Hard Rock Hallelujah

[Gazz]

Finns shocked by Eurovision band

Finland's controversial entry for this year's Eurovision Song Contest - a heavy metal band called Lordi (The Lord) - has upset many Finns.

The band members wear scary masks, which they refuse to take off, and the lead singer wields a chain-saw.

Their song Hard Rock Hallelujah is a radical departure from the folk songs usually associated with Eurovision.

Finnish online chatrooms are full of comments from people concerned about their country's reputation abroad.

Some Finns have even asked the president to intervene.

But Lordi was a people's choice: their hit got more than 42% of the votes cast by televoting in the Finnish final.

Devil's advocate?

Lordi, influenced by the American hard rock band Kiss and its lead singer Gene Simmons, has not escaped allegations of links with Satanism.

Rumours have been fuelled by the group's refusal to give television interviews, to take off their masks or reveal their real names.

But in other media interviews, the rockers have stressed their tongue-in-cheek attitude to entertainment. As if to prove the point, they had a hit in Finland with a song called The Devil Is A Loser.

Hailing from Arctic Lapland, Lordi became a phenomenon in Finland with a platinum-selling debut album, Get Heavy, in 2002.

Their compilation album The Monster Show has been released in more than 20 countries.

The Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Greece on 20 May.

Father Mitro Repo, an Orthodox Christian clergyman in Helsinki, described the band's use of the name "Lordi" as "sacrilege".

"I think it's a stupid joke of Finland," he told the BBC's World Today programme, commenting on the country's Eurovision choice.

"Lord have mercy on us Finnish people now," he said, adding that the choice appeared to be a protest by youngsters annoyed that Finland had failed to score highly in Eurovision.

Story from BBC NEWS:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/worl...ope/4926020.stm

Published: 2006/04/20 15:15:31 GMT

© BBC MMVI

I Finland!

[Liam]

I've heard some Lordi IIRC.....not bad, and better than most of the crap they have on Eurovision.

[Summers]

I FUCKING LOVE LORDI.

They better fucking win, shame though, shoulda played Blood Red Sandman.

Edited April 21, 2006 by Summers

[Cactus Drags]

Lordi kick arse, saw them at Download, this will be the best Eurovision ever. I might even vote for them if they're still doing the phone/text vote they did a while ago.

[Turbo Yannis]

Haha, one of my mates told me this yesterday and I thought he was talking shite.

The only way this could be better is if they played Devil Is A Loser.

[K]

I read this on the metalhammer feed last night,

Source: Metalhammer

Band defend their involvement

Dan Bilefsky of the International Herald Tribune recently spoke to Lordi singer and namesake about the uproar crated in their home country after the band was chosen to represent Finland at Eurovision, the European song competition that launched ABBA and Celine Dion.

First, Finnish religious leaders warned that the Freddie Kruger look-a-likes could inspire Satanic worship. Then critics called for President Tarja Halonen to use her constitutional powers to veto the band and nominate a traditional Finnish folk singer instead. Rumors even circulated that the five members of Lordi were KGB agents sent by Vladimir Putin to destabilize Finland before a Russian coup and that explained why they refused to take off their freakish masks in public.

Click here for more information

The backlash migrated to Greece, winner of last year's Eurovision and site of the next contest, in Athens in August. An anti-Lordi movement called Hellenes urged the Finnish government to "say 'no' to this evil group." One young Finn calling himself Suomi (Finland in Finnish) wrote to a newspaper blog saying: "If Lordi wins Eurovision, I am leaving the country."

The lead singer, Lordi, a former film student who goes by the name Tomi Putaansuu when not wielding a blood-spurting electric chainsaw, is philosophical about the uproar.

The affair, he says, has exposed the insecurity of a young country whose language is spoken by only six million people worldwide and whose sense of identity has been dented by being part of the Swedish kingdom and the Russian empire until gaining independence in 1917. Most Finns, he adds, would rather be known for Santa Claus than heavily made-up monster mutants.

"In Finland, we have no Eiffel Tower, few real famous artists, it is freezing cold and we suffer from low self-esteem," said Lordi, who has horns protruding from his face mask and sports black fingernails 15 centimeters, or 6 inches, long.

Source: Blabbermouth

[Liam]

It is immensely sad that people still can't differentiate a truly satanic band from a band that are pissing about for laughs.

The fact that they have caused such an uproar is laughable.

Are Finland one of the countries that has to go through the preliminary rounds, or do they go straight to the final? I hope its the latter.

[John Stones' Paint Trophy]

This almost makes me want to sit through the Eurovision.

Almost.

[Liam]

Terry Wogan makes Eurovision more worth sitting through than most other things on TV.

That and the totally bonkers entries you get.

[a. #63]

Are Finland one of the countries that has to go through the preliminary rounds, or do they go straight to the final? I hope its the latter.

[Summers]

I'll be watching, just for Lordi.

[lanky316]

Watch the Priliminaries and vote them in, the only way to really outrage Woigan, he can't stand anything modern as it is...

The Fins are quite good for these entries though, a few years back I remember nightwish getting pipped to represent them.

[a. #63]

Finally I have a feeling that we will go to success at Eurovision contest

[Bushmeister]

Watch the Priliminaries and vote them in, the only way to really outrage Woigan, he can't stand anything modern as it is...

The Fins are quite good for these entries though, a few years back I remember nightwish getting pipped to represent them.

[K]

The UK entry is ten times scarier than Lordi.

[Liam]

I'll be watching, just for Lordi.

I don't think the UK show the prelims, or so I believe

[John Stones' Paint Trophy]

Isn't there some form of net vote?

I've never heard their music but a heavy metal band in the Eurovision deserves my support.

[Turbo Yannis]

I've never heard their music

[DFF]

I'll be watching, just for Lordi.

I don't think the UK show the prelims, or so I believe

I'm pretty sure last year they had the prelims on Beeb 3 or something like that. Maybe the same this year?

Go Lordi!

[sirdavinator]

The UK entry is ten times scarier than Lordi.