Eläkeläiset
Encyclopedia
Eläkeläiset are a Finnish humppa
band founded in 1993. They specialise in humppa
and jenkka
music and have been successful in Germany
, Finland
and elsewhere.
Current members of the band are Onni Waris (keyboard, vocals), Petteri Halonen (keyboard, guitar, vocals), Lassi Kinnunen (accordion, vocals), Martti Waris (bass, vocals) and Kristian Voutilainen (drums, vocals). Ilmari Koivuluhta (sound technique, logistics) and Pekka Jokinen (graphics, merchandise) complete the "humppa family". According to the band's statements, they play between 80 and 100 concerts per year, of which only 20 in Finland and 40 to 50 in Germany
, due to their popularity there. Rarely performing in big venues, they have visited several big international music festivals, and surprisingly too many, even large heavy metal festivals e.g. Wacken Open Air
and Tuska Open Air. They travel mostly on a private lorry and no bus.
Eläkeläiset mainly play cover version
s of famous pop
and rock
hits in a fast humppa
or slow jenkka
style (both sound somewhat similar to polka music
the way "Weird Al" Yankovic
plays it) with Finnish lyrics — the original songs are barely recognizable. They also publish bootleg recording
s of their own concerts.
Eläkeläiset are very popular among some OpenBSD
developers and frequently played at their hackathon
s, where they claim they are "thwarting evil with humppa and math."
Eläkeläiset was one of the nominees to represent Finland in Eurovision Song Contest 2010
.
Humppa
Humppa is a type of music from Finland. It is related to jazz and very fast foxtrot, played two beats to a bar . Typical speed is about 220 to 260 beats per minute. Humppa is also the name of a few social dances danced to humppa music. All dances involve bounce that follows the strong bass of the...
band founded in 1993. They specialise in humppa
Humppa
Humppa is a type of music from Finland. It is related to jazz and very fast foxtrot, played two beats to a bar . Typical speed is about 220 to 260 beats per minute. Humppa is also the name of a few social dances danced to humppa music. All dances involve bounce that follows the strong bass of the...
and jenkka
Jenkka
Jenkka [/jeˈŋkːɑ/] is a fast Finnish partner dance originated in Finnish folk dance. It is danced to the music in 2/4 or 4/4 time signature of about 140 beats per minute....
music and have been successful in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
and elsewhere.
Current members of the band are Onni Waris (keyboard, vocals), Petteri Halonen (keyboard, guitar, vocals), Lassi Kinnunen (accordion, vocals), Martti Waris (bass, vocals) and Kristian Voutilainen (drums, vocals). Ilmari Koivuluhta (sound technique, logistics) and Pekka Jokinen (graphics, merchandise) complete the "humppa family". According to the band's statements, they play between 80 and 100 concerts per year, of which only 20 in Finland and 40 to 50 in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, due to their popularity there. Rarely performing in big venues, they have visited several big international music festivals, and surprisingly too many, even large heavy metal festivals e.g. Wacken Open Air
Wacken Open Air
Wacken Open Air is a summer open air heavy metal music festival. It takes place annually in the small town of Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany...
and Tuska Open Air. They travel mostly on a private lorry and no bus.
Eläkeläiset mainly play cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
s of famous pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
and rock
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
hits in a fast humppa
Humppa
Humppa is a type of music from Finland. It is related to jazz and very fast foxtrot, played two beats to a bar . Typical speed is about 220 to 260 beats per minute. Humppa is also the name of a few social dances danced to humppa music. All dances involve bounce that follows the strong bass of the...
or slow jenkka
Jenkka
Jenkka [/jeˈŋkːɑ/] is a fast Finnish partner dance originated in Finnish folk dance. It is danced to the music in 2/4 or 4/4 time signature of about 140 beats per minute....
style (both sound somewhat similar to polka music
Polka
The polka is a Central European dance and also a genre of dance music familiar throughout Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in Bohemia...
the way "Weird Al" Yankovic
"Weird Al" Yankovic
Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic is an American singer-songwriter, music producer, accordionist, actor, comedian, writer, satirist, and parodist. Yankovic is known for his humorous songs that make light of popular culture and that often parody specific songs by contemporary musical acts...
plays it) with Finnish lyrics — the original songs are barely recognizable. They also publish bootleg recording
Bootleg recording
A bootleg recording is an audio or video recording of a performance that was not officially released by the artist or under other legal authority. The process of making and distributing such recordings is known as bootlegging...
s of their own concerts.
Eläkeläiset are very popular among some OpenBSD
OpenBSD
OpenBSD is a Unix-like computer operating system descended from Berkeley Software Distribution , a Unix derivative developed at the University of California, Berkeley. It was forked from NetBSD by project leader Theo de Raadt in late 1995...
developers and frequently played at their hackathon
Hackathon
A hackathon, a hacker neologism, is an event when programmers meet to do collaborative computer programming. The spirit of a hackathon is to collaboratively build programs and applications. Hackathons are typically between several days and a week in length...
s, where they claim they are "thwarting evil with humppa and math."
Eläkeläiset was one of the nominees to represent Finland in Eurovision Song Contest 2010
Eurovision Song Contest 2010
The Eurovision Song Contest 2010 was the 55th annual Eurovision Song Contest, broadcast from the Telenor Arena in Bærum, Greater Oslo, Norway. It was the third time Norway had hosted the contest, having previously done so in 1986 and 1996. The 2010 winner was Germany with Lena singing "Satellite",...
.
Discography
- Joulumanteli (1994, published only as a tape)
- Humppakäräjät (1994, album)
- Humppalöyly (1995, EP)
- Pyjamahumppa (1995, single)
- Humpan Kuninkaan Hovissa (1995, album)
- In Humppa We TrustIn Humppa We TrustAll songs on this album are covers/remixes of famous songs.In Humppa We Trust is a live album from Finnish humppa band Eläkeläiset, released in 1996.-Track listing:#"Nitro" – 2:37 #"Humppaleka" – 2:26 [Elvis Presley 'Viva Las Vegas']...
(1996, live album) - Dementikon Keppihumppa / Take Me To The City (1997, single)
- Humppamaratooni (1997, album) - its title track is a humppa arrangement of Whiskey in the JarWhiskey in the Jar"Whiskey in the Jar" is a famous Irish traditional song, set in the southern mountains of Ireland, with specific mention of counties Cork and Kerry, as well as Fenit, a village in county Kerry. It is about a Rapparee , who is betrayed by his wife or lover, and is one of the most widely performed...
. - Sensational Monsters Of Humppa (1998, single)
- Humppaorgiat (1999, EP with censored songs)
- Werbung, Baby!Werbung, Baby!Werbung, baby! is a 1999 album by the Finnish group Eläkeläiset. It consists of humppa cover versions or remixes of popular songs.- Track listing :Original artist and song in parenthesis.# Hump - 2.27...
(1999, album) - Huipputähtien Ykköshitit (1999, single)
- Humpan Kuninkaan Hovissa (2000, album, re-release incl. additional songs)
- Ja Humppa Soi (2000, single)
- Humppa-AkatemiaHumppa-Akatemia- Track listing :CD1# Hyljätyn humppa # Humppasonni # Humppaosasto # Ja humppa soi # Humppapappa vaan...
(2000, double album) - Humppa Till We Die (2000, CD)
- Humppa!Humppa!Humppa! is a 2001 compilation album by Eläkeläiset, mainly released to the Russian market.- Track listing :# Orpopojan jenkka # Kuumaa humppaa # Elän humpalla # Pyjamahumppa...
(2001, compilation) - Jenkkapolkkahumppa (2001, EP)
- JoulutorttuJoulutorttuJoulutorttu is a Christmas album by Eläkeläiset. It was released in December 2002 by Stupido Records, and spent two weeks in the Finnish top 10 album chart.The mini-album contains 4 humppa-songs, all composed for this album...
(2002, EP) - PahvischePahvische- Track listing :# "Kiitokset humpasta" – 3:24# "Hanurissa Arja" – 2:56# "Kuuma humppa" – 3:19# "Humppanautinto" – 3:25# "Jenkkapolkkahumppa" – 3:21...
(2002, album) - Katkolla Humppa (2003, EP)
- Keväthumppa (2003, EP)
- HumppaelämääHumppaelämääHumppaelämää is a 2003 album by the Finnish group Eläkeläiset. This is the first Eläkeläiset-album in which none of the tracks are covers.-Track listing:# Humppaelämää - 3.20# Katkolla humppa - 2.57# Humppa-Aatami - 2.16# Unelmahumppa - 3.35...
(2003, album) - Jukolan Humppa (2005, single)
- HumppasirkusHumppasirkus- Track listing :# Humppaa Suomesta - 3.53 # Vihaan humppaa - 2.55 # Jukolan humppa - 3.32...
(2006, album) - Das Humppawerk (2006, EP)
- HumppakonserttoHumppakonserttoHumppakonsertto is a live album by the Finnish band Eläkeläiset. The album was recorded in 2006 all around Finland and was released in 2007.-Track listing:# Poro - 02:16...
(2007, live album) - Humppa UnitedHumppa unitedHumppa United is a 2008 album by the Finnish group Eläkeläiset. It consists of humppa cover versions of popular songs.- Track listing :# "Humppa tanaan" – 3:22...
(2008, album) - Humppabingo (2009, 2CD, compilation)
- Humpan Kuninkaan Hovissa (2010, album, re-release incl. bonus tracks)
External links
- Official Homepage
- Russian Eläkeläiset fanclub
- Eläkeläiset history
- Eläkeläiset covers, a list of which band and song each track on the album parodies.
- Eläkeläiset covers, just another list of the covers including YouTube links to the originals.