Niilo Sevanen – Insomnium

Melodic death metal has always had a special place in my heart and on my iTunes playlist for as long as I can remember and synonymous with the genre itself, is the brilliant four piece outfit hailing from the frosty depths of Joensuu, Finland, Insomnium – one of my favourite bands in the whole world. After 18 years of beautiful, heavy music the melodeath metallers are finally making their way to our country for their first ever Australian tour in support of fellow Scandinavians The Haunted. Metal Obsession had the pleasure of catching up with frontman Niilo Sevanen and talking about all things Insomnium.

The boys are finally making the much awaited trip to Australia and are stoked about it. “We’re very excited and for many years we’ve been dreaming about coming to Australia and now it’s finally happening. So of course, we’re thrilled about it – it’s going to be an amazing experience. This is our first time touring with The Haunted – we’ve never met them before but we usually get along with Swedish guys and their singer is actually Finnish as well so it’ll be good. Also we’ve got some more dates in Asia like in Japan, Taiwan etc so we don’t have to come all the way over there just for the three shows in Australia so I’m sure it’s going to be a fun and exciting tour for us!”

Being their first time in the country, Niilo shared a little about what setlist the fans can expect. “It is the first time so I think we’re going to be playing something from every album and not just the new stuff. We’re still deciding the set list and that’s actually the reason why we recently asked on Facebook which songs the Australians would like to hear so we’re going to analyse that feedback and play what the Australians want to hear. But yes, there will definitely be some old stuff and of course the new stuff so it’ll be a good combination”

Insomnium’s latest album ‘Shadows of the Dying Sun’ came out about a year ago and the band has, without a doubt, reached new heights with it. “The response has been really good as it has with the older albums. We’ve always received good reviews of our music but it went a step further for us this time – we got a lot of nominations, awards, featured on a lot of the best-of-the-year lists also and commercially it has been our most successful album. In Finland we were #2 on the charts, in Germany we were #18 which is really good for a Finnish band and during the year we noticed that we have clearly moved forward and that we are also gaining so many more new fans all over the world which is one of the reasons why we are going back to the United States for a headlining tour in August. Things are moving forward for us, it’s a very interesting time for us to see how far we can get with this as a band and everyone’s really happy!”

Insomnium had a very successful run of shows in the US which is why they’re going back as headliners, proving yet again the band’s sheer awesomeness. “The US, Canada, they’re really good places to tour and very different from playing just Europe. It’s kind of exotic for us European bands to go play there. But the audiences are very enthusiastic, so many cities there where you can play there making it a two month tour, though we were a support band at that time for Dark Tranquility, there were also so many people who had come there to see us, supporting us, coming and talking to us, buying our merchandise, so we decided that we had to go back there again and this time we’re going with our good friends in Omnium Gatherum. Markus who is also the guitarist for Omnium Gatherum has to play two shows a night so it’s going to be pretty intense time for him (96 shows in almost 2 months) but it’s also going to be lots of fun. Really looking forward to that!”

The kind of sound that Insomnium delivers with every album, to me atleast, is unmatched – it’s melodic, serene and haunting elements go in perfect sync along with the heavy and brutal parts. Also for those who have been long time fans of the band will know how perfectly these guys have mastered the art of melodeath, the instrumentation and the arrangements that come with it. “We do have our own different ways of making and composing music. We don’t try and force the music because that won’t really work and probably the music won’t sound as good but I guess it’s all about how much time and effort you take to compose. It was a bit different this time with the new album because Markus Vanhala joined as  our lead guitarist and right away took an active role in composing, and arranging the songs. Of course if you change one guy, the whole dynamic changes in the band so we had to learn how to work in this new group but I think it went quite smoothly. We were also bit in a hurry we had planned to spend the whole autumn composing but then we got this offer for the Children of Bodom tour which was for a month, after which we kind of had to rush – it was kind of hectic but all went well in the end!”

Life, nature, sorrow, pain, philosophy are the primary lyrical themes of any Insomnium album, and I’ve always loved how deep yet simple their lyrics are. Niilo spoke about where he gets his inspiration from when it comes to writing for Insomnium. “Personally I read a lot and when the time draws near to write lyrics I really try to read a lot of poetry in English to get some good lines and interesting topics. But also from movies or from personal life experiences. It’s usually Ville and I who write the lyrics so for me, I love old poetry, getting ideas from it and transforming it into an Insomnium kind of story. Nature also play a big role in our music and has definitely been an inspiration for us ever since we started out. You can see that from our lyrics, our music videos, the sounds we create. Our latest album basically conveys that we are all just shadows in the presence of a dying sun. I like to leave the interpretation and analysis up to the fans to think.”

Insomnium is close to 18 years old and what a journey it has been for the Finns. “We had very modest dreams in the beginning – it began with just making music but of course your dreams grow as you reach the first steps and then after making songs, then it was doing a demo, then getting a record deal and touring with some of the bands that we were listening to in the 90’s like Paradise Lost, Amorphis, Dark Tranquility. We’ve even become good friends with these bands so to come this far we’re really really happy and have gained and learned so much over the years. ”

“Musically I think we have evolved but the core of the music is still the same and I think it’s important not to lose that one thing  that poeple love in your music – some bands do that, they kind of lose  what was interesting in the first place and some bands don’t want to change at all. AC/DC – they can do the same stuff forever and they still sound great doing it but we always want to invent something new and add some fresh elements, but the core always stays the same. This is our sound and we play exactly the kind of music we love.”

Not only do these lads melt faces and bring tears with their ingenious musical talent but they do lead a life outside metal as well. Niilo is the Director of a Cultural Centre which he loves. “Yes it’s an amazing thing to be doing but it is also the most difficult part right now. I’m not sure how we will solve this in the future because we all have various jobs that we do. But if the band keeps growing, hopefully we get the chance to be full-time musicians and as of now it’s starting to look like a realistic option. We’re very very happy that we’re gaining more fans, more popularity. It is overwhelming but at the same time it’s been a slow and steady process, so much so that it doesn’t get into your head and you can live with it, act normally, and appreciate everything that comes along with it.”

Niilo had one last message for the Aussies and what they can expect from Insomnium’s first ever show Down Under. “Well of course we give our best every time at every show and no matter if we are tired before the show the second we’re on stage, we forget everything else. It’s going to be really exciting for us especially playing with The Haunted and personally, I think it’s a good package seeing a bunch of Finnish guys and Swedish guys on the same night! We’ll play lots of new stuff and older songs, it’ll be a good combination and we can’t wait to see everyone there!”

It is an absolute necessity in your life that you drop what you’re doing on the following dates and get your ticket to see Insomnium. DO IT! You know you want to.

Thursday 14th May
BRISBANE @ The Hi-Fi

Friday 15th May
MELBOURNE @The Hi-Fi

Saturday 16th May
SYDNEY @Manning Bar

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