The band has cultivated its frenetic sound for over a dozen years. Three guys, friends since they were kids in the small town of Harjavalta, have welded into a tight-knit unit. Every piece holds the others together. Lapko's perfect trio of Malja (guitar and vocals), Anssi Nordberg (bass) and Janne Heikkonen (drums) first pricked ears with energetic live shows. Then the release of the EP Your Special K.O. (2003) and debut album The Arms (2004) introduced a hungry band.
The music's evolution from punk to explosive yet heart-wrenching rock still continues. The basics remain: sharp drumming and tight basslines are the steady spine with dizzying guitars and desperate vocals branching out like the nervous system. Second album Scandal (2006) took LAPKO to number two in the Finnish album charts. The reputation as a fierce live band continued to grow in Finland, around Europe and in the US. Third album Young Desire (2007) added more depth and vulnerability to Lapko's aggressive melancholy.
In 2009 Lapko crossed the Atlantic and set camp in Woodstock, New York Producer D. James Goodwin was trusted with focusing the trio's buzzing inspiration and ambition to create A New Bohemia (2010), and a year after this fruitful cooperation the band returned to Woodstock record their next album, the hard hitting LOVE (2012).
In 2013, the band’s founding member & drummer Janne Heikkonen moved on to play the guitar and the band recruited Jussi Matikainen to play drums, and so LAPKO MK2 was born.
After 5 top ten albums, countless live shows and a new member in the band, LAPKO camped at the E-Studio in Helsinki to record their new album with producer David Bottrill (TOOL, Placebo, Muse), and enlisted D. James Goodwin again to mix the new album called Freedom, which will be out in spring 2015.
LAPKO
Ville Malja (guitar and vocals)
Anssi Nordberg (bass)
Janne Heikkonen (guitar)
Jussi Matikainen (drums)
Links:
www.lapko.com
www.facebook.com/lapkolapko
www.twitter.com/lapkomusic
www.instagram.com/lapkogram
Paranoid
Lapko Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Not paranoid
Paranoid
Not paranoid
There was a little girl
In a beatiful world
She left behind
But not with your eyes
Once I slept in her bunk bed
Alone
I didn't want to go home
She had sisters
Dancing queens
The perfect trio
Unique sister
Dancing queens
The perfect trio
For my desire
The song "Paranoid" by Lapko features a set of lyrics that immediately stand out due to the repetition and use of contrasting terms. The repetitive nature of the lyrics signifies the internal struggle the singer faces. While he is identified as paranoid in the first lines, the subsequent line negates the claim of paranoia. The lyrics could perhaps point to the theme of duality, where the singer could be harborring two contrasting emotions within that muddy his thoughts. The song then takes listeners back to the singer's past with a girl who had left an unforgettable shine. His encounter with this girl left him feeling reluctant to leave her, perhaps pointing to the idea of how love and attachment can leave one vulnerable to anxiety.
The second stanza switches up and introduces the other theme that runs through the song - a trio of "unique" sisters described as "dancing queens." The additional line "for my desire" could be interpreted in two ways - 1) the singer admires their look as a persona/character or 2) it could point to an intense desire for love or acceptance, which could explain the internal warfare, the singer faces within himself.
Line by Line Meaning
Paranoid
Feeling anxious and fearful
Not paranoid
Feeling calm and rational
Paranoid
Feeling anxious and fearful
Not paranoid
Feeling calm and rational
There was a little girl
Referring to a young woman who was carefree and happy
In a beautiful world
Living a life full of beauty and wonder
She left behind
The woman left behind something important to the singer
A shine you can see
A symbol of the woman's inner beauty and radiance
But not with your eyes
The woman's true beauty cannot be seen physically
Once I slept in her bunk bed
The artist had a close relationship with the woman
Alone
The singer was feeling lonely without her
I didn't want to go home
The artist wished to stay with the woman longer
She had sisters
The woman had siblings
Dancing queens
Her sisters were talented dancers
The perfect trio
The woman and her sisters were a perfect team
Unique sister
One of the woman's sisters was especially special to the artist
Dancing queens
Referring to the woman's sisters again as talented dancers
The perfect trio
The woman and her sisters make a dynamic and successful team
For my desire
The singer has a strong desire for the woman and her sisters
Contributed by Natalie A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.