holiday over soon... X-[

Today has eventuali come without a sound.... OS!

i reali dun wish this day to come that soon.... oh gosh.... i m reali sick.... holida is always short... so short tt u cant even feel it... it's over... n whole damn cycle starts itself again... i m jealous of someone who dun nita come back @ all durin the holidae.... n yet last fri... which was the only day that she nits ta come back... she's on child care leave.... wata.... hell.... so coincidental.... y cant i b sick on that day? yala.... cant b that irresponsible...! if i was absent, who's gg2 produce the sound files for the ice presentation!? but feelin abit bad onher behalf.... her children r always sick... so izn't there any way to help them get healthier? Unfair....

feelin sleepy n tired 2dae.... no mood to do anythin....
went to Page One few days ago... wantin 2 look for a book named "The Eternal Darkness - by Robert D Ballard", it's a book on personal history of deep sea exploration..... my mom has got e chinese version of this book, i m lookin for e english version... but too bad.... PageOne did not carry this book, e staff checked for me, n found out that both US n UK has run outta stock, so no choice i hv gotta leave my name w them... hopefuli they'll call me soon.... i hv been readin e bk half way thru... hopin to own it.... s it is a informative book.... [i hv pasted stickers notes all over the book.... my memory is fadin.... think somethin is wrong w my brain.... cant reali focus that welll... hv nv been a book-lover like Omochan n Snow... hahaha...] so i hv 2 read like this, w stickers everywhere..... this is quite a technical book.... writin abt e history of the submersibles... how they actuali develop into the hi tech submersibles used to explore the wonderful world of the eternal deep.... then talkin abt e formation of the ocean.... crustal movements.... continental drift.... n some of the top technology used in deep sea exploration.... how the scientists work so hard to investigate and to find out the truth of their hypothesis.... lots n lots.... haven finish readin yet... i hv gotta finish readin this book n re-read the book again b4 i return it to e library... N... next week, it's gonna b an extremely bz week.... at liz from wed onwards, i cant get home b4 10....
wed - after lion dance, got rehearsal
thu - go back for final 83rd anni meetin
fri - ice festival, rehearsal + MEPS....
then finali Sunday.... e actual fxxkin damn thing.... hope it's over soon!!!
i hv always love geography in my sce sch days.... whether i can remember the facts or not... i enjoy readin.... i hate memorizin facts.... so usuali after readin, i'll forget most o it.... useless rat... but it's long since i last read an interestin book....

Exclusive interview

http://headbangersblog.mtv.com/2008/05/27/exclusive-video-interview-children-of-bodoms-frontman-alexi-laiho-and-keyboardist-janne-wirman-pt-1/

Thoughts of Death...

"out of the blue

i have a thought

the thought to die [just like that]

the thought to kill myself

Not that i am feeling sad

neither am i feeling lost

i just wan2 end my life

in no time before you can even feel it.

had enough of all these shit!

had enough of all these pain!

had enough of all the fxxkin nonsense that the mankind is made to suffer!

hell is e fxxkin damn place to go... u moron... livin blindly...

i hv been thinkin, thinkin hard

for a suitable way to die

for e most suitable way to take my life away

send a bullet into my brain

for this will bring all to an end...

for the pain is like baptism...

cleansin me of all those shit!

get me killed

an angel will rise

shall i live,

God will lose 3 in return...

Angels r sent to pay for my survival...

either u or me

gotta die to bring all peace...

u muz b a better choice

for e belief of God's existence will only breed fools n morons..."

Fxxk e "Pee".... kekeke

went back to sch for Staff Ice... WTS.... yala... i m ok w it... only havin one lesser day o freedom... that's all... initiali planned to b in sch from 8 - 5... Pee started tokin in e mornin... sayin tt mayb he'll skipped the speech in later part o e day... so his speech took up time n so everythin has been pushed back.... F!
i dozed off durin his speech.... long long speech... not everythin long is good... holiday long long is good.!
after lunch, went for briefings.... then meetin w e levels/dept trs.... another rd o sufferin... no where to run man... Shit!
after tea break, no announcement to inform us o goin for e trainin briefin... so we dilly dally.... but then, in e end, we still decide to go on our own... but found out that the trainer is not only boring but also watever he said dun seemed to related much to us... watz taught is oredi known to us... nothin new... onli minor changes... plus i heard b4 we came up, he actuali made a wrong demo to the pathetic pool o trs... hahahaha... WTFH! call himself a TRAINER...?
after bein 15 mins of foolish asshole, we went back down to e office.... do our own stuff...
by 1655hrs, thinkin tt we can nw go, outta e blue, Miss B made an announcement thru e PA system sayin "All staff please proceed to the hall rite nw...!" Shit!!! we knew wat hapen... b4 we reached e hall, we heard e Pee's vox.... WTF! Again???????
ok.... he went on n on n on n on n on n on... nonstop.... ! CL said... did u noticed tt when he's talkin... his eyes looked watery s if wantin 2 cry...? i said YES, but so wat... who cares? he's thinkin that watever he has dun for us, always dun seemed to please us... s if we're so hard to please... n we r nv satisfied w our own life.... over-demandin.... WTF is that!
we ended up leavin sch @ 1720 hrs....
so... e moral of e story is... if u wan2 b a Pee... u muz b a brain-crankin, soul-rippin speech machine...! did i exprez myself well enuf...? mayb nt... so i cant b a Pee.... i dun wan2 piss ppl off... everyone wans 2 b love ma...

Galhammer videoshots... Jap chicks can go metal too..

Metal chiks fr the land of the Rising Sun... they r reali .... ichiban desu ne...! all hail... Ross... u hv got e taste... they truly rox... althou cant hear probably..

Children of Bodom n In Flames @ MH Golden Gods award 08

COB - Performin "Blooddrunk" Live @ UK

Alexi in receiving the Golden God - Best Shredder Award

In Flames - Performing "Mirror's Truth" live @ MH Golden God award

In Flames - Performing "alias" Live @ MH Golden God award

Full List of Winners of the Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards....

Here is the full list of winners.

1. Best Breakthrough: Apocalyptica
2. Best Underground Band: The Black Dahlia Murder
3. Best UK Band: Iron Maiden
4. Metal For The Masses: William Gledhill
5. Best Live Band: Machine Head
6. Best Video: Dimmu Borgir - The Serpentine Offering
7. Best Metal Label: Roadrunner Records
8. Spirit Of Hammer: Max and Igor Cavalera
9. Best Debut: Airbourne - Runnin’ Wild
10. Icon Award: Eddie Dimebag Darrell
11. Shredder Award: Alexi Laiho (Children Of Bodom)
12. Event Of The Year: Hard Rock HellRiff Lord: Dave Mustaine
13. Best Album: Testament - The Formation Of Damnation
14. Best International Band: In Flames
15. Golden God: Kerry King, presented by Kat Von D
    
    

English-Finnish Translation

1. http://www.translation-guide.com/free_online_translators.php?from=English&to=Finnish
2. http://www2.fincd.com/

Metal Hammer

Dimebag Shredder award
Monday, June 16th, 2008 by Metal Hammer
From a riffster to the guys that steal the limelight with their fret-flying solo’s with the Dimebag Darrell Shredder award. Your shredders are: Dino Cazares of Divine Heresy, Jesper Stromblad of In Flames, Michael Amott of Arch Enemy, Dan Donegan of Disturbed and Alexi Laiho of Children Of Bodom.
And the winner is…Alexi Laiho! In the modern era, there’s no one out there that touches this guy for shred. He’s a fucking virtuoso! Alexi - we truly are not worthy.

this is fxxkin crazy... Luv ya Alexi... U r e true guitar GOD man...! u deserved a fxxkin toast o Jack Daniels n Heinekin....

Best International Band
Monday, June 16th, 2008 by Metal Hammer
Next up is the Revolver award for Best International Band. One of the most sought after awards of the night, the nominees are: Down, In Flames, Avenged Sevenfold, Nightwish and Dir En Grey.
And the winner is…IN FLAMES! A popular choice and it’s great to see one of modern metal’s most influential bands getting the praise they deserve and being lavished with a Golden God. Well done those Swedes!
**Althou Dir En Grey din win... but In Flames - the metal gods from Sweden..... Well done guys...!

All Hail... Scandinavia...! onnittelu!!!Kummuta valmis!

**Readup 4 me 2 bookmarked**Not for public readin

For a moment in 1998, it looked as if Children of Bodom’s ship might sink just as it arrived in port. One year earlier, the Finnish band had released its debut record, Something Wild, on Europe’s Spinefarm Records, and its follow-up tour of the continent had been successful. The group had good reason to feel optimistic about its future. But 19-year-old frontman Alexi Laiho wasn’t happy and hadn’t been for some time. A psychiatrist might have told him he was suffering from depression, but Laiho hadn’t sought a professional opinion. Instead, he treated his condition with alcohol and drugs and, in short order, began spiraling out of control. It was around Christmas that his problems came to a head. Laiho decided that he’d had enough of life and was ready to die. Downing 30 tranquilizers, he knocked back a few shots of whisky and slipped into unconsciousness.“A friend found me on the floor and brought me to the hospital. I wasn’t in a good place,” he explains in what is a masterpiece of understatement. As Laiho discovered, his depression stemmed from an incident in his youth. At the age of 16, he’d gotten into a brawl with some hometown goons and found himself fighting [the text stops here; I take it to mean the time when some older kids were supposedly stalking him and nearly killed him once] “I was just feeling worse and worse,” says the 25-year-old guitarist. “Finally, a couple of years after the pills, I had a complete mental breakdown and ended up in a hospital for a week. It was my third time. It was the worst I’d ever felt in my life. That’s when I decided I’d be damned if I ever felt that way again. I just made a decision to get better.”Foregoing medication and therapy, Laiho pulled his life together by embracing his love of music. Since then, his career, and that of his band mates—drummer Jaska W. Raatikainen, guitarist Roope Latvala, bassist Henkka T. Blacksmith, and keyboardist Janne Warman—has grown dramatically. The year after Laiho’s suicide attempt, the group released its sophomore effort, Hatebreeder. Next came Follow the Reaper, a masterful blend of brutal death and black metal and highly melodic, synth- and lead guitar-driven prog rock. The extreme music scene had never heard anything like it, and wouldn’t again until the band dropped its follow up, Hate Crew Deathroll. On it, the band continued to experiment with its sound, forging an even heavier metal hammer. The album hit number one on the Finnish music charts—higher even than Britney Spears—and Children of Bodom became superstars in Europe, playing stadiums and appearing on TV. Their most recent release, an EP called Trashed, Lost, and Strung Out (Century Media), has brought them even greater accolades. Most astonishing to Laiho, though, is that he has emerged as a guitar hero. Thanks to his virtuosic chops and keen awareness of the power of onstage presence, Laiho has become an inspiration to other guitarists who want to excel at playing. He belongs to a new breed of metal guitarists who believe solos are cool, and sucking at your instrument just sucks. “The whole guitar hero thing, where everyone played fast and had great technique, was back in the Eighties,” says Laiho. “And it died out when grunge came in. Then we had nu-metal, and those bands didn’t have guitar solos; I don’t think half of their guitarists knew how to play in the first place. But when I was learning to play, players like Steve Vai and Joe Satriani and Zakk Wylde were leading the way. They were my influences.” Perhaps now, Laiho concludes, the wheel has turned full circle. “Kids come up to me and say, ‘It’s cool to hear solos and stuff. You don’t hear that anywhere anymore.’ I think people missed it, even if they didn’t know they did.” It’s a sweet reward for a group that was initially dismissed within its local scene for having too much melody, too many leads, and shockingly high production values. When Children of Bodom formed in the mid-Nineties, black metal bands wanted to play as loud and as fast as possible and wore their albums’ shitty productions as badges of pride. “It’s like there was this black metal book with all of these incredibly stupid rules in it,” says Laiho. “You couldn’t play solos; you couldn’t be good at you instruments . . . not that good, anyway. And people would want their records to sound like shit. We figured, Fuck that. We’re going to do what we want.”After all, Laiho had set an incredibly high goal for himself even before he’d begun playing guitar. “I was 10 years old and watching MTV when the video for Steve Vai’s ‘For the Love of God’ from the Passion and Warfare album came on. That made me say, ‘Fuck, I have to buy a guitar.’ Everything he did was so cool. The way he sounded, the way he looked, the stuff he did with the instrument—it was just crazy. I knew it was what I had to do.” Laiho had been playing violin since he was five. his earliest musical recollections involve listening to classical music—“which is why I wanted to play violin,” he says—and his parents have told him he was singing before he knew how to talk. “It’s a little weird, I know,” he acknowledges.Most parents would shudder at the idea of their child switching from the entirely respectable violin to its louder, nastier distant cousin, but Laiho’s parents encouraged his interest. Not only did they buy him his first guitar and amp—a Strat knockoff and a 60-watt Marshall combo—but also wrote notes excusing the budding guitarist from school for feigned illnesses, so he could practice. By his early teens, Laiho was dividing his time between woodshed sessions in his bedroom—surrounded by no less than five Steve Vai posters—and skateboarding with his friends. “Something had to be sacrificed; for me it was school,” he says. “I didn’t care. I didn’t have any interest in what my teachers were telling me, and my mom knew I wasn’t going to graduate high school anyway. She helped me succeed in the thing that interested me.”Even before he started cutting classes to shred in his bedroom, Laiho had begun taking guitar lessons at a local music school. For five years, he learned Jazz and Classical technique, as well as proper picking. “All the crap that no kid ever wants to learn!” he says with a laugh. “No one was there to teach me sweep arpeggios and stuff like that. So I’d buy instructional videos and learn from them. I taught myself a lot of the metal technique.” As a result, he says, “sometimes I do things wrong; I’m just banging the shit out of the guitar. But who cares, as long as it sounds cool. The key is to find the balance between technique and attitude, and that’s something they don’t teach you in school. You can’t play like John Petrucci and play in an extreme metal band. It just doesn’t work.”Laiho knew from the outset that he wanted to form a band. When he received his first guitar, he brought it to school every day. There was a drum kit in his classroom, and he’d frequently enlist a friend to smash away on the skins while he jammed along. “I didn’t know how to play at all,” he says. “I just made up chords. I loved the noise of it all.” A few years later, drummer Jaska Raatikainen began attending his school. By then, Laiho had started to figure out his instrument. “That’s really where Children of Bodom began,” he says. “The original lineup grew around that. By the time we were in high school, we were really beginning to make it work.”Unfortunately, it was then that Nirvana became the biggest band on the planet. Laiho recalls the difficulty of performing in a group that unabashedly embraced guitar virtuosity. “All the hair metal was gone. I remember when the change happened, too. I was watching Headbanger’s Ball in the early Nineties and thinking to myself, Why is everyone looking so fucking stupid these days? The musicians were dressing in flannel shirts and their hair was all messed up. They looked like shit.”Nonetheless, the band, which initially went by the name In Earth, began circulating demo tapes and playing local clubs. Resistance from club owners gradually softened as bands like Dimmu Borgir and Cradle of Filth began to change the musical landscape with their intricate guitar lines and orchestral keyboard parts. although Children of Bodom pushed the envelope further than Dimmu and Cradle, more clubs were willing to give them a chance. Eventually, word began to spread about the cool new group from Finland. As it happened, one of the band’s demos ended up at a now-defunct indie label in Belgium. Considering the musical climate of the times, Laiho had no expectations that a record contract was in his group’s immediate future. So, when the Belgians offered to put out a Children of Bodom record, he jumped at the opportunity. “It was the shittiest contract ever. We had to pay to record the album. Then we had to buy 1,000 copies to sell ourselves. It was ridiculous, but we didn’t think we’d get anything better.”On a whim, Laiho passed a copy of the band’s tape to an employee at Spinefarm Records, one of Europe’s more active extreme metal labels. To everyone’s surprise the exec loved it and offered to sign the group. ”Unfortunately, we already had the contract with the Belgians,” says Laiho. “But it sucked so bad. So we told them that we broke up and couldn’t deliver the record. Then we came up with a new name and signed to Spinefarm.”The name Laiho and his band mates selected couldn’t have been more chilling to their fellow citizens. Children of Bodom is a reference to a triple murder that took place in 1960 near Lake Bodom in Espoo, Finland. Four teens went camping; three died, one made it out alive. The killer got away and for years the police failed to solve the crime.“We were trying to find something cool to call ourselves and we came across this story,” explains Laiho. “’Bodom’ sounded pretty metal, so we combined it with every word we could think of. ‘Children of Bodom’ sounded the best.”“The crazy thing is that, thanks to new DNA evidence, the police think they’ve solved the crime. They say the kid that survived killed his friends. I’m not sure I believe it.”Once signed to Spinefarm, Children of Bodom quickly saw their fortunes change. After releasing Something Wild, Spinefarm (which still releases the band’s records in Europe) sent the group on its first major tour with Hypocrisy and Covenant. Having never played outside Finland, Children of Bodom were pleasantly surprised at the enthusiastic reception they received. In fact, the further they drifted from Scandinavia, the less often they heard grumbles about their stylistic flourishes. “People’s tastes were much more open, says Laiho. “They were bringing their own influences to the mix.”The tour brought them other rewards in addition to fans. “We’d never been anywhere with free booze before,” says Laiho, laughing. “That was great! We were riding on the bus with the other bands—it was a huge bus—and just having a great time. They accepted us very quickly once they could see that we knew how to play and knew how to party.”Children of Bodom finally made it to the United States in 2000, just after the release of Hatebreeder, to play the famed Milwaukee Metalfest. Although the event failed to impress the band members, the audience’s reception overwhelmed them. “We thought there’d be three dudes out there when we played, and after a few minutes even they’d walk out,” Laiho says. “But when we took the stage, the whole house was packed. I didn’t know what to think.”The band returned to the States the following year to showcase at the South by Southwest music conference in Austin, Texas, and, despite having to overcome some technical glitches involving a dearth of 220-volt adapters for their equipment, blew away the jaded industry crowd. “That’s when we realized we could tour here,” says the guitarist. “Our records were starting to sell well and we had the confidence. That’s all it took, really. Since then, it’s just been a whirlwind.”Laiho says he’s always liked rock and roll characters, “crazy dudes who are entertaining to watch,” he says. “I probably wouldn’t want to work with them, but I love watching them, because they’re nuts. Like Axl Rose. He’s the stereotype of the crazy rock star. I think it’s kind of sad that the whole rock star thing is missing today. No one drinks, trashes hotel rooms, or fucks groupies in the tour bus. It’s all about being a vegetarian and doing yoga and shit like that.”So how does Laiho’s rock star lifestyle stack up? Any drinking?“Oh yeah,” he says with enthusiasm. “I think we’ve got that covered.”Trashed hotel rooms? “Without a doubt. We wrecked one in Greece that cost us 2,000 euros in damages. You pay for it, man, but it’s worth every cent.”Any groupies on the tour bus? “Yeah . . .”Lots of them? “Yeah . . .”Does he keep photographic evidence like Gene Simmons does? “No!” he shouts, then laughs. “I guess I’ve still got a way to go before I get the whole thing right.”None of this is meant to undercut Laiho’s dedication to guitar; he typically spends his days off in the rehearsal studio, pushing his technique as far as it can go. But as much as his chops are a reflection of the heroes he grew up with, so is his hard-partying lifestyle. You can’t develop on a steady diet of Guns N’ Roses, Ozzy Osbourne, and Mötley Crüe and not indulge in the many distractions of road life. Simply put, true guitar heroes know that playing well isn’t enough. “There are lots of guitar players out there who play super fast and super well, but they’re also super lame. Like Dream Theater,” he says, referring once again to his favorite whipping boys. “It’s not even music; it’s sports. And then there are the guys who concentrate on all the little details and never fuck up one note when they play live. You know what? That’s not cool! If you’re going crazy onstage and you miss a note or two, who gives a shit? It just shows you were really into it.“Though I suppose that pretending to be a rock star and not being able to play at all is even worse.”It’s a problem Laiho doesn’t need to worry about. In fact, life looks trouble-free for the young guitarist right now. Metal has returned to prominence, and kids too young to know who Vai and Van Halen are—forget about Hendrix or Page—now look to Laiho’s generation of guitar players for inspiration. Hell, he even has a column in this very magazine. “I know,” he says in disbelief. “It’s totally fucking insane. I don’t see myself as a guitar hero. But it’s flattering if people dig the way I play. It’s nice to know all the hard work wasn’t for nothing.”For all his success, Laiho is still the kid woodshedding in his room, watching MTV, and dreaming about his idols. It still drives him to perfect his craft and keeps the young star grounded. “A lot of people say that after you’re 15 you don’t have idols anymore,” he says. “But I actually do, and I don’t want to lose them.” Even as he becomes one himself.
Alexi’s Essential Virtuoso Albums
1. Steve Vai Passion and Warfare“This is what got me started. There’s still stuff in there that no one else will ever be able to do.”
2. Ozzy Osbourne Tribute“I love it better than either of the first two albums. It’s live and honest. You can hear that Randy Rhoads is doing the rhythm guitars and the fills at the same time.”
3. Pantera Vulgar Display of Power“It changed how metal guitar players were playing. People wanted the Dimebag Darrell sound.”
4. Racer X Live Extreme, Volume 1“That live album was amazing. They were doing all these crazy double-riff things that still blow me away.”
5. Black Label Society The Blessed Hellride”The solos are great. Zakk’s picking and using his fingers as well, which is something I’m not as good at. I’d like to learn to do that better.”

AL's interview one yr back...

www.modernguitars.com/archives/002821.html

January 25, 2007


Alexi Laiho Interview
by Brian D. Holland.

Alexi Laiho

Alexi Laiho, founding member and frontman of extreme metal act Children of Bodom (CoB), is known for incredible six-string momentum and melodic speed along with stern vocal strength. Besides CoB and side project Sinergy, he has played with Impaled Nazarene, Kykähullut, and Thy Serpent. Japan’s premier guitar magazine, Young Guitar, voted him Guitarist of the Year in 2005.

Hailing from Espoo, Finland, Children of Bodom released their 1997 debut, Something Wild, when the band members were a mere 17 and 18-years-old. One can only imagine what an experience it was for these young musicians to not only find themselves popular in their native country and all over Scandinavia, but throughout Europe, Asia, and North America as well. They’ve since released four more studio CDs and a couple of live shows, the most recent being Chaos Ridden Years - Stockholm Knockout, on both CD and DVD format. The band is made up of Alexi Laiho on guitar, Roope Latvala on guitar (replacing the Alexander Kuoppala), Janne Wirman on Keyboards, Henkka Seppala on bass guitar, and Jaska Raatikainen on drums.

Children of BodomChildren of Bodom is a hard rockin’, head banging, metal machine known for an array of interesting sounds focusing around super fast tempos and amazing guitar and keyboard wizardry. That description sums them up without getting too fussy about categorizing. As metal players everywhere corroborate, CoB’s Alexi Laiho being one of them, genre labels are merely something the media and fans use to categorize and tag the music while the bands go about making what they consider to be their own version of metal. It’s a style that often becomes personalized over time through the creative mind of each individual in the band.
Though Children of Bodom’s music can be described as a fusion of death metal, black metal, Scandinavian metal, neo-classical, melodic, speed, power metal, and many other so-called subgenres, it makes sense to simply call it ‘metal’ to avoid confusion. No matter how one views it, Children of Bodom’s music is unique unto them. It’s unique to the area in which they grew up as well.

Every fuckin’ band makes their own label and style of music or whatever. I just call it metal and that’s that.-- Alexi Laiho (Talking about the tendency of fans and media to label metal music by genre and sub-genre.)

It’s not unusual for a band as profound at the art of extreme metal to hail from the Scandinavian region. There’ve been quite a few over the past twenty-five years or more. Norway’s Dimmu Borgir and Mayhem; Sweden’s Hypocrisy, In Flames, Bloodbath, and Unleashed; Finland’s Nightwish, Sentenced, and Children of Bodom are a mere few that come to mind. There’s also the popular side project Sinergy, made up of Dimmu Borgir singer Kimberly Goss and Children of Bodom’s Alexi Laiho and Roope Latvala. Though the list is extensive, it’s Children of Bodom who are making quite a splash in the metal world these days.

The Nordic area is special in itself. Its distinct traits and facts can both dramatize fan devotion to metal music as well as lay reason to it. Though the northern territory is known as ‘The Land Of The Midnight Sun’, where in a quarter of Finland and other countries lie within the Arctic circle (upper Canada and Russia as well) and are able to experience light 24 hours a day, the opposite phenomena occurs in winter. During this time there can be little to no sunlight at all. This marvel, known as ‘polar night’, is known to cause S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder), a condition causing severe depression because of the lack of serotonin in the body, or the exclusion of natural sunlight.

Though a magnificent land made up of wonderful people, it’s no secret that Finland has for years been known for its high suicide rate and mental health issues, along with alcoholism and drug related problems. Whether dramatized or blatantly real, balance this scenario with the violent and dark lyrical content of much of the heavy metal created over the past quarter of a century and a relation becomes apparent. Put that next to the fact that Children of Bodom named themselves after the notorious Lake Bodom (of Espoo, Finland) incident of June 4, 1960, in which three teenagers were brutally murdered while asleep in their camping tents, and the horror escalates.

Minus the light thing, this scenario isn’t non-existent in European or US society by any means, nor is it in other parts of the world. Since the onset of metal and the likes of Black Sabbath, Metallica, Priest, Maiden, Megadeth, and countless others, the style has branched out in numerous multifaceted and complex directions. In many cases, in company with transformation it gained volume, angst, and brutal force.

Extreme metal is a theatrical stage act of horror and violence. It’s an art form of precision musicianship and melodramatic lyricism, performed powerfully, and often belted out vocally in shrouds of aggressive screams. Just like rap or hip-hop, its lyrical substance is understood by a world of young people. It talks of world disarray, social dysfunction, and the torment and sorrow only known by the young at heart. Add in a knack for melodic phrasing and twin guitar shredding and you’ve got the music of Children of Bodom.

Alexi Laiho’s often opinionated and in-your-face attitude has a tendency to exert itself off the stage as well as on, rendering him an attention-grabbing and controversial character. As well as being a revolutionary metal artist, he’s no doubt young and defiant (weren’t we all at one time?). These traits go together like paper and fire, and often with a comparative result; one that’s sizzling, volatile, and never boring. He was exhausted on December 13, 2006, when I spoke with him. The excitement constantly exerted in CoB’s style of music would easily tire anyone in due course, especially when well into a long and grueling tour schedule. Though he was friendly and personable, the ‘Wildchild’ in him was at the surface in a fun way.



Hello, Alexi. How are you?

Alexi Laiho: I don’t know. I’ve been better. I’m just fuckin’ exhausted, man. I’m so tired. My body is hating me right now. But other than that, I’m doing all right. [Laughing]

Well, you’ve been touring quite a lot.

AL: Yeah, it’s been a long ride. That’s for sure.
Yes, it has. Explain your ‘Wildchild’ nickname.

AL: I don’t remember how or when I got it. But I think I got it from that W.A.S.P. song. I’m one of the biggest W.A.S.P. fans in the world. I’m living up to the reputation; that’s for sure. Right now I’m paying for it [Laughing]

You speak English well.

AL: Thanks. We start learning English in elementary school in like the third grade, about eight-years-old or whatever. We have English on TV as well, so I’ve been speaking it ever since I was a little kid. Also, my girlfriend, whom I lived with for about four years, is an American. I guess I got the accent and everything. But, you know, we’ve spent a lot of time here [U.S.] as well.
Talk about the band name, Children of Bodom. Is it descriptive of the band’s music and lyrics? In reference to the lake in Finland where the gruesome murders took place, does the title front the actual theme?

AL: Well, no, not really. We have one Bodom-related song on each album. It’s just a thing we do. Other than that, the music isn’t really related to that incident. Our music is reality-based. It’s based on real feelings and stuff. The name was related to the incident, but it’s only the one song on each album that’s about that subject. It’s the fictional part actually. I’m not really stating fact about what actually happened there; we’re just making up stories about what could’ve happened. As to what actually happened, it’s still just a mystery. You can go on and on about it, but nobody’s ever going to find out what really happened.
Ever camp out at Lake Bodom?
AL: I never camped out there, but we’ve hung out there a lot. It’s really a great place. There are a lot of nice beaches there and stuff like that, and camping and barbeque areas. I’d like to camp out there one day.
If you had to categorize it, what metal genre or sub-genre would you put the band’s music into?
AL: I really wouldn’t want to categorize it under any certain label. You know, when you think about it, Children of Bodom is like a combination of so many styles of metal that it’s hard to categorize it. I’m not really into the whole labeling thing anyway. Every fuckin’ band makes their own label and style of music or whatever. I just call it metal and that’s that.
I understand. Most metal people I speak with don’t seem to delve too deeply into the genre labeling attached to it by the fans and media.
AL: Yeah. I think ‘metal’ is enough. If people don’t know the actual metal of a band then they should find out by listening to them.
Do you take the music and lyrics seriously, or is it more of a theatrical thing?
Alexi LaihoAL: Well, it’s not like Spinal Tap or anything. Of course we take it seriously, but it’s kind of a thing where we know our limits and how serious it can get. We can laugh at ourselves, and we do, all the time. And we like to have fun, and we’re not afraid to show that to people. There’s humor in some of the songs, too. Like in the song ‘Bodom Beach Terror’; you can’t do that with a straight face, you know. But I don’t know, dude. Even though metal is metal, you have to be able to laugh at yourself. Otherwise you’re just a fuckin’ jerk off. That’s what I think. [Both Laughing]
How well received has the band been in the USA?
AL: Really well. We didn’t start touring here until the end of 2003. But since then we’ve been here like six-and-a-half months out of every year. So we’ve been working hard and getting a lot more exposure in magazines and stuff like that. Finally we’ve been able to headline tours and stuff. And yeah, it’s been good.
Was the band received as well in Finland?
AL: Well, when the first album came out it was very well received. It was a big surprise for us. We figured it would be too black metal, and only for black metal kids or something. But it picked up fairly well since the first album.
The single ‘Children of Bodom’ did pretty well over there.
AL: Yeah. We recorded that single a few months after the first album came out. I think the album hit number 35 or something, which at that time was unheard of for an extreme metal band. The single hit number one on the charts and stayed there for like eight weeks. It was pretty insane.
I like the fact that your music is both heavy and melodic. Was that an initial goal?
AL: Not really. It just happened naturally. Those are the things we like to do, you know.
Being from Espoo, Finland, what are the differences between Helsinki and American cities, such as New York and Boston?
AL: Well, Espoo is a suburb of Helsinki so it’s like some small town in New Jersey or something. Helsinki’s a really cool city, though. I like it there. But my life is pretty hectic as it is, so I like to chill out in a quiet place when I’m at home.
Talk about the music scene and the nightlife in Helsinki.
AL: Well, the metal scene is huge. There’s a lot of rock and metal bars. It’s a cool vibe. There are a lot of metal bands from Helsinki, and we’re all just good buddies with each other. We go out drinkin’ together, you know. There’s no ugly competition or anything going on there. It’s pretty cool.
Are there any plans for Children of Bodom to do Ozzfest? AL: We’d love to do it. At one time we were trying to get on Ozzfest, but we were offered to open for Slayer instead. If you get a chance to open for Slayer, of course, you do that. I don’t know. Maybe in ’08. We’d love to do it, definitely. Ozzfest has done a lot of good things for a lot of bands.
I read somewhere that although you’ve been a huge fan of Yngwie Malmsteen, you’ve since gotten away from him and his style of playing.
Children of BodomAL: Yeah, well, Yngwie is Yngwie. I mean, what can you say? He’s fuckin’ bad ass, and that’s like stating the obvious. I was more into that neo-classical guitar thing when I was younger. Yeah, I was a huge Yngwie fan. You can hear that influence, especially on the first two albums. At that time, in Europe, there were so many guitar players, you know, Yngwie-copies running around everywhere. They all wanted to be like Yngwie and sound like Yngwie. It kind of pissed me off, you know. I didn’t want to be one of them. So I kind of turned off to that whole style of playing and decided it wasn’t going to be my thing. That’s Yngwie’ thing. He’s one of the greatest ever. End of story.
You’re a big fan of the Ozzy players Randy Rhoads, Jake E. Lee, and Zakk Wylde.
AL: Definitely, yeah!
Are you a fan of Black Sabbath as well?
AL: Yeah, which is weird. I’m not really into that '70s music. I grew up with the '80s bands. The '70s stuff is too old for me. But I like Black Sabbath. It’s real hard not to like them.
Who are your influences?
AL: I was a fan of the band Stone. In fact, Roope Latvala, who also plays guitar for Children of Bodom, came from that band [Roope was an original member of Stone, one of the most famous Finnish metal acts of the late '80s]. I was a big fan of a lot of stuff you wouldn’t even think of. A lot of older bands from the '80s, glam rock and metal, like Poison, Motley Crew, Twisted Sister, W.A.S.P., Skid Row, Guns ’n’ Roses. And I’m still into that kind of thing. And I got into more of the harder stuff, too, like Thrash, Anthrax, and Slayer. Then I got more into what they call death metal, you know, bands like Hypocrisy. Obituary is one of my favorites. And I got into a lot of black metal, too, a lot of Norwegian bands. I dig them all, you know. That’s the way it is. As far as guitar players, I have to mention Steve Vai, definitely. He’s one of my main influences.
Alexi LaihoI know you’re into classical music as well as metal, but do you listen to other styles of music as well?
AL: Yeah. I’ve been into classical for a long time, but I’m into a lot of stuff, whatever sounds good to me. I listen to a lot of old blues stuff, like John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, and all that stuff. I love the kind of music that’s one guy and one guitar and that’s it. I like punk rock. I grew up with a lot of that. I’m into a lot of guitar stuff. I’m also into Blondie, though I don’t know what category it is. I guess '80s New Wave.
Talk a bit about your guitar playing style. Does it come easy to play along with fast tempos and sudden changes?
AL: Yeah. It’s a lot of fun.
Do you incorporate hammer-ons, pull-offs, and a lot of tapping into your playing?
AL: Yeah, pretty much everything.
What has been the most obvious change in the band’s music over the years, say from 1997’s Something Wild up to 2005’s Are You Dead Yet and the more recent live material?
AL: Nothing major, but our development has been pretty consistent. When the first album came out we were like 17 and 18-year-olds. Obviously, playing-wise and songwriting-wise, we’ve improved a lot album to album. And that’s the way we want it to go from now on. That’s pretty much it.
Stockholm KnockoutDo you consider Stockholm Knockout, the live and most recent Children of Bodom CD and DVD, to be a good audio and video presentation of the band’s music?
AL: I didn’t even know the album was going to be released. I think the DVD is good. I guess the live album is okay, but I wouldn’t buy that damn thing. I’d just buy the DVD. [Laughing] I mean, I’m just being honest. It was the record company’s idea to release a live album as well.
I like ‘The Clash Of The Booze Brothers’. There’s a lot of interesting instrumentation going on in that one.
AL: Thanks. It’s an interesting guitar and keyboard thing. I think it’s pretty cool, too.
Will you be releasing a new album soon?
AL: Well, after this tour we’ll go back home and take a break. We’ve been out touring for about the last 13 or 14 months. After that, we’ll start working on some new stuff. We should be in the studio by July or something. I think it’ll come out around January of 2008. Maybe we’ll have a single out before that.
Talk about the skill it takes to juggle both vocals and guitar within your style of music.
AL: I call myself a guitar player. I’m not really a singer. I sing in this band because I had to. No one else wanted to do it. I sort of got stuck with it. But I enjoy doing it nowadays. I can obviously hold a note and stuff, but I’m just screaming my ass off, you know. That’s definitely a big part of Children of Bodom’s music.
You and Roope share guitar parts in a unique way. The two of you seem to have a good rapport.
AL: We just want to rock. He might add some riff, and then I pick it up and kind of play along. It’s cool that we can communicate musically like that without even talking. We communicate through the music. Being able to do that with someone is pretty cool.
Do you get into alternate tunings?
AL: Yeah. D and Drop C. Most of the songs on the previous album were in Drop C.
Alexi Laiho Signature ESP guitarESP Guitars?
AL: Yes. I have my own model. It’s Randy Rhoads-shaped. It has one humbucker, a Floyd Rose whammy bar, and it has 24 frets. It’s a cool metal guitar.
Any word for the fans?
AL: I’d like to thank everyone for the support. We appreciate it a lot. Without the fans there wouldn’t be a band.__
Alex Laiho’s gearThough Alexi may have been quick and nonchalant concerning gear, that’s really the way he is. In comparison to most technical players, he doesn’t utilize many effects other than a Rocktron Intellifex and an RSP 2400 Hush/Enhancer/Exciter.
For years, he used two Jackson Randy Rhoads Customs, one white pinstripe and one green pinstripe. He now has his own ESP Alexi Laiho signature guitar equipped with a Floyd Rose whammy. It contains an EMG-HZ H4. The passive pickup is manipulated by a switch above the pinstripe triggering an onboard gain booster. This all goes into a Lee Jackson Perfect Connection GP-1000 tube preamp, VHT power amps, and out through Marshall 1960B 4/12 cabs.
Chaos Ridden Years - Stockholm Knockout Track ListingCD/DVDDisc One1. Living Dead Beat2. Sixpounder3. Silent Night, Bodom Night4. Hate Me!5. We’re Not Gonna Fall6. Angels Don’t Kill7. Deadbeats I8. Bodom After Midnight/Bodom Beach Terror9. Follow The reaper
Disc Two1. Needled 24/72. Clash Of The Booze Brothers3. In Your face4. Hate Crew Deathroll5. Are You Dead Yet?6. Latvala - Guitar Solo7. Lake Bodom8. Everytime I Die9. Downfall
2006 Spinefarm - Ume Imports
Children of Bodom are:Alexi Laiho: guitar and vocalsRoope Latvala: guitarJanne Warman: keyboardsJaska W. Raatikainen: drumsHenkka T. ‘Blacksmith’ Seppala: bass
Related LinksChildren of BodomChaos Ridden Years - Stockholm Knockout (DVD) on Amazon.com

Armenian Church in Singapore

Just went to Roxy to collect my CDs... so took bus no 51 n alighted here outside the Armenian Church... a place where i longed to go inside to take pix o the statues... so i did... finali 2dae... althou not very nicely taken due to e lack o skills... but very satisfyin.... kekeke...

THE OLDEST CHURCH IN SINGAPORE Built by Armenian pioneers of Singapore Agnes Joaquim (an Armenian) grew the Vanda Miss Joaquim orchid - national flower of Singapore. The Church was gazetted as a National monument on 6 July 1973
Three Armenian trading firms established them selves in 1821 soon after the founding of Singapore in 1819 by Stamford Raffles. Aristarchus Sarkies and Arratoon Sarkies of Malacca came to Singapore in August 1828 and established the firm of Sarkies and Moses. Three Armenian brothers set up Raffles Hotel in 1886. They were Arshak Sarkies, Aviet Sarkies and Tigran Sarkies. They also built the Adelphi Hotel.
The small Armenian community conducted Church services in rented premises. In 1827 it began to raise funds to build their own Church. For this purpose it was granted a piece of land by the Singapore government at Hill Street where the Church still stands. This site was part of the Botanical Garden at the foot of Government Hill (Fort Canning) facing Hill Street. Earlier the Armenian community was unsuccessful in securing a site facing the esplanade.
In 1834 the elders of this community commissioned George Dromgold Coleman, Singapore's first architect, to design and build the Armenian Church. Construction Started in 1835 and the building was completed in January 1836; the contractor was a Malabari (an Indian). The consecration of the Church was conducted in the Armenian language on 26 March 1836 by the priest Rev Eleazar Ingergolie.
The Church was dedicated to St Gregory the Illuminator, the first monk of the Armenian Church. It is believed that the design of the Church was based on the Mother Church at Echmiadzin in North Armenia.
The total cost of the building in 1835 was 5058.30 Spanish dollars. About a quarter of this was subscribed by Armenians in Calcutta, Java and Europe and other communities in Singapore. Twelve Armenian families in Singapore gave the rest.
Originally there was a conical dome and a bell tower with a ball and cross; these were replaced in 1853 by a beautiful spire by the architect Maddock.
Internally the Church is circular and superimposed on a square plan with projecting porticos in a cruciform pattern. Externally the most outstanding features are beautifully proportioned Roman Doric columns and pilasters.
The Armenian Church is an architectural treasure, one of Coleman's finest buildings in Singapore.
In 1909 electric light and fans were installed in the Church, the first in Singapore to enjoy electricity.
The memorial Garden in the grounds of the Armenian church is of special historical interest. The Armenian pioneers were buried in the old cemetery in Government Hill and after 1865 in the Bukit Timah cemetery. All the tombstones that could be recovered from the Bukit Timah cemetery were assembled in 1988 to form the Memorial Garden.
The tombstone of Agnes (Ashen) Joaquim is in the Memorial Garden. She grew the orchid, Vanda Miss Joaquim which is now the national flower of the Republic of Singapore.
Just behind the Church is the parsonage, rebuilt in 1905 as a memorial by Nanajan Sarkies to her husband John Shanazar Sarkies, the distinguished scholar and merchant who died in 1904. Today the parsonage is used as a Counselling Centre by the Church of England.
The Armenian community never exceeded 100 members. There is an Armenian priest who conducts regular services with other Christians at the Church.
The Church of St Gregory is a credit to the Armenian pioneers whose religious zeal inspired them to build the oldest Church in Singapore. Several members of this community were pioneers who had contributed to the economic prosperity of particularly early Singapore.

ESP Guitars

Read the details n history of ESP guitars....

Famous guitarists n bassists use this brand... includin Jeff Hanneman, Tom Araya, megadeth.... n ocoz Alexi Laiho.... check this out...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ESP_Guitars

Alexi Laiho Signature ESP guitar

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ESP_Alexi_Laiho

http://www.espguitars.com/guitars_alexi.html

http://www.espguitars.co.jp/oversea/sig/al_st_std.html

http://www.espguitars.co.jp/artist/alexi_laiho/index.html***

Laiho 5

Next try...

Photo Source

无聊的我...竟开始画画

虽然画得不好，但还是有点儿沾沾自喜。我画的吉他还不错吧？人物就别说了！图源在此

Hellhounds on My Trail MV

Hellhounds on My Trail MV

Pix i love to kip

MVz

In Flames - Only for the Weak

Soilwork (with In Flames in e vid...兄弟作)

Children of Bodom - Metal Scene TV interview

Time seemed to fly durin e holi.... Y nt durin sch days.... sickenin huh?

M i bein negative abt life?

ya... sorta...i hv always bin a -ve person... ever since young... [althou i look cute la...]

2dae is lion dance trainin.... WH is in-charge 2dae... but somehow... outta no reason, Rain disappear.... dunno where she is.... she din even ans my call... that's weird lor... kelian WH, hv 2 take care o the kids himself...

had KFC for lunch 2dae.... quite surprising, s my XMM suddenly craved for the coleslaw...

Listenin 2 music all day long... that's e ideal livin style i yearn for but onli when utopia comes... hahaha...

booked a badminton court next week to play badminton w XMM... hahaha... finali after so long, can book a proper court - air-conditioned one some more....

smsin my fren Ross n happened 2 ask abt e Metal Hammer mag... shocked!!! he has it.... n wanted 2 trade in but i hv nothin to trade w him, n then in e end he offers to give it to me free... hahaha.... but i hv decided 2 pay him back no matter wat... but anyway... Ebay seller also reply me le.... think muz decide on either one o them le.... Ross also abit blur blur one... dunno whether he knows how to send me or nt....

This is a miniature o the local delicacies found in Singapore.... looks delicious... wan2 try some? my personal fav is Char Kway Tiao....This is my MIMI on her new bedsheet.... hapi....hapi....

PLEASE HELP... I m lookin for METAL HAMMER(Apr 08)

Dear all... whoever lookin @ this blog post... i m lookin very hard for this issue of Metal Hammer magazine April 2008... w Alexi Laiho n Devil on e cover page... if see, pls contact me... Thanks...

Spent so much on jap magazines....! haiz... i m stupid lor

Holiday still sad.... go to hell ba

althou i m supposed to b hapi durin e holidays s i can hv all e freedom n e rest time that i wan2 n yearn 4... but still not hapi lei... coz nita go back to sch.... i think i shld better off b dead la...

ytd went back to sch for lion dance trainin session... i allowed myself to b absent for some time.... hahaha... i know it may nt b rite but i wasn't lazin ard... i went rd e sch 2 collect back all my flags o honor... n i m glad i hv dun it all....
Miss H asked me to do somethin for her... yes i did.
but cant geta pass e paper to Mrs K... s she was havin meetin w the Ps... wait for so long... so in e end, i left a msg on her door, n then e paper in her pigeon hole...

e trainin session went on smoothly... my boys learnt new skills ytd... this time rd, they learnt to stand on his partner's thighs.... hard on them le. but this is wat necessary for competitions so no choice, they hv gota leant, no matter how hard it is...

b4 i went home, went 2 general off 2 send off an email to WH n miss H... so QIAO3.... run into the P n VPs.... they juz came back from lunch i guez.... "so nice o him..." bought muffins for the office staff wor.... 那么好死！i quickly sent e email n siam le....
so everythin settled.... n arranged for WH... hope nothin happens.... ytd... 2kids did nt turn up.... sad sad... givin all sorta stupid reasons la.... anyway... called up their parents... so no where to run le.... whahahaha...
So it's good to kip a copy of all the attendance sheet on hand, so that we can geta contact any parents, shall the kids went missin... hahaha

My latest sketch... Grim Reaper from COB's Hate Crew Death Roll Cover