Review Fix Exclusive: Sami “Haxu” Hakala Talks The Rock Masters’ New Double Single Release and More

Review Fix chats with The Rock Masters Band frontman Sami “Haxu” Hakala, who discusses the band’s new double single release, as well as the Finland rock scene.

With a sound reminiscent of The White Stripes, with tinges of The Black Keys and Foo Fighters, the Finland-based group’s new double-single release ends up hitting the mark with two radio-friendly tracks that show off the band’s diverse and catchy sound.

Review Fix: How is this incarnation of the Rock Masters different from previous ones?

Sami “Haxu” Hakala: The previous incarnation was traditional rock band setup with standing lineup of drums, bass, guitar, and vocals. The songwriting happened between me and RMB’s original guitarist Teemu Holttinen and recording was done with just that group. The previous incarnation was traditional rock band setup with standing lineup of drums, bass, guitar, and vocals. The songwriting happened between me and RMB’s original guitarist Teemu Holttinen and recording was done with just that group.

The original line up went their separate ways and I decided to compress the lineup even more to a true trio Vocals/Bass/Guitar. The smaller core lineup is easier to manage, but most importantly Ace and Jimi are creatively contributing to song writing in equal portions.

I like the open sound of power trio plus vocals very much. Trio is hard to master, especially live. You have much less to lean on. On the other hand not having a permanent second guitarist or drummer gives us an option to cherry-pick best musicians for a studio session or live show when needed.

Review Fix: The band is super tight. Everything from the drums and bass, down to the vocals, how long have all of you guys been playing together and what do you think, makes you guys work so well together?

Hakala: We have known each other for over twenty years so it’s a bit of a wonder Rock Masters is the first band where the three of us work together. We’ve crossed paths several times over the years but nothing really happened apart of few jamming sessions and odd studio gig here and there over the years.

What comes to playing and sound we have paid our dues very early. Started touring and recording in very early age, we all have played in several bands – some known, some not – and seen the light and dark of rock.

We know our craft well enough to be frequently invited to play, record and produce music for other bands. So the foundation for tightness is there. Why it works now? It has to do with how we experiencing and feeling the songs we make similarly.

RMB’s influences are quite obvious. In the last incarnation influences that members brought, into mix were quite scattered in the terms of sound and genre. It was wonderful anarchy of styles; anything from Spike Jones to Mötorhead.

Now the Rock Masters are more united in terms of influences, the main drivers broadly being rock, groove and blues. Spit shine it with a dash of psychedelic rock. We still don’t exclude any genres – if it sounds good it’s good. I think we experience music similarly in abstract terms and feelings. In studio we discuss about songs a lot, spin reference albums and spend a lot of time to get into right mood for a song. I think that makes us perform the songs with a coincident state of mind and, groove. And that equals tightness in my book.

Review Fix: What was the creative process behind these songs?

Hakala: The first demo tapes of “Diamonds” are from 15 years ago. What I remember of writing that piece is the riff, the rhythm and lyrics. Lyrics I actually rewrite almost completely. Original lyrics and melody weren’t so great but the songs message for me is stayed the same. As always there’s lots of my life in the song. A feeling here, an actual occurrence there. In my opinion you should always write about your own experience in some level. That makes the song more real for you and for the audience.

The chorus stayed as it was in the original demo. In studio I started with laying down a demo tracks for drums, guitar, bass and vocals myself. I can’t drum my way out of a wet paper bag so I use machines for demo. Then Jimi and Ace arranged their parts to their style and liking. Next step was to record real drums and start replacing demo tracks with actual performances. I’ve done this process with every song so far since so far back; one of the guys makes a demo, we arrange parts with that and then start replacing stuff with real deal. It’s a fun way to work and you can share recording sessions and work simultaneously in different locations. Future.

To cover Mark Lanegan’s “Hit the City” was quite a risky move. The original is a masterpiece and this song was not most obvious choice for me to cover. The song is important for me personally when it came out and I have probably heard it a bit differently because of that; in my mind there’s an underlying thin layer of hope buried there somewhere between the major chord exchanges.

Where original uses power chords and fifth’s I used full major chords in the background guitar to brighten up the mood. Drums were straightened and uplifting solo part written to match the feeling. Cool Mellotron is padding the foundation nicely.

I took that thin feeling of hope and emphasize it to the max, trying to create strong contrast with the ominous lyrics and uplift general mood. I took some Rolling Stones to the mix. Some groovy bass and Rhodes piano. The aim was to surprise the listener in a way audience was surprised in Reservoir Dogs where Mr. White interrogates police officer and Steeler Wheel’s “Stuck in the middle of you” plays. Feet start tapping, people feel good and suddenly the mood goes extremely violent. But audience still rocks with the good song – they feel wrong and filthy about it, but still rocking.

Review Fix: For fans that don’t know, what is a “Desert Recording”?

Hakala: Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme started “The Desert Sessions” in 1997. He gathered musicians he knew and they contributed collectively jamming and recording at now famous Rancho De La Luna studio in Joshua Tree.

RMB works similarly, inviting musicians we love to sessions, while the backbone of the band, Jimi (bass) and Ace (guitar) stays constant. The difference is that we work with one or two songs at the time. This gives us a chance to focus on creating more than trying to push full album in one longer session. It’s also important to find the right musicians for each song and that can take time too because the ones we like are very busy. It’s much easier to get people to sign up at whim for a fun day- and- a-half than two weeks.

Review Fix: How would you describe the Finland rock scene?

Hakala: Rock in Finland is alive and kicking. Finland has recently been known mostly for metal and rock has been a bit of an underdog of Finnish music exports. The rock scene here is fertile and now that vinyl is kinda back there’s some sales also. There was this “Scandinavian action rock” scene starting late ’90s. My band “Species” was a thing back then. After few years of burning bright the scene faded and saturated. I think it’s coming back with the new generation. I hope so.

Review Fix: What are some of the band’s goals for 2015?

Hakala: The goal is to rinse and repeat that few more times. Then compile songs to an album with few unreleased tracks. Treating every song individually is liberating but it could be difficult to compile a good album that way. Let’s see how it goes.

There are also some talks about new music video. Those are nice to have, but a bitch to make.

Review Fix: Bottom Line, Why should people check out these two singles?

Hakala: “Diamonds” and “Hit the City” represent a reboot for the Rock Masters. There’s feeling of new beginnings mixed with loss. Depending where you are in your life the songs will have a different effect. If you are in a good place you will perhaps feel nostalgic and longing for the one that got away. Maybe there’s regret in the past. If you are in the bad place they will uplift your mood and maybe turn your secret anger into desire. In any case, you are rocking and feeling good. Maybe a bit filthy too.

Review Fix: What’s next for you guys?

Hakala: Recording basic tracks for working titles “Cosmic Wizards & Stones” and “Ennio Morricone Beatles.” The thing about working titles is that they tend to stick. “Shitbox Nissan” almost made it to the previous album so we need to be very, very careful.