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YOHIO: Sweden’s best bet to win Eurovision.

Wednesday, March 6th, 2013

Yes, it is the final of Melodifestivalen 2013 coming up! The question – who to vote for? The one who really stands out is newcomer YOHIO. He has a great song, ‘Heartbreak Hotel’, and an awesome stage act. YOHIO is up against intense competition. Here are some reasons why you should give him your considered vote.

In an ideal world, Eurovision Song Contest should be that. A contest for a song. If it were the case, then ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ would win hands down anyway. The song has been written by a strong writing team, including YOHIO himself. Any song that has the ‘tongue-in-cheek’ audacity to share a title with another song, the one made famous by Elvis Presley, had better be good. And it is. In fact it is great.

‘Heartbreak Hotel’ is no safe predictable bubble-gum. It is a challenging but catchy number. A wailing vocal wall of non-verbal angst rips open the sound barrier onto a bluesy rock ballad of loss. The breathy narrative is relayed by YOHIO through the use of inter-weaving minor chords. This builds up to a thundering chorus line that will have you pushing back the furniture and leaping around.

The story-line is not, incidentally, about a desert motel but it’s about a Japanese ‘love hotel’. So the song builds a thematic bridge between YOHIO’s love for Japanese style with a very fashionable spooky mysteriousness. That will give it immense popular appeal throughout ‘Nordic Noir’- obsessed Europe. This is an intelligent song with good pop sensibilities. It has Eurovision winner potential.

The song alone though, is no guarantee of success. It’s about the stage presence of the performer. YOHIO packs a punch. The ’Heartbreak Hotel’ stage-act is a total entertainment package. Thus the impact of the dazzling costumes, glam stage make-up and wild hairstyles, the stunning choreography, and eye-popping pyro-technic effects all serve to enhance the music. The ‘visual kei‘
Japanese style that underpins YOHIO’s stage performance is tailor-made for being a WINNER for Eurovision 2013.

YOHIO has mastery of social networking media that reflects his huge international appeal. On Facebook alone there are over 70 sites from around the world, dedicated to YOHIO and his band Seremedy. Many of these are from countries participating in Eurovision where, post-Melodifestivalen, the real votes will count. YOHIO’s appeal cuts across age, gender, and genre loyalties. This popularity is reflected in his commanding lead in the betting odds, on-line support, and in the Mello votes to date.

All the Mello acts deserve respect. They have worked very hard to entertain us. I believe YOHIO deserves to win on merit, but there are other factors. Sweden has made a reputation for popular music on the World stage. Sweden is one of the greatest producers of recorded music in the World. Sweden won last year, and is the host for Eurovision. Even if you are still undecided by the merits of YOHIO and ‘Heartbreak Hotel’, then think beyond Mello to the bigger picture. YOHIO is the one to win Eurovision. A vote for YOHIO is a vote for Sweden!

K.M.

Background

‘Sweden Scores in Japan’

‘Welcome to Our MADNESS’

‘A guy wearing a dress is not a sexual thing’

YOHIO – Heartbreak Hotel (Official Video)

YOHIO – Heartbreak Hotel (Performance at Karlskrona, SVT Melodifestivalen)

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‘Welcome to Our MADNESS’

Wednesday, August 8th, 2012

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Today, 8th August, marks a new milestone in the upward progress of ‘Seremedy’, a Swedish rock band rapidly coming to world attention. Their first full album ‘Welcome to Our MADNESS’ is released in Sweden. You can get it on iTunes and also in various CD stores such as Rocks, CDON, Bengans, Megastore etc. It follows on from a very well-received release gig at Klubben Fryshuset, Stockholm, on 4th August, with followers flying in from as far away as Japan. The album was first released in Japan on 25th July, and that was preceded with a promotional video and single called ‘NO ESCAPE’.

It is not surprising that Japan should be the focus of interest. Seremedy specialise in a form of rock music known as ‘visual kei’ or ‘VK style’ which is popular in Japan, as well as having adherents world-wide. The ‘VK’ look places emphasis on challenging on-stage persona: hairstyles, clothing, make-up, often in androgynous fashion, to complement rich tapestries of music drawing on wide influences from neo-classical to heavy metal.

The interest in Japanese popular culture is certainly not feigned. The Swedish ‘wonderkid’ lead guitarist called YOHIO, just turned 17 years-old, has studied and learned to speak and write Japanese from the age of 11. He has been interviewed on Japanese TV fluently holding forth in the language. An interest in anime, manga, and J-rock fuelled his driving ambition. He became a highly respected prodigy in performing guitar speed-licks, and breathtaking improvisational sweeps, posting on Youtube from the age of 12. A third-generation rock guitarist, his father and grandfather have both been guitarists on the international scene. ‘Seremedy’ provided the project vehicle for advancing his career in the company of older ‘brothers’.

Sundsvall-based ‘Seremedy’ came about through the founding members, guitarist RAY and bass-player JENZiih, building on their earlier roots in a band called ‘DESERT’. The aim in 2010 was to have a band that could musically bridge the VK genre divide between the ‘light and darkness’ of popular music sensibilities and heavier rock tastes. Something of a creative schizophrenia they termed; ‘The Madness of Beauty and the Beauty of Madness’, hence the title of their first album. They recruited drummer, LINDER, the 14-year-old YOHIO, and then added Stockholm-based vocalist SEIKE.

Rapid success followed. The reputation of the band preceded them. As well as local gigging, the band was soon on a rollercoaster of admiration. Playing to appreciative audences at Japanese-cultural conventions in Uppsala in 2010 and 2011, and a gig in Russia, it was not long before Japan beckoned. Highly successful tours were arranged there in those years. Interviews with influential magazines and inclusion on a compilation album followed.

In March 2011 a single was released, soon followed by their first EP ‘Seasons will change’. By 2012, YOHIO released his seminal, solo debut, mini-album; ‘Reach The Sky’ and promo-video, which has seen viral-growth on Youtube.

During the past year, Seremedy has seen exponential growth through the use of social media. ‘street teams’, Facebook pages, blogs, Youtube activity etc. They have broken through the old, ‘glass ceiling’ of ‘Can white men sing the blues?’ Japanese interest is voracious. But also, Seremedy support groups now span the globe, from Finland to Italy, from Germany to Latin America.

The acid test is in the music. Without a shadow of doubt, Seremedy has shown a willingness to take risks. Theirs is certainly not a pastiche of J-rock. Within ‘Welcome to Our MADNESS’ a listener will tap into a rich vein of musical talent from guys who dedicate themselves to bringing you the best. Visual ‘kei’ other-worldliness that rocks you to the foundations of who you believe you are.

A World tour of influences from Bach to Beelzebub. A ‘time-travellers’ album as well. Vocal harmonies of SEIKE and YOHIO redolent of the Beatles, sitting alongside industrial metal. A Tardis outing to musical realms you never dreamed were possible.

‘Welcome to Our MADNESS’ WILL disturb your mind! That is the whole point.

Seremedy IS World Music. Sweden IS the epi-centre of this revolution.

Take a taste now. Put down a marker. YOU were there!

K.M.

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Sweden Scores in Japan

Tuesday, May 29th, 2012

Yohio Sky LiMiT

Yohio, 16 year-old guitar wonderkid from Sundsvall is blazing a trail of deserved recognition, especially in Japan. He is building on his success with ‘Seremedy’ the Swedish band, known for their Japanese -influenced ‘visual kei’ mode. Seremedy played two live tours of Japan last year, and were well-received. Their first full-length album ‘Welcome to our Madness’ is due for release on 25th July this year.

Yohio is continuing his role as guitarist and chief composer with Seremedy while launching his solo project. His following builds on intensive promo visits to Japan earlier this year. Influenced by ‘anime’ since childhood, he acquired the whole cultural package, becoming fluent in Japanese along the way. His live performances and media appearances have consolidated his international reputation.

On 24th of April, Yohio appeared on the Japanese TV show “waratte liitomo”, a program with over 10 million viewers, more than the whole population of Sweden! He trended on Japanese Twitter shortly after. 25th April saw the official release of his first solo mini-album: “REACH the SKY”. On 28th – Yohio played three outdoor performances at Shinjuku Station Square, before an audience of 6,000. Just a month afterwards, the flagship track ‘SKY*LiMiT’ has received over 400,000 views of the promotional video on Youtube.

This is a space rock/ astrology influenced song of unrequited love between two sentient beings from different constellations. It mashes bi-polar metal and pop. The content is visually represented by the yin/yang of different costume outfits as male/female characters. Yohio plays out the two roles of an alienista ”female” hence the interplayed costume changes between the Japanese ”Lolita” version and the more futuristic ”boyish” life-form. The changeovers are choreographed with the lyrics.

Naturally, attention has focussed on the visually stunning side of Yohio. But his ‘bishounen’ look and stage-costumes of elaborate dresses, make-up, and hair creation is not a gimmick. His musicianship is solid. Something of a prodigy, Yohio comes from a well-established Swedish musical family. He learned piano from age six. He was on guitar from eleven and has been demonstrating complex guitar shredding on ‘Youtube’ since he was in his early teens.

The rest of the new mini-album is a showcase of talent. Pop, heavy rock, ballad, and with an eloquent vocal range as well, balanced by neo-classical guitar and solo piano instrumentals. Sweden can be justly proud of its contribution to the world music scene, as demonstrated on the Eurovision Song contest. For Yohio, Japan is just the beginning. Tomorrow, the World!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL81DDCA0815589595&feature=player_detailpage&v=INKCPOQL98c#t=47s

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ADAGIO IN G MINOR: A Euro-Musical Mystery story

Thursday, May 26th, 2011

Illustration by Victoria Frances

This is a real life ’cold’ case. Perhaps you can help to resolve it? Your input is valued. This is taken from my own libretto developed from the work. Arrangements vary slightly. This is my own setting to ‘Adagio per flauto; Archi ed organo’ Gunilla Von Bahr & Stockholms Kammerenensemble.

Albinoni’s ‘Adagio in G minor’ is a well-loved but doomy, piece of music. The natural assumption being that it was written by the Venetian composer Tomaso Albinoni. Those who search further may be aware that it is often credited as composed by Remo Giazotto, a 20th century musicologist. Sometimes it is represented as ‘arranged by Giazotto’.

The confusion arises over Giazotto’s claim that the composition is founded on his own detective work in making sense of a fragment of manuscript. This, it was claimed was recovered from the State Library in Dresden, shortly after the cessation of hostilities in World War II. This rather conflicted with findings that though the building had been destroyed by Allied bombing, the armed forces had managed to salvage most of its collection.

Key dates circulate around the year ’8’. Attention being focussed on the year 1948, and the questioning of some of the assumptions set out by Giazotto. Purportedly written by Albinoni in 1708. Giazotto copyrights the work and it is published in in 1958. He dies in 1998, never having produced his claimed evidence.

Since then, research has concluded that this piece never existed in the Saxon State Library. Questions, but few answers. Why not stand by, and claim the original as his own? Why the subterfuge? Perhaps an eclectic combination of forensic science, human psychology, artistic reconstruction, and musical intuition, can resolve this unsolved mystery?

What do you think?

ADAGIO

(Organ/ Bass intro)

And when I feel the darkness
Rest heavy on my shoulder
There is nothing to compare
But only to stand and stare
In my own eyes revealed
Even, so ..

So what is, what is, what is love?
Love?
And what is warmth?
Without a soul?
I do not know
I do not know
I do not know

(Organ/ Bass passage)

Even the coldest snow-winds
They will not chill my heartstrings
There is only love in my heart
And nothing can turn me blue
And all this, it must be true
It, is true.

For even in the darkest night
I, still sense your light
Am drawn to it
What am I to do
What am I to do
What am I to do?

(Flute lead over string chord sequences)
(Orchestral section/ organ passage)
(Organ/ Bass intro reprise)

Oh what is love without you?
Without the light I’m blinded
Without your own light to guide me?
I sink into the pit of gloom

Oh
Give me the keys
Unlock your very own soul
Let me in and warm my heart

(Flute/ organ/ orchestral interlude)

So turn away!
Turn away, turn away

I am alone, I am alone!
I am alone
I am alone
I am alone

Go turn away, go turn away
Turn away, turn away
Turn away,
Turn me away

Alone!
Damned!
Go home!
Gone in darkness
Light, surpasses

All ….
All, is one now!
All, is gone now!
All, is gone
Truthfully
Truthfully
Truthfully
I am gone

(Flute section/ finale)

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