9th October 2021

Exclusive Interview: Funeral For Two talk “II”, Inverse Records and Monolord!

Finnish Doom Metal band Funeral For Two have been delivering the bong rip fuelled attitude with a pair of mighty fine EPs of late so we spoke to vocalist and guitarist Mikke Sillanpää about his approach to the music of the trio, their influences and what it all means in this new interview. Its one of two that we’re lucky enough to be able to bring to you so grab some popcorn and a beverage of choice, sit back, relax and read on. It’s soul feeding time.

Two EPs, four songs and thirty eight minutes of music released in 14 months is pretty good going for a band starting out! How have you found the reaction to your music so far? “Yeah, I have song ideas, different kind of riffs and melodies, going on in my head all the time! And so lucky to have a place to record them. Reactions have been so awesome, happy with that! “

You’ve probably answered this a million times now but where does your band name come from? It makes us think of some kind of dark romance when a young couple die in a car wreck before sharing a haunted house together… “I’ve answered that question couple of times…. but it was something like..at first, I wanted a band with just a drummer and me. But idea of a couple dying together, is also there..”

We’ve mentioned Monster Magnet vibes and a certain amount of 70’s psychedelic nostalgia within your downtuned fuzz and Doom Metal sonic oblivion but who would you say your main influences are? “I really take influences everywhere, different kind of music. To keep my mind open… Mixing them together in my mind and try to create something that is easy listening. My personal main influence is Monolord!”

There is a sublime almost Western Movie style soundscape on “La Muerte“; what was the inspiration behind that one? If the opportunity arose, would you like to write a soundtrack for a Robert Rodriguez or Quentin Tarantino movie? “Well, I see that part, as an old, dead Indian standing in the dark and I see him as a demon… that final idea with acoustic guitar and old Russian drum, came out while recording this part! And Hell yeah, I would love to do music for a movie!

There is a lot of Metal of all different kinds being exported from Finland at the moment with Inverse Records doing an incredible job and getting the music out there – how does it feel to be part of such a big scene? “To be a part of such a big scene is a huge thing for us! We wouldn’t be here without Inverse Records!! The are doing excellent job for us, to get our music to be heard everywhere! No doubt about that!”

You mentioned having big plans for Funeral For Two, so what’s next for the band? “We have been thinking about making a music video, doing our first live show… and some new stuff! Stay slow, stay loud, stay low!”

“II” by Funeral For Two is out now via Inverse Records and available over at bandcamp