Interview by Crix
Battle Beast is a heavy metal band from Finland, with their last self-title album we have had the confirm that everything works well in this band. They describe themselves as a band that stands for everything that is good and pure in metal music – crunching riffs, high screams, blistering solos and strong choruses. Really one of the most energic band I’ve ever seen live. We have the opportunity to interview with the beautifull and talented singer Noora.
Hey Noora,welcome to Femme Metal Webzine! It’s really a pleasure have you here!
Thank you very much.
For the readers that don’t know Battle Beast, can you please introduce the band and give us some biographical hints?Well, I’m Noora and I came in this band a little bit over a year ago after the previous singer left the band unexpectedly and it’s been the best time of my life. I’ve been singing since I was 4 years old but not heavy metal before, just exploring the world of music before this band and doing different genres and still I’m doing this beside this band as different project but this is the main one, when I’ve time I do other music but I love to do Battle Beast‘s music. Battle Beast is this classical heavy metal band and we have the new style to bring this kind of heavy metal out, for the people of now for the days we are living now to the years 2000s. We are young and we have a lot to give to the people. It’s been great to see how it doesn’t matter what age people are, there can be 3 years old and 60 years old persons that like our music, it brings people together so this is one of the reason why I love do it.
For far as we are aware, you are joined in the band in 2012 after the split with Nitte Valo, how did you become part of the band?Actually Antti was looking out for singer options from youtube and he just found me by accident. I was just on the list of YouTube and he checked out “Noora singing Janis Joplin“, he got interesting by the title and he liked it. He sent me before a message by Facebook but I was “Who is he?Is a kind of stalker?!”(ndr: laugh). I didn’t reply first, but then after 2 hours he was calling me. He asked me “Would you like to join our band and sing?” and he explained all the situation, how Nitta left, the recording in progress and this tour on coming up with Sonata Arctica, I was “Ok,this might be true”. Even I already decided “Of course I gonna do this”, I just had to melting down a little bit, so I said “Ok, let me hear some demos of your music and I will decide in the next morning” and of course I was just ready to start with them. Then I called him on the next morning, I was in panic, I asked “is the place still open?” and he said “Yes of course” and that’s how I became the singer of Battle Beast. Actually in the same week of the call, Antti came with other BB‘s members to my hometown, Tampere, where I had my own gig at Jack the Rooster, a really good place, and they came to see me and decide. At the end of the show the decision was done and we already decided the recording dates for the next weeks and everything went really fast.
About your music, you are define your musical proposal as heavy metal but where Battle Beast roots its influence? Sometimes in your voice I can hear some influence from Ronny James Dio, isn’t so?Yes, we have influences pretty much from the 80s. Dio, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, Manowar to name few, but there’s a difference, we don’t try to do the same things or sound the same but we have edited our own style on it. I’ve so many different influences, I love to listening to Bruce Dickinson, R.J. Dio, Judas Priest and then on the other hand I love to listening to R&B, Whitney Houston and so, I’ve hundred of influences. Have an open mind is really important for an artist.
Your last self titled album was released last May, and soon will be release in USA and Canada too, what can you tell about its genesis and lyrics?Well, Antti is the master of our song-writting, of course we have talked about doing work together but actually it’s like Antti’s own kingdom there. He knows what he does, of course I’ve my ideas and I’m welcome to bring my own view and ideas to him, but it’s better to leave the song-writing to him right now and see later if there comes something up because this is just the begining. Talking about the lyrics, there are three categories; Antti‘s fantasy world where is this beast a kind of lion-man. The fantasy world tells about this character’s adventures in the world that Antti has created. The second category is about japanese-manga anime’s series and third category is just the free one, it can be about my life, anyone’s life, movies, books and everything.
I don’t think it represent Finland, the lion is the character in Antti‘s fantasy world that he has created and actually it hasn’t a name it’s just Leo. Antti‘s horoscope is lion, this is just my opinion, but I think it’s a combination of Antti himself and his mind’s world. Claudio Bergamin is the artist, he is living in Chile and is really a cool guy, everybody who’s reading this, please go and see Claudio Bergamin‘s stuff because he has done so many different great artworks for big names, he is able to do different styles.
From your last album was made the video of “Black Ninja”, what can you tell us about it? Something funny or particularly during the making-off?It was really funny, my first video that I ever done, it was exciting and fun in all the way from the start to the end and really hard work to do with many shoots to do. One thing that stressed me up was the make up.They put the make up all the times, again and again and then my eyes started to crying and they took the face’s shoots of me at the last, and there was the fan to get air in my face and I had these make up in my eyes. I was trying to keep my eyes open, it was so frustrating because you have to look sexy,good and convincente and then your eyes are watering, it was pretty funny and terrible at the same time. With the band we had fun, we got crazy on the sets jumping, getting on the floor, I’d hope we would have some material of the making off because is so much fun.
Now you have this mini finnish tour with Brymir, what can you tell us about this band? And what’s next on schedule for the band after it?Brymir is our keyboards player’s band, Janne plays in this band also and it’s his and his brother’s band. Their music is more heavy and dark, but they have really good and positive energy on the stage and they have the same kind of influences that we have so I think it’s one of the reasons beside Janne is playing in the band, I think the show will be so great. Actually at K.L.U.B.I. in Tampere we have as opening act my older brother’s band, Piecemaker, they had a little break about 3 years and now they have new members in the band, you guys have to check out this band on Facebook and YouTube where you can find their new video called “Under My Skin”, it’s more hard rock that not heavy metal. After this mini-tour we are going to recording the new album the probably will be release next year and on February we are going to a mini-tour with Finntroll in Sweden, and of course we will do some show in the next summer.
You were in tour with Sonata Arctica through 11 different countries, it was your first tour with the band, what do you remember about this experience?Oh,I remember (ndr: laugh). It was so great experience and it’s hard to put it in words because it was like life changing situation, I got the opportunity to know better the guys of my band on tour because we just had a month of time before we went on tour. We had really nice time together and Sonata Arctica are so great, we had a sorta of atmosphere of brotherhood there and we became really good friends. It’s nice to meet this kind of nice people even they have so much sucess and they don’t have any pea in their ass. The tour was a teaching and growing experience for me, the most enjoyble experience that I ever had.
Did your life changed by joining the band? and if so, in what way?I did change my life, upside down, before the band I was a pretty edonistic person, I loved to have fun all the time. After I enjoyed this band and stating to work as a musician, I had to change. Well, now I don’t drink much, I do lots of sports and I love to keep myself healthy. It’s not because of this band, it’s because of myself mostly. Anyone you ask wanna be healthy and feel good. But anyway getting in this band was the kick in the ass to get my things together and to get the decision to make my life better and after only good things came up, so thank you guys in Battle Beast.
We ‘re done with this interview, thank you so much! Would you like to say something to our readers?Hello lovely dear readers, this is Noora from Battle Beast, please go and buy our Battle Beast album and be part of our army of beast. Thank you!
Latest Multimedia