Ten After Dawn

Hi all!

Another week, another interview! This time with Teemu Salo of local heroes Ten After Dawn. Hope you like it :)

Here's an interview with Ten After Dawn!

1. What was the first record you bought and which was most influential?

the first CD that I bought myself might be “Haloo” album of the Finnish ”Neljä Ruusua” band. My first LP I got from my mother was Deep Purple's "Deepest Purple" compilation. The Music was exciting of course, but the cover was really cool I thought! My mother was working in a record store so already at age of 6 I got my hands onto many different kinds of music. It's impossible to say what music's been the most influential (we are talking about the early days as a little kid now, right?) because I have been thru most of all usual bands from Kiss, Mötley Crue to whatever Metallica's and of course 80-90's dance music to rock n roll and blues classics like the most kids did back then. But at age of maybe 4 very first artists that have really got my attention were Finnish female singers Katri Helena and Paula Koivuniemi! My parents told me that I was just staring the speakers in a trance while listening to them! My taste in music has always been very diverse. I think it's a bit funny when an artist is often labeled as a person to that particular music genre that he/she is working with. Music is an endless wonderland, go and explore it! If you don't like it, turn it off to something else! Or then you might want to give it some time and try it later again.I have my favorites in almost every genre. And there's always so much more!

2. What is the story behind Ten After Dawn?

I had made music with ”ordinary” bands for years already, and at some point it became very frustrating because even when you have talented musicians in your band, it's hard to get that vision thru to everyone what it all should be about. That final big picture. Basicly you have to make all kinds of compromises usually. And usually that doesn't lead you anywhere. For me Ten After Dawn represents much more freedom. It doesn't mean that we don't know who we are or what we want to do with our music, it's all about the idea of freedom. Any art or music is of course mostly about framing the picture what it is all about, otherwise it's free jazz, right?..So..we made some songs with Toni already in..maybe 2005 or smth like that, mostly industrial rock..had other musical commitments back then, but a few years later we thought ‘let's do this’, and we started to realize what we would really like to do with this.

3. How did you come up with the name?

It was just an early morning's idea of mine if I remember right;) ”It's already Ten After Dawn”

4. Who are Ten After Dawn?

The ones who might have something else to give to the world of dark electro than an average one!

5. First thing that comes to mind when thinking of finnish scene is heavy metal and rock. What made you choose such an alternative sound?

We wanted to do basically just something different. As I said before, metal and rock are very old fashioned in many ways genrewise. It still starts from a song and lyrics with us, sometimes it can be a sound, which ever makes me or Toni to have some kind of idea for the song.. But in the end of the day you can take off all the production and usually you'll have a song that is arrangeable almost to any single instrument or style if you would like to!

6. Teemu you are also behind Dark Helsinki, tell us of that and why start it

Dark Helsinki started when we wanted to bring some bands to Helsinki and to arrange club nights too. At the moment we are organising a few events per year with DH. It is a separate from Ten After Dawn organisation and Anna DH is in charge of that. However Dark Helsinki does a part of TAD's management as well.

7. Which artists influenced Ten After Dawn sound?

Ten has been started much as an industrial rock band, and we came from that to this more dark electro sound. Of course artists like NIN were important back then. Also for example IAMX has been one of those to make us understand that you can truly do whatever you would like to in these more electronical landscapes. We are still using some acoustic instruments if needed, anything that fits the idea. We don't want to sound anything else but ourselves, and I think that there are not too many bands you can compare directly to us. Our nordic sense of melodies makes it sound somehow different too, I think.

8. Which comes first: melody, sounds or lyrics?

It can be any of those first ones! Sometimes I can even write a good A4 sheet of lyrics based on some beat in my head, and at the same time I may have a clue of a vocal melody too. What becomes melodies then..I'm a bit strange in a way because I don't particularly have to struggle with them usually..I just start to sing and I will always get some kind of melody..it's usually very easy. It's just an improvising, and then you just start looking for more details fitting to the lyrics.

9. You've done also remix for Solar Fake and vice versa (released on Another Manic Episode), how did this happen?

I just asked Sven if he would like to do a remix for us. I was a bit surprised when he said ”Ok” even without hearing the song first! He had of course heard us playing live as we opened for them in Helsinki already in 2014. Then he asked me a little bit later if we would like to do a remix for their album too. Remixing is fun, hopefully we would have time and other cool opportunities to do some more soon! It's refreshing.

10. Now that Melody ep is out, when can we expect album?

I think you mean ”Best of Both Words” EP (yes, editor)? We have already got some new songs and ideas for the full album, hopefully it will be out in 2018! And before this some singles etc.

11. What are your future plans?

We love to do live shows so hopefully a lot of new live dates! But we have already started focusing more and more on new material now. I'm writing all the time. It's something that I have used to. A way of living for me. We have already got quite a good idea of our full album:)