Lordi

Lordi is a hard rock/heavy metal band from Helsinki, Finland. The concept for Lordi was devised in 1992, however, the band was not formed until 1996 by Tomi Putaansuu (known as "Mr. Lordi"). Members of Lordi are noted for their elaborate monster-like costumes seen during live shows and in music videos. Lordi are also known as "The Finnish Monsters" and "The Monsters of Finland".

Lordi won the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest with 292 points, giving Finland its first ever victory in that contest. Lordi featured on the 2006 MTV Europe Music Awards in Copenhagen when Mr. Lordi presented the award for rock, and they were also the closing act playing their single Hard Rock Hallelujah. They also performed on Britain's Making Your Mind Up for the Eurovision Song Contest. Lordi performed on the main stage at Ozzfest 2007 and later that year toured with Type O Negative and Twin Method until Halloween night.

Early days[]

In the beginning of the 1990s, Putaansuu played in a small band from Rovaniemi. He left the band when the other members didn't agree with the introduction of theatrical elements and KISS-style rock. Putaansuu started producing demos under the name Lordi in 1991 and continued to do so for a few years. In 1995 he made a song "Inferno" and a music video for it as a school project. The video has not been released because Putaansuu is in the video without a mask.

After "Inferno", Putaansuu had a dream. In the dream he was at a concert and there was a skeleton on stage playing. When he woke up, he knew that Lordi should be a Heavy metal band full of monsters. The monster in the dream would eventually become the bassist Kalma.

The rest of the band members met each other for the first time in 1995 in Stockholm, where they had gone to see KISS perform. From the very beginning, they wanted their band to perform with spectacular pyrotechnics, and wearing "monster style" masks. Lordi almost got a record deal in 1999 but shortly after the contract the company collapsed and lost all their money. Finally, the BMG Finland recording company accepted them and in 2002 their first single Would You Love a Monsterman? became a smash hit and not long after that, their first album, Get Heavy, sold 66,000 copies in Finland.

Costumes[]

The monster masks and costumes the band use are made of foam latex. Mr. Lordi's mask was first cast and then glued together piece by piece. The other masks are solid helmets. It takes the other monsters about 20 minutes to put the masks on but it takes about 2 or 3 hours with Mr. Lordi. Mr. Lordi mentioned that their suits still have some original pieces from 1996. He has also said that the suits cost them "a few hundred euros". The band members do each others' makeup.

The monster costumes are such an integral part of Lordi's publicity image that they refuse to be photographed or even interviewed without them, even if in some cases it leads to their own discomfort. Lordi has done interviews without their masks but the interviews are always filmed from the back so that you can't see their faces. During interviews, Lordi speaks English to the cameras, not their native Finnish. In a brief segment on the BBC reporting about the band attending the Eurovision Song Contest 2006, they were shown lounging beside the pool in full sunlight, while wearing their costumes. During the segment, Lordi remarked that the costumes and the heat did not mix.

Lordi have stated that their costumes have been inspired by KISS and Horror Genre. Mr. Lordi himself has said that without KISS, Lordi probably wouldn't exist. The costumes have also drawn comparisons to the thrash metal group GWAR, who wear similar foam latex monster outfits, even though their musical styles are quite different. Mr. Lordi has claimed in interviews that he had never heard of GWAR when he first formed Lordi. In a recent interview Oderus Urungus of GWAR called Lordi "a kiddie version of GWAR" but felt that Lordi didn't rip off GWAR, as both bands owed their image to earlier musicians such as KISS. He seems to have a tongue-in-cheek rivalry with Mr. Lordi, as he has stated his desire to "remove Mr. Lordi's mask and expose him as a silly human".

Mr. Lordi's mask was auctioned for more than 6000 euros. It was bought by a Finnish businessman, Vesa Keskinen in an auction organised by YLE.

Tributes[]

A square in the centre of Rovaniemi, Finland, the home town of the lead singer Mr. Lordi, was renamed after them shortly after their victory at the Eurovision Song Contest. It was part of a redevelopment of Rovaniemi city centre.

Suomen Posti Oyj, the Finnish postal service, issued a Lordi postage stamp in May 2007 in recognition of their Eurovision win. Posti had already released Lordi's Christmas single, "It Snows In Hell" as a special Christmas card edition.

A brand of soda named "Lordi Cola" was named after them and was launched in September 2006, featuring labels designed by Mr Lordi and depicting either one of the individual members or one with the whole band.

Members[]

Current members[]

Tomi Putaansuu (Mr. Lordi) - vocals (1996-)
Sampsa Astala (Kita) - drums (2000-)
Jussi Sydänmaa (Amen) - guitar (1996-)
Samer el Nahhal (OX) - bass (2005-)
Leena Peisa (Awa) - keyboards (2005-)

Former members[]

Sami Keinänen (G-Stealer) - Bass (1996–1999)
Sami Wolking (Magnum) - Bass (1999–2002)
Niko Hurme (Kalma) - Bass (2002–2005)
Erna Siikavirta (Enary) - Keyboards (1997–2005)

Discography[]

Albums[]

Get Heavy (2002)
The Monsterican Dream (2004)
The Arockalypse (2006)
Deadache (2008)
TBA (2010)

Compilation albums[]

The Monster Show (2005)
Zombilation - The Greatest Cuts (2009)

Singles[]

DVDs[]

Market Square Massacre (2006)
Bringing Back The Balls To Stockholm (2007)

Movies[]

The Kin (2004)
Dark Floors (2008)

Comics[]

Monster Magazine (2002)
Alkuperä (2006)
Verenjano (2007)
Verensininen (2008)

Books about Lordi[]

Sven Pahajoki: Lordi — hirviön tarina ("A Monster's Tale") - Unofficial
Jussi Alroth: Mie oon Lordi ("I am Lordi")
The Songs For The Rockoning Day — The Complete Lordi Song Book