Tuple is the nickname of Finnish musician Tommi Salmela. He is best known as the co-vocalist (alongside Marko Hietala) of Finnish heavy metal legends Tarot, but he has had a long singing career beyond that. He is a well-used backing vocalist, having added textures and layers on recordings for many bands like Amorphis, Twilightning, Cardiant, and many more. He’s also one of the key singers in the very popular Raskasta Joulua project, which is a Finnish ensemble that has recorded several albums and do annual concerts performing traditional Christmas carols/songs in a Heavy Metal style.
When Tarot went on hiatus in 2016 following the death of drummer Peku Cinnari, Salmela was the first band member to jump back into music again, giving Tarot fans a project to rally around as he revived Lazy Bonez, a band he first formed in 2013 for an album and tour. They play heavy metal with melodic hooks, and have kept releasing albums as well as performing live. They often invite guests to perform on their albums, including Bernie Shaw (Uriah Heep), Udo Dirkschneider (Accept), Tony Martin (Black Sabbath), Tony Kakko (Sonata Arctica).
The new Tuple project is basically his first solo album. On Wooden Box, Tommi takes a much bigger step towards the melodic side of rock music, embracing AOR and melodic rock to a larger degree. He is a fan of bands like Journey, Kansas, Boston, and Chicago, and the album was touted as a melodic rock project. Even the name of the label – AOR Heaven – became a statement of intent about the style. The question was how much of his metal side would come through, as he is equally a fan of that. People got a chance to find out on 26 June 2020, when the album was released.
Although this is very much a solo album with Tommi calling all the shots, he has partnered with his old friend Riitis (guitars, keyboards, loops) who is the main composer of all the songs. In fact, the album credits say “All songs composed by Riitis, based on real stories of Tuple’s life.” The lyrics on the album are very much autobiographical, forming a conceptual life journey. Suffice to say, Tuple has led quite the life and it should say a lot that his motto is ‘what doesn’t kill you make you stronger.’
The title track starts the ball, and Wooden Box is also one of the best songs on offer. While it contains synth elements to embellish the sound, the song features a pretty solid guitar riff and a solid hard rock bedding. Tommi has a very powerful voice, and even though he delivers a thoughtful and emotional vocal on this song this ends up being on the heavy end of AOR (if it’s even there at all). This is actually far from a problem – this is his style, and it honestly is not a million miles away from the style he was already peddling in Lazy Bonez. The song is definitely melodic, but it’s still melodic metal. The song is clearly personal, about growing up with parental expectations and hoping to one day be the man they hoped he would be.
Demon Alcohol contains passages that are nicely steeped in AOR, including a nice singalong chorus, but there is solid riffing and twin lead guitars giving lovely texture to some passages. There is a duality on the album that makes it interesting. Tuple does not completely try to shake all his metal roots all the time, but he also try to steer it towards mostly more melodic waters. The result is a very interesting symbiosis with the styles living side by side. Given the song’s title, I probably don’t need to say much about what this song is about. If that song describes a personal downfall due to alcohol, Together describes the long climb back out of that hole, with the theme of not being the man he wants to be popping up yet again. The song features a solid melodic melody with powerful vocals, feeling very summerly.
One of the better songs on the album is Fucking Beautiful. Settling in a comfortable laidback groove, this song succeeds at staying true to the AOR direction from beginning to end, with Tommi delivering a very touching vocal. An incredible guitar solo adorns this mellower slice of melodic hard rock.
I want you to feel what I feel
I want you to see what I see
Cos through my eyes you’re fucking beautiful
The sentiment truly is nothing but lovely, but I guess he was not counting on radio play in native English speaking markets.
The biggest earworm on the album arrives in the form of Kryptonite. Complete with a synth backdrop and singalong “nah-nah-nah-nah”-sections, this is without question one of the most genuinely catchy moments on offer. The chorus is designed to stick in your brain, despite it not being the most melodically brilliant one on the album. The melody line is repetitive but will manage to burrow into your brain, for better or worse.
The song speaks about someone – or something – that takes hold of him and not for the better. “She’s my kryptonite,” Tuple sings, but he is definitely singing about a stronger chemical substance than a woman.
In These Altitudes picks up on the previous song. If that one was about the hellraising high of drugs, this is about the hard comedown, loss of control, and a plea for help.
Flight control can you hear me?
It’s stormy out here, can you help me?
A lightning strikes, the Devil’s kiss
A needle away from eternal bliss
It’s dangerous to fly in these altitudes
It’s dangerous to fly in these altitudes
The track has a dramatic flair, with a guitar riff that is effectively shaded by keyboards. The vocals in the verses have reverb on them for effect, and the song conveys a “lost at sea”-feeling quite well that fits the lyrics. The amazing guitar solo is courtesy of Tarot bandmate Zachary Hietala.
The next track Too Far Gone explores whether it is possible to come back from a deep Heroin addiction, and mentions cases where it was possible and others who didn’t make it. It all comes down to whether there is “enough rain to kill the thirst.” The song is surprisingly up-tempo and bursting with energy. It may not entirely fit the subject matter in my head, but it is musically solid.
Miracle is somewhat more of a sensitive song, which is befitting a song about meeting the woman of his life who helped turn things around. I’m afraid that to me this is not the most exciting song on the album lyrically or musically, but it is a pure AOR moment with solid melodic offerings.
Get With the Program could well have been a Lazy Bonez song, with its emphasis on melodic hard rock with huge-sounding gang-vocal choruses. The song describes the challenges of staying on the straight and narrow while still being in a rock’n’roll environment. Rocking Chair is musically similar with yet more Lazy Bonez vibes, and carries the hope that he made it and will be able to look back on his life without too much regret.
A distinct feeling is creeping in at this point in the album that the first half of the album is a bit stronger than the last half. Or, maybe the earlier songs are just more diverse. In any case, the album needed a powerful ending. Fortunately the album is bookended by its best songs, and the last one is by far my favourite.
Just like the title track opened the ball in grand style, Pretty Much Perfect is a pretty much perfect (pun intended) ending. Opening with an acoustic piano and vocals, eventually it builds into something more. The first part of the song sits in a strong ballad/melodic territory, but insistent playing and driving drums builds it into a very emotional powerhouse melodic extravaganza. The song grows, and the chorus is eventually gets is gorgeous with lovely vocal layers and a sunburst quality.
It is clear that this is an emotional song for its creator, and it differs from the other ones by being written from the perspective of a woman who had a tough life. She grew up, married someone her parents disapproved of, and went on to have a happy life with kids and a future, until one day he dies prematurely. She did her bit to keep the family going, leading a tough life again, but managing. I feel this song is a tribute to his mom.
All they had built was ended prematurely
But pretty much perfect, pretty much perfect
A love that came upon them you find so rarely
Pretty much perfect, pretty much perfect
If all the songs had been of this quality, this would have been the album of the year. This song is amazing and left me speechless the first time I heard it. What a way to end this journey of an album!
Tuple’s band mates from Tarot are all guest musicians at various points during the album. They don’t all appear on the same songs, which may have brought this too close to a Tarot reunion than intended. We get closest on In These Altitudes (Tommi, Zachary and Janne) and Fucking Beautiful (Tommi, Marko and Janne), with more individual contributions sprinkled over several other songs.
I am a huge fan of Tommi’s voice and think he has made a good album in Wooden Box. He’s got a powerful voice and by belting melodic rock gems he gives the melodic rock genre something I sometimes miss: a ballsy voice that is able to add a lot of power to its performance without losing one iota of a song’s melodic sensibility.
The album’s best moments come when Tommi is able to successfully do just that, bringing a delivery that perhaps lies closer to his heavy metal universe than what you normally find in AOR. This may also be a sign that I’d prefer him to do albums in the genre he is the most known for, but the melodic touch of this album suits him well as well.
This may be the bravest album of the year. Not just throwing yourself into a genre you’re not really known for, but also baring your soul in the process. Heavy respect.
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