Getting to Know… Bad Valentines | Interview 🎤

In the 420^th Q&A in our Getting to Know… series, we get the inside scoop from Helsinki-based rock band, Bad Valentines.

“We have a lot of energy on stage, no matter how many people are in the audience. We always give it all.” Awesome, Bad Valentines! In response to our first burning question, the band expounds, “We have a message and emotions in our songs and people feel it. And, of course, catchy melodies..” HON and Kupe give us the inside scoop on the Helsinki-based rock band’s genesis, goals, musical influences, and current, and future musical endeavors. So, without further ado, let’s jump right into Getting to Know… Bad Valentines: Interview No. 420!

For those who may not be familiar with you, what would you say makes Bad Valentines distinct or unique? How do you rock the audience’s socks off?

HON: We have a lot of energy on stage, no matter how many people are in the audience. We always give it all. I like to dance a lot, so I even dance at our rehearsals ‘cause our music makes feet wanna move, but obviously, it is more fun live on stage or in the middle of the crowd during instrumental parts of our show.

Kupe: We have a message and emotions in our songs and people feel it. And, of course, catchy melodies. I’ve heard feedback from people that they sing along at gigs, even though we haven’t released more than one song yet. It feels great, like a “live in the moment” thing.

Okay, let’s explore some juicy backstories. How did Bad Valentines form, and what were some of your goals or visions early?

HON: Sirpa, Edu, Kupe, and Pekko had been playing already for a while when I joined last year. They had another singer first but when she decided to go for another project, the guys put an announcement on a musician platform to which I responded. I got six songs to learn for the first practice and I was horribly nervous when I went there. I am not a professional singer at all, nor had I ever sung in a real band before, so I arrived quite sweaty at the rehearsal place. But all of it was forgotten when we started to play the first song. Everything went so smoothly, and the guys made me feel so comfortable, so all anxiety was forgotten in seconds.

After that, our first goals were set: finding a suitable band name, band picture shooting, building a social media presence, planning first gigs four weeks later, studio sessions in winter, more concerts…Everything went really fast.

Let’s talk more about goals.  Have your goals or your perspectives changed since first starting? What do your aspirations or goals look like now?

HON: No, they haven´t really changed. We keep doing our thing. More concerts, more recordings, hopefully, a tour at some point. And then a stadium concert obviously someday 😉

Kupe: I just want to do my thing as well as I can and see how it goes. Without any big expectations. Of course, it would be nice to make a living costs from music, but to be honest, it’s extremely difficult. It’s more important for me to be able to do these things, art.

Everybody is influenced by somebody else. Whom would you consider some of your biggest musical influences and how are they influential?

Kupe: I’ve had a lot of influences on my playing style, I can easily admit that. I have listened a lot to how pairs of guitarists play together. For example, Joe Perry and Brad Whitford from Aerosmith, Andy McCoy and Nasty Suicide from Hanoi Rocks.

HON: Uhh, that´s a tough one…We are all influenced by different bands and genres. I think you can tell it from our songs that musical influences are coming from different directions, which makes our music interesting. There are some 60’s Pop parts, some ska parts, punk rock and for sure there is a lot of rock’n’roll. The songs that I write myself have a Reggae-Ska-Punk touch. ´Cause my biggest musical influences are Rancid, NOFX, and Mad Caddies.

Ah, the fun stuff.  What’s your craziest tour story or the wackiest thing that’s happened during a performance?  Feel free to be creative.

HON: I dance and jump a lot on stage, so at one gig, I noticed my sister giving me hand signs in the audience, trying to tell me that my pants were coming off. The button had fallen down and the zipper was already half down. Of course, I didn’t realize what she was trying to tell me, so I continued jumping and she was nervous for the rest of the concert that my pants would come off completely, as probably the whole audience was. I got to know of it afterward. So, I just showed my butt half, not totally.

Kupe: Surprising situations have happened, especially when I was on tour in Germany with my other band, Plastic Tears. There was supposed to be a promoter in Düsseldorf who advertised the gig and organized a flat for us. That guy disappeared when we got to town. Disappeared like ashes in the wind. No flat, no gig promotion. Once the sound guy ran fast on stage to fix something and at the same time the microphone hit my mouth with force. Then the rest of the gig was played, literally the taste of blood in the mouth. These are just a few examples, anything can happen in band life.

To this point in your career, what would you describe as your favorite song you’ve recorded or performed live? What makes that song special?

HON: I love “Mariia”. It is our first single we’ve put out into the world back in June. Pekko has written an extraordinary song there. I remember, when I practiced it for our first rehearsal, this song captured me right away and I couldn’t wait to play it with the guys. I love the melody, the ska rhythm and for sure the meaning and purpose of the song. It is a real anti-war hymn that goes under your skin. I am always a fan when artists/ bands stand up for something and make their position clear. I am very proud to sing in a band that has the balls to shout out their opinion into the world.

Kupe: This year I have felt great in the studio and at gigs. We have a song called “Summer Ends In June” that we’ve played live but it hasn’t been released yet. It’s an incredible song. It really worked and I almost cried with happiness when I heard the first mix. I can’t wait for people to hear it.

Is there anything else awesome, cool, or left-of-center we should know about? Secret talents or surprising tidbits?

HON: My secret talent is slapping the Popcorn melody on my cheeks. Unfortunately, this talent hasn´t helped me very much in my life so far.

Kupe: Hon, maybe we should do a new intro to our gigs! 😉

What is Bad Valentines currently working on or promoting that you can share? We love secrets, but there’s no pressure. 

HON: Right now, we are working on new songs and an acoustic set. This is as much as I can expose for now 🙂

Kupe: We have a few aces up our sleeve. A few great high-quality live videos are coming out and who knows what else. 😉

Thank you so much for sharing and taking the time to answer these questions, and best of luck moving forward. 

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Getting to Know…Bad Valentines: Interview No. 420 [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Bad Valentines, Musakonttori; Clker-Free-Vector-Images, Królestwo Nauki, OpenClipart-Vectors, Pete Linforth, Tumisu from Pixabay]