Originating from Hämeenlinna, Finland, the production duo Tuure Tammi and Juha Sarkkola began their operations as The Blassics in 2010. What started as a small instrumental funk project, drawing inspiration from record collecting, sampling and deejaying, developed into a six-piece live band in 2013, a septet in 2014 with the addition of a percussionist, and a nine-piece collective in 2018 when the band began collaborating with Ethiopian singer MikiMac (Mikiyas Getachew) and Beninese percussionist Victor Tokpanou.

The full 9-piece collective is now composed of Ville-Pekka Järvinen on bass, Joona Venäläinen on drums, Hanna Lotti on flute, Juha Sarkkola on guitar, Jukka Teerisaari and Victor Tokpanou on percussions, Mikko Veijonen on baritone sax, Tuure Tammi on trumpet and MikiMac on vocals. It comes as little surprise that such an impressive formation has gained a reputation for its captivating live shows, but it equally shines in the studio.

On their records, The Blassics aim at capturing the explosive nature of their celebrated performances as well as highlight the highly evolved musical communication that occurs between band members. The Blassics’ sound is akin to rough original funk seven inches with elements of afrobeat and jazz thrown in for good measure. However, the band does not settle for recycling the genres’ clichés but goes for a new sound of their own. They are committed to creating music that is warm and crisp, and that could also work on the decks at DJ gigs.

From the beginning, Sarkkola and Tammi founded their own imprint Odd Funk Records on which to release their analog productions, particularly in limited vinyl presses. The first release by The Blassics was double-sider 45 “Goljat” / “Cheek Playah” in 2011, which was followed by numerous singles and 3 albums: self-titled debut “The Blassics” in 2013, follow-up “We Call It Real” in 2015 and “Becoming Waves” in 2017. Throughout the years the band fine-tuned their original Blassics sound to a unique and intoxicating blend of raw funk, afrobeat and jazz.

As a septet (Sarkkola, Tammi, Veijonen, Lotti, Järvinen, Teerisaari, Venäläinen), the collective has performed at Shisha Cafe in Pune, India (2014), at the highly regarded Funky Elephant Festival in Helsinki, Finland (2016), Tallinn Music Week in Tallinn, Estonia (2017), and other select venues. As a 9-piece, the group has performed at festivals and venues in Finland such as Linnajazz, Naamat and Hit the Breaks, while contemporarily spending time in the studio to work on a new album. In addition to all this, various members of The Blassics (Sarkkola, Tammi, Venäläinen and Tokpanou in particular) have been keeping the local music scene alive by organizing parties and clubnights centered on funk, soul, afro, reggae, and latin music unknown to most.

As 2019 unfolds watch out for The Blassics to launch a new single, new video and new album in which the full 9-piece formation spin their tightest grooves yet. “Togetherings” is scheduled to drop worldwide at the end of April and place this band firmly at the forefront of the international funk scene.

 

For more:
The Blassics’ website
The Blassics on facebook
The Blassics on bandcamp

Releases