SOLD OUT The Slippers – Evolution of Roots Music, Vol. 8
Feb 26, 2025 | 7:00 pm
Ala-Malmin tori 1, 00700 Helsinki
The legendary rockabilly band The Slippers was founded in 1977 in Jakomäki, Helsinki.
A couple of years later, Agents guitarist Esa Pulliainen sat on the jury of a band competition and was so impressed by the participating quartet that he offered to produce them. The result was three singles, an EP, Chance To Dance, and the LPs, The Slippers and Ubangi Stomp, for the Johanna label.
Between 1979 and 1982, rockabilly music attracted a large audience. The Slippers toured across Finland and performed almost every weekend. The army conscripted part of the band in 1982 and their activity stopped for a long time.
In 1997, the band started up again. The original members Keijo Siuruainen, Klaus Sihvonen, and Timo Pfaler were joined on guitar and second vocals by Melrose frontman Tokela, a gifted rockabilly artist himself. He had already been introduced to The Slippers boys as a teenager at the Länsimäki Youth Centre, when the band was still in its infancy. This led to the release of the Broken Bones CD on Goofin’ Records. Later, Pfaler withdrew from the line-up, and the band continued as a tight trio, making calculated appearances at rockabilly events in Finland and the Nordic countries.
In 2006, Tommi Viksten – himself a Slippers fan from the very beginning – joined the band. He had previously played guitar for Kauko Röyhkä, Tuomari Nurmio and J. Karjalainen.
The new quartet features three vocal soloists: Keke Siuruainen sings most of the songs from behind the drums, Tokela and Viksten throw in their parts when the time is right, and Klade Sihvonen wraps the whole thing up in a neat package with his upright bass.
Duration: 1 h 45 min, incl. 20 min intermission
