Pori-based jam band Syöttökäärme consists of Juho Toivonen (vocals, guitar), Heikki Hautala (guitar), Erik Ekholm (guitar), Juuso Laine (bass), and Nuutti Palonen (drums). They were jamming out and riffing for two cold days straight, Grateful Dead- and Can-style, and kept the best versions. They had joy, they had fun, and the resulting album is out now on Apila and The Sampsons.
skug: Syöttökäärme just released their debut album. How do you remember the recording of this album?
Juho Toivonen: Yeah, it was two days of absolute chaos in Reposaari, which is basically a windy rock in the middle of nowhere. Nuutti lives there with his family, and while we were trying to record, the radiator in his house decided to break down. So, naturally, instead of focusing on the music, Nuutti at times had to deal with a freezing house and a busted radiator. Erik, our guitarist, was also running the recording sessions, which sounds like a disaster waiting to happen, but it worked. He was balancing between playing and handling the recording gear, which is about as fun as it sounds. Despite the distractions and small technical issues, Erik did a pretty solid job. We recorded about a gazillion takes of each song because they’re long and repetitive, and you can’t just half-ass those. You’ve got to completely give yourself over to it, otherwise, it’s just noisy goo – and not in a nice sense either. You have to let the music beat you down a little before it starts to sound right.
When did you start Syöttökäärme? Why did you decide to form a band? How did you get to know each other?
We started a couple of years ago, mostly because we wanted to play music we actually liked instead of wasting time on stuff we didn’t care about. If it sounded good to us, we figured it’d sound good to someone else. Plus, we already knew each other – Pori isn’t exactly a metropolis, so it’s hard not to run into the same people over and over.
You’re from Pori. Do you consider yourselves part of a Pori music scene?
Yeah, we’re part of it whether we like it or not. Pori’s music scene isn’t huge, so you’re kind of stuck with everyone.
Are there other bands or people around you that you feel kinship with?
Circle’s one of our favorite bands, even though we sound nothing like them. But there’s a shared spirit. We all get along – mostly because there’s no one else around.
Do you guys have backgrounds in other bands?
We’ve all been in other bands. Heikki was in Sokea Piste, a Finnish punk band that was probably too good for this world. Erik and Juuso played in Saijaa Saijaa, and Juuso was also in Kakkahätä 77, which is exactly what it sounds like.
When you started Syöttökäärme, did you have a specific vision of what kind of band you wanted to be?
Yeah, we had a vision: play the same riff until we physically can’t anymore. We have a rule: three chords are okay, two are better, but one is perfect. We’re not trying to win any songwriting awards, we just want to get stuck in and let the music beat us down a bit.
Krautrock seems to be a big influence on what you do, especially Can.
Sure, our hometown’s music scene is basically one big love letter to German kosmische musik. I think everyone in the band’s got a couple of those records collecting dust somewhere. Juuso and Erik are full-on Deadheads, always talking about some bootleg live recording from 1974 like it’s the best thing since sliced bread. I’m more into experimental stuff, Flying Nun records, and noisy rock. Heikki’s still living in the hardcore world, and Nuutti, well, if it grooves, he’s happy.
Were there other bands who influenced your sound too?
We’re basically a bunch of music nerds, so yeah, influences are all over the place. Bad Vugum, Brainbombs, The Clash, Pierre Schaeffer, Wu-Tang Clan – it’s all in there, somewhere. On the way to gigs, our playlist looks like someone took a radio station hostage.
How close is what you do on the album to what you do live?
It’s close enough. The album captures a moment, but live, we stretch things out a bit more. You know, to keep it interesting. Or maybe we just forget how to end songs sometimes. Hard to tell.
Are your pieces composed as songs, or do they come from improvisation? Is what you do more about jamming or about songwriting?
Most of it starts with us just jamming and seeing what sticks. The songs eventually get some kind of structure, but they’re not exactly composed in the traditional sense. Erik likes to make things more complex, but me and Heikki are happy when it’s just one dumb riff going on forever. We don’t overthink it.
What are the future plans for Syöttökäärme? More live gigs or perhaps working on a second album?
Well, Erik’s off hiking in Lapland right now, which sounds lovely and all, but once he’s back, we’ll start working on new material and rehearse for our next gig at Oranssifest in Helsinki. After that? Who knows. Probably more songs, more beer. Same old.
