G’day from Riga
On this 27 day of March 2024. Just before playing my last show of this Nordic stint in spring 2024 tonight at Kulturas Nams Atmoda in Riga, a little update on what’s coming next. Will skip the lamenting about both having to kill endless hours on the boat from Klaipeda to Kiel and the long drive from there to the south of Germany on Good Friday.
Once this has all been done it’ll be only a few days till Nightbird from Finland and me will set out for a solid three weeks touring all over Germany plus one Swiss show in Basel. Right in the beginning of that trip I’m more than pleased to announce and highly recommend the “Sailing The Seas Of Weirdness”-Festival at Kofferfabrik in Fürth, Germany. Exceptionally exciting lineup on that Friday evening including Nightbird, Mäkkelä and the incredible Boucan from France! Don’t, absolutely don’t, miss out on that one! That’ll be a musical highlight of the year! If not THE highlight! Advance tickets still available I suppose until 1st April, possibly few days longer if there are any left. Here’s the TICKET LINK:
Here are all the tourdates which you should also be able to find on all social media channels:
27.03.24 LV - Riga, Kultūras Nams Atmoda
04.04.24 D - Kassel, Sandershaus (+ Nightbird)
05.04.24 D - Fürth, Kofferfabrik (+ Nightbird/FIN & Boucan/F)
06.04.24 D - Mainz, Hafeneck (+ Nightbird)
07.04.24 D - Frankfurt/M., Jazzclub Mampf (+ Nightbird)
08.04.24 D - Karlsruhe, Die Neue Fledermaus (+ Nightbird) SORRY! CANCELLED!
09.04.24 D - Erlangen, Transfer (+ Nightbird)
10.04.24 D - Hannover, Nordstadtbraut (+ Nightbird)
11.04.24 D - Berlin, Artliners (+ Nightbird)
12.04.24 D - Kiel, Prinz Willy (+ Nightbird)
13.04.24 D - Hamburg, Cafe Feuerwache (+ Nightbird)
15.04.24 D - Lübeck, Tonfink (+ Nightbird)
18.04.24 D - Dresden, Blue Note (+ Nightbird)
19.04.24 D - Hilpoltstein, KWK (+ Nightbird)
20.04.24 D - Ostfildern, Hamburg Süd Trafik Cafe (+ Nightbird)
21.04.24 D - Bad Kötzting, Bahnhof (+ Nightbird)
23.04.24 D - Gilching, KultCafe (+ Nightbird)
24.04.24 D - München, Glockenbachwerkstatt (+ Nightbird)
25.04.24 CH - Basel, Kleiner Wassermann (+ Nightbird)
27.04.24 D - Nordendorf, Walden Kulturwirtschaft (+ Nightbird)
to be updated…
New Album
Work on the new album is slowly proceeding whenever there is a gap in the touring schedule. So in fact very slowly. A first glimpse on what’s coming you will get on Thursday 4 April (20.00 h / 8:00pm CET) on local Nuremberg alternative radio station Radio Z. Andreas Basner interviewed me and will play some new material including Nightbird’s latest single. Listen on air if you’re somewhere near or check out their stream.
Festivals 2024
It has never really been my thing nor has it been the one of festival promoters. Except of some most enjoyable exceptions over the past years. Either way, times are apparently a-changing. There will be festival shows as it looks like. So far one on 1 June in Germany, another one possibly mid-June abroad, the latter still being negotiated. Will keep you updated here and in my next newsletter.
Biel & Haute-Savoie, Oct 2023
Here are some lovely shots from Patrick Principe who came to see my show at Café du Commerce in Biel, Switzerland. Have a look here, on his website.
News from the merch desk
Starting with the upcoming shows in Norway in March I’ll be able to accept contactless/card payment at the merch desk. Will have the last copies of the "Single Of The Year" released by Hiljaiset Levyt in Tampere/FIN with me which I was lucky enough to get hold of. All full-length vinyls are in stock and will be available at the gigs, same goes for the “Fire/Water” single and the “Dog & Typewriter” CD.
Stupid & Innocent Years
Recorded this song with violinist Pavel Cingl in Svárov, Czech Republic with some minor adjustments and the final mix done in Nuremberg. I like the song a lot and I’m very, very glad EgoTherapie of Nuremberg made a wonderful little animated video for it. The only release that happened in 2023.
Gig review (in German) of our tour show at Dreikönigskeller Frankfurt/M
One more about “Dog & Typewriter”
Unexpectedly a late but nonetheless amazing review of “Dog & Typewriter” came in. Peter Gruner wrote it for the German daily newspaper Nürnberger Nachrichten. As it’s been only in the print issue you have to read the scan here… Worthwhile. Cheers Peter!
Some reviews of “Trad & Anger”
Remembering that whole somewhat difficult process of making it feels good to read these. Seems like it was all worthwhile. German ones on Nordbayern.de, Ox Fanzine and blueprint-fanzine.de and an English one in Fatea Magazine.
Some video links
German national TV programme "Quer" about Artists prosecuted unjustly for attempted subsidy fraud.
Mäkkelä with Folk’s Worst Nightmare - Loni-Übler Haus March 2022
Mäkkelä live at Loft LoFi, March 2021
Ways to support Mäkkelä are
reward yourself or your loved ones with some of the strangely sweet music available in the Mäkkelä webshop!
make a donation. Just proceed to PayPal here or use the Donate/Spenden button.
