LH: How was your time in the studio whilst you were recording “Tales along the road”? Do you enjoy being in the studio, or like many bands, do you prefer to be out on the road playing live?
Jarrko: The studio time was enjoyable. At least as much as possible. The atmosphere in the studio was really relaxed much to the thanks of the producer Samu Oittinen. Of course in studio you play the whole day and do many takes and so on which makes it feel like work when compared to live gigs where the fun aspect is much more dominant.

LH: Are you looking forward to playing WOA and Headbangers open air festivals this summer?
Jarrko: Yes we are. It's always a pleasure to play to the crowds that are not necessarily there to see us. Of course it is also quite scary because you can never tell if we will get the crowd jumping and dancing or if we will get booed off the stage!
Another geat thing with the festivals is that we get to see our own favourite bands for free and really close!

LH: Who would you most like to go on tour with if you could tour with any band, and why?
Jarrko: I think we would like to get some of our own favourites. We would probably be a strange pairing but at least we would be able to spend some time with our own idols. I have a feeling that might pick up Metallica but I think I'd go with Motörhead.

LH: You changed your name in 2004 to Korpiklaani (or forest clan) after several years of going by the name of Shamen. What were the reasons behind changing your name?
Jarrko: The reason was quite simple. The ex-member of Angra formed another band called Shaman. They were already in the beginning better than us so we were forced to change our name. The first Korpiklaani album was recorded as the third Shaman album but it came out as Korpiklaani debut

LH: When you began playing this style of music, were there many other bands doing it at the time? Are there any bands in particular who have influenced your music?<
Jarrko: The evolution from the fully acoustic folk duo to Shaman and later to Korpiklaani was quite natural and there were not really anything like this going on. Many of the bands who are now operating in the same genre are basically metal bands with folk or traditional elements added on top, when our roots are originally in the folk heritage of the Sami people. So, to answer the question, no there were no bands like this and there were no direct influences either.

LH: You write quite a few songs in English as well as in your native language. Have you grown up able to speak both languages or did you learn English later on in life? Is it harder or easier for you to write/sing in English?
Jarrko: Most of the Finns study English at school. Some start it earlier and read more than the others who may start with a different foreign language. I started studying English on the third grade when I was 9.
Finnish is a hard language to write rock lyrics. First of all, the language itself has many long words and unlike in English you form new words by combining them which makes it quite hard to fit them in the verses. Another thing is that you get a lot more critical towards your own lyrics when you write in your own language.

LH: Have any of you had any formal music training or are you all self taught?
Jarrko: I haven't had any formal training but I actually have no idea about the others. At least Juho, the accordionist, is very good in music theory so I think he may have studied music in some point of his life.

LH: Are you all fans of both folk music, and metal as individual genres? Are both styles of music widely accepted in Finland?
Jarrko: As individual genres I'd say that they are quite separated. Both genres are relative big in Finland but I believe the audiences are mostly different. I am not personally that interested on folk music and not really interested in all metal either, but I know that at least Hittavainen goes to folk music festivals.

LH: What are your opinions of metal band, Lordi winning the Eurovision song contest for Finland?
Jarrko: I don't really care about the band or their music, and I definitely don't care about the whole concept of that contest, but I have to say that I really enjoyed their victory. Not because of the song, not because of their image, but because they just turned the whole thing upside down and hopefully during the following years we'll get rid of all those silicone boobs and botox faces and start once again hear some real music there.

LH: One of the songs on “Voice of Wilderness” is pretty much an ode to beer (Beer, beer). Are you all big beer drinkers?
Jarrko: Yes we are. Many people have been quite amazed about how much beer and other alcoholic beverages this band can consume. Sometimes we surprise ourselves too!

LH: Not speaking for other countries but here in the UK, folk metal is really developing a strong underground following. More bands are adapting that style and more people are getting into the music. Are you pleased that the genre is growing and bands like yourselves are getting your music to a wider audience?
Jarrko: Of course we are. For myself the concerts are the greatest thing in this business and if the genre gets bigger we'll hopefully be able to play more concerts in new countries and I can't think of anything that I would enjoy more. I am also quite sure that the other guys feel the same.