Hassisen Kone

Hassisen Kone was a Finnisch rock band, founded in 1979 in Joensuu. The young musicians rose to popularity in 1980 after winning the Finnish rock championship in the New Wave category. They recorded three highly successful albums before disbanding in 1982. Thesinger/songwriterIsmo Alanko has led several bands since then and continues to be an influential name in Finnish rock music.

History:

The idea of forming Hassisen Kone came to Ismoa Alanko in 1979, when he heard the Eppu Normali album Maximum Jee&Jee while working in Stockholm. Alanko returned to Finland and started the band with guitarist Reijo Heiskanen and drummer Harri Kinnunen. The band's name was based on a local home appliance store of the same name. The three men had earlier played together in a progressive rock group called Sight. Kinnunen's little brother Jussi was hired to play the bass.

In March 1980, the newly formed Hassisen Kone won the Finnish rock championship, an annual competition for young musicians held since 1970. The victory raised public interest for the band, and when their debut album Täältä tullaan Venäjä was released in June, it was an instant hit. But the ironic lyrics of the song "Rappiolla" caused some reporters to start complaining about indecency in rock songs.

Hassisen Kone disbanded in August 1982. Alanko and Orma went on to form SielunVeljet, another famous band in Finland, shortly afterwards.

Hassisen Kone has played several nostalgic reunion concerts after they disbanded. In 2000, they reunited for a concert on midsummer at the Joensuu Laulurinne.

Links: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vb6aR8oWYhw
           http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1HgWkjodQg

Lena Bremer