Hevisaurus
Encyclopedia
Hevisaurus is a Finnish
Power Metal
Children's music
band, who dress in dinosaur
costumes. The band was started by Thunderstone
drummer Mirka Rantanen. Their first album Jurahevin kuninkaat ("Kings of Jurassic Metal") was on the Finnish Album Chart for 10 weeks, peaking at number five.
concert with his children, he decided to start a heavy metal band for children. Rantanen and friends from the Finnish "metalhead" community began writing and recording songs.
in September 2009. Such was the interest in the band, they were signed to Sony BMG and their first album Jurahevin kuninkaat ("Kings of Jurassic Metal") was on the Finnish Album Chart for 10 weeks, peaking at number five. Audiences are reported as being attentive and after initial reticence, to become involved with live performances.
", the band members were "hatched" from five metal eggs that had lain buried in a mountain from 65 million years in the past. In the origin story, "lightning and witches' spells" unearthed the eggs and brought them to life.
Front-osaur "Mr Hevisaurus" is a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Drummer "Komppi Momppi" - Rantanen himself - is an Apatosaurus
.Lead guitarosaur "Riffi Raffi", though hatched from the same eggs is a dragon
.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
Power Metal
Power metal
Power metal is a style of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. The term refers to two different but related styles: the first pioneered and largely practiced in North America with a harder sound similar to speed metal, and a...
Children's music
Children's music
Children's music is used here to refer to music composed and performed for children by adults. In European influenced contexts this means music, usually songs, written specifically for a juvenile audience. The composers are usually adults. Children's music has historically held both entertainment...
band, who dress in dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
costumes. The band was started by Thunderstone
Thunderstone (band)
Thunderstone is a Power metal band from Helsinki, Finland. The band was formed in 2000 by guitarist Nino Laurenne, and the line-up became full the following year. After the release of the band's self-titled debut album, Thunderstone, the band toured Europe supporting Stratovarius and Symphony X...
drummer Mirka Rantanen. Their first album Jurahevin kuninkaat ("Kings of Jurassic Metal") was on the Finnish Album Chart for 10 weeks, peaking at number five.
Foundation
After Rantanen attended a children's musicChildren's music
Children's music is used here to refer to music composed and performed for children by adults. In European influenced contexts this means music, usually songs, written specifically for a juvenile audience. The composers are usually adults. Children's music has historically held both entertainment...
concert with his children, he decided to start a heavy metal band for children. Rantanen and friends from the Finnish "metalhead" community began writing and recording songs.
Career
Hevisaurus played their first gigGig (musical performance)
Gig is slang for a musical engagement in which musicians are hired. Originally coined in the 1920s by jazz musicians, the term, short for the word "engagement", now refers to any aspect of performing such as assisting with performance and attending musical performance...
in September 2009. Such was the interest in the band, they were signed to Sony BMG and their first album Jurahevin kuninkaat ("Kings of Jurassic Metal") was on the Finnish Album Chart for 10 weeks, peaking at number five. Audiences are reported as being attentive and after initial reticence, to become involved with live performances.
Origin story and characters
According the Hevisaurus "back-storyBack-story
A back-story, background story, or backstory is the literary device of a narrative chronologically earlier than, and related to, a narrative of primary interest. Generally, it is the history of characters or other elements that underlie the situation existing at the main narrative's start...
", the band members were "hatched" from five metal eggs that had lain buried in a mountain from 65 million years in the past. In the origin story, "lightning and witches' spells" unearthed the eggs and brought them to life.
Front-osaur "Mr Hevisaurus" is a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Drummer "Komppi Momppi" - Rantanen himself - is an Apatosaurus
Apatosaurus
Apatosaurus , also known by the popular but scientifically deprecated synonym Brontosaurus, is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived from about 154 to 150 million years ago, during the Jurassic Period . It was one of the largest land animals that ever existed, with an average length of and a...
.Lead guitarosaur "Riffi Raffi", though hatched from the same eggs is a dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
.
Disagreement with Sony Music
In early 2011, the founder of the band, Mirka Rantanen, got into a disagreement with the band's record label Sony Music. Because of this, Rantanen and three other band members belonging to the band's live assembly founded a new band called Sauruxet, which has continued making children's power metal music with the original concept and nearly identical artist names. The band Hevisaurus keeps its lead singer, its producers and the original stage costumes.Albums
- 2009: "Jurahevin kuninkaat" (reached #5 in Finland's Official List chart)
- 2010: "Hirmuliskojen yö" (reached #3 in Finland's Official List chart)
- 2011: "Räyh!"
- 2011: "Räyhällistä joulua"
Singles
- 2009: "Jurahevin kuninkaat"
- 2009: "Viimeinen mammutti"
- 2010: "Saurusarmeija"
- 2010: "Kurajuhlat"
- 2010: "Hirmuliskojen pikkujoululevy" (reached #1 in Finland's Official List chart)
- 2011: "Räyh!"
External links
- Official website (Finnish)
- "HEVISAURUS" at Roadrunner RecordsRoadrunner RecordsRoadrunner Records is an American record label that concentrates primarily on heavy metal bands. It is currently a subsidiary of Warner Music Group.-History:...
- rock out with hevisaurus at the Smithsonian Institute
- Would YOU Let A Band That Looks Like This Entertain Your Children? from Houston PressHouston PressThe Houston Press is an alternative weekly newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in Downtown Houston....
- Hevisaurus - Sony Music Entertainment Finland
- Detailed review of Jurahevin Kuninkaat from Encyclopaedia MetallumEncyclopaedia MetallumEncyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives is a website which lists bands from various forms of heavy metal music...
- The story of HeviSaurus and SauruXet