The Final Countdown          02/10/2013

I rolled in my bed so long the bus had arrived to the venue until I finally fell asleep. I was feeling so restless thinking of all the things that has happened and all the lovely people I've met on this journey. I lift myself up and walk with sleepy steps towards the doors by the entrance. Some guy comes up to me before I get inside  asking for signing and a photo together…hope I didn't look too sleepy in that pic. 

Our lovely merch-guy leads me to my backstage and what a luxury - all the bands have their own room, own shower and toilet. Yes! And when I get to the catering area a friendly faced lady comes up to me asking do I want scrambled eggs and bacon. Today I feel so light and happy even I didn't sleep so long but I feel really good. 

Me and Janne go have a walk to the huge mall next to the venue. Just when we are crossing the street  Janne notice he's forgotten his wallet. So I continue solo and while waiting gym turn at the cash automat Eero comes to the mall by accident. We start our hunt for a white paint  that we are supposed to use at tonight's show. After over an hour search still no sign of face paint so we decide to return back to the venue.

 Because it's the last night we have to do some trolling(= a joke for the other bands) and have a big party. I'm going to release the beast seriously so there's going to be a lead singer totally out of control tonight. 

Again I'm teasing people by taking photos all the time but it's understandable when it's the last chance for getting memories that I can take a look later. I do the similar kind of masks for myself and the guys as  Powerwolf has. Then I got the devil horns that flashes red-light. Off we go to the stage. I make peole shout "Hail, Hail to Majesty!!!!", we change the "Kingdom" into Wisdom during the song and in the end thank for Powerwolf. Thank you so much Essen, this was the best show in the whole tour and you were so great audience, love you!!! 

During Majesty's show Janne, Eero and pyry go running on the stage only with their boxers on and tech-crew starts taking the drum parts off in the end of the show…haha! I would've love to see Jan's(drummer of Majesty) face when that happened. Janne and Pyry decides to surprise Powerwolf-guys on their way to the stage and I video tape it. They go standing naked on the sofa and be still like soldiers looking at the sealing. Powerwolf surprise us, they're totally having fun with this. You can see everything on the tour blog-video when it comes out.

 The last troll - Battle beast, Majesty, Wisdom and Goat enter the stage (some naked/ half naked) during Powerwolf's last song of the show. It was such fun!!!!! Then it's time to start the party for real. 

After drinking everything that's in the fridge we head to some rock/heavy-bar, dance, bang our heads and get wasted…Buss call is at 5am and we are supposed to spent the next day at the airports of Düsseldorf and frankfurt until we end up back in Finland….When we get back to the bus from the bar the guys walk me to my bunk to sleep until it's time to wake up…….thank you for taking care of me! When you haven't drank the whole tour it is easy to get hammered.

Thanks to MAJESTY - Dear Tristan, thank you for the conversations we've had, the cigarettes and thank you for being such a free spirit! 

Tarek, thank you for being our 'tour-manager' and being such a calm and friendly person!    

   Karsten, I remember talking with you in the mornings especially on the first block and you seem like a talented writer, so hope I get to read the book you're working on :) Keep on writing!!       

   Robin and Jan, thanks for being such a nice guys and keep on rocking! 

Thanks to WISDOM - Lovely Gabor(mr.Big), thank you so much for being who you are, the talks we had about life and music and the advice you gave for singing. You are an amazing singer and one my favorite male vocalists of all times. 

Thanks to Gabor(mr. Smith) for doing such a great music and you seemed really nice person, unfortunately we didn't get so many chances to talk. 

Maté(bass) and the drummer Balazs, it was a pleasure to meet you and wish you all the best. 

   Maté the guitarist, you are very talented musician and a great guy, keep on being the best! 

Thank you POWERWOLF, for having us on your tour and meet such great guys as you are! 

Thank you Goat for being such fun person to be around with and I will finish the drawing for your tattoo as soon as I got some spare time. Thank you Jens for being the father figure, a friend and one of the best bus drivers I've ever known. 

Thank you ASHES OF ARES, it was such a pleasure to get know guys like you!! Wish we get a tour to the US as soon as possible and we get to meet again. 

Thanks for the tech-crew and the people who made all of this happen! Rock on!!

After getting hime it has been hectic that I haven't got time to concentrate in anything else but rehearsing songs, singing, teaching my vocal-students and getting back to my new dear hobby, boxing. My apology for getting this last episode written of the great 2013 tour with Powerwolf/Ashes of ares/Majesty and Wisdom <3

With love                     -N

Can I use the toilet?  - Belgium        01/10/2013

Now I got the best or at least the longest sleep - I wake up three o'clock, we have to get out of the bus at the front of the venue 'cause there's no space for our bus. So as quickly as I can I take my stuff and go in to the club BIEBOP we're supposed to have our show tonight. It appears we have no exit from the backstage outside except the stage so we have to get out from there after our show between the changeovers.

 The backstage is small, well not small for one or two bands but four. And there are jost one shower and a 'toilet'. A toilet where you can't do anything but pee or else the coincidence is not going to be very nice. No sink in the toilet, no use for that anyways…actually washing hands is the least that would be nice after using the toilet seat. So here we all are like fish stuffed in a can in peace and trying not to step on anyone's toes. We have dinner just starting when we get our soundcheck started. Nice and quiet supper…..NOT! But we've use to it already. 

Oh, I'm so sad this tour is going to end….but in the other hand I'm so happy to go home and see my family, friends and the most my cat I've been missing so much. I decided I'm going to talk with the bus driver the last night we are driving to the airport because we use to have so good conversations on the first block of this tour and now haven't got the time and the bus has been different - I can't get to the front from the lounge as in the last bus we were traveling with. 

It's a small venue, maybe 500 people fit in the most but it doesn't bother me. Actually in smaller venues there is always so intimate atmosphere with the crowd so this night is hopefully going to be like that. Even though my voice worse than yesterday, dry and tired, I'm going to sing the best I can and hope the crowd likes our show. 

Good evening Belgium! Are you having a good time?? YEAH!!! Are ready for some BATTLEBEASTHEAVYMETAL???? YYYEEEAAAHHH!!! IT*S GREAT TO BE HERE WITH YOU GUYS AND ESPECIALLY IT'S GREAT TO BE….OUT ON THE STREEEEEETS!!!! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! The crowd is wonderful and even though it's hot as in hell I see the fists going up, the heads banging and screaming mouths. 

Now starts the tricky part - Showering while Majesty playing, getting out from the backstage after their show and getting my transmitter of the microphone back to its case where it belongs. Lovely Goat makes it happen, I mean the transmitter-part. Outside we meet some fans and go have some pizza/kebab from the restaurant next to the venue. We have to wait until 1am for our bus so the next I do I'll go to the merchandise-desk to meet people and hear the rest of Powerwolf-show.

 Hanging by my computer and when I go to the toilets something funny happens - every toilet is taken except one, but there's no toilet paper. So I wait and there comes up a guy going to the toilet and I tell him the situation and he's like 'would you like me to go get you some toilet paper? Me:'For sure!' and he goes downstairs and brings some staff guy with toilet paper. Then after the toilet incident I go downstairs and this same guy who helped me to get the toilet paper comes up to me asking if we could have a picture together. Haha! Of course I say. 

Not for long the saint triangle BB/M/W are in the bus and our journey to the last venue begins. Oh no, we I hear we left someone behind - we have already been driving like half an hour and we have to go back because we forgot to take our merchandise guy with us. He must have gone to the toilet or something while we were asking around is everyone in. So our lovely Haxi is now in the rain all alone pissed off. 

Happy ending! We get him in the bus from the venue and the journey starts again. This time I just go tell the bus driver I'm going to travel with him in the front the last night. I watch the iron maiden-dvd for few minutes more and now in my bunk writing this blog….my eyes are getting heavy….ok, I might have written enough of this day….tomorrow is the final…………be prepared.

-N

Hello Halloween!            31/10/2013

I wake up after one in the afternoon my throat soaring and don't know where we are. All I see is signs of McDonald's, Burger king , Eroticmarket etc. so there's everything for everyone. The venue is really big this time and we have the half of the place as our backstage. The catering is the best so far: there's strawberry-cake, chocolate in different forms, bread and cheese etc. Only thing that's bothering me is here's really cold inside and I have to keep lot of clothes on. But otherwise this is luxury.

Today is halloween so there's going to be a lot of scary costumes, painted faces and people in good mood. Even I've slept so long I'm still tired and I fall asleep on the soft couch. My throat is worse than yesterday, so we'll see what happens during the show. This kind of problems make me nervous, I can't even talk properly.

Without any complaining we go and have a blast with the Halloween-audience and they don't let us down. Thank you Geiselwind!!!! I go to a restaurant next to the venue and have a quiet dinner on my own then back to the backstage and merch-desk. Some people from nuclear blast (Kris, Greg and if I remember directly Jenny)has arrived here, only they missed our show because of a traffic that was on the way. Hahaa, I find boxing gloves, now it's time to kick some ass. There's some video material of me kicking the guys ass ;) Or more like their bellies. 

Again no possibility for shower today…let's hope tomorrow I get there! Outside the bus I see some of the powerwolf-crew has put on a fire. I go there for a while and it's a great way of ending this night in the fire light…

Sleeping…at least trying.

-N 

Good morning Leipzig 30/10/2013

The saying 'after a good night sleep you'll feel better' isn't bullshit - I'm like a new person when I wake up even though the waking part is difficult for start. My throat is hurting so this day is going to be interesting. But the sensitive state of mind is gone so that's good.  Why can't I be well already, this is really getting to my nerves…but I find the catering and coffee, now the day is getting better. 

I start my day by teasing people with camera. Powerwolf's still in Prague or on the way to the venue so while waiting we have a line check and I take photos of everyone and everything. I feel like I have to go for a walk and try to find something to take photos, village or suburb. After twenty minutes walking I there's been nothing but factories or old factories around. One old factory that's next to the venue, I got cool pictures from there and I saw there some kind of model photo shooting going on. 

Back to the present time - finally I find some restaurants, kiosks and markets etc. I see a lot of interesting things to photo and hope I find back to the venue. My instinct wasn't wrong - I find myself back and now Powerwolf has the soundcheck going on….At dinner time in no time I realize again I'm left out of food when I go to the catering, aaargh! The lady who's in charge of the catering is surprised because she thought she had asked food enough for the catering. 

The show goes pretty well and the audience again is great but my voice is getting really tired. After six weeks touring without a real recovery and being sick the whole time - the results of that all is starting to show. Even though I have problems with my voice I do everything I can to deliver the best of me to the audience every time no matter what.

Thank you Leipzig, we love all of you, thanks for the support!

The show is over and the catering-lady brings some bread and grill sausage backstage, yes that's what I need right now...Not for long I'm crawling to my nest....

-N

I love Prague          29/10/2013

Had a wonderful but short sleep last night in the hotel room - I spent so long time in Skype, Facebook and trying write my blog at the same time. The guys were so nice they told I can sleep in the room alone for the night, I really needed my own space, so thank you my lovely band members giving me the chance. 

Eaten a good breakfast I feel good but tired and ready to start the last week of the tour with Powerwolf. Unfortunately I didn't go sightseeing because after the dinner last evening I was too tired to do anything but go back to the hotel and rest. I go have couple of hours sleep in my bunk in the bus and when I wake up and go downstairs I see we have visitors I had not expected. 

Powerwolf-guys are in our bus! Their bus broke, something to do with the breaks crashing. So they travel with us to the venue and hope they get the bus fixed or another bus. The soundcheck is late so all we get to do again is a short line check and we have to wait for the dinner after the show. l hear it's going to be full today which is always a good thing to get a huge party going on. Writing some of this blog and getting ready for tonight's performance and chatting with the merchandise people is all do before the showtime.

 Before I know I'm on the stage before hundreds of people of Prague and the stage is so small I can shake hands with the audience during the show. This is awesome! I would've never guessed they are so crazy but they are. Thank you Prague, I love you people! After the show I go by the m-desk again and we go to the restaurant next door to have a dinner. We find some of the Wisdom-guys from the restaurant and we get the pleasure to enjoy their company while our dinner.

 I'm not feeling the best today so I mostly hang by myself and by the bus until it's time to leave the venue. Maybe I'm in a better mood tomorrow. I don't like myself like this - grumpy and easily irritated. After having a snack at the gas station I go to sleep….next destination: Leipzig!

'Til better tomorrow, good night

-N

Hangover in Hannover        27 /10/2013

The guys in the bus had a little party last night so today's atmosphere is the result of it for some. The roads in here are really narrow so when the cars are parked like however we can't get to the venue with this bus. We take our stuff outside few hundred meters from the venue and start walking. When we arrive to the venue's are there seems to be a second hand market going on right in the middle before the clubs doors. After having breakfast me, Pyry and Eero go for running. This is the first run for me in two weeks so let's see how I can keep up with the guys. In some point I feel like I really need to stop but my pride don't give up - I have to keep up with them unless they're going to laugh at me. No, I don't think they're really going to if I can't keep on running but I want to punish myself a little bit for not exercising, even though I was sick I feel bad conscious about it. 

We run like an hour. On the way we see a bit of the sights and there seems to be a lot of small rivers all around the city. We see this really long park and a mansion in the end of it so of course we go running there. It is boring to run two kilometers just straight road all the time so when we get to the end we take another road back. Just about hundred meters before the venue it starts raining like a huge shower on us. Yes, I survived! I really thought I was going to stop in some point.

 Back at the venue I hear the supporters can't use the shower after seven…so that's nice no shower after show, we take what we can get. We only got time for really quickly soundcheck and when I go to get some food after ten minutes there's no food left so I get pissed off and say fuck it I don't eat all…With empty stomach I start doing my make up early so I would have time to see Wisdom's show before our time is to rise on the hot stage. The people make the night again unforgettable with their furious metal-behavior.

 The supporters merchandise was put in the smoking area in the back so during the show I have to advertise where people can go to buy our stuff. After the show I go eat with Gabor when he asks if I want to find some place and I haven't eaten anything. So after half an hour search we find an open restaurant and I ask the waitress if the kitchen is open and she says yes. We sit by the table and she gives us the menus, after awhile she comes up to us and says the kitchen isn't open. I'm like WTF! You just told us the kitchen is open but she explains they didn't understand what I was asking, haha! So we leave the restaurant and find an asian place and finally get some food. 

The Powerwolf-show is over, the audience has left and we the supporter crew wait for our bus to come but it's not there on time. So we have to make up something to do while waiting. There's this  carriage with wheels so I amongst the others have a bump car, a carrousel  and some bar chair bowling in one. You'll see what I mean when the video material comes out. The bus had got stuck again somewhere so that's why it's not here but after patient waiting and fun side activities the bus arrives and we can start the off-day party in the bus. Eero talking with movie trailer-voice and calling whiskey god Tarek isn't a bad way to start…..Tomorrow it's free time in Prague, yihaa!

-N

WroooommWroooom...I hear the engines howl - What a sweet sound to my ears    26/10/2013

I come out the bus and feel the warm breeze of wind - There's at least twenty degrees or more and makes me feel like we are back in the beginning of summer. I slept at least twelve hours last night so it's two o'clock and I'm still tired, maybe I'm still sick a little bit because I feel tired all the time. I decide today I go for a walk around and see the sights or whatever I find in Speyer. The venue is next to an airport for small airplanes. After couple of cups of tea I hear from the one of the WISDOM guys that there's a hotel room for each band for showering at the hotel of the TECHNIK MUSEUM SPEYER. I go ask the way to the hotel from the bus driver and it should be ten minutes walk from this venue. 

I start my adventure by finding my way out of the venue area. On the way trying to find the hotel I find something way better - the museum! I see huge aircraft-plane and walk towards it. Next I see is a gate open that someone's accidentally left open, I look around no one's looking, so I walk in. I'm glad I did! There are huge and small airplanes, marines, boats, vehicles all sorts from different times etc. I take lot of pictures, climb up to the jumbo jet that's got two floors and I go into the marine and suddenly I've been there for two hours. No one came up to me telling I should pay or anything, haha! Fine by me, I got more excitement in my life again by sneaking in. The problem reveals to be how do I get out - there's no exit-signs anywhere or something that shows the way out. Now I have to figure out how to ask from the information-spot about the exit without sounding like a person who's sneaked in. So I take the brochure of the museum from the shelf and go ask the way to the hotel, because this place is so big and I have no Idea of the direction. So the guy tells me the way out of the museum area to the hotel and I'm free.

 On my way back to the hotel I see the bass player of Wisdom Maté outside the museum area and says how he wants to get in and I tell him about my secret sneaking in. We walk back to the venue and it's time for soundcheck. WISDOM sounds really good even though Gabor says his voice isn't in the best shape today. His got really original sound in his voice that I haven't heard before, really cool in my opinion. 

Then it's dinner time - pork steak with onion and stuffed oven potato - deeeelicious! This time I break my rule and eat two hours before the show, I just can't resist. I go have a nap before I have to get ready for tonight's show. This night is going to be CRAZY! There's going to be over thousand metal heads shaking the roof with us, nothing can go wrong. Oh yes there can go something wrong - Janne's keyboard system crash's for couple of time. But that's life, shit happen. Actually if there happens some technical problems during the show it's more interesting to watch for the audience I think - how the band is going through the problems and still doing a great show…it's awesome. It is hot as in hell again on the stage but it is great - sweat dripping, screams echoing and big crowd banging their heads. At the merch desk there a lot of fans coming up and some are asking where the other members are - they usually go loading out after the show and my work is to be at the merchandise desk. Thank you Speyer, you F******** awesome and beautiful to watch your fists up! It's time to move the bus in Hannover - here we come!!!!

-N