Eppu Normaali

Eppu Normaali is one of the most popular bands in Finland. The band was formed in 1976 in the small town of Yl?j?rvi, near Tampere.

History

The core band consisted of Juha Torvinen, Mikko Saarela, Aku Syrj? and brothers Martti Syrj? (b. 1959, vocals) and Mikko "Pantse" Syrj? (b. 1957, guitar); their parents are Kirsi Kunnas and Jaakko Syrj?, both accomplished writers.

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 Riimej? Karmeita Tarinoita was released in 1984 and it was followed by Kahdeksas Ihme in 1985 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. In total, Eppu Normaali have sold over 1.5 million albums.

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 P??st?kin, 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

Martti Syrj?
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 k?yh?t pojat (Aku and the Poor Boys) (1983)
Rupisia riimej? karmeita tarinoita (Scabby Rhymes and Terrible Stories) (1984)
Kahdeksas ihme (Eighth Wonder) (1985)
Valkoinen kupla (White Bubble) (1986)
Imperiumin vastaisku (The Empire Strikes Back) (1988)
Historian suurmiehi? (Great Men of History) (1990)
Studio Etana (Studio Snail) (1993)
Sadan vuoden p??st?kin (Even After a Hundred Years) (2004)
Syv??n p??h?n (To the Deep End) (2007)

Live albums

El?v?n? Euroopassa (Alive in Europe) (1980)
Onko viel? pitk? matka jonnekin? (Is it still a long way to somewhere?) (1994)

Trivia

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (February 2008)
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The band was named after a character in movie Young Frankenstein by Mel Brooks (character Abby Normal was translated to Eppu Normaali ).
The cover of the album Akun Tehdas was modelled after the cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival album Cosmo's Factory. Aku Syrj? 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 Syrj? 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.