It all begun in April 2004. The weather was getting warmer, but the lilies were however still far from unfolding their petals to the sun. This was the setting, and we met. We were three, and we started talking together. This was followed shortly by playing.
From the beginning it was clear, that this band would do no covers. We wanted to concentrate on writing, rehearsing and performing our own material. So far we have stayed true to our ethos, in the studio and on stage.
Apart from the live shows Tristan has made four mini albums and one album, which we have published by ourselves. The first mini album is called Salakahvit, and it was released in 2005. The other one, Saameri, was released in the summer of 2006. Next one, Avantgarderobe, was the first record that we made as a quartet and it was recorded and released in 2007. The following record, Kammarfunk, was also recorded as a quartet during the year 2008.
The line-up of Tristan has never been the most common one. In the beginning it consisted of Mikko's baritone saxophone, drums of Tahvo and keyboards played by Tuomas. After two years the line-up grew to a quartet when Vesku joined the band with his clarinet. Vesku however left the band after the release of Kammarfunk and when Tuomas moved to Swaziland the band started to evolve into a different kind of collective.
Now the main band is back to square one with Mikko on woodwinds, Tahvo on drums and percussion and Tuomas on keyboards. However, the latest album of Tristan, Going for the Truffles, which was relesed in the very end of 2009, features also guest stars on vocals! For the tracks were recorded both in Swaziland and in Finland, it seemed natural to include singers from both countries to the brew. So the sole instrumental days are over, enter the singers of Tristan!
So how is the music then? The instrumentation leads one to think there might be traces of jazz in the music. Yes, but just traces. Some rock, huh? Not really. Funk? A bit. Folkish stuff? Well... no. Chamber music? Depends on the chamber, really. Pop? Suits me, to some extent. Progressive rock then? At least not to the extent of fretboard pyrotechnics and that stuff - because we don't have guitars in the band, and even the bass is played with the keyboards. That's some wanking for you, boys! If one word is needed, let's call the music fusion.
Let the music speak on its behalf, though. You can listen to some songs here and you can order albums from Hippie Shake Records , Helsinki.
Yours truly,
Tristan
