MERRY X-MAS

After a really busy year, meeting lots and lots of wonderful people, playing probably more gigs than ever before in now almost 12 months time and now, all of a sudden, it's christmas. When I realized this last Friday i thought there should be a little x-mas message to all of you who helped making this year a really nice one. Recorded this song my friend Grae J. Wall wrote many years ago, in my living room 'round 3 am on Saturday morning.

I wish you all a wonderful christmas time. Hasn't been easy for many of you (I know this) and for those who had or are still having a hard time: it'll get better! Promised! Here is a little present for all of you  I met on the road, at gigs, in bars, who took care of me, who promoted gigs, the whole lot. As I said - the songs was written by Grae. He said it'll be ok if I upload it on soundcloud. Hope he will not regret when listening to it...

http://soundcloud.com/maekkelae/acacia-avenue

Mäkkelä

Urban Voodoo Motorist

Next day we wandered with our host Reto across the Thun christmas market where we found among other things a donkey singing C & W songs. Which was obviously a highlight on this tour for Clark Nova.

Clark & Reto. You can see the donkey right behind Clark.

I bought a pair of smoked Swiss sausages and decorated my rearview mirror with them knowing I wouldn't have a lot of company on the way to the UK.

My new Swiss friends.

Feels as if this tour is now turning into a very urban voodoo motorist thing. Or how would you describe someone living more or less in a car, decorating it with pieces of meat as for to have someone to talk to and just get's of the vehicle to play songs nobody knows but him?










The duo gig with cello player Tobias at the arts gallery in Bruehl went down nicely but the whole scenery was sort of surreal to say the least. Right outside the door there was a traditional christmas market with all the features a christmas market usually has, inside the gallery mulled wine was served and the exhibition was, well, contrasting this all. Photographies of naked elderly and fat people in bondage, s&m gear, the whole lot, well, you name it. This with us two providing an almost

Tobias Stutz soundchecking in Bruehl.

chamber music style soundtrack to the scenery was for sure different to the usual shows I play.

Leaving Cologne early, cruisin through Belgium in snow storms, arrive in Dunkerque and off to Blighty. Will I manage with driving? Not too much choice, eh?

Found myself in Dover, slightly confused by a satnav that guided me almost to Canterbury before finally finding Barry's house. Barry booked me up a couple of times at his regular "Big Untidy" nights at the Rising Sun Arts Centre in Reading, and now was my host and promoter for this first ever Maekkelae gig in Kent. On top of that he guested as my percussionist (well done, Barry! Honestly!). Place was a pub named The Louis Armstrong and as you might guess a pretty jazz focussed place. I had two slots during the regular monthly night of Zen Bicycle, a Dover based free form Jazz trio.
They were brillant (and i assume they're always), fantastic players and lovely blokes. Definitely a good one to start with. Next morning Barry took me down to the local community radio (DCR) he's involved in building up. Had a little live set and interview there of which you can see one song on Facebook. Must not forget to mention that Barry is quite good at making curries. Yummy.
A great surprise - really, it was like christmas - was the fact that a box with the cassette release from Stourbridge had arrived. What a beauty! Thanks Armed Within Movement Records! Will be hard to sell them. Want to keep 'em all.
  
3 December. Supposed to play the 12 Bar together with Janne Westerlund tonight. The first of five shows we're going to do together from today on. Drove up to St Albans, dropped my stuff at Grae's place there, got on the train down to London. The 12 Bar is on good old Denmark Street and like always I can't resist having a look at the vintage guitar shops and like always I wonder who for chrissake would pay bloody five-and-a-half grand for a Gibson Les Paul. Anyway. Good place. Here's pop history, this being the London Tin Pan Alley in the olden days. If you get down to London - have a look at everything down there. It's not very unlikely this all will be gone in a few years time in favour of another glossy shopping mall.

I think we done pretty ok that first night and Malcolm Kaksois (who booked us there) and his friend Allan even drove us back to St Albans. Really appreciate this. What just comes to my mind is: last time I played here there were those Korean girls who wanted a photograph of me with them and promised to send it... Never happened. So if you, unknown Korean girls, read this: send me that bloody photograph! I deserve it. I don't even mind if my head's not in the picture. I know you were few inches smaller than me.



Next stop Bath. Played there once in 2001 on the first Anglo German Low Stars tour and just remember it was a really lovely old town.

YHA in Bath

As the venue there doesn't provide accomodation we booked a cheap B&B which turned out to be a lovely little, pretty old building on one of the hillsides of Bath, with us having the room right on top of the little tower, overlooking the city of Bath. You can see it. We left the light on.

Failed with sightseeing though. Arrived there just after dark and had to leave around dawn for Glasgow. The show at the Bell Inn was a good one, opening with an intense guitar & bouzouki version of Janne's "Last Of Our Days Together".

I quite liked this one...

I must not forget to mention the fantastic Chicken Vindaloo we grabbed on our way back to our night place and the funny shops we passed by...

Mäkkelä & Nova's adventures. Part II

28 November. Sitting in Denkmal, Salzburg in Austria, a charming little venue.Listening to Stefan Ebner's set. A guy we met on one of our earlier tours here.
Stefan is playing a support set for us and like always he's fantastic.
Good singer, great songwriter. Maybe even better now that he quit drinking. Intense performer. We're still a bit knackered from the drive here which  was surprisingly ok but hey - five hours are five hours and a first idea of winter got us  midway here. It's been pouring down and it still is while I'm here on what looks pretty much to become a quiet evening. Appart from a guy named Dieter whom we soon namert Dieter Tourette. A bit too loud to ignore him which leads eventually to him being kicked out by the venue guys.
Yesterday's off day helped to recharge a bit but it wouldn't be Nova & Mäkkelä if we hadn't found a way to blow this on the way.
Stopped in a village near the Austrian border for a bite which turned out to be big chunks of meat, enough for four of us. Ate it all though. Low price high nutrition.
A detail which so far didn't cross my mind i have to add. This town has got something I used to think Vienna is reknown for. I'm today pretty sure that was wrong all over the years. Thinking of the perfect place to slide into a proper depression or commit a decent suicide Salzburg would be the perfect place. A damp, cold, dreary, conservative and old fashioned city at the foot of whatever alps, particularly in late November. Unfortunately I'm in general a positive character with a tendency towards optimism. Well, most of the time.

Dachau. 29 November. Yes, at the end of the night Salzburg was exactly what it was with our previous shows there. Someone at the bar put something in our drinks and no matter what it was it did it's
job. Woke up at the hotel, felt terrible, had breakfast (that's new - never managed here before) and drove down to Dachau. Not the longest drive but a pain in the neck. Snow, rain, hangover don't match with a three hours drive.
But then there was Cafe Gramsci. One of the finest venues i know in Germany. There is sure no appropriate way to describe that evening. And no - I'm not exaggerating. Played about two and a half including encores, sold one hell of a lot of merch and had the most enthusiastic audience on this tour so far. If you read German have a look at the review posted on weissblau.de and you might get an idea how this went down. Had a traditional Bavarian Weisswurst breakfast the next day before setting out for Switzerland. Keep on going Christian, Kai, Klaus and whoever works there or been down to see us play that night. It was a blast.


And then, dear reader, happened what will go into the history books as Mäkkelä & Nova crossing the alps. See, we're smart secret agents, sometimes people try to tell us not to do certain things which usually is just rubbish. We're booked because we know better i assume. Or because we're exceptionally talented in making fools out of ourselves.

Almost in Switzerland. T'was even better there

This time we decide not to buy one of these bloody overestimeated motorway toll stickers. 33 EUR just for using Swiss motorways. That's a bit expensive, eh? You might object the Swiss possibly knew why they built their motorways. They got harsh winters there with massive snowfall and they're on slightly higher ground than for instance Berlin or London. Don't tell such rubbish to Mäkkelä & Nova.

Weather's been fantastic when we climbed up their first mountian range following a caravan of road construction machines first gear and it took us just an hour. Fantastic view on a tremendous landscape.
Weather turned out to be not exactly as fantastic when we realized that moving ahead with an average speed of 35 km/h might get us into the situation arriving at the venue about 7 in the morning. In other words, we didn't really pick up speed when it got dark and snowfall set in. Skyfall we do know how to handle, snow fall is something completely different. Serpentine roads, navigation on mobile breaking down regularly and a lot of snow did not capture my idea of a fun ride to a gig on a friday afternoon. Arrived there almost in time though after an easy 8 hours drive.

Do you guys really need this, you might ask? Apparently we do. The gig at Mundwerk in Thun, Switzerland was almost as convincing as the one in Dachau. On top of that there was Reto the owner who is just a smashing guy. We got pretty enthusiastic after the gig, this being the end of the Mäkkelä & Nova bit of this tour. Led to me singin karaoke which is among the things you would have to force me on gunpoint to do in other circumstances.

Tuna we spotted in lake Thun. Mother animal and young.

And solo again. 2 December. Dropped Nova at train station Trier (another 8 hours drive) and moved ahead towards Cologne for my afternoon gig with cello player Tobias Stutz. We're speaking about week three of this tour now. Or does it just feel like that?

The coast, the photographer, the day common sense disappeared

We did this on our last year's tour and apparently Mr Clark Nova and me weren't that much of a pain in the neck even though it was the last couple of gigs then. Frank Johannes, an old friend and fantastic photographer accompanied us on the last days of our tour in 2011 and just captured everything that was to capture. On stage, off-stage, backstage, stage of losing it. The result was an amazing documentary in black and white of the daily routine of a singer-songwriter tour in Germany. When Frank heard of us being on tour again he invited himself for a short three day stint including our gigs in Berlin, Kiel and Hamburg. The latter most likely because of the lamb's head soup that became a tradition for us in a Turkish restaurant opposite side of Nachthafen, the place we played this year the third time.

Our tour photographer, Frank

Only seen a few of his shots of this trip so far and they were really amazing. Looking pretty much forward to what's coming there. I think there is a preview on his web magazine BRUNO.

We kicked off in Berlin's King Kong Klub with a decent gig being filmed by Frank's crew and continued to Kiel. Not that much of a drive and with Hamburg the next day (just an hour away) we had enough time to do some sightseeing. Well, there isn't really a lot to see in Kiel, to be honest. They got a pool with seals in it of which we spotted a head for about 30 seconds, a rowing club called KKK and a lot of water.

Seal in Kiel. Shy.

We skipped Clark's suggestion for visiting two big junkyards even though he was pretty enthusiastic about it. Understandable. We're talking about a guy who watches tractor videos on YouTube first thing in the morning. Instead had some local food containing a lot of meat and cabbage before setting off to Hamburg.

After 24 hours travelling in this company I had a remarkable moment in Hamburg waiting for our venue to open. Sat in a bar with Clark and Frank and literally saw my common sense disappear. It just stood in front of me waving me friendly good bye. Gone. Still trying to figure out if I miss it. Here we are.


Good gig at Nachthafen Hamburg though.

Back to Berlin to drop off our photographer and spend an off day there. Been to the pictures to watch ther new Bond. Loved it. Went for a drink at Fabelhaft Bar where we met Erin Lang and her friend Iggy and had a nice chat about particularly whales. Tour is sort of picking up speed.

Next stop Unnersdorf near Bad Staffelstein in northern Bavaria. Always weird here. A great audience anyway and it's a special thing to meet Norbert, the owner. He keeps an old guitar in his kitchen and plays the blues there which is probably the most appropriate thing to do in the solitude of winter nights in a place as remote as this.

Frankonian food. Quite rich. Might be healthy too.

While writing this mails came in with information about new gigs on this tour. Clark Nova and me will have a last one on 1 December in Biel (Switzerland) at the Biotop, I'll do another solo gig in the UK on 13 December in Winsford at the De Bees Music Bar.

Regular updates you'll find on facebook. On top of that a lot of more or less intelligent comments and remarks on what's hapening on this tour.

Afternoon guide to Dresden

Yes, I've been on time. In fact pretty much on time. Arriving in Dresden 2 pm. gave me five hours to kill. This might be boring for you, dear reader (if there is someone like you out there), but following this blog might be of some help for you once you arrive in Dresden with five hours to kill.
First get yourself a car park close to where you're going to spend the evening. This will be tricky later so do it now. Next grab some food. Easy task. You may go to the top end of Bischofsweg where you'll find the restaurant in no. 12. They serve cheap (and I mean cheap) home cooking from 11 am. to 2.30 pm.
Then go to Drop Out Records and buy an album. Or a single. The Ducks Deluxe album is gone now so you will have to take the first Graham Parker & The Rumours or Ian Dury. That's ok I think.
After doing this there are a lot of choices. For my part I went to the Tiki because of their free Wifi. Want to know the November 2012 password? Here we go: sommersonnegurkeneis. Else not really a particularly charming place (if you want that kind of interior rather visit the Tiki Heart in Berlin) but their coffee is ok and the bar-maids are on the ball.
Got enough battery? Got a good book with you? Even better. When the battery dies switch to reading. That's a bit vintage but will do for this afternoon. I recommend one of Ken Bruen's novels. Any of those will do.
Book read? Ok. Go to Thalia. That's opposite side of the road. You're a smoker? Good for you as it's ok to smoke in there. On top of that they serve Radeberger beer from the tab. That's not too bad. Thalia is one of these basically nice little art house cinemas with a café/bar to it. Some artsy nude photography and film posters make for the decoration plus a real rubbish b/w painting of an earth closet in a forest. If you feel inspired by the Ken Bruen you just read, this place is not the worst to be: you can have a double Jameson or a black label Bushmill here.
They also do gigs here but presumably not for me after slagging that painting off which was probably done by the owner himself, his daughter or his best buddy.

... and did I mention? Today is 20 November which means I'm playing Berlin. See you there at the King Kong Klub. Clark Nova will be playing too, something called Urge will do a set and Mr ThomThom Geigenschrey will be guesting on violin on a couple of my songs. But hey - you've seen this anyway on facebook, eh?  

Hit the road again

I know it's moneywise a stupid thing to do to say the least. Why on earth would someone drive down to Prague to play in front of a handful of people, hardly make any money and still consider this a successful start of a tour. Sounds like utter nonsense, complete bollocks.

But hey - how much better can it be to have Pavel Cingl guesting on violin on this first gig, having a small but attentive crowd to play to and try out new material? Playing Nikki Sudden's "Chelsea Embankment" together with Pavel having Phil Shoenfelt sitting in the audience makes up for some extra points... Not to forget the opportunity to have a couple of beers at the incredible "Shot Out Eye", Zizkov's cosiest drinking den if not to say the world's.

Writing this in a Zizkov bakery café on Husitská, having a cup of coffee, accomplishes this more than decent first stop of this tour that will last good four weeks.

Tonite it's going to be the Veraenderbar in Dresden, another one of my favourites. A funny little place on Goerlitzer Strasse, a whacky mash up of vintage shop, folk venue and bar. Located in Dresden's "Neustadt" quarter, a buzzing part of town with numerous bars, little shops, venues, alternative culture facilities and - very important - one of Germany's finest record shops. A massive selection of vinyls and probably the only one in Germany with an extra shelf for "Pub Rock".

Would be fun to see you there tonite. Will kick off around 9 pm.

Maekkelae's Trash Lounge Newsletter 2012

Hei,

es ist mal wieder an der Zeit. Die gesamteuropäische Witterungslage ist scheusslich genug geworden um einen Tourstart als angemessen zu erachten. Warum um Himmels Willen sollte man auch bei erträglichem Wetter losfahren? Den angenehmen Teil der diesjährigen Toursaison hab ich zugegebenermassen ja auch schon während der einen Septemberwoche in Spanien geniessen dürfen. Seitdem gab es vereinzelte Auftritte mit Church Of The Blue Nun, den Très Biens und natürlich auch Solo als Mäkkelä's Trash Lounge. Das mir die Stadt Nürnberg einen ihrer Kulturföderpreise um den Hals gehängt hat war nicht nur nett sondern auch ziemlich hilfreich bezüglich der Generalsanierung des Tourfahrzeugs.

Ich würde mich freuen Euch bei einem der anstehenden Konzerttermine treffen zu können. Zumal ich gerade ganz glücklich mit dem aktuellen Tourprogramm bin. Sollte eigentlich ganz schön werden....

Wasserstandsmeldungen zur aktuellen Befindlichkeit lassen sich relativ regelmässig auf meiner Facebook Seite abrufen, bzw. ab und an auch im Blog. Dort auch der in der Regel aktuelle Stand der Tourplanung.


Terveisin,
Martti / Mäkkelä


17 Nov CZ-Prague, Blaze Zizkov MÄKKELÄ (solo; guest starring Pavel Cingl)
19 Nov D-Dresden, Veraenderbar MÄKKELÄ (solo)
20 Nov D-Berlin, King Kong Klub MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
21 Nov D-Kiel, Prinz Willy MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
22 Nov D-Hamburg, Nachthafen MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
24 Nov D-Bad Staffelstein Unnersdorf, Zur Linde MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
25 Nov D-Würzburg, Wunschlos Glücklich MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
26 Nov D-Fürth, Kofferfabrik MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
28 Nov A-Salzburg, Denkmal MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
29 Nov D-Dachau, Cafe Gramsci MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
30 Nov CH-Thun, Mundwerk MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
1 Dec CH-Biel, Biotop MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
2 Dec D-Köln, Galerie Bruehl  MÄKKELÄ (feat. Tobias Stutz on Cello)
3 Dec UK-Dover, Louis Armstrong Pub MÄKKELÄ (feat. Barry O'Brien on percussion)
interview prior to gig on Dover's community radio dcrfm
4 Dec UK-London, 12 Bar Club MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
5 Dec UK-Bath, The Bell Inn MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
6 Dec UK-Glasgow, Mono MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
7 Dec UK-Stourbridge, Katie Fitzgeralds  MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
8 Dec UK-Brighton, Northern Lights  MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
9 Dec UK-St Albans, The Farmers Boy  MÄKKELÄ & LOS CHICOS MUERTOS
12 Dec UK-London (Mile End), The Victoria  MÄKKELÄ (solo)
13 Dec UK-Winsford, De Bees Music Bar MÄKKELÄ (solo)
15 Dec UK-Wellwyn Garden City, Green Room @ The Doctor's Tonic  MÄKKELÄ & LOS CHICOS MUERTOS
22 Dec D-Nürnberg, K4 Radio Z-Winterfest THE TRÈS BIENS
26 Dec D-Trier, Brunnenhof MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
27 Dec D-München, Trachtenvogl MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
30 Dec D-Nürnberg, Schanzenbräu MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA

Catalonia and the road that lay ahead

And BANG! Here we are again in the middle of this year's touring season of Mäkkelä's Trash Lounge. After a summer that wasn't too busy gig wise it just caught me by surprise to find myself one day in the always pleasant company of Grae J. Wall in the heart of Barcelona, performing for the guys of Mutuo Arts Centre. Being filmed for what turned out to be an amazing live video, just to be back in Germany few hours later preparing for the Church Of The Blue Nun's gig with Phil Shoenfelt & Southern Cross last Friday of September in Nuernberg and a show with the Très Biens lads in Fuerth's good old Gelber Loewe pub on Gustav St one day later
Like always this feels a bit surreal. Changing places so quickly, meeting so different people in such a short time. But that's part of the fun with it I guess...
Thinking about surreal situations: a particularly remarkable one was for sure the late night performance in Figueres. After our regular gig at the Lizard Cafe, Grae, Kev (once more our trustworthy driver & guide through the Catalan wilderness), our host Hermes and me were walking towards what was supposed to be our home that night when Hermes urged us into a cafe that was just about to close. Didn't take him too long to convince us. In exchange for the last beer we were offered Grae and me played a really nice version of Velvet Underground's "Pale Blue Eyes". Not knowing we've been playing the song sitting at the table where Bunuel and Dali reportedly developed the idea of the slit open eye sequence in "Un Chien Andalou". If you ever get there don't forget to pay a visit to this amazing place, the Cafe Royal, and have a coffee there. 

Though most of the gigs are yet to come there are already some unforgettable moments some of which I'm really happy to share with you. Here are links to both videos from Barcelona. my song "Good Friday" and Grae J. Walls lovely "Streets Of Paris". Have a look, they're worth it...

Mäkkelä's Trash Lounge, "Good Friday"

Grae J. Wall, "Streets Of Paris"

This very morning I had a chance to do the mixes for two upcoming pretty special releases at Grell's Highstreet studio in Nuernberg. There will be a UK only 3 way split cassette release done by the guys of "Armed Within Movement" for the tour of Janne Westerlund and me. Third band on this one will be Sea Of Palms from Stourbridge who will also share the bill at our tour gig in Stourbridge. Two previously unreleased tracks (just guessing) of each involved artist will make for an extraordinary release in an extraordinary format. I've been told you can order it through "Armed Within Movement". Should be available from 1st December on.
The other release will be the split single of Mr. Clark Nova and me. It's just a bit unclear if we manage to get this sorted before setting out for our 2012 tour. We're just running a bit late for this but hey - there are still our "X-mas Shows" 26 - 30 December and 2013 with another Mäkkelä/Nova tour around the corner...

As there have been some changes in this winter's schedule find an update on the tour plan in here...

mäkkelä


All the upcoming tourdates in 2012...

2 Nov D-Schwabach, Jungeggers CHURCH OF THE BLUE NUN
5 Nov D-Nürnberg, Tafelhalle (Nürnberg cultural awards) MÄKKELÄ (feat. Tobias Stutz & Robin van Velzen)
9 Nov D-Schwabach, Jungeggers THE TRÈS BIENS
10 Nov D-Filderstadt, Anker THE TRÈS BIENS unplugged
17 Nov CZ-Prague, Blaze Zizkov MÄKKELÄ (solo)
19 Nov D-Dresden, Veraenderbar MÄKKELÄ (solo)
20 Nov D-Berlin, King Kong Klub MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
21 Nov D-Kiel, Prinz Willy MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
22 Nov D-Hamburg, Nachthafen MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
24 Nov D-Bad Staffelstein, Linde MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
25 Nov D-Würzburg, Wunschlos Glücklich MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
26 Nov D-Fürth, Kofferfabrik MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
28 Nov A-Salzburg, Denkmal MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
29 Nov D-Dachau, Cafe Gramsci MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
30 Nov CH-Thun, Mundwerk MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
2 Dec D-Köln, Galerie Bruehl  MÄKKELÄ (feat. Tobias Stutz on Cello)
3 Dec UK-Dover, Louis Armstrong Pub MÄKKELÄ (feat. Barry O'Brien on percussion)
interview prior to gig on Dover's community radio dcrfm
4 Dec UK-London, 12 Bar Club MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
5 Dec UK-Bath, The Bell Inn MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
6 Dec UK-Glasgow, Mono MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
7 Dec UK-Stourbridge, Katie Fitzgeralds  MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
8 Dec UK-Brighton, Northern Lights  MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
9 Dec UK-St Albans, The Farmers Boy  MÄKKELÄ & LOS CHICOS MUERTOS
12 Dec UK-London (Mile End), The Victoria  MÄKKELÄ (solo)
15 Dec UK-Wellwyn Garden City, Green Room @ The Doctor's Tonic  MÄKKELÄ & LOS CHICOS MUERTOS
22 Dec D-Nürnberg, K4 Radio Z-Winterfest THE TRÈS BIENS
26 Dec D-Trier, Brunnenhof MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
27 Dec D-München, Trachtenvogl MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
30 Dec D-Nürnberg, Schanzenbräu MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA

Award-winning summer...

Alright - I've finally given up. There is no such as a silly season. Been thinking all the way summertime is the one to slow down. Few gigs, little work, just some things to take care of. Apparently it's not at all like this.
On top of that I don't really like the heat. In fact it makes every movement a pain in the neck to say the least. If you've been over to the south of Germany the last two weeks you know what I'm talking about.
But hey - it still bears a good surprise every here and now. One of those has been the phone call last week Wednesday when they told me I'm among the laureates of this year's cultural awards of the city of Nuernberg. A truly pleasant, encouraging kick in the arse to get along with all the bugging little things one has to deal with while putting up tour dates for autumn/winter, promoting the annual Badesaison Festival in Fuerth and the usual daily business in Kioski record store, which is currently a place with an average temperature of good 25 degrees celsius. Anyway - I didn't expect this to happen really. As for the award presentation we're just preparing a VERY short appearance with a stripped down Church Of The Blue Nun lineup.

One of the little catastrophes of this hot season (the misprint of the whole first issue of the cover of Janne Westerlund's debut album) resulted in a somewhat funny picture yesterday evening when repacking all the cds. If someone out there needs one hell of a lot of digipacks - just get in touch. The price is negotiable.

Among the nice things to be taken into account I'd list the recordings with upright bass player Isi. We did a rough little version of "Kahden Viikon Mies" for the upcoming split-7" I'll release with Clark Nova prior to our tour this year. She done a real good job I have to say. The song will also feature Mr. Clark Nova on toy piano. After some years there is again a collaboration with Alex Sticht for whom I used to play guitar some time ago. Alex just the other week did the drums on a song which is supposed to be released as a cassette (!!!) by the guys of Carnage Club prior to me and Janne Westerlund playing there.

For those who want to discover some wonderful music there'll be something on in late August. Radio Okerwelle in Braunschweig/Germany decided to air that two hour feature about Martin Newell I did in March on Radio Z in Nuernberg. You can hear this in two parts on air and probably streamed on the internet. 28th and 29th August respectively 2 pm German time..

As it looks for now - thinking of what's confirmed - there will be a quite good solo tour of the UK in December (half of it with Janne Westerlund), another fun mission with Clark Nova in November, the odd gig with my old pals of pub rock outfit The Très Biens and some Church Of The Blue Nun shows. Of the latter let's hope to get some more... A new fun thing are the GoHo Hobos, an acoustic five piece playing very lofi versions of songs you wouldn't even dare to think of. Some of that stuff is also very likely to hit the road.

Here are the confirmed tour dates. Still waiting for the Catalan gigs (most likely with Grae J. Wall) in late September and the Dutch leg of the COTBN tour in October to be confirmed. So it's definitely worth following 9pm Records on Twitter. It's there where the updates will be posted.

7 Sept D-Fürth, Badesaison Kultifest CHURCH OF THE BLUE NUN
8 Sept D-Fürth, Badesaison Kultifest GOHO HOBOS
9 Sept D-Sulzbach-Rosenberg GOHO HOBOS
15 Sept CH-Basel, Cafe Hammer MÄKKELÄ
28 Sept D-Nürnberg, Desi CHURCH OF THE BLUE NUN
1 Oct D-Bamberg, Live Club MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
13 Oct D-Köln, Kultur Cafe Lichtung CHURCH OF THE BLUE NUN
2 Nov D-Schwabach, Jungeggers CHURCH OF THE BLUE NUN
5 Nov D-Nürnberg, Tafelhalle (Nürnberg cultural awards) MÄKKELÄ/CHURCH OF THE BLUE NUN
9 Nov D-Schwabach, Jungeggers THE TRÈS BIENS
10 Nov D-Filderstadt, Anker THE TRÈS BIENS unplugged
20 Nov D-Berlin, tba. MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
22 Nov D-Hamburg, Nachthafen MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
24 Nov D-Bad Staffelstein, Linde MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
25 Nov D-Würzburg, Wunschlos Glücklich MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
26 Nov D-Fürth, Kofferfabrik MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
30 Nov CH-Thun, Mundwerk MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
3 Dec UK-Dover, Louis Armstrong Pub MÄKKELÄ
5 Dec UK-Bath, The Bell Inn MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
6 Dec UK-Glasgow, Mono MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
7 Dec UK-Stourbridge, Katie Fitzgeralds  MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
8 Dec UK-Brighton, Northern Lights  MÄKKELÄ & JANNE WESTERLUND
9 Dec UK-St Albans, The Farmers Boy  MÄKKELÄ & LOS CHICOS MUERTOS
12 Dec UK-London (Miles End), The Victoria  MÄKKELÄ
14 Dec UK-Winchester, The Railway  MÄKKELÄ & SCARLET SOHO
22 Dec D-Nürnberg, K4 Radio Z-Winterfest THE TRÈS BIENS
26 Dec D-Trier, Brunnenhof MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA
30 Dec D-Nürnberg, Schanzenbräu MÄKKELÄ & CLARK NOVA

Mäkkelä's Mitsommer Newsletter 2012

Hei,

es ist nach all dem gefacebooke und getwittere der letzten Monate vielleicht doch mal wieder an der Zeit einen - sagt man da traditionellen? - E-Mail Newsletter rumzuschicken. Und wenn ich so drüber nachdenke sollte ich mich beim nächsten mal noch weiter zurückentwickeln und einen Rundbrief versenden. Na gut, vielleicht überleg ich mir das ja dann doch noch etwas genauer.

Wie schon die vergangenen Jahre ist hier mit dem Sommer die allerlästigste Jahreszeit angebrochen. Tourplanung und Konzerte buchen bis zum erbrechen und das während jeder halbwegs vernünftige Mensch in Biergarten, Eisdiele oder Baggersee abhängt. Heisst das bei Baggerseen eigentlich abtropfen? Schon wieder so eine dieser endlos auftauchenden Fragen die aus übermässiger Hitzeeinwirkung resultieren. Nicht gut. Das mit der Hitze.

Wie dem aber auch immer sei, der aktuelle Planungsstand gibt Anlass zur Vorfreude auf einen relativ geschäftigen Herbst/Winter 2012. Geht wie's derzeit aussieht mit einem Festival-Auftritt von Church Of The Blue Nun (der akustischen Band, die ich zusammen mit Robin van Velzen vor knapp drei Jahren losgetreten habe) beim Fürther Badesaison Festival am Freitag, dem 7. September. Und nochmal Church Of The Blue Nun in einem etwas anderen Zusammenhang dann gegen Ende des Monats. In  Nürnberg in der DESI teilen wir uns einen Abend mit dem grossartigen Phil Shoenfelt & Southern Cross. Das dürfte ein Abend der musikalischen Leckerbissen werden. Ziemlich sicher.
Zwischen diesen beiden COTBN Konzerten wird's eine Mäkkelä's Trash Lounge Solo-Tour durch den Südwesten Europas geben, die sich dann direkt nach dem DESI Konzert mit den Mäkkelä Auftritten zusammen mit Janne Westerlund fortsetzen wird. Genau. Janne Westerlund, mit dem ich drei wundervolle Konzerte in Finnland im Mai diesen Jahres spielen konnte wird sein brandneues Solo-Album "Oran" live in Deutschland vorstellen. Sollte man auf keinen Fall verpassen, da absolut einzigartig. Seit gestern gibt es von dem Herrn sogar eine Facebook Seite. War nicht ganz einfach ihn davon zu überzeugen, kann man dafür ab sofort auch gernhaben.

Wenn die Tourgötter es so wollen wird Church Of The Blue Nun dann im Oktober auch nochmal zwei Wochen auf Tourgehen. Erfreulicherweise vermutlich auch wieder mit Tobias Stutz bei einigen Konzerten am Cello.
Wieder fest eingeplant auch noch die alljährliche Doppelagenten-Reise der Herren Mäkkelä & Nova. In diesem Jahr wohl Ende November und erstmals auch mit einer amtlichen Veröffentlichung im Gepäck. Eine schnieke 4-Track 7" wird da mitgeführt und demzufolge auch feilgeboten werden. Apropos Clark Nova: bei dessen Record Release Party zu seinem ausgesprochen geglückten Vinyl-Meisterwerk "Memory Affairs" wird es auch einen Support-Slot von Mäkkelä geben, Commandante Coltello wird auch dabei sein und natürlich die ein oder andere Nummer des Doppelagenten-Klassikers Mäkkelä & Nova. Ist allerdings schon kommenden Freitag. In Berlin. Im besten Plattenladen dort, de, Piatto Forte.

Im Dezember werde ich wie's grad aussieht dann nochmal die Pferde satteln und gen England reiten. Einige Termine sind bereits bestätigt und einige davon werden voraussichtlich zusammen mit Janne Westerlund sein. Mglw. sogar erstmals einige, wenige Church Of The Blue Nun Termine auf der Insel.

So. Das sollte erstmal genug der vorausblickenden Information gewesen sein. Die anstehenden und bestätigten Termine findet Ihr hier in dieser Mail weiter unten. Ebenso all die sozialen Netzwerkereien in denen ich dann doch relativ regelmässig Neuigkeiten verposten tue. MySpace übrigens nicht mehr oder nur sehr sporadisch. Im Mäkkelä Blog dafür öfter und auf Facebook noch öfter. Ist schlicht am unkompliziertesten.


Terveisin,
Martti




MÄKKELÄ'S TRASH LOUNGE (solo)

29/06/12 D-Berlin, Piatto Forte Recordshop
Clark Nova's Record Release Gig im vermutlich charmantesten Plattenladen Berlins ist definitiv ein ausreichender Grund für eine Berlin-Reise. Befürchte das Ding wird richtig voll. Und ich meine richtig voll. Empfiehlt sich also bei Zeiten einzulaufen. Zeitplanmässig verhält sich das in etwa so:
20:30 Mäkkelä's Trash Lounge
21:00 Clark Nova & Bellman Boys
21:45 HF Coltello
22:15 Mäkkelä & Nova
23:00 DJs

30/06/12 D-Berlin, Galerie Suomesta
Bin höchst gespannt auf diesen hier. Zum einen mal wieder ein richtiger Solo-Gig. Und der auch noch in einer finnischen Galerie in Berlin. Würd mich freuen wen von Euch da zu treffen. Dürfte sich auch was Eure Investitionen in Eintritt und Getränke angeht im Rahmen halten. Ausserdem ist die Galerie Suomesta die ideale Ausweichlösung falls es Euch im Piatto Forte zu eng werden sollte.

CHURCH OF THE BLUE NUN

08/09/12 D-Fürth, Kultifest Badesaison
Eines der schönsten, wenn nicht das schönste Kleinstfestival Frankens. Direkt am Flussufer im Herzen von Fürth gelegen, kann man bei fairen Eintrittspreisen neben grossartigen Acts auch noch eine wunderbare Atmosphöäre geniessen. Bilder davon findet man übrigens hier...

28/09/12 D-Nürnberg, DESI
Ohne jemandem zu nahe treten zu wollen: wer das verpasst hat entweder wirklich triftige Gründe dafür, ist taub oder schlicht ein wenig dumm. Phil Shoenfelt & Southern Cross bekommt amn in Nordbayern tendenziell nicht allzuoft zu hören und dies hier ist eine der wnigen fantastischen Gelegenheiten diesen grossartigen Songwriter Live mit Band zu erleben. Wenn ich nur an die Veröffentlichungen von Fatal Shore, Phil Shoenfelt solo und Nikki Sudden mit Shoenfelt an der Gitarre denke, wird mir beinahe schwummrig. Einfach gross. Ohne Abstriche.

Und hier noch die angekündigten Links

Mäkkelä's Trash Lounge Facebook Page
Mäkkelä on Soundcloud
Mäkkelä's Blog

Church Of The Blue Nun Facebook Page
Church Of The Blue Nun performing for Kanal 21 TV
Church Of The Blue Nun Soundcloud

Mäkkelä & Nova Facebook Page

Janne Westerlund Facebook Page

Surviving on the VR & what's coming 2012

So this was it. The first little tour period in 2012 which went down nicely without bigger damages of health or material. On top of that I met once more a lot of friends I haven't seen for quite some time (thanks to all of you for the hospitality!), a lot of weirdos who just materialize next to me wherever I arrive. There is something mysterious about that...
Anyway - here comes a little episode from the 2012 Finnish tour which I just finished plus subsequently some information what I'm very likely to be doing this year in terms of touring.

The miracles and wonders of traveling.

As a regular in touring Finland I already did experience the numerous blessings of VR, the Finnish Railways. An institution responsible for amazing inventions like the pet carriage on Finnish trains. A designated means of travel for particularly people with an urge to travel with their pets. Once you know these carriages are existing you can clearly recognize them by  the dog pictogram they're marked with.
During this very journey on my mission to play concerts in any possibly imaginable bar on the outskirts of civilization I had the pleasure to learn something new. In fact - as it frequently goes with things one has to learn - nobody asked beforehand whether I'd really want to make this experience. To cut a long story short: I'm talking about kids-playground-young-family carriage. It's one of the secret weapons in Finland's home run to PISA study leadership. In fact an appropriate tool as success proved in the recent past. A space fully equipped with everything to meet the requirements of hyperactive kids: a wooden locomotive, a chute, a selection of toys and books.Unfortunately to my deepest disapproval no earplugs.

These footprints mean trouble

The nasty bit with this is involving traveling musicians in that kind of social experiment. These carriages - keep this in mind for your future trips to the north - are just unobtrusively marked. No kid hazard signs unless you spot the tiny teddy bear symbol once you're heading towards your seat. Worst of all: the lady at the counter at Tampere railway station who took my reservation booked me a window seat on the upper deck of what may be considered a training ground for psychological warfare and subtle torture. Did cost me EUR 8.45 and I'm sure the lady is still smiling about the priceless favour she done me.

Once you see this alarm bells should ring

After making myself comfortable on window seat 74, carriage 3, the first wave of sheer terror starts. Leaving Tampere station towards the north one half year old starts crying, volume and frequency comparable only to some of the meanest monitor feedbacks I had since I started performing music. The overture I just had the pleasure to witness kicking off eventually get's accomplished by a four headed underage raiding party running up and down the aisle.
A quick summary of my fellow passengers on this van gives me serious reason to be worried: merely young mothers and couples with their offspring. One of them just taking the seat in front of me. Situation is getting worse. That little bugger has got an electronic gaming device including state of the art sound system which is immediately switched on giving me an unmistakeable idea of what I consider to be a popular part of the Heavy Metal sub genre Educational Rock Music.
My original plan of being a polite, friendly, traveling songwriter setting a good example dies this very moment. I'm ready to produce the beers I bought for the trip regardless of appearances. The plan of reading a newspaper has gotten pointless by now that the granny of one of the mischiefs has taken the vacant seat next to me trying to cheer up her bored granddaughter. Moreover the monster seated in front of me decided to pull down the blinds which helps me


a) to avoid being annoyed by the view of the probably much overrated sight of Finnish landscape in spring
b) to build up the mood of finding the restaurant car as quick as possible

By this time, dear reader, this train compartment has become a one of a kind combination of madhouse and sound laboratory making some of the most experimental works of Erkki Kurenniemi sound like a lame approach on middle-of-the-road pop music. This all turns out to be finally the kind of challenge I'm not tough enough to cope with. Not with the young father who just now starts reading aloud - even on my seat clearly audible - from a history book for children. And no - I'm perfectly ok with what I know by now about Finnish history.

VR facility run by professional staff. Good.

There are facilities on Finnish trains designated for people in my situation. They're called restaurant cars. VR employs people to work on those and serve passengers alcoholic beverages for tremendous prices. There is a realistic chance to get adequately drunk there and I don't think I'm going to miss out on this opportunity.







So much about this. There are a lot more stories to tell from this tour which will probably pop up in bits in one or another song sooner or later. Thinking about Vincent and his knowledge of the devil's DNA, the lady preparing for Xmas in May and other little details I just can't remember for now. Had a splendid time performing with Janne Westerlund who'll come over to Germany in October to promote his first solo album. That means at least one week we're performing together down here. Another blast was my support band in Rovaniemi, Oskari Heikkinen & Arktinen Voodoo Orkesteri. Four young lads playing a unique set of original songs somewhat between Tuomari Nurmio, Nirvana and Tom Waits. And they do have probably one of the best electric guitar sounds I heard in years. 
Right after returning from this year's Finnish tour I had the pleasure to guest on a couple of gigs of Grae J. Wall & Dez Paradise and my regular tour buddy Clark Nova (the latter just having a new LP out). Had a nice show at KLANGfest Munich with Church Of The Blue Nun and thought this would be it for the summer. Surprisingly there are some more to come. Will do solo guest slots on two record release shows (the Black Elephant Band's on 22 June and Clark Nova's on 29 June) and one or two festival gigs with the Très Biens in July. The biggest part of the next weeks I'll be occupied with booking the tour dates for autumn/winter, recording demo versions of new material and doing once a month my radio show "Radio Suomi" on Nuernberg's finest alternative radio station Radio Z.
The Church Of The Blue Nun will be touring in October as well, there will be a solo tour in Europe early autumn plus a UK stint in December and again Mr. Clark Nova and me will be back on our secret mission in November. Possibly with a brand new 7" release in our luggage.


Here are the upcoming shows. More soon.



Mäkkelä's Trash Lounge (solo)
22/06/12 D-Immeldorf, Weisses Ross (special gues for The Black Elephant Band's record release gig)
29/06/12 D-Berlin, Piatto Forte (special gues for Clark Nova's record release gig)
30/06/12 D-Berlin, Galerie Suomesta

The Très Biens
21/07/12 D-Nuernberg, Kunstverein (Cancer Aid Charity Festival)

Church Of The Blue Nun
07/09/12 D-Fuerth, Badesaison Festival
28/09/12 D-Nuernberg, DESI (with PHIL SHOENFELT & SOUTHERN CROSS)

Mäkkelä's RADIO SUOMI
06/06/12 on Radio Z (7.00 - 8.00 pm)
04/07/12 on Radio Z (7.00 - 8.00 pm)

01/08/12 on Radio Z (7.00 - 8.00 pm)

Tourdates Finland 2012

Playlist of that radio show I hosted last Wednesday...

Here are the songs I played in my Martin Newell radio feature. Not really to my surprise it technically didn't all go as planned but sort of ok though...

Martin Newell - The Greatest Living Englishman
Martin Newell - Before The Hurricane
Martin Newell - Ten Reasons Why You're Not David Bowie And He Is (spoken word/poem)
The Plod - Neo City
Martin Newell - Young Jobless
Cleaners From Venus - Ilya Kuryakin Looked At Me
Martin Newell - The World Of Dandy Leigh
Cleaners From Venus - Midnight Cleaners
Cleaners From Venus - Julie Profumo
Cleaners From Venus - Cardboard Town
Giles Smith - Newell (spoken word)
Cleaners From Venus - Albion's Daughter
Martin Newell - Miss Van Houten's Coffee Shoppe
Martin Newell - Wake Up And Smell The Offy
Martin Newell - The Beer Elves
Cleaners From Venus - English Electric
Cleaners From Venus - Clarendon Lane
Cleaners From Venus - St Overdose-on-sea
Cleaners From Venus - All The Lights In This House
Martin Newell - Home Counties Boy (live)
Martin Newell - Lions Drunk On Sunlight
Martin Newell - A Street Called Prospect
Martin Newell - Goodnight Country Girl
Martin Newell - She Rings The Changes
Martin Newell - A Smashing Bird Like Brenda
Martin Newell - Goodbye Dreaming Fields

Hats off to Martin Newell for what he's doing. Thanks to Jason Cobb for the live version of Home Counties Boy he recorded at the Greyhound, Wivenhoe and Martin for helping with those recordings of his poems. Now go out and get yourself a copy of Martin's "Selected Poems" released by Jardine Press, Wivenhoe

Have a closer look on what he's doing on
www.martinnewell.co.uk
and
www.biannualhaircut.wordpress.com/tag/cleaners-from-venus/

Mäkkelä's Martin Newell Feature on Radio Z, Nuernberg

Hiya! Coming Wednesday night I'll be hosting a radio feature about Martin Newell & Cleaners From Venus on Radio Z, Nuernberg! Tune in for some of the best pop songs ever written!

Radio Z Programmvorschau

one-off in Eckental

Moikka!

Kommenden Sonntag, den 4. März, darf Eckental sich über ein Mäkkelä's Trash Lounge Solo-Konzert freuen. Oder Mäkkelä sich über die Eckentaler freuen. Und nein - Eckentaler sind keine neue Währung die sich unter den Euroschutzschirm drängelt.

JuZ Eckental, 4.3.12, 20.30 Uhr
Mäkkelä's Trash Lounge

Hier noch mehr dazu...

Nähdään,
Mäkkelä

Mäkkelä's Trash Lounge informiert: die anstehenden Konzerte 2012

Hei!

Winterschlaf ist beendet und so langsam räkelt sich der Mäkkelä nach den ersten Sonnenstrahlen wieder. Das äussert sich aktuell in zwei bestätigten Auftritten. Einer davon gleich heute, der andere am 4. März in der Metropole Eckental... Hier die wichtigsten Eckdaten dazu:

MÄKKELÄ'S TRASH LOUNGE (FIN) & BJÖRN KLEINHENZ (S)
Babylon Kellerbühne, Fürth, 02. Februar 12, 20.30 Uhr

Abseits jeglichen sportlichen Konkurrenzdenkens - alte finnisch-schwedische Tradition - freut sich der KIOSKI und das Babylon einen schwedisch-finnischen Abend der deutlich exquisiteren Art präsentieren zu können. MÄKKELÄ, deutsch-finnischer Solo-Performer/Songwriter mit Hang zu skurrilem lofi-pop britischer Färbung trifft auf den in Süddeutschland gebürtigen schwedischen Singer/Songwriter Solo-Performer BJÖRN KLEINHENZ und dessen unter die Haut gehende Song-Juwelen. Ganz grosses Kino!
Zwei aussergewöhnliche Künstler präsentieren die Kunst großen Songwritings in der intimen Atmosphäre der Babylon Kellerbühne. Pflichtveranstaltung für alle Freunde akustischer Songkunst!

MÄKKELÄ'S TRASH LOUNGE (solo)
JUZ Eckental, Schnaittacher Strasse 29, Eckental, 04. März 12, 20.30 Uhr (pünktlich!)

Als sonntägliches Schmankerl und Abschluss des Eckentaler Skandinavien Tages spielt MÄKKELÄ solo im JuZ Eckental in der Schnaittacher Strasse. Akustische Klänge zwischen finnischer Melancholie und eigenwilligem Folksong. Nach der ausgedehnten Europatournee im Herbst/Winter 2011 eine der raren Möglichkeiten Mäkkelä in Franken zu erleben.

Bis bald/terveisin,
Mäkkelä