007 Travelers interview: Club for Five / Tuukka Haapaniemi

Who: Tuukka Haapaniemi, Club For Five
Where: Cafeteria of Musiikkitalo, Helsinki, Finland
When: 8th of September 2015
Bond connection:  Club For Five - CASINO ROYALE, Show & Dinner, James Bond Show in Casino Helsinki (7 October - 6 November 2015)

Tuukka Haapaniemi on the right

007 Travelers met Tuukka Haapaniemi who is a bass of the a cappella band Club For Five.

He is a Bachelor of Music Education and he is also former viola player. His special skills are all kinds of instrument imitations: the drums, bass, guitar, and many other instruments. Other members of Club For Five are: Maija Sariola, Juha Viitala, Jouni Kannisto and Susanna Lukkarinen.

Your new album is coming out...

Photo: Clubforfive.fi

Yes, actually it is almost ready. Making of an album is a process. One day I was listening to our previous albums and I thought that this one was made back then...I remember what has happened on some day when an album has been made, then you listen to the songs in a whole different way, not as "this is only nice music". Of course at that point when we have made a song, let´s say for example a Christmas song, when making an album, the Christmas albums are recorded usually on summer when it is hot. You just sing the songs and try to get a certain feeling, like back then we had mulled wine etc. in order to gain Christmas feeling. At that point when we have recorded those songs, we have sung them a lot. And now that this is our second album with our own songs, this is somehow different album compared to couple of our earlier albums which contained more cover songs.

"Ennen tätä hetkeä" is your 7th studio album....
We have one live DVD there before this new one, "Ensi-ilta", "Uni", "Rekiretki", "You’re The Voice", "Ihmiset", "Jouluna" and now this "Ennen tätä hetkeä" + one live DVD.

Where does the name of the album comes from? 
We were searching for these phrases among the song texts and wondered what would fit as a name for this album and what would describe it or actually the feeling, how was the day like then and "Ennen tätä hetkeä" ("Before This Moment")  is from one phrase from that song. The release date of this album is 23rd of October 2015.

Pretty much at the same time with "SPECTRE" (2015)...
That´s right! At that time we will be at Casino Helsinki performing our show with full speed.

Where did you get this idea of Casino show?
We wanted to do a show which would be under one theme and we have been thinking also other different themes and we for example have co-operation with some orchestras and bands and we have good experiences of having one common factor. For example when we did "Erilainen tangokonsertti", we did tangos in a new way. This Bond is the same, we wanted to do one theme, whether it had been some artist or something else, and then we were thinking about James Bond and music that is related to it and casino and "Casino Royale" (2006).....And Bond however is a very strong brand: everyone knows Bond and everybody has own favourite movies and actors or books and also the Bond music, since there is plenty of music.

Casino Helsinki
Photo: Google.com

There is theme music in every movie but then there is also that another song...
We have more these theme songs because not so many knows the another songs and it´s the theme songs that have stayed alive. But the show will be great! We have been so excited about this since we started this. But we have worked really hard in this Project and the whole band has been involved a lot. Everyone wants to do and come up with new things.

From the idea to this day how long did it take?
For the first time we started to talk about this about a year ago and in January we have been in London we had a gig in London and back then this concept was already known.

Is the menu designed by you or by Casino Helsinki?
By Casino Helsinki. For years ago we visited there and we talked with their chef, who is an old school mate of mine, we talked about something related to this, but the menu is all theirs.

Which of Bond theme songs are ideal for your show program?
We have already performed "Skyfall" and it is very suitable for a cappella group. I believe that "GoldenEye" will be really great. Also from the movie "The Spy Who Loved Me" (1977); the song "Nobody Does It Better", because it is slow and beautiful and it is easy to do (such), since it is practically like singing the song. But then for example "Skyfall" or "GoldenEye" or the one that Juha did; "You Know My Name", they are the songs that we should be able to sing and make them look like us, but also in a way that they feel like Bond songs. They have to be big and flamboyant somehow. I would say that we approached the theme songs in a way that makes them possible to accomplish.

Which are your favourite Bond theme songs?

Tina Turner
Photo: Youtube.com

For some reason I have always liked "GoldenEye", it has maybe been a big song for me like "okay, this is really good" and Tina Turner just is Tina Turner, it is so......I was just watching her live show which has been made for 4-5 years ago and she was 69-70 years old back then and she was awesome. Brilliant! (It was) before that it was "GoldenEye" because I was not allowed to watch Bond movies before I was old enough, and "Licence to Kill" was one favourite of mine on MTV years ago. It has been a theme song which I remember. Surely afterwards when I have seen all the Bond movies, I think "Live and Let Die" is great and it is somehow different and has a good feeling and it fits fine into that movie.

Which is the best Bond movie?
Daniel Craig has brought Bond to a new level, I admire that. they all are great....I say "Casino Royale" (2006) because it is the movie which I have seen many times and I wanted the movie for myself right after it was available as on DVD and I bought it just because it has such a great parkour opening scene, great, just super! "Casino Royale"!

Mollaka and James Bond fighting in an opening sequence of "Casino Royale" (2006)
Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

Your favourite Bond actor must be Daniel Craig then?
Yes, he is.

Daniel Craig
Photo © EON, United Artists, Danjaq LLC

The best place where you have traveled and why?
I was in Bellinzona in 2000 and it is in the border of Switzerland and Italy, a little village.
I was there on a trip with men choir which was some kind of summer choir, I have also sung with The Student Union choir but this one in Bellinzona was more like a amateur thing. I was a student and we were accommodated with local families and my family was really nice. We were there only for 3-4 days but when I opended the door, I saw the Alps from their terrace balcony which was as wide as their house. I thought that these guys wake up every morning with this and then I looked down and saw parks and wine plantation and I was thinking "this is the place"! I remember that there I had grappa and raclette for the first time. 

Which is the place that you would like to visit but have not yet visited?
I would like to visit South America because I have not been there before. I have been to many places except Greenlandic and Antarctic and places like that. But South America I would like to visit, somewhere there. Of course there are other interesting places such as Brazil and Argentina.


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