30.05.2020 Blind Channel: Stayin’ Alive @ 45 Special, Oulu

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There have been hard few months for the music industry and music fans, but even though we weren’t able to see any live shows since the pandemic has started, musicians and music clubs were doing everything possible to lift our spirits. Thereby, the live streamed shows have become our joy during these uneasy times.  

On Saturday, 30 May 2020 we had a chance to enjoy an awesome acoustic live stream by BLIND CHANNEL. The gig was held by the club 45 Special in Oulu, which already provided numerous live streamed shows during this spring, including TEMPLE BALLS, Michael Monroe, Sami Yaffa & Costello, and JP Leppäluoto, all under the name “Stayin’ Alive.” But of course, the list of the hottest bands that did live streams here wouldn’t be full without BLIND CHANNEL. This band has reached a heady success incredibly fast and conquered the whole of Finland and most of Europe with their high voltage violent pop. BLIND CHANNEL’s albums “Revolution,” “Blood Brothers,” and “Violent Pop” have been eagerly accepted by the music lovers all around the world, as well as the new singles “Over My Dead Body,”Timebomb,” and “Snake.” 

The streaming started at 19:00 Finnish time with some greetings from the event’s host  – famous Finnish comedian Zaani. Straight after his short speech, BLIND CHANNEL began the party with “Wolfpack.” The acoustic version of this song sounded different, but it’s worth mentioning that acoustic performances are not something that BLIND CHANNEL do on a regular basis, so this online gig had become a unique opportunity to see this band playing in a different format. The next song to follow was “Fever” from the new BLIND CHANNEL’S album “Violent Pop.” Due to the pandemic, the band had to postpone the album release show so for most of the fans, it was the first chance to hear the new material played live. “Fever” was a perfect fit for the acoustic show and like all the songs we heard that evening, it wasn’t glued to its studio version. For instance, this time it included a captivating keyboard solo, masterfully played by vocalist Niko Moilanen and bassist Olli Matela

The band continued with “Died Enough for You.” This music piece also hasn’t lost its charm in its acoustic version. The singing trio of vocalist Niko Moilanen and guitarists Joonas Porko and Joel Hokka sounded very harmonious. 

Shortly afterward, following the tradition, Zaani has invited guitarist and singer Joel Hokka and bassist Olli Matela to the bar area for a small interview. This time all the conversations were held mostly in English so that all the viewers who don’t speak Finnish could also understand what was going on. Zaani mentioned that he has become quite a fan of BLIND CHANNEL‘s music and Joel and Olli talked about their preparations for this acoustic show. As we mentioned before, playing an acoustic gig was a totally new experience for the band.

After the first interview, the quintet performed “Enemies with Benefits,” followed by “My Heart is a Hurricane”, dedicated to the fresh graduates and it probably wasn’t a coincidence since this song sounded very youthful, airy, and tender. It was easy to imagine this tune being played at a graduation party, if we only had any this year. 

The musicians touched viewer’s hearts by playing a cover of LINKIN PARK‘s “Numb,” which in turn was dedicated to the late Chester Bennington. It is not enough to say that BLIND CHANNEL‘s version of “Numb” gave us goosebumps. It sounded flawless and was made with huge respect for the original. It was obvious that the band put some heart into this cover. 

Afterward, Niko Moilanen and guitar player Joonas Porko came down to the bar for a conversation with Zaani. Niko and Joonas took the initiative and introduced band’s technicians, sent regards to their manager, and thanked all the loyal fans for the support. BLIND CHANNEL then continued delivering energetic violent pop in “Timebomb” and then took a more lyrical path in “Feel Nothing.” 

Unfortunately, every gig has to come to an end. One of the last songs on the setlist was “Over My Dead Body.” Of course, the online crowd has asked for the encore and this time we got to hear one of the band’s biggest hits “Sharks Love Blood”  – a perfect cherry on top! 

The magical atmosphere of the acoustic show allowed us to hear the new variations of the songs we already knew and it was an unforgettable experience. BLIND CHANNEL promised to do another streamed gig when their Instagram or Facebook pages will reach 10,000 followers, so it lies in our power to make it happen!

Setlist

1.  Wolfpack 

2. Fever 

3. Died Enough for You 

4. Enemies with Benefits 

5. My Heart is a Hurricane 

6. Numb (Linkin Park cover) 

7. Timebomb 

8. Feel Nothing 

9. Over My Dead Body 

Encore

10. Sharks Love BloodWritten by Victoria Korpun