Na ob sich hier mal nicht jemand ganz schön überschätzt: Negative ist eine Band, die sich oftmals Vergleichen mit Landesgenossen wie The Rasmus oder Him stellen muss. Warum, scheint hier allerdings deutlich unklar zu sein. Negative stechen durch eine einzigartige, oder besser gesagt eigenartige Bühnenshow hervor, die sich von einer Zirkusshow nur wenig unterscheidet.

Na ob sich hier mal nicht jemand ganz schön überschätzt: Negative ist eine Band, die sich oftmals Vergleichen mit Landesgenossen wie The Rasmus oder Him stellen muss. Warum, scheint hier allerdings deutlich unklar zu sein. Negative stechen durch eine einzigartige, oder besser gesagt eigenartige Bühnenshow hervor, die sich von einer Zirkusshow nur wenig unterscheidet.

Nun ja, der Begriff Zirkusshow müsste mit dem Anhang „sexuelle Obszönitäten“ erweitert werden. Denn das Mikrophon wird hier oftmals in die Hose gesteckt oder obszöne Zungenbewegungen in Richtung kreischendes Publikum sind bei dieser Band keine Ausnahme. Wenn es dann mal ganz heiß hergeht, kommt es zu wilden Küssen zwischen Sänger Jonne und seinen Bandkollegen. Da ist das musikalische ganz eindeutig nebensächlich. Das ist auch gut so, denn stimmliche Qualitäten hat Frontman Jonne wenige vorzuweisen, und die musikalischen Arrangements lassen auch nicht gerade auf musikalische Höchstformen schließen.

So fiel der Auftritt am 14. November in der sichtlich nicht ausverkauften Wiener Szene eher ernüchternd aus. Die Stimmung war allerdings trotz großen musikalischen Schwächen seitens der Band sehr energetisch. Das Publikum war definitiv gezeichnet durch Hardcore Fans. Diese stellten sich bei Kälte schon gegen drei Uhr Nachmittags vor die Wiener Szene, nur um ein paar Worte mit den finnischen Rockstars zu wechseln. Die Fans waren auch sehr international vertreten, so gab es zwischen Finnen und Ungarn sogar Japaner die ihren Stars hinterher reisten. Sänger Jonne Aaron wurde nämlich im Jahre 2004 vom japanischen Musikmagazin Burnn! zum „Rockstar of the Year“ gewählt.

Die österreichischen Musikfans kamen in einer überwältigenden Mehrheit mit ihren Eltern an, denn schließlich war das Konzert an einem Wochentag angelegt und die Show sollte auch beinahe zwei Stunden dauern. Wirklich überzeugen konnte die Band allerdings nicht, naja zumindest mich nicht! Denn der Rest des Publikums schien sich in Ekstase zu schreien, bei jedem weiteren geöffneten Knopfloch eines Musiker-Hemdes.

Die Jungs von Negative sollten meiner Meinung nach mehr an ihren musikalischen Kenntnissen, als an ihren auftoupierten Haaren arbeiten.

Vor dem Konzert versammele ich mich mit einigen anderen Medien, die sich sichtlich durch kritische Fragen meinerseits gestört fühlten, rund um den Roundtable in der Szene, um Sänger Jonne und Gitarrist Larry einige Fragen zu stellen. Unglaublich sympathisch jedoch sehr widersprüchlich gaben sie ihren Fans (den anderen Medien) und mir Auskunft über die Leidenschaft zur Musik und das Konkurrenzdenken zwischen finnischen Bands.

Ungarisches Forum: What can we expect from tonight’s show?

Jonne: I want to keep it that way: You don´t expect anything, because it is always something special. No expectations, we want the audience to surprise us. We are giving our best, always!
Larry: That is the point! We are going to do our best, so everything can happen.
Jonne: You need that feedback from the crowed and I believe that the crowed needs the feedback from the band. It is like changing vibes.

ADL: What do you think was the best gig on this tour?

Jonne: It is very difficult to pick just one special show. We are playing each show as it is going to be our last show. In Leibzig was a really crazy audience, I got my ear damaged from this gig. I have never seen such a loud crowd in the whole band history.
Larry: You felt the noise. It was so loud that it almost broke your ears.
Jonne: A few hours after the show I still had this high loud noise in my ear. But I don´t complain, it was a really nice gig.

britishrock.cc: How would you describe your audience? Is there a specific type of people who come to your shows?

Larry: Girls and young women! (smiles)
Jonne: Yeah! I think for our audience, music is more a lifestyle. For us it is not like playing for living, it is more living for playing. So our audience I guess, really loves music, they are surrounded by music all the time. I can see it from the stage; the people are doing it with the same passion than we are playing our music.
But there is no special type of person coming to our shows, like only blue-eyed girls.
Britishrock.cc: No, of course not. But mostly girls then!
Jonne: We are really blessed by that, because I rather look at girls instead of ugly fat and hairy men.

britishrock.cc: There are 6 guys in your band, that is actually a lot for one band. So how is it going with the songwriting process? Has everybody the same voice to say what he thinks about an arrangement?

Jonne: We have a pretty common sense with that kind of taste, if Larry or I take some of our ideas to rehearsal place. There is this certain feeling you have, when you write a song, it must tough you and then you can say “This is Negative”. Since we take these ideas to rehearsal place, the other guys haven’t judged Larry or me so far.
Larry: Of course they are saying something like, “That is a little bit too slow” or “Let´s try it faster”. Christus (Anm.: Guitarist) comes every time with “This is full of shit”! And after a couple of rehearsals he says “Well, this is alright” and suddenly he has a favourite song.
Jonne: Christus actually hated the new single “Planet of the Sun”. I took that idea to rehearsal place and the other guys where pretty interested. And Christus was worried about what to do during the verse on stage, because he doesn´t play anything in this part. He tried some things but I told him, he should take a secret break. And one day he really went off stage and took his break.

Ungarisches Forum: What is the worst and best thing about Finland?

Jonne: The best thing is home and the four seasons. I love them all, but there are definitely too long, cold and dark winters. As a mother nature I would change that. But when you are travelling around, you see how great you have it, if you are living in Finland.
Larry: I think the worst thing in Finland is that people are jealous. It is still this old kind of thinking. They are talking shit about each other behind each others backs.
Ungarisches Forum: Is it the same with finish bands?
Larry: No, I don´t think so. (Jonne smiles)
Well, maybe with some bands! But it is still this thinking that we are all from Finland and doing the same job. I think we are supporting each other, but of course there is some kind of competition. That is business!
Jonne: From my point there is definitely a competition. I want this band to be more known than Coca Cola! I believe everybody wants to be the best on stage.

Britishrock.cc: I want connect here with one question. How difficult is it in Finland to make yourself a name as a band? In Austria it is very difficult to get famous abroad.

Jonne: Really?
Britishrock.cc: Yeah, or do you know any Austrian band?
Jonne: Hmm…I know an Austrian ski-jumper.
Britishrock.cc: Well, but I guess he is not playing in a band.
Jonne: No, I don´t know any Austrian artist.
Larry: Well, when we started our first single it was number one. So it seemed very easy for us, but we had many shows before that. And of course, there are only 5 million people in Finland, so it is easier than for example in the United States.
Jonne: And you never know if it is going to last, or if you are just a One-Hit-Wonder. Well we stayed honest to ourselves. I realised that you can´t play a role, because people will notice it if your faking. Just try to be yourself!
Britishrock.cc: So you are on stage like you are off stage?
Jonne: You know, there are so many personalities in me! But we are ourselves on stage!
Well, I never tried cocaine on stage; I guess I would explode because I am so full of energy.
Larry: Yeah, we would smash our guitars and go fucking crazy.
Jonne: Well, I don´t know if it is real Jonne or something else. But I am not faking I guess.

Britishrock.cc: But you have such an imagine, such crazy looks. Somebody had to decide to look like this, everything seems very well over-thought. It is not a natural thing what you are presenting on stage.

Larry: Of course you admire some bands when you are young. But I don´t remember that we ever thought about to look like somebody. Everybody puts what ever he wants on stage.
I like Jimmy Page, Slash, Mark Bolen, Joe Barry, you can see it you know?
Jonne likes Steven Taylor, Freddy Mercury….
Jonne: Axl Rose. Well usually when you see some gigs of some people, and you are able to get some conversation with them, your image will change.

ADL: So the other guys are at the moment down stairs, having dinner. You are sitting up here doing interviews. Is this a thing what you tolerate because it has to be done as a business thing? Or do you say “Fuck food, I am doing promotion for my band because I want to go some where!”

Jonne: Food is not gonna go anywhere, I rather eat it. (general laughter)
Yeah but I know what you mean. Giving interviews is like teamwork with the media. We came over here from Finland so why shouldn´t we do this. And we love to talk, probably that is the reason why we like to do it.
Larry: Do you remember the first interview for a local magazine in Tampere (the city in Finland where the band comes from).? We were like on fire, doing our first interview. I think you always have to remember this. This band is the most important thing in my life, and so is it for the other guys in the band.
Jonne: This might sound pathetic, but that is how it is.
Larry: You have to make some decisions in your life if you want to go somewhere.

Britishrock.cc: So you formed the band to get famous?

Larry, Jonne: No!
Jonne: I have gone through really difficult times in my life, so it was more like therapy to me. But I had really clear visions about this band, but I never could have imagined that I am on my own European tour with Negative. And now this is our third tour, this is amazing. What else can you say? We all have passion for this band and it was always number one for me!

Ungarisches Forum: Jonne, you write the songs from you personal experiences. Is it hard to share these feelings with thousands of people?

Jonne: At the beginning of a tour it is always very difficult. But it depends on your mood, when you have your weak moments. We all are just human beings. Hopefully I have enjoyed sharing my feelings with so many people. But you can push this personal feelings away, when you get the feedback from the crowd. But of course it is hurtful, but this is my diary.
Motley Crew said once in a song “My heart is an open book, for the whole world to read”, I think that is a great line.
Larry: I read that book also, Jonnes book with the new lyrics. Sometimes you go some kind of paranoid. Is he singing about me, or my alcohol problem?
Jonne: This album is not all about my life, also about how I see their life. I have tried to write down what we have come through as a band during the last 4 years.
So this is album is more Negative than Negative ever before!

NEGATIVE, 21.11.2006 (Wien, Szene)