Skulls, love, prog rock and a jouhikko
The unique Pekko Käppi and his jouhikko hypnotized the audience with shamanic melodies.
Jouhikko is a traditional bowed lyre, with a history ranging back thousands of years. In ancient times it was used to accompany dances lasting for several days in what is now Karelia and eastern Finland. The instrument is quite simple, consisting of two to four strings and tuning pegs, a hollow body and a hand hole. The jouhikko sits on the musician’s knees and is played with a bow.
Pekko Käppi and his jouhikko: Pauli Järviluoto
The musician in this case is sitting barefooted on Rekka Stage, sporting a cut-up Grateful Dead T-shirt, Aviators, tattoos and hawaii shorts. He is Pekko Käppi, and he has performed in the opening ceremonies of the London Olympics.
The first notes draw in people passing by. The first song tells about love, though it sounds dark and ominous. Just like the stage props. The skull motif extends to Käppi’s jouhikko, which has a skull-shaped body that stares at the audience with red LED embers.
Even though Käppi is sitting, he’s not stationary even for a second. It’s fascinating to watch an eccentric performer who surrenders to the music so whole-heartedly. He dances as much as you can sitting down, sometimes raising his jouhikko towards the dome of the sky. The rest of the K:H:H:L entourage, Tommi Laine and Nuutti Vapaavuori remain stone-faced by his side.
Mun Vereni tells a tale of women who (for reasons that remain unknown) wipe cows with their menstrual blood.
– This was supposed to be a radio hit this summer, but somehow it’s not getting air time.
It’s easy to lose yourself to the stomping, simple and hypnotic rhythm.
The sound of the jouhikko could be described as rough and wailing. It goes together well with Käppi’s voice, which tickles your spine when he lets loose. Here and there echoes that bounce back amplify the shamanic atmosphere.
Käppi introes nearly all of his songs as true stories that have taken place – or will take place. Maid Karin in the song Ruumiin tomua feeds dust from a corpse to her beau, who then meets a painful death two days later. Rakastatko minua is a tale of undue lying, undue love and undue kindness, whereas Veri verestä revolves around revenge. These are not your Disney fairytales.
Laihan koiran haukku ei kuulu taivaaseen is an excellent choice for last song. It starts small, but grows and grows into a progressive extravaganza. With his fascinating, captivating, rough and even magical performance, Pekko Käppi has once again shown that the jouhikko is everything but a relic of bygone times.
The audience is digging Pekko Käppi & K:H:H:L. Photo: Pauli Järviluoto
Text: Johanna Mikkola
Photos: Pauli Järviluoto
Translation: Jaakko Suvanto
