Hello there everybody and welcome back to another instalment of the Band Of The Day Interview! Today for you we have the amazing, fun and too good to miss quartet from Helsinki, Finland who only can be known as Flush!
If could introduce yourselves for us, who are you?
We often ask ourselves that same question. Who are we actually? What does it mean to be a “rock band”? Why do we do it? Are we on a higher mission to provide relief and entertainment to crowds everywhere, or are we just four guys who like to play loud rock songs for living organisms?
Sorry, I digress. We are Flush, a four-piece rock band from Helsinki, Finland. Our music sounds like when Alternative Rock went for drinks with Punk Rock, met a group of Metal sub-genres at the bar, and had a fun time with way too many shots of the Finnish booze delicacy Jaloviina.
How did you all meet?
Börje (drums) and I (Lasse, vocals & guitars) met when we were kids playing cowboys and indians in our backyards. We met Janne (guitars) as teenagers in an earlier band, and he joined Flush early on, as we needed a second guitar. Eero (bass) joined the band a few years ago after Börje suggested he could be the guy to operate the low frequencies. And Eero turned out to most certainly be that guy. The current Flush is the best incarnation of a band that has been around for a few decades already.
How long have you been playing?
We all found our instruments in the delicate teenage years. I was probably the last to find mine (guitar) at around 16 or so. All of us have played in bands more or less all the time since starting to play. It’s just simply the most fun thing to do.
What three words would you use to describe the music you play?
Melancholic, smart, and multidimensional.
What are your musical influences?
Musically, we started by trying to sound like Bad Religion, and every time we have to name one influence only, Bad Religion is that influence. More recently, bands like Biffy Clyro and Deftones have had a big impact on the song-writing. We are children of the 90s alternative scene, so we could just start listing all the nirvanas, mudhoneys, soundgardens, helmets and sonic youths that inspired us, and still be writing the list tomorrow. I am a huge Pavement fan too and don’t think I’d still be writing for and singing in this band without Pavement. Lyrically, I’d like to see us positioned somewhere between Nick Cave and Frank Turner. Don’t ask me why. It’s just a feeling I have.
What’s the weirdest thing you’ve seen during a show?
Tough one… This is not so much “seeing” but a good story in any case: Our drummer Börje has a tendency of getting into random accidents every now and then. Once, during a show, the splinter from a drumstick flew into his mouth, got stuck in his palate, and nearly choked him.
Being away from the stages since last year, where is the one place you’d visit when the restrictions are lifted?
You know what, I want to say any place with live music. I’ve got tickets to see The War on Drugs, so that is a concrete place and time to look forward to. For Flush, we have some places and events in the works, but nothing confirmed yet, as nobody knows for sure yet how restrictions will evolve.
What’s the one record you own but wouldn’t ever admit to owning?
Scorpions – Best of Rockers and Ballads. I have it on vinyl from my childhood. It’s not actually terrible, I think, but obviously not something you’d promote in the alternative/punk scene.
What have you been listening in the last few weeks?
I’ve listened to a lot of Spanish Love Songs. They are amazing, just simply great. I’ve also listened a lot to Mogwai’s latest album as well as Deafheaven’s new one, and their older stuff too. I also found this UK based sludge band called Bossk and they are really good. Oh, and Lucy Dacus Oranssi Pazuzu, Full of Hell, and lots and lots of Deftones too. Rage Against the Machine never does not work.
Are there any releases you have planned in the near future?
Glad you asked! We are releasing a new EP this Fall. It’ll come out in November and is called ‘Conspiracies, Threats and Chaos’. It’s a little heavier than our debut album from 2020 (‘It Began as a Mistake’) and we think people will like. The first single ‘Entertainment’ came out in the end of August and the next single ‘Weak and Wrong’ comes out September 17th. There will be videos too and hopefully we get to do some shows once venues start opening around here. Check out our website our socials:
Check out Flush’s latest release in the form of the single, ‘Entertainment’ below.
Almost Anything Music 