(Info from press release)
RANSU'S REVENGE is a new, raw punk/hardcore outfit out of the Bay Area, inspired by their love of classic Finnish punk bands such as Rattus, Kaaos, and Riistetyt, as well as current bands like Kohti Tuhoa and Perikato. Perhaps surprisingly, this intensely fast and frenetic project unites Pranjal Tiwari (S.C.R.A.M., Cardinal Wyrm) and Bil Bowman (ex-Acid King, Hornss), known for their work in the much slower genres of doom metal and psychedelic rock, the lineup rounded out with guitarist Arthur Urquiola on the demo. Also surprisingly for a band based in California, the lyrics were all written in Finnish by Tiwari himself.
Tiwari states, "RANSU'S REVENGE and our other projects are both intense, they're just coming at you from a totally different direction. Like this whole demo probably lasts as long as the intro to a Cardinal Wyrm song. It's pure mania, spat out onto a piss-soaked floor."
"I studied Finnish for a year and half online during lockdown using Duolingo and other apps," he continues. "I have a lot of friends from Finland and I love a lot of bands from over there, so one day I thought it would be funny to become more familiar with their language, just so I could say fuck off to them in it. Well, I have a bit of an obsessive personality and I was stuck at home for long stretches, so I became completely consumed with learning Finnish and taking in as much of this language as I could. What can I say, people did a lot of crazy shit during lockdown. After a while of doing that, I was like, you know what, I should do a band out of this, and when lockdown ended, I hit up Bil and Arthur who both love Finnish punk as well.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to win the Nobel prize for Finnish literature anytime soon. The lyrics are simple and utterly ridiculous, about politicians being stupid sock puppets, Chinese food, birds, and dogs. But it works. And Finnish is just such a satisfying language to shout in. Then we named the band RANSU'S REVENGE after this dog puppet character who is on a famous Finnish children's TV show. Because why not, right? Our buddy Clint from Boca de Fuma art did a killer logo/artwork for us, and well, here we are. We love how this demo turned out, and hope to have more stuff recorded soon. Now that we've awoken the sleeping dog, we must keep it fed. Ransu will have his revenge!"
RANSU'S REVENGE released their four-song demo – barely two minutes in its entirety – through Bandcamp on February 23rd without any promotion or online presence, and the response was instantly overwhelming, with over 55,000 plays on Bandcamp in under a week - all of them in Finland.
Tiwari adds, "We're really amazed and humbled by the response to the demo in Finland. It means a lot to us that they appreciate our little love letter to Finnish hardcore and the Finnish language, what a great example of subcultural exchange."
Stream and download the Ransu's Revenge Demo at Bandcamp RIGHT HERE.
Ransu's Revenge (Demo) Track Listing:
- Sukkanukke
- Kiinalainen Ruoka
- Lääkkeet Linnuille
- Koira
