Echo on the shore

The Union Forever / The One I Love

The middle of October was approaching, I was working non stop on my thesis because I'd graduate in December, I would FINALLY be an architect after five years.

I was finishing the layout of a master plan while Jack edited by hand some tape with a razor, and taped it back together in different sections, we had the radio on.

"Alriiiight, now, this is the main single a Finnish band that has been around for quite a while now, making their country go crazy and we weren't even aware, such a shame, this is from their new album that was just released, called Dead Letters, the song is In The Shadows, ladies and gentlemen, The Rasmus!" said the broadcaster

I jumped from the couch

"Turn it up, turn it up!!!" I said to Jack pointing at the radio, I left my computer to the side and ran to the radio and sat on the kitchen counter with Jack as he turned up the volume.

An incredible and rhythmical riff started roaring, and the voice of my highschool friend Lauri Ylonen began vocalizing a cool "oh oh, oh oh" sound that was followed by some great dark lyrics and there, very strong, was Eero's bass. The bridge of the song came unannounced and it lifted our souls from the ground "Lately, I've been, walking, walking in circles, watching, waiting for something, feel me, touch me, heal me, come take me higher", and then the bass dropped in three huge pounds, to then return to the chorus and slowly but surely, finish the song in a mysterious, super edgy way.

"That was The Rasmus, folks! don't forget the name, they are going places, you can find their brand new album at any record store by now, I recommend it greatly, Dead Letters by The Rasmus" concluded the broadcaster.

I was so excited, so happy I could burst, I think I was even trembling

"I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!! JACK, THEY MADE TO AMERICA!!, THEY MADE IT!!" I shouted as I shook his shoulders and he made a great smile.

"I know! It's so cool!, the single is crazy!!, wanna go and buy their record?" he said making a gesture with his head of heading out.

"LET'S GO, NOW, PUT ON SOME CLOTHES" I said as I went to the bedroom to put my jeans on and grab my coat.

He put on some blue jeans and his black leather jacket and we headed out to A1.

There was not like a big sign announcing the record, but I had to understand it, they were a band from Finland, if even for more popular countries like France is hard to take their musicians out to America, Finland was even harder, but just to get to the radio in New York was already a HUGE success. I approached the manager and asked

"Hii, has the new album by The Rasmus arrived yet?"

"Oh yeah, they brought ten of them yesterday, but I think I'll have to ask for more because it's selling like hot bread, here, this is the last one, I only have CD and cassette thought, not vinyl, which presentation do you want?"

"Both!"

"Alright!" he said and smiled, to then hand me my purchase in a paper bag with the A1 logo.

We rushed to the apartment to play it, I couldn't wait any longer.

We opened the bag and got out the cassette and CD, the cover had a super cool photo of the band in a dark forest, with some green and blue imagery with blurry lines, and on the top, the logo I'd designed for them in 2000 before I left Helsinki,

"I made this logo!!!" I said to Jack, that was preparing the stereo, he looked at me and smiled, he extended his arm for me to hand him the record and play it. The face of the CD had the logo placed in the middle, over a black background, with the tittle Dead Letters underneath.