Eppu Normaali

Infobox musical artist
Name = Eppu Normaali

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Img_size = 250
Img_capt = Eppu Normaali at Ratina Stadium on 14th of August 2004.
Landscape = Yes
Background = group_or_band
Origin = Tampere, Finland
Genre = Punk rock, Rock and Roll
Years_active = 1976-Current
Label =
Associated_acts =
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Current_members = Martti Syrjä, Mikko "Pantse" Syrjä, Aku Syrjä, Juha Torvinen and Sami Ruusukallio
Past_members = Mikko Saarela, Mikko "Vaari" Nevalainen

Eppu Normaali is one of the most popular bands in Finland. The band was formed in 1976 in the small town of Ylöjärvi, near Tampere. The core of the band consisted of brothers Martti Syrjä (b. 1958, vocals) and Mikko "Pantse" Syrjä (b. 1957, guitar); their parents are Kirsi Kunnas and Jaakko Syrjä, both accomplished writers. Pantse's and Martti's cousin Aku Syrjä was also an important member. Juha Torvinen and Mikko Saarela were soon invited to the band.

In 1977 the band named themselves Eppu Normaali and participated in a rock music competition. Finnish folk/pop legend Juice Leskinen immediately saw the band's potential and demanded that they must win, but the judges were unimpressed. The band started sending demos to various companies and soon POKO Rekords signed them. They released various records of Ramones type of punk pop which gained good reviews, but did not break through until 1984, with their more AOR-oriented new style. "Rupisia riimejä karmeita tarinoita" was released in 1984 and it was followed by "Kahdeksas ihme" in 1985 (which has one of the band's the most legendaric song, kitara, taivas ja tähdet(guitar, heaven and stars)) and "Valkoinen kupla" in 1986. The three albums were all hits, and sold very well. The three albums combined to over 300.000 copies sold, a huge amount in a country with just 5 million people.

The following albums all sold well, but in 1989 the band decided to take a break after intensive tours around the country. In 1993 they published "Studio Etana"; the band almost broke up because of lacking inspiration. In 1996 a collection of their greatest hits was published, which sold over 200,000 copies. After releasing their collection, the band stopped touring or performing live almost completely. Fans thought the band was taking its last breaths, but in 2004 the band announced they would start recording a new album. The new album, "Sadan vuoden päästäkin", was another great triumph. Eppu Normaali is the first significant Finnish pop group of the new wave and it has gained success especially on the use of the Finnish language in rock lyrics.

Studio albums

* "Aknepop" (Acnepop) (1978)
* "Maximum Jee&Jee" (1979)
* "Akun tehdas" (Aku's Factory) (1980)
* "Cocktail Bar - Musiikkia Rantalasta" ( - Music from Rantala) (1981)
* "Tie vie" (On the road) (1982)
* "Aku ja köyhät pojat" (Aku and the Poor Boys) (1983)
* "Rupisia riimejä karmeita tarinoita" (Warty Rhymes and Terrible Stories) (1984)
* "Kahdeksas ihme" (Eighth Wonder) (1985)
* "Valkoinen kupla" (White Bubble) (1986)
* "Imperiumin vastaisku" (The Empire Strikes Back) (1988)
* "Historian suurmiehiä" (Great Men of History) (1990)
* "Studio Etana" (Studio Slug) (1993)
* "Sadan vuoden päästäkin" (Even After a Hundred Years) (2004)
* "Syvään päähän" (To the Deep End) (2007)

Live albums

* "Elävänä Euroopassa" (Alive in Europe) (1980)
* "Onko vielä pitkä matka jonnekin?" (Is it still a long way to somewhere?) (1994)

Trivia

* The band was named after a character in movie "Young Frankenstein" by Mel Brooks (character Abby Normal [abnormal] was translated to Eppu Normaali [epänormaali] ).
* The cover of the album "Akun tehdas" was modelled after the cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival album Cosmo's Factory. Aku Syrjä is the drummer of Eppu Normaali, just as Doug "Cosmo" Clifford is that of CCR. All the same elements are present on both album covers.
* Martti Syrjä is considered the most remarkable Finnish music poet along with Hector and Juice Leskinen
* The idol of the band is Creedence Clearwater Revival and John Fogerty especially.

External links

* [http://www.eppunormaali.fi Eppunormaali.fi] Official home page
* [http://www.eppunormaali.net Eppunormaali.net] Fan page