The Rasmus

Biography:

It was a cold winter day nine years ago when The Rasmus stepped on stage together as a band for the very first time at their high school in Helsinki, the capitol of Finland. Now one of Finland's most respected bands, little did these guys know then that almost ten years later they would have sold gold and platinum records, received the Finnish Grammy Award in all major categories, topped the charts in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and have a following of hundreds of thousands of enthusiastic fans.
The first single off their album Dead Letters was a major hit “In the Shadows,” released in early 2003 in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and the Baltic countries. The single and the album went straight to #1 in Finland, and “In the Shadows” reached #2 in Sweden, becoming one of the most aired songs on the radio and MTV in Scandinavia. When Dead Letters was licensed to Motor Music/Universal in Berlin, things happened fast, and in August the album climbed to #1 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, followed by touring and numerous promotional visits.
Each song on Dead Letters is a letter to somebody, Lauri explains. "It could be an apology, confession, or cry out for help". The album was recorded at Nord Studios in Stockholm with producers Mikael Nord Anderson and Martin Hansen, who also worked with the band on the previous album Into. In between recording sessions the band members kept busy playing TV games such as Tony Hawk and Grand Theft Auto 2. At night, they often took the opportunity to check out the current rock scene of Stockholm and club Debaser became a second home for Lauri. 
Scandinavian nature, with its silent, open, vast landscape and the infamous Nordic light was a significant source of inspiration for the band during the making of the album. "When I get a chance to go out on the countryside, I love to just sit and watch the sun going down and listen to the silence, alone by a lake" says Lauri. 
The four high school friends came to the conclusion that the music scene in Finland sucked – that is, the English language part of it - and needed a change or at least a fresh approach. In 1996, The Rasmus made a strong debut with the full-length album Peep which rapidly sold gold. The timing was obviously right for this new generation of rock bands and The Rasmus took the listening audience and reviewers by storm. At the sprouting age of sixteen, the band had quickly reached their goal and the dream of rock stardom became a reality: "We were really just kids let loose on a playground," singer Lauri remembers. The band passed the gruelling limit of playing over a hundred gigs in one year. Shortly after, the band went back into the studio to record their second album Playboys. Once again selling gold, The Rasmus had established themselves as a household name in Finland. They received their first Finnish Grammy (called Emma in Finnish) in the Best New Act category. The beat of success built momentum and The Rasmus got the opportunity to support shows with bands like Rancid, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Garbage in Finland. An extremely prolific and productive band, it only took until 1999 for The Rasmus' third album Hellofatester to be released and first single “Liquid” was voted Best Single of the Year by both critics and fans.
In 2001, The Rasmus definitely were ready for a major breakthrough. Signed to Playground Music Scandinavia of Stockholm, Sweden, the band had a huge hit with single “F-F-F-Falling.” "We were so nervous about that song,” the band remembers. “It was obviously a hit or a flop.” A flop it was not. Shooting straight to number one on the charts, the single sold platinum and became the biggest hit of the year in Finland. The album Into was released a couple months later and sold over 70 000 copies to date, which is well over double platinum. The success lead to the band performing at every major music festival in Finland that year. With great story building in Finland, The Rasmus went abroad to support acts like HIM and Spanish rock band Dover in Germany, Scandinavia, and Latvia. The band travelled Europe, made TV performances and interviews with the European music press and things started to happen.
The band recorded a live acoustic show on Viva TV only to quickly head over to Finland for the Finnish Grammy Award show, performed one song, and swept all the major categories in Best Band, Best Single (“F-F-F-Falling”), Best Rock/Pop Act and Album of the Year. The success was an actuality. The Rasmus then went on to record Dead Letters. 
Energetic, agitated and powerful are three words describing The Rasmus the best. Lauri, whose voice is full of fire and soaring beauty, is a singer also acknowledged as one of the leading composers of Finland today. "My lyrics are always personal and every word has a meaning that reminds me of something that's happened," he expresses. The Rasmus play rock, but every song has a strong melody flavoured with a catchy chorus. Dead Letters moves you with its raw yet warm sound. "The album is darker, moodier and dreamier than anything we've done before," Eero (bass) concludes.