lassimm - Tumblr blog

[lassimm]

My video blog post number 2

[lassimm]

Intoxicated now in Bandcamp also: Intoxicated by Lassi M

[lassimm]

My new single. First released here in SoundCloud, iTunes and Spotify will follow later.

[lassimm]

My cover version of U2’s great song The Miracle (Of Johnny Ramone). Been ear worm for me since yesterday, so I decided to record a cover of it. Just plain acoustic guitar and vocals. The way to know if song is really good is to try it out with just acoustic guitar or piano. If it is good, it will sound good without massive production.

[lassimm]

INFP introducing themselves

[lassimm]

Jammed a bit with the looper function of LIne6 DL4

[lassimm]

Nokia

Now that Nokia has sold it's mobile phones unit to Microsoft and appointed a new CEO, I think it's time to share some of my thoughts. Nokia has many times during it's long history sold it's main business unit and reinvented itself again. Most notably in the 1990s when the company under the Jorma Ollila's command focused on mobile phones and networks. That turned around to be highly profitable and when Nokia truly was on top it's estimated value was over 250 billion euros. The rise of Nokia was something that no other Finnish company has ever seen and it helped to pull Finland of from the depression of the 1990s. For a couple years Nokia actually paid over 20 percent of all corporate taxes in Finland and provided jobs for 25 000 people. It was and still is an important company to Finland and it also proved that high technology can be developed and produced here in the cold North. Something that was thought to be impossible before Nokia. Mobile phones unit was unprofitable for the last few years, but it doesn't change the fact that in 20 years it made tens of billions of dollars for Nokia, it's employees, shareholders and the countries where Nokia has operated.

Now Nokia has every chance to rise again. Maybe not as big as it was in the early 21st century, but still big. Actually it is a big company at the moment having tens of thousands of employees and operating in many different countries. Nokia of today just might not be as clearly visible in everyday life than last week's Nokia was. It's because Nokia doesn't anymore sell mobile phones which are consumer products. Instead it focuses on networks, patents and technologies and navigation services. However, Nokia's networks affect on many people's everyday lives given that several operators use them. Every single mobile phone manufacturer has to use technologies that Nokia has patented and therefore pay for them. Patents make a lot of money for Nokia. The revenue from patents could alone pay salaries to thousands of employees. Nokia also aims to develop new technologies in the future. Or who knows, maybe they already have an ace in their sleeves. Or two, and are just waiting to announce the next big thing. Nokia's Here navigation services are used in many stock car navigators and internet mapping sites. And the app for Here maps is available for many mobile platforms. Maps and navigation services are also directly availabe in the Here website where they can be used whenever you have internet connection.

All in all, Nokia is now a profitable company that has good future views. Under Rajeev Suri's command the company can again be on the top of it's game. Nokia is something that everyone here in Finland should be proud of. At least I am.

[lassimm]

First EP by punkpop band of me and my friend. Enjoy!

[lassimm]

You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one

-John Lennon

[lassimm]

Independent music is the future

Call me crazy, but that's just fact. Major labels have turned into money making companies that are as a greedy as top executives in the Wall Street. And that has happened a long time ago. They don't really care if music is good or not. The only thing they care about these days is whether albums and singles sell. Major labels truly make profit from 1 of each 10 albums they release. So 90 percent of their releases turn out to be unprofitable. Now I don't think that's really a working business model. This also leads to a situation where musicians have to sacrifice the authenticity of their work into the altar of money. That's why a lot of mainstream pop sounds same and dull these days. No one really dares to take risks anymore and create something as revolutionary as Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band or Tommy.

But if artists and bands are working with an independent label or producing and paying everything themselves, they suddenly have a lot more creative control and they can record and release what they like. It's true that it's harder to breakthrough into the mainstream if you're signed to indie label or if you are self-releasing. However, indie artists get a lot bigger royalties than major label artists whose royalties might be something like 5%. A while back I read that indie artist who is selling 50 000 records is earning more money than major label artist who is selling 500 000 records. That's pretty easy math.

Independent music also often has more soul and authenticity, because it is truly made with love without having dollar signs in eyes. I personally also enjoy buying indie music, because then I feel like truly supporting the artist instead of some well paid businessmen who don't even really appreciate the beauty of music. To find the gems in indie music requires a little surfing in the giant world of internet. But quite often you find some great music that is made with passion and touches you. When I'm writing this I'm listening great artist that I found from web: Will Udall. Great songs, great lyrics and great playing. Something that a lot of mainstream music often lacks these days and that's why the real future of music is in the independent music.

[lassimm]

Recorded an acoustic cover version of John Mayer’s Say. Love this song. Used my Martin DX1AE.

[lassimm]

Recorded this sometime ago. I wanted to make a completely different version of this great song. I might record an acoustic cover EP sometime soon.

[lassimm]

undefined

Came up with this riff a week ago. Jammed a bit with the help of Line6 DL4. Amp is Marshall MA100 and guitar is Squier Telecaster Standard.

[lassimm]

Bruce Springsteen - High Hopes review

Now when I'm listening High Hopes for the tenth time, I think it's the time to write a proper review.

When rumours about new Bruce Springsteen album started spreading I was, of course, excited. Idea of the album, few covers and previously unreleased songs, was something new for Bruce. First I was suspicious about Tom Morello playing on total of eight tracks, because I'm not the biggest fan of his electric guitar playing. I like his acoustic Nightwatchman records though. The first two singles from the album, High Hopes and Dream Baby Dream, caused kind of mixed reactions on me . Dream Baby Dream is awesome song and it has great lyrics and the video with clips from Wrecking Ball tour was moving. High Hopes is ok song, somedays I like it, other days I don't like it. Morello's guitar fits the song quite well actually. The song is a cover, just like Dream Baby Dream, but the lyrics could well be written by Bruce.

The album was released in Finland on 10th January. First time I listened it, I read the lyrics at the same time. That way album ”opened” for me quite easily. High Hopes is the first track, a cover from LA based band called The Havalinas. Second track, Harry's Place, could easily be a theme song from 80's crime tv series. It tells a good story about gangsters. In this song Morello's guitar is not so prominent. Song also includes a saxophone solo played by Clarence Clemons. After Harry's Place comes American Skin (41 Shots) which caused a lot of critic when Bruce played it for the first time in 2000 during Reunion tour with E Street Band. Bruce wrote the about shooting of Amadou Diallo. Diallo was shot to death by three police officers when he was trying to take his wallet from his pocket. Bruce tells the story from many perspectives, the police's, Diallo's mother's etc., which is good thing. Tom Morello plays also in this song and he nailed the solo! It's awesome and really fits the song.

Next song is another cover, Just Like Fire Would originally recorded by Australian punk band The Saints. Bruce and E Street Band recorded the song while they were touring Australia during Wrecking Ball tour. Because Tom Morello was substituting for Steve Van Zandt, he also plays rhythm guitar on this song, but there isn't really lead guitar part during this song. Little Steven sings backing vocals, that are overdubbed later. I like Bruce's version more than the original one. Down In The Hole is the fifth song and it's an outtake from The Rising era featuring Bruce's wife, Patti Scialfa, and their three children in backing vocals. During the first verse Bruce's own vocals go through bullet mic, which means that they are distorted. It's one example of the many production tricks of this album. Bruce clearly experiments with new things in studio these days. Bullet mic effect also strenghtens the image of being down in the hole. Danny Federici plays organ on this song.

Then comes Heaven's Wall. Song could be considered as gospel song with many biblical references. Chorus goes ”Raise your hands, raise your hands, raise your hands/Together we'll walk into Canaan land/Raise your hands, raise your hands, raise your hands.” This song sounds like a great live song and I'd love to hear it played live. Backing vocals also sound like gospel choir. In this song I don't really like Morello's guitar parts. I think guitar solo played by Nils Lofgren would have suited this song better. One of my favorite songs from the album. Seventh song belongs also to my favourites. It's Frankie Fell In Love, great and happy song with Little Steven singing backing vocals. This one reminds me about the many great rock songs included in The River double album. Second verse in this song is just great ”Einstein and Shakespeare/Sitting having a beer/Einstein trying to figure out the number that adds up to bliss/Shakespeare said, "Man it all starts with a kiss"/Einstein is scratching/Numbers on his napkin/Shakespeare said, "Man, it's just one and one make three/That's why it's poetry.” Excellent rock song.

The 8th and 9th tracks haven't properly ”opened” for me. This Is Your Sword and Hunter of Invisible Game are ok songs, but maybe they just need a little time to open. I like the Irish influences of This Is Your Sword. Hunter of Invisible Game has a lot less production tricks than most of the other song s on the album and that's why it's kind of refresing. The tenth track is The Ghost of Tom Joad, a title track from Bruce's 1995 album. That album is mostly acoustic and quiet. This version of the song is almost opposite of the original version, because it's a duet of Bruce and Tom Morello and has turned into a rock/hardrock song with guitar solo in the middle of the song where Bruce and Tom trade licks. At the end there is another solo where Tom ”burns the house down”. His guitar suits this version well.

The last two songs of the album are both slow and have beautiful lyrics. The Wall tells about a singer of a local band from New Jersey during 60's. The singer was sent to Vietnam and went missing in action in 1968. The title and idea for this song came from Joe Grusgecki and Bruce wrote this one at the end of nineties and has played his live a couple of times, but this is the first time he releases studio version. Dream Baby Dream is the third cover and it's originally recorded by New Jersey based duo called Suicide. Bruce used this song as a closing song during his 2005 Devils & Dust solo tour. It's great closing song for the album.

Overall the album good and is a good continuum for the 21st century Bruce Springsteen albums. I like the modern production of the album and the production shows that Bruce wants to try new things and does things as he wants. My favourite tracks are American Skin (41 Shots), Heaven's Wall, Frankie Fell In Love and Dream Baby Dream. Let's hope that Bruce releases again something from his archives, for example the album he recorded in 1994 or the country album that he has recorded.

[lassimm]

"How many times have you heard someone say, if I had money, I'd do things my way. But little they know that it’s so hard to find, one rich man with a satisfied mind" -Jeff Buckley

[lassimm]

Happy New Year!