We caught Jonne Aaron, the singer of Negative, by phone four days before this year's Ruisrock Festival where the Finnish glamrock act was announced as the last addition in the lineup.
What is in your rider? Is it very heavy?
Well, it has been. A few years back we had all sorts of weird stuff in there, and that raised eyebrows everywhere. For example, we listed stuff like rubber gloves and vaseline. All the useful stuff. If you want to know what the rubber gloves and vaseline were for, you need to ask from our bass artist (Antti Anatomy). Nowadays it's pretty basic. At some point we realised, while touring abroad, that we had so much booze and other drinks left over that we should've had rented a separate freight container for our backstage drinks alone. We had to minimise the rider and today it's pretty light: red wine, water on stage (a necessity), beer and a few cases of long drinks. We have more use for them in our training space, it feels nice to drink a little while you practice.
It's understandable that fledgling bands demand all sorts of stuff – and beyond, but it also makes you wonder why bigger bands have such demands as well. For example, when Guns'n Roses were in Finland, their rider was quite a read. But I guess that's how it goes when you're used to good stuff, then you want to have (or do) everything, like to re-paint the backstage walls as you please. But I think it should be enough to just plug in and play rock'n roll. Surely, the basic stuff should be in order, like food and stuff. When you travel to a destination you are not familiar with, and the distances are long, schedules are tight, you probably don't want to start looking for a place to eat in the middle of the night. And nothing really works if your blood sugar is down.
Is it different to play on a festival compared with a solo show?
Festivals bring some sort of added aspect to it, sure. Summer alone affects to people in a positive way, especially if the weather is great. Other than that, you don't think about who you are performing to, or where the audience came from. You always play like it was your last show, when – in fact – you never know when it's your last. You never know if your airplane goes down, an earthquake or a tsunami occurs, or even a grasshopper rain. You always play like it was your last gig. A limited playing time is a big difference compared to your own headlining show. You may stretch your own shows, but at festivals it's impossible.
Is it tough to squeeze the whole set in one hour? And are the festival sets as pop as they come, when the audience consists of non-fans as well?
Over the years we have learned to make a setlist pretty well, it's in your backbone somewhere. Your own headlining show may be full of rarities and b-sides, but at festivals you need to concentrate on hit singles. Festivals are kind of people's parties where everyone wants to hear the radio-friendly tracks. When we had just started, and had released only a couple of singles, it was pretty hard filling an hour-long set, but nowadays the festival audience may even wonder how many songs, that they are familiar with, we have written over the years.
Sometimes at festivals, other bands may have demands with their sound systems/equipments, that other artists may find it difficult to cope with (on the same stage). Has it ever been a problem for Negative?
Our sound guy, Meelis Niin, is so great that he can do anything, anywhere, and with any kind of equipment. Quite often the sound guys are crying over bad systems and stuff, but Meelis never does that. He just does what he does and that's it. Actually, I must add even that when we've been playing in the most peculiar places abroad, the local soundmen walk around with their decibel meters and wonder where the fuck his sound is even coming from. He plays loud (like on a stadium), but so that it doesn't feel bad. We play like Rolling Stones. That has always been our standpoint. The sound guy is like a band's extra member, and regular listener rarely even thinks about that. All these people in the organisation are needed.
Do you get to see other bands playing before or after your own festival set?
Sometimes on stage. For example I saw HIM when we played at Ruisrock the last time. From the field, I've seen Marilyn Manson at Provinssirock, and that show was impressive. Other than that, watching shows with the audience is a bit hard when people are pulling from the sleeve while you're trying to concentrate on the show. That's fine per se, that people come to talk and all, but you miss the show that way. Surely it would be easier, if you disguised yourself, in the style of Michael Jackson, but I've always been bad at disguising. And I don't even want to think about such things, I just do what I do and see what happens. I don't take myself too seriously.
What would be the Nordic festival where you've never played before, but would like to?
Roskilde comes to mind, and it's possible that we'll find ourselves there next summer. I will present the bookers all my enthusiastic interests of playing there. Roskilde is the kind of festival that attracts performers from everywhere, and it has a good reputation in general. A lot of people, but a peaceful event. I have never heard about any fights or anything, all one big happy party area. I've never seen anyone fighting at foreign festivals, not in Europe nor Asia. I don't think it even happens, not in Japan at least.
From here on, it's all summer and festivals for you...
Yeah, I'm really excited cause at Ruisrock we get to play the same stage as we did seven years ago when our first album was being released. Then there's Simerock and Tammerfest. A real Bermuda Triangle!
And finally, top three festivals?
Well, I have to be faithful to my roots and say that Tammerfest (=Jonne's hometown festival in the city of Tampere) comes first, then Ruisrock and then Provinssirock. Ruisrock would be #1 as the biggest festival in Finland, but they will stone me to death in Tampere if I place it above Tammerfest. I would like to mention Simerock as festival #4. It is a rather new festival, but I wish them all the best in the future.
http://www.nordicfestivals.com
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