Tuomo Latvala’s (Omnium Gatherum, Torture Killer) new band Valermada released their debut single Becoming Me (Incomplete) and a music video on 24.1.18. The single has generated widespread fuzz after being featured on one of Spotify’s biggest metal music playlists, New Metal Tracks. The single will be followed by their debut album Fear, Regrets and Mourning, which is due for release in April.
The video was filmed last winter in chilling conditions (-20 degrees Celsius) in an industrial hall located in Vimpeli, Finland. It features the visual artist Jani Kaunisto drawing a 3x4m2 charcoal piece, followed by him destroying it. The song and the video deal with surviving the black dog that is depression, and personal growth. The video was directed by Pirkka-Pekka Ylisuutari.
Valermada is a finnish progressive rock/metal band founded four years ago. The band members are: Olavi Santala (vocals and guitar), Jari Herrala (guitar), Antti Jylhä (bass and violin), and Tuomo Latvala (drums). Also, Kirsi Salo is featured on the single and the album as a backing vocalist. The visual artists Kaunisto and Ylisuutari are also an essential part of the group.
Musical influences for Valermada are bands such as Death, Depeche Mode, Obituary, DTP and Massive Attack. Previously they have played in groups like Abysmalia, Ground Frame, Marbleheroes, Demigod and Hateform, and the drummer Tuomo Latvala is also a member of Torture Killer and Omnium Gatherum.
”Progression in music is more about being open to new ideas than writing extra technical 20 minute songs with every part in different key and time signature as a rule. It’s more about being honest and always seeking for the true core of the song, and expecting nothing from it. Sometimes it’s complex and loud, sometimes simple and quiet,” Santala said. ”One of the most exciting things in Valermada for me is the awareness of the fact that there really are no rules in music, other than what you submit yourself to. In a way, the song Becoming Me (Incomplete) is about the same thing on a personal level. If you succeed to peel off the expectations you and others have set for yourself, hidden under the layers you might just find something genuine and unexpected.”
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