Jonsu – Indica

Interview by Cristina Gregori

After a important tour with Nightwish, Pain and Volbeat and the first English album, the Finnish band Indica is back on the scene with a brand new album “Shine” which promises to be something unique and special. We have the opportunity to interview the talented singer-violinist and main composer of the band Jonsu in Helsinki!

Thank you, my pleasure!

Overall the whole album, if we talk about musical style, is more pop than the previous ones and I think it’s more positive, happier and little bit more rhythmical too. We wanted to change a little bit. Before I started composing this album, I lived a busy life and for a while I didn’t enjoy anything anymore, I was just busy running around then when I stopped, I felt like to do something of differently in my life and in my music.

Especially the lyrics of “A Mountain Made of Stones” that was the first song I composed for this album and it’s started from a dream. I heard the whole melody in my dream, it doesn’t happen so often to me, and it was a giant blue lady that was singing in the dream. Maybe she will come back to my dream asking for some money when the album comes out. I don’t know, it was weird because I woke up and the whole song was done, I tried to check if it already exists but then I thought ‘I can keep it, it was a dream of mine’. I think subconscious is expressed when it grows by anyway when I’ve right music and for me is truely. Arranging is more practical, an analytical thing for me but composing is more like a spiritual thing and that’s why dreams sometimes get involved.

Our record label wanted it as the first single, I thought that it was a little bit risky because maybe is the most pop of the all album and especially when we come from “A Way Away” to the album “Shine”, the gate between those musical styles I would say it’s pretty big if you take the most pop song for the single. I won’t choose it as single but it was the decision of the record label, probably they believe in this song so much and everybody were agree with that. The second single “Goodbye to Berlin”, which will be released I guess pretty soon, tells more about our album. I would liked take it as first single because “A Definite Maybe” is just pop, I like it but it’s really the most pop song from the album it doesn’t show the right picture of the whole album.

It didn’t effect to the process because meanwhile Jenny was away somebody replaced her, so it was the same for Heini (the bass player) has got a baby too. Always when we needed for a show, and some of them had a baby vacation, we just had s different player. It’s easy because in the studio they both were able to do the work, it didn’t matter on the time but I think it’s all about organization, of course if I will get a baby maybe I don’t know, there are many good singers in the world so I’m sure they will replace me too. (NDA Laughs). It was great to work with Emppu and after that I’ve been to do it we continued. We had a show last week at “On the Rocks” in Helsinki and I think it was our 8th show together, just like an acoustic show. She is really a talented guitarist and I love her passion and energy that’s she puts in the music; so it was a great work with her even she was replacing Jenny.

The Finnish title is “Akvaario” that means “Aquarium”, and you can buy it, I checked out already because many fans around the world asked if it’s possible to order it. We will put the link to our page because it’s possible to order it starting from the beginning of January, like per-order also for other countries from Levykauppa äx. Basically there are some small difference with the mastering and the mixing but the biggest difference is of course in the vocals, in the lyrics and the subjects are really different. I didn’t translate, I didn’t feel it interesting at all, I haven’t any reason for it especially when Finnish is my mother language. I created all the stories again, of course I followed the music, but also that’s why the album is so different with the material composed is that it was almost 2 years old. That I’ve written between the English lyrics and the Finnish lyrics. In one year human being change a lot at least and so I feel and you are totally interesting in other things then you feel different about the all world.

It was great work with him because he is really talented and good producer, but it was challenging ’cause he lives in Germany and we live in Finland. We didn’t have the same kind of possibilities to just hang around and create things together, it was more like “now we go to the studio and then set up the work straight away”. Also it was a little bit challenging because all the girls couldn’t be by my side in Germany when I was there, I think I was present during the old recordings but for example, when I was recording the vocals in Germany all the girls were not there, so we’ve had to Skype eachother and sending a bunch of e-mails but of course it’s more easier to talk face to face. Also it was a little bit challenging sometimes working together with Schettler and Roland because he was really busy too, that’s why maybe the process took a little bit longer to clean than if we would have done it all in Finland.

It was really inspiring, when I promised to be a judge, I didn’t realize how it could be inspiring for me and the musicians. There were so many talented new bands, and I just felt in the competition, there were really three good ones and I had to choose only one, but I’m not sure how it did go at the end,I’ve to check.

I don’t know, this is what somebody said at the first interview and maybe we’re lazy and thought ‘Ok, that’s fine’ (NDA Laughs). Well, pop-rock is such a weird term, some songs sound more mystical and romantical but sometimes songs are anti-romantical , for example “Goodbye to Berlin” doesn’t sound so romantical and mystical. I think it’s hard to make really a definition because music is like human beings you can see all the colours, you can see different sights and as a musician as a composer I’ve no limit for my creativity.

What I remember? The trip was amazing for sure the tour is something I will never forget, and also the whole community feeling you get when you living all together. For example the last tour we were living with the Pain‘s guys and Peter, the singer, was sleeping just the bed under me. It’s a good thing when you have many people in the same bus all the time but the challenging is like you don’t have any privacy, I remember I told to tour-manager something like “please could I have a shower for me just 10 minutes?” because you don’t have 10 minutes alone. Talking about the future, we are ready to go on tour wherever but all depends how the album goes because is also expensive to travel with all the crew as headliner and we want to do good shows .

I hope our fans will enjoy the album! Thank you!

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