QUICKIE OF THE WEEK: A short interview with Annika Jalkanen (Memoira)

written by Marko Jakob


Pix666: Hey Annika. Thanks for your time. How are you doing these days, are you alive and well? How are the other guys of the band doing?

Annika: Hello everybody and thanks for having this interview! We all are doing very well. We are alive and full of energy.


Pix666: Please tell the readers a little bit about when you realised that you wanted to become a musician and what were the deciding factors to start a music career. Who are your idols?

Annika: I have sung for all my life so singing has always been very natural thing to me. I thought about musical education for 20 years, but I didn´t have enough courage to apply in the school. But now I´m finally gratuating as a popjazz singer in this spring.

In my youth I listened a lot for example Bon Jovi and Alanis Morrissette. When getting to know the metal music, my first idol was Anneke van Giersbergen. I wanted to sing like her and do what she is doing. She was an inspiration for me to join in my first metalband For Selena and Sin.


Pix666: After a long break, Memoira returned in 2018 and you joined the band as the new singer. How did the contact with Jani and Lassi come about.

Annika: There is this finnish music forum in internet and we contacted there. I was searching for a band and Jani was searching for a singer.


Pix666: The first release you were involved in was the video for ‘Dawn Of Time’. Some time later the album “Carnival Of Creation” and the second video ‘Shooting Star’ came out. I am overwhelmed by the great production and your power. How satisfied are you with your work and the album?

Annika: Thank you! Yes, I´m really satisfied with all of those. The whole process of the album took almost two years and had it´s own little difficulties but we managed to have a great album. I´m glad I have improved my singing in these past few years, thanks to my great singing teachers. And of course when you do what you love, everybody else can feel it too. Right? 🙂


Pix666: How do you create your songs? Do you have a certain plan, a special way of doing it?

Annika: Mostly Jani and Lassi comes up with the basic riffs and then I start to think about lyrics and melodies and we go through those with Lassi. In the end the whole band arranges the song in the rehearsals. But I´m sure that fortcoming songs will be created a bit differently because we want to use the whole potential what we have in this band.



Pix666: Were there any complications with the video shoot ‘Shooting Star’ in connection with the Corona Pandemic and were you allowed to play a concert for the album release?

Annika: There wasn´t any difficulties to shoot the ‚Shooting Star‘ video because the situation with Corona Pandemic in Finland was quite ok then. Also we had a really small group doing it and had no difficulties with social distances etc.

But we weren´t alllowed to do the album releasing concert because situation got worse in the autumn and the date just went further and further. But finally we got a chance when we started to work with Joonas from JVR Agency Oy. We had our live stream concert where we played the whole album.


Pix666: What are your plans for this year? It’s about time to perform your energetic songs live in front of an audience on a full tour, isn’t it? I think the fans are waiting for that for quite a long time.

Annika: Yes, we would love to go on tour in this autumn but as we all know, this Corona Pandemic situation is still so unsure and it´s hard to make plans far into the future. But if there is going to be any change for touring we are ready!


Pix666: In the meantime, you have tried the experiment ‘streaming concert’. How was this experience and where can the fans watch the concert?

Annika: Yes, as I mentioned earlier we had live stream concert on 30th of January 2021. The expierience was awesome! Of course you can´t get the interaction with the audience but form e I got used tot he cameras and managed to have the feeling of live gig. Everything went very well and we had amazing talented crew working with us and making the whole project to come true!

We couldn´t be more happier and it really left us energy to do more streams and of course live gigs, tours and also more music!  You can watch it by bying a ticket. With the ticket you get an access to our behind the scenes footages too! Link to the shop is below.



Pix666: Will there be more singles and videos from the ‘Carnival Of Creation’ album, or have you used the crazy past months to write new songs?

Annika: There might be something coming up later this spring… and yes, we have started to write new songs.


Pix666: What else do you do besides the music during the contact restrictions? Do you have any interesting hobbies? Or is music simply everything in your life?

Annika: Actually right now most of my time goes with my music studies and on top oft hat I do music therapy studies in the university.  Beside the studies I sometimes do voice over works which is an another way to use my voice professionally. I also try to go for walks many times a week and to do some muscle training now and then.


Pix666: Do you have any other news, that you would like to share with the fans?

Annika: Stay positive and keep believing this whole situtation will be over some day! Don´t forget to listen and support music because times like these we need it more than ever. Please follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube and listen our music via Spotify etc.

And if you want to experience live music, the best way is to buy a ticket to our live stream concert. I´ll guarantee you won´t be dissapointed. Thank you for your support by far and stay healthy!


Pix666: Thank you very much for the interesting answers – Good luck with your music and stay healthy!!!


https://www.facebook.com/MemoiraOfficial/
https://www.memoiraband.com/
https://www.youtube.com/user/MemoiraOfficial
https://open.spotify.com/artist/Memoira

Tickets to live stream concert: https://bit.ly/2JtJwRE

photos © Ville Ketonen, Terjo Peltola and Memoira