tavestorum (1999)
- The Heart of Turisas (2001)
Videography
| Video | Album | Length | Year | Copyright |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battle Metal | Battle Metal | 4:23 | 2008 | Century Media |
| Rasputin | The Varangian Way | 3:56 | 2007 | Century Media |
| Stand Up And Fight | Stand Up And Fight | 5:28 | 2011 | Century Media |
Band members
Current members
- Mathias "Warlord" Nygård – vocals, percussion (since 1997)
- Jussi Wickström – guitar (since 1997)
- Jesper Anastasiadis - bass guitar (since 2012)
- Jaakko Jakku – drums, percussion (since 2012)
- Olli Vänskä – violin (since 2007)
- Robert Engstrand - keyboard (since 2011)
Former members
- Janne Mäkinen – accordion (2005–2008)
- Antti Ventola – keyboard (1997–2007)
- Georg Laakso – guitar (ex-Cadacross) (2000–2006)
- Ari Kärkkäinen – guitar (1997–1999)
- Sami Aarnio – bass guitar
- Tino Ahola – bass guitar
- Mikko Törmikoski – bass guitar (until 2004)
- Hannes "Hanu" Horma – bass guitar (2007–2011)
- Netta Skog – accordion (2007–2011)
- Jukka-Pekka Miettinen - bass guitar (ex-Ensiferum) (2011-2012)
- Tuomas "Tude" Lehtonen – drums, percussion (1997-2012)
Former live session musicians
- Riku Ylitalo – accordion, keyboards
- Wincef Boncamper – accordion
- Antti Laurila – accordion
Timeline
References
- ^ Komodo Rock | Turisas Release Making Of Rasputin Video
- ^ "Cradle of Filth, Moonspell, Turisas to team up for "Filthfest Tour"". Blabbermouth.net. February 26, 2009. Retrieved February 26, 2009.
- ^ http://www.bloodstock.uk.com/bands-line-up.php, Bloodstock Open Air Festival 2009 lineup.
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/user/turisasofficial, Official YouTube channel of Turisas
- ^ http://www.centurymedia.com/specials/turisas/index.aspx
- ^ "TURISAS: Performance Footage Of Brand New Song Available". Roadrunner Records. November 1, 2010. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
- ^ "CRADLE OF FILTH Announces North American Headlining Tour". Blabbermouth.net. October 25, 2010. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
- ^ "Turisas: "Stand Up And Fight" out 2011, tour w/ Die Apokalyptischen Reiter confirmed". Century Media Records. November 11, 2010. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
- ^ . Turisas.com. November 19, 2012 http://www.turisas.com/site/2012/11/turisas-in-studio-recording-a-new-album-annouces-line-up-change. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
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External links
