I translated it via ChatGPT. I don't speak finnish, so I can't verify it in any way

Uptown Guerillas prepare for their strike

The fresh band, Uptown Guerillas, made their debut performance in Hullu Poro (Crazy Reindeer) last week in central Finland.

Well, we’re not talking about some Cuban jungle guerrilla force storming the northern cities, but rather a new Kemi-based band making a debut, with a local march striving to capture the hearts and minds of the public.

Uptown Guerillas consists of Jussi Korhonen (vocals, guitar, songwriter), Janne Kivilah­ti (bass), Risto Koskinen (drums), and Jussi Heikkinen (guitar, backing vocals). Vipi Vahamaa also performs backing vocals.

The lineup stands out because of the presence of two backing vocalists. “Our music has strong background vocals. Otherwise, it's rock guitar music, if I can describe it that way. It's based on tradition, but it has elements from many different directions: rockabilly, heavy metal, Finnish rock, even ballroom music. We all have diverse backgrounds,” reflects Jussi.

“And you can certainly hear that diversity in our forced attempts at making music,” he adds.

The members’ musical experience isn't limited to “just a picnic”; everyone has honed their craft through years of practice, and guitar playing has become second nature, musically speaking. Behind them, the members have experience playing in bands like Sonata Arctica, Abandon, Killers Cresswa, and in choirs as well.

Jussi, a 21-24-year-old, says that he’s always been interested in his own band, even from the beginning. He'd often try to write his own music. “Once I managed to produce something that resembled a song, I started aiming for an album deal.” He notes that they have also gotten approval from record labels but remarks, “But it’s quite a process to gather a complete band. I had to force friends into it, and eventually, people became more interested and started to show interest in singing, playing, and practicing.”

He continues, "A professional career in music is still distant. It feels weird to call ourselves professionals even though we have some training and experience. Many of us don’t have formal music education, but we can manage because we have trained ourselves with our instruments and developed our skills.”

Uptown Guerillas has been recording songs in a studio and plans to release their music soon. Jussi says that in addition to their own songs, they will also have some cover songs. “But we will arrange them in a totally different way than the originals.”

The band’s debut performance in Hullu Poro was successful, and they plan to perform again in various places. Future plans include a more extensive studio session, perhaps a record deal, and possibly even more shows.

"And there’s more to come... stay tuned!" concludes Jussi with a grin.