Cool Places: Sparks in Finland
Finland
is a very cool place in many respects, not least because there are many Sparks’
fans there! However, the brothers’ official visits to Finland have been
somewhat sporadic: there was, in fact, a lengthy gap between their first gig
there in 1975 and their next appearance in 2008. Nevertheless, the recent 2022 concert in
Helsinki, as part of the European leg of an extensive Spring tour, showed that
there is a loyal and enthusiastic fan base there, with members old and new.
Early Days
Sparks
first came to Helsinki for a gig on 2 October 1975, as part of a brief European
tour prior to their lengthy U.K. series of dates throughout the autumn. Ron
and Russell were accompanied on that occasion by their British
band members Trevor White (guitar), Ian Hampton (bass) and Dinky Diamond
(drums). The concert took place at
Helsinki’s Kulttuuritalo (or House of Culture), a modern building designed by
the renowned Finnish architect Alvar Aalto. The band played in the
semi-circular auditorium in front of a simple bank of lights, Russell
resplendent in long curls, red braces, short-sleeved white shirt and dark pants
while Ron wore his customary formal white shirt and tie. The band were also
dressed casually. The varied set list included songs from the 1974
albums, Kimono My House ('Talent is an Asset', 'This Town',
'Falling in Love with Myself') and Propaganda ('Never Turn Your Back on
Mother Earth'), and showcased new songs from the recently released Indiscreet
(September 1975): 'Look, Looks, Looks', which opened the show, 'Get in the
Swing' and 'Without Using Hands'. For
this last number, the band employed a dramatic device that was to bear fruit
decades later as the concept behind the Two Hands One Mouth show: at the end of
the song, the lights gradually dimmed to two spotlights, and then to one spot
only on Ron's hands as Russell softly repeated the closing lines. For an Encore they played 'Happy Hunting
Ground' and 'How Are You Getting Home?' (Indiscreet) as well as 'Girl
from Germany' from A Woofer in Tweeter's Clothing (1972). This range of
material is a reflection of the astonishingly prolific nature of this period in
the early career of the young Maels, and this gig, despite a microphone problem
for Russell at one point, already demonstrated the characteristic energy and
power that fans have come to associate with Sparks' shows.
Interviewers beware!
The
day before the live show, Sparks took part in an interview for Finnish
television that became increasingly surreal. The very young-looking band
are sharing a large chocolate cake while Ron talks seriously about what he
perceives as the current fashion for conservatism. Pressed on this by the
interviewer, he claims that the age of idealism is over, and there seems to be
nothing to be in favour of any more. When he stresses that this is not meant in
the political sense, Russell interjects that Sparks are certainly not
political, a strategy that, with a few notable exceptions, has remained largely
true to this day. Ron’s assertion that perhaps the new fashionable movement is
hedonism prompts Russell to indicate the chocolate cake as proof! When the
discussion moves on to differences between America and Europe, Russell asks
whether ‘Finland is part of Europe, in a Finnish person’s mind?’, a somewhat
surprising (although possibly philosophically profound!) question that elicits
a curt ‘Yes’ from the interviewer. The interview takes an even more surreal
turn as, at the moment that they are asked about their project with the famous
French star Jacques Tati, the chocolate cake slowly collapses, enabling Russell
to say that that precisely sums up the state of the project. This interview was
not shown on the next morning current affairs and entertainment programme Tasavallassa
Tapahtuu as planned, but was shown on another entertainment show, Iltatähti, on
21 October. Sparks were clearly already
showing off another of their undoubted talents: wrong-footing unwary
interviewers!
Some years later….
Finland was not blessed
with another live concert until 16 June 2008, when Sparks appeared at the
Tavastia-Klubi in Helsinki. Videos on YouTube of some of the concert begin with
a shot of the imposing doors of the club. Finland was one of the first countries
in Europe, along with Estonia and Lithuania, to see live performances of songs
from Exotic Creatures of the Deep (2008) after its première in London at
the Shepherd's Bush Empire on 13 June at the culmination of the 21 x 21 Sparks
Spectacular. Before the show, Ron did an interview with journalist Hannu Björkbacka, who tells us
that he was the only journalist left after an extended sound set-up delay, and
admiringly describes Ron as ‘a friendly and humble craftsman’. Against a
background hub-bub of activity, Ron is remarkably relaxed and forthcoming about
Sparks’ mission of ‘pushing the limits of what pop music can do’. He describes
how, prior to Lil’ Beethoven (2002). they threw away about twenty songs
because they felt that they were ‘going through the motions and not pushing
themselves’, which he found painful, because each song is his ‘little baby’.
They then went into the studio without any songs to explore a new sound, a
writing process that they have followed ever since. Bjӧrkbacka, referring to the song ‘Strange Animal’,
asks about the ‘emotional core’ of a song, and Ron agrees that their music
always strives to work on two levels. When asked whether he sees Sparks’ music
as entertainment or art, he reveals that he looks to Cole Porter and Gershwin
for inspiration in achieving a blend of simplicity and sophistication, rather
than contemporary pop. Inevitably, the discussion turns to the 21 x 21
Spectacular, which Ron says was inspiring for them on many levels, not least
because some of the albums that had not been successful commercially were
actually great when performed live, because they had a strong band, and ‘some
songs were pretty good’. He also hints that there is hope of a compilation
video of the event, because all the shows were filmed from one central camera.
(We are still waiting for that one, Ron!). When pressed about future plans, he
speaks about the five years they had spent on developing a screen version of
the Japanese manga comic Mai the Psychic Girl in the late 1980s and
early 1990s, and that there were still hopes that a full-length film might see
the light of day. It is impossible not to admire Ron’s calm and kindness in
this informative interview which took place at clearly a very hectic point in
the day.
Ron also says in this interview that, as they have not played in Finland
for a long time, they have included a number of songs from throughout their
career in that evening’s show. Indeed, the generously long and wide-ranging set
list included five songs from Exotic Creatures ('Good Morning', 'Strange
Animal', 'I Can't Believe That You Would Fall For All The Crap In This Song',
'I've Never Been High' and 'Lighten Up Morrissey') as well as a mixture of
favourites and numbers less frequently played live from earlier albums: 'Up
Here In Heaven' and, of course, 'Amateur Hour' and 'This Town' from Kimono
My House (1974), 'Propaganda', 'At Home, At Work, At Play', 'Never Turn
Your Back on Mother Earth', and 'Something for the Girl With Everything' (Propaganda
(1974)), 'Get In The Swing (Indiscreet (1975)), 'Goofing Off' (Introducing
Sparks (1977)), 'Number One Song In Heaven' (from album of the same name
(1979)), 'When Do I Get To Sing My Way' (Gratuitous Sax and Senseless
Violins (1994)), 'Suburban Homeboy' from Lil Beethoven (2002)
and 'Dick Around' from the 2006 album Hello Young Lovers. This huge and
varied programme was not only to encourage Finnish fans, old and new, to
explore earlier albums and ‘catch up’, but reflects Ron and Russell's
perception of what works well in live performance and the constant innovation
and consistently high standard of Sparks' work over four decades.
Finnish treats
This Helsinki gig also had some
further especially memorable moments: the audience were stamping and clapping
in anticipation before the start of the show and for the opening number 'It's a
Sparks Show Tonight', Ron took to the stage alone and mimed to the song while
doing a mini-striptease, throwing his long mackintosh into the audience. He
also caused a sensation by appearing for the Encore in a T-shirt embellished
with a picture of an elk and the words 'Finnish Playboy'. Russell was, for
once, more conservatively dressed in a long-sleeved black T-shirt, with black
braces and red pants and a matching jacket that was removed at some point.
Russell demonstrated his skill for delighting a crowd by speaking in Finnish,
proclaiming his liking for things typically associated with the country;
salmiakki (salted liquorice, which is delicious but an acquired taste), Fazer
(a make of chocolate), Iittala (Nordic homeware design), the children's book
favourite Moomin and, of course, Finland (Suomi). Each item was greeted with
cries of surprised delight, admiration and 'Thank you' from the audience. He
had clearly been well coached! This strategy, when on tour, of addressing a few
introductory words to the audience in their own language, even if only briefly,
always creates an affectionate rapport and is another example of Ron and
Russell's close attention to the details of successful performance. This endearing episode, and the closing
moments of the gig, as Russell introduces the band, this time in English (Jim
Wilson and Marcus Blake (guitars and backing vocals, both from the band Mother
Superior), Steve McDonald (bass) and Steven Nistor on drums), can be seen on
YouTube. These were the same musicians, as Russell points out, who
played the 21 nights of the Sparks Spectacular in London. Their reward for
sticking with them throughout that marathon, was to play in Finland, Russell
announces to rapturous applause. After the last encore, 'Suburban Homeboy',
Russell shouts out 'moi, moi' (bye bye) as the ecstatic audience finally allows
the equally delighted band to leave the stage.
A new venture
Ron
and Russell were back at the Tavastia-Klubi again in 2012, this time alone for
a performance on the Two Hands One Mouth tour. There had been a short
break since the show in London on 13 June 2012, which they have described as a
trial run of the stripped back format, and the tour came via gigs in
Latvia and Lithuania to arrive in Helsinki on 7 October. Despite their
anxieties about appearing for the first time without a band and the greater
exposure and focus on Ron and Russell that this entailed, the tour was going down
a storm, and the Helsinki show was no exception. Beginning with Ron's solo performance at the
keyboard of the gorgeous overture, which was greeted with repeated cheering and
clapping along with the beat, the show consisted of a massive list of twenty
songs from throughout their career including some not so often seen in live
performances (notably 'Sherlock Holmes' from Angst in My Pants (1982),
'Under the Table With Her' (Indiscreet (1975)) and excerpts from The
Seduction of Ingmar Bergman (2009).
The songs were apparently chosen for their viability in the reduced and
concentrated musical medium. In various interviews at the time, Ron and Russell
explained that they had discovered that not all of their repertoire was
suitable for this treatment, and that they wanted to maintain the same power,
aggression and urgency as though they were playing with a full group. The format was particularly nerve-wracking
for Ron, who had to play alone live with neither band nor computer to support
the music, which had to be recast for keyboard alone. The new arrangements are,
in fact, magnificent. A huge benefit in their view was that the more intense
focus on the vocals foregrounded the lyrics and emphasised their wit and
subtlety, as well as the amazing range of Russell's voice, as they were not
competing with a 'sonic blast'. A specially written piece, ''Two Hands, One
Mouth', a song with a fairly blatant double meaning (which was more evident in
live performance, as the audience in Finland as elsewhere quickly grasped),
brought the show to a close.
Helsinki loves Sparks
Russell, who
wore a brown suit with cut-off pants (for which he seems to have a penchant)
and black shirt, introduced himself and Ron, in short-sleeved dark shirt, in
Finnish and later, addressing the audience as 'Suomi-ystävät' ('Finnish
friends'), proceeded again to list his 'favourite' Finnish things. This time,
he says, he loves not just Panda's liquorice and Graavilohi (a Nordic
speciality of cured raw salmon in dill, which receives an amusingly mixed
response from the audience), but a range of celebrated Finnish artists and
designers: Esa-Pekka Salonen, the orchestra conductor, Alvar Aalto, the
architect and furniture, glassware and textile designer, and Marimekko, the
celebrated design house known for its fabrics for home furnishing and fashion.
Furthermore, Ron loves Aki Kaurismäki, the screenwriter and director, who with
his director brother Mika Kaurismäki, founded a film production company and the
Midnight Sun Film Festival. This engaging saunter through aspects of Finnish
culture (relatively unfamiliar to most people in Britain) is enlightening, and
it is easy to imagine that they might indeed appeal to the Maels' own tastes
and interests. The delirium all this appears to unleash in the Helsinki
audience only abates when Ron initiates the lush introductory bars of 'Singing
in the Shower'. This tour, which was to go on to Norway, Sweden and
Germany in mid-October, was, as fans will know, immortalised in the superb live
album Two Hands, One Mouth, Live in Europe (2013), although the
different locations of the numbers are not identified, apart from Russell's
final speech before the title song, which is clearly addressed to 'all our
friends in Manchester'. (Thank you,
Russell.) In an interview with Ron from
Helsinki airport published on 15 October in the Sabotage Times, as well
as asserting that he was buying cans of reindeer meat on sale at the airport as
souvenirs (well, he would, wouldn't he), he spoke about their movie projects, Mai
the Psychic Girl and The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman, and a new
project, work for which was then about a third of the way through. One can only
speculate that this refers to the screenplay for the movie Annette,
directed by French director Leos Carax and released in 2021, unless there is
another major project being kept under wraps.
Hippopotamus sighted in Finland
The
subsequent Revenge of Two Hands One Mouth tour did not play in Finland
although it did reach Sweden, nor, for some reason, did FFS, the inspired
collaboration between Sparks and Franz Ferdinand, perhaps because their hugely
successful European tour in 2015 concentrated more on appearances at music
festivals. However, Sparks' fans in
Finland will have been delighted to be amongst the first to hear songs from the
new album, Hippopotamus, live, at the Flow Festival on 12 August
2017. Of course, we know that this date
is Ron’s birthday and Sparks posted a picture of Ron in front of a shop window
containing a Moomin toy, and the words, ‘Happy Birthday Helsinki Boy’. On the
15th, we were treated to a picture of Russell at the Moomin pop-up
exhibition at Stockmann, the famous department store in Helsinki. The Flow
Festival, founded in 2004, is a celebrated annual urban music and arts festival
that takes place in the grounds of the old Suvilahti Power Plant on a number of
stages and features not just Finnish and international musicians, but the
visual arts, films, design, talks, food and drink. The line-up of the highly
praised new band consisted of Zach Dawes (bass), Tyler Parkford (keyboards),
both of whom are from the Los Angeles band Mini Mansions, Evan Weiss (guitar,
from Junk), Taylor Locke (guitar) and seasoned Sparks drummer Steve Nistor on
drums. Ron and Russell were there as
well, of course! Their outfits were coordinated stripes, a look subsequently
adopted by many fans. Ron stood out in an elegant striped jacket and tie, while
Russell’s striped top worn with loose cut-off pants over bare legs and black
shoes with red laces divided opinion everywhere. They played four songs from Hippopotamus
('What The Hell Is It This Time', 'Hippopotamus', 'Edith Piaf Said It Better
Than Me', 'Missionary Position') and nine of their best-known numbers. As
elsewhere on this tour, the band’s energy, enthusiasm and enjoyment were
evident and infectious. They were greeted and applauded as warmly as ever, but
shortly after their set the heavens opened for an epic rainstorm. Fortunately, as we know, Sparks are
waterproof so 'nothing of a liquid nature was gonna mess with them'! Or, as
Sparks commented on their ‘Helsinki, kiitos!’ post, thanking fans for their
warm welcome, ‘Never Turn Your Back On Mother Earth’! At least Sparks-loving festival goers went
away happy. Although the second Hippopotamus
tour of 2018 did go to Scandinavia, playing in Norway, Sweden and Denmark, it
did not this time stop over in Finland.
New tour, old haunts
Of course, all
the dates for the 2020 tour in support of the widely acclaimed new album A
Steady Drip, Drip, Drip had to be postponed because of the ongoing
coronavirus pandemic, as did the rearranged dates in May 2021, but Sparks made
the brave decision to go ahead with the tours of the US and Europe in April/May
2022. The European leg was extensive, and featured concerts in Oslo, Stockholm,
Copenhagen, Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius as well as in Helsinki on 3 May, at the
Kulttuuritalo, where they first performed in 1975. Taking advantage of the
extra day between gigs, two pre-show photos on the official website featured
once again Russell’s liking for the Moomin stories. This time he is pictured
standing before a picture of the mischievous Little My on the window of the
Moomin store, and with a large model of the cold, lonely Groke, who has clearly
found a friend at last (their expressions in this one are remarkably
similar!) An added bonus was a picture
of both Russell and Ron on the stage of the Kultturitalo before the show.
This event
surely brought back memories for both the boys and anyone who was fortunate
enough to be there 47 years previously!
When Russell referred to this during the concert, Ron bent down and put
his head in his hands in disbelief, while a fan at the front of the audience
enthusiastically waved his original 1975 ticket, to Russell’s delight. The
other members of the superb five-piece band (guitarists Evan Weiss and Eli
Pearl, newcomer Max Whipple on bass, Steve Nistor on drums and Tyler Parkford
on additional keyboards) were suitably impressed! As elsewhere, Finnish fans
were surprised and pleased at the set list, which opened with ‘So May We Start’
(from their recent award-winning movie, Annette), and mixed songs from
every decade of Sparks’ career, including ‘Wonder Girl’, ‘Tips for Teens’,
‘When Do I Get To Sing My Way’, and some numbers seldom performed live (‘Under
the Table With Her’, ‘I Married Myself’, ‘The Shopping Mall Of Love’, and
‘Music That You Can Dance To’). In fact, two of the latter produced moments
cherished by fans throughout the tour: Russell gazing lovingly into a hand
mirror in ‘I Married Myself’ and Ron’s spoken narrative in ‘Shopping Mall’,
especially the intonation and fist pump of the repeated ‘Yeah’. The Encore
finished with an emotional rendition of ‘All That’, which, together with the
hilarious ‘Lawnmower’ and the operatic ‘Stravinsky’s Only Hit’, were the only
numbers from A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip. The audience were
apparently a little reserved though very appreciative at first, but were on
their feet dancing towards the end of the show.
There was no
co-ordinated band colour scheme this time – Russell dazzled in bright yellow
pants paired with a short dark woollen jacket accessorized with a Hello Kitty
pin, while Ron wore a sombre outfit of a long, collarless coat and loose,
wide-legged pants (with no tie!). The rest of the band were dressed in
unobtrusive dark casual wear. At one
point, Russell donned a nautical cap (ylioppilaslakki) worn by high school
graduates in Finland which is popular in May Day celebrations. In fact, hats
were a bit of a feature on this occasion: guitarist Eli Pearl wore his beret,
and Steve Nistor on drums also, unusually, had a hat. Another pleaser for this
specific crowd was Russell’s speech in Finnish, once gain listing his
particular Finnish favourites. His tastes (for salmiakki, cookies, reindeer and
Marimekko) have not changed much over the years, it seems. As usual, the
audience were impressed and delighted.
New collaboration, old friend
A long and
glorious career stretched between these two Kulttuuritalo concerts, and, with
the Edgar Wright documentary, The Sparks Brothers (released in summer
2021) and their own musical movie, Annette, chosen as the film to open
the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, Sparks were riding higher than ever in the music
firmament. Their activities in 2022 included another link with Finland: the
release of ‘Your Fandango’, their collaboration with Todd Rundgren (who
produced their first album), is accompanied by a stunning video by Finnish
media artist Liisa Vääriskoski,
in which an elegant woman in an eighteenth-century portrait comes to life and
embarks on an Alice in Wonderland-like excursion through fantastical scenarios.
Visually gorgeous and characteristically humorous, the video is a surreal
collage of images, including various cameos of Ron, Russell and Todd, that
brilliantly complements the complexity of the music.
Latte off the menu
The
European part of the 2023 world tour, featuring songs from The Girl Is
Crying In Her Latte, did not reach Finland, perhaps in part because of
appearance commitments at festivals and because an extensive programme of
concerts in the US and, later in the year, Japan and Australia, lay ahead. It
seems, at the time of writing, that the 2025 Mad! tour will not play
there either, but it is always possible that new dates will be added. Finnish
fans certainly hope to get to see their heroes play live again soon!
Penny Brown
March 2025
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