2010 - REPORTS/VIDEOS/PICS: MIKA @ The Circus, Helsinki, Finland - 30-JUL

[babspanky]

So you told him my name a minute earlier, now wonder he could remember it, lol! I was really impressed. He said he can remember my tattoo. It made my day anyway

 

No honestly I didn't!

[IngievV]

People, I promise I shall tell you all about the awesomeness tomorrow, I'm very tired and have to work at fecking 8 am tomorrow, but I promise it will be good:wub2:

 

BTW, Karin, I want that m&g video:roftl:

[Sabine64]

Sounds like you want more:mf_rosetinted:

 

Of course I want more but I understand that you need to rest before you´ll write us a 6 site long report . Sleep well :huglove:

[pufpuf]

 

Is that a Lacoste? Posh!

 

Glad everyone had fun! That gig must have been amazing coz all your reports, pics and vids are great! Thanks for posting

[Tina78]

Now I had the time to read the thread and watch all the Videos. Thanx to everyone

@Tiibet, I love your Photos and Videos, esp. the one with Jimmy and the Toy Boy. I didn´t see this

[tiibet]

 

That was really funny See? He DOES notice you . I loved seeing how he was in such a great mood that night. When he came out to see the fans, he was obviously still buzzing, and he said that the show had been a lot of fun .

 

 

And just to make it clear, he wasn't saying "i'm finally here, in front of you" (though I would love that option too, lol!) but "i'm finally here in your country", meaning that he obviously new I was local. I really wasn't sure about it earlier. I don't know if he can easily connect people to different countries if they speak English to him and if he has never visited their home countries. I wasn't even sure if he can remember my face, because we never talk much.

[sariflor]

And just to make it clear, he wasn't saying "i'm finally here, in front of you" (though I would love that option too, lol!) but "i'm finally here in your country", meaning that he obviously new I was local. I really wasn't sure about it earlier.

 

I know what you meant

 

 

I don't know if he can easily connect people to different countries if they speak English to him and if he has never visited their home countries. I wasn't even sure if he can remember my face, because we never talk much.

But, he totally can. Never underestimate the power of Da Mastah . He has an amazing memory to place people, and remember them. I'm sure that it was not a coincidence that he said that when he plonked himself right in front of you.

I recorded him from when he spoke to the people before Marianne until Allegra (as I couldn't hear him anymore so I figured it was pointless to video him then) and he didn't say that to others

So it was obvious that he knew that you were local. Just accept it, woman, and bask in the Mika love

[CazGirl]

P.S. It was really interesting for us to watch the audience from the back this time, because we could see how nuts they were all going.

As much as I love the front row experience, which I will always do, for obvious reasons , there is something to be said about seeing the sea of people moving and jumping and reacting to Mika and band on stage. It's just not comparable to anything else. I love watching the sheer ENERGY that you can see feel when this happens!

I noticed that, in Helsinki, whenever you looked, you'd see most of people's arms up in the air, and waving all the time. It was pretty amazing and it made me feel really "proud" in a silly way, that Mika was the one causing this effect on all these people. It gave me a lovely, warm feeling.

 

You weren't front row?! How the heck did that happen?!

 

About the last bit...I get that proud moment sometimes too

 

And Tiibet, what a great story! Really happy for you!!

[tiibet]

[/color]

But' date=' he totally can. Never underestimate the power of Da Mastah . He has an amazing memory to place people, and remember them. I'm sure that it was not a coincidence that he said that when he plonked himself right in front of you. [/color']

I recorded him from when he spoke to the people before Marianne until Allegra (as I couldn't hear him anymore so I figured it was pointless to video him then) and he didn't say that to others

So it was obvious that he knew that you were local. Just accept it, woman, and bask in the Mika love

 

For some reason I was very pleased that he knew I was local It's amazing that he has a memory like that! I'm hopeless with faces. I can easily remember many people when I see them with their dogs but without dogs I have no idea who they are

[CazGirl]

For some reason I was very pleased that he knew I was local It's amazing that he has a memory like that! I'm hopeless with faces. I can easily remember many people when I see them with their dogs but without dogs I have no idea who they are

 

:lmfao:

[Guest]

I can easily remember many people when I see them with their dogs but without dogs I have no idea who they are

 

 

Next time I'll bring my dog then

[babspanky]

You weren't front row?! How the heck did that happen?!

 

About the last bit...I get that proud moment sometimes too

 

And Tiibet, what a great story! Really happy for you!!

 

We couldn't be bothered to queue, had other fish to fry. Worked out pretty well though! It's the way to go!

[sariflor]

You weren't front row?! How the heck did that happen?!

 

 

 

Kinda long story. We heard that there were tons of people there very early, and we just couldn't be bothered to go and queue.

Also, we were all very tired, and I felt a bit sick, so instead, we had a really nice long breakfast, chatted to some lovely people, and just leisurely went to the venue for a bit to see people, to go sightseeing and shopping later.

Then when the whole queue had gone in, we went in and found a nice spot in front of the bar, from where we had a good vantage position, and just chilled until he came on. We ended up having a really good gig, and even doing a good deed .

There were two girls in wheelchairs who could not see a thing, but the venue didn't have a disabled area for the gig, so they were down there on the floor with everyone else, and you could just see that from down where they were, they could not see the stage, as all the people in front of them were much taller than them. It really bothered me, because these two girls seemed really upbeat and happy, so I asked John to see if he could sort them out somewhere else where they could have a good view, and he managed to put them up there in the first floor balcony.

They had closed that area for the gig, as they were using the upstairs as dressing rooms, but they made an exception for these girls, and so they had a nice gig after all. It just felt right that they would have, so we were very pleased about that.

I find it atrocious and unacceptable that the venue didn't hae any provision for disabled people, to be honest

[sariflor]

I only took a few videos, as I noticed when the gig started that I had forgotten to clean up my memory card from old stuff and I didn't have time to do it, so my space was very limited.

Here are the first three (I also have Sweet Dreams, his goodbye and the after gig meeting, but will have to upload those tomorrow):

 

 

Mika - Blue Eyes @ The Circus in Helsinki 30 July 2010

 

 

 

Mika - Kick Ass @ The Circus in Helsinki 30 July 2010

 

 

 

Mika - Happy Ending @ The Circus in Helsinki 30 July 2010

 

[CazGirl]

Kinda long story. We heard that there were tons of people there very early, and we just couldn't be bothered to go and queue.

Also, we were all very tired, and I felt a bit sick, so instead, we had a really nice long breakfast, chatted to some lovely people, and just leisurely went to the venue for a bit to see people, to go sightseeing and shopping later.

Then when the whole queue had gone in, we went in and found a nice spot in front of the bar, from where we had a good vantage position, and just chilled until he came on. We ended up having a really good gig, and even doing a good deed .

There were two girls in wheelchairs who could not see a thing, but the venue didn't have a disabled area for the gig, so they were down there on the floor with everyone else, and you could just see that from down where they were, they could not see the stage, as all the people in front of them were much taller than them. It really bothered me, because these two girls seemed really upbeat and happy, so I asked John to see if he could sort them out somewhere else where they could have a good view, and he managed to put them up there in the first floor balcony.

They had closed that area for the gig, as they were using the upstairs as dressing rooms, but they made an exception for these girls, and so they had a nice gig after all. It just felt right that they would have, so we were very pleased about that.

I find it atrocious and unacceptable that the venue didn't hae any provision for disabled people, to be honest

 

Oh Sara that's really nice of you guys, well done.

[hotdlp]

All I can say is, this gig was fecking amazing

 

I'm still on a high. Can I relive that trip to Helsinki again please?

[tiibet]

I'm happy you enjoyed your first home gig as we did in Novi Sad.

Thanks for the wonderful pics, reports and vids.

 

And Suzie, finally you have chatted with him, haven't you?

 

In a couple of years maybe I'll manage to do the same.

Hi Shine, it is Suzie from tiibet's phone, waiting for a taxi to to take us to the airport . I think you thought I was talking about Mika but I wasn't.

[Blue Sky]

Loving all the reports and snippets of interactions with band/Mika/each other:naughty:

 

Mika is so good with people and faces and places...it never ceases to amaze me.

Tiibet what did your family think of the gig?

[Louiza]

Sorry this comes a little late. I felt too broken yesterday to spend a lot of time on the computer. All my fault, I jumped like a lunatic. I translated the article that was in a newspaper called 'Nyt' (Now) on Friday. It comes as an enclosure with Helsingin Sanomat on Fridays. This is the interview Mika mentioned at the end of the concert. The other article next to it is about the concert arranger RL Entertainment.

 

 

 

 

 

Gig / Mika comes, is anyone ready? (The little text above the picture.)

 

 

It’s possible to get to dance with Mika.

 

Mika in Neverland

 

The pop star believes that (The) Circus will be crowded and he’s going to pick up his dancers from the queue.

“This is my first gig in Finland, and it’s about time. Even if it’s just a little gig”, says Mika aka Michael Penniman, 26, on the phone at Nancy Airport in France. He is on his way to perform at a Romanian beach festival.

“This is so weird – we come from a gig that holds 50 000 to a gig that holds 1000. But I’m getting used to it”, he gets excited – and is quite optimistic about the size of the audience of the Helsinki gig.

Mika is remembered by the hit song Grace Kelly, that has often been playing on the radio in Finland, too.

His debut album Life in Cartoon Motion visited the official chart of Finland on the 11th place, and it has sold over 5 million copies worldwide. His pop rock is exceptionally catchy, but for one reason or another Mika hasn’t become a star of any kind here.

 

Mika describes his gig as the last party of Mad Hatter from the book Alice in Wonderland.

“The show is like a weird, dark carnival, where all gloomy stories behind my cheerful feeling songs get revealed”, he advertises.

He tells that Love Today, for example, is about a middle-aged prostitute who isn’t getting any more gigs.

“Or We Are Golden, which is about me when I was 16 years old and realised that I would have to come up with a direction for my life or I will be driven to the brink of suicide.”

There is a big band that is included in the gig and also dancers. The latter are supposed to be picked from the gig queue.

Oh no. What if there will be nobody left in the audience? The queue may be shorter than you would think in the hot weather of mid-summer.

“They have already sold a lot of tickets to this gig. I wouldn’t come if they hadn’t”, Mika assures.

 

--------------------

 

 

How can anyone need assuring? We proved them wrong, didn't we? I'm pretty sure there will be a review in the same paper soon. I'll translate it for you, and I'm also writing my own review for my Finnish fan page in Finnish and English.

 

Thanks for posting and translating Marianne!!!

 

I'm trying uploading some pics I'm not sure how to do it, so hopefully this works

 

 

 

 

These are some of the most adorable fan pics ever:wub2:

 

I'm not sure if there is anything I need to say, because all the important things have already been told, but I write a small report. It was a home gig (first one) for me after all

 

First of all, it was the first time I could spend that much time with MFCers. Usually my schedule is very tight because of family reasons, I'm always in a hurry to go back home, but this time I was at home So, it was just lovely to spend some relaxed time before/after the gig chatting/sightseeing etc. Thanks everyone

 

I was very nervous before the gig. I was afraid that he doesn't have enough fans here to make it a great gig or that maybe Finnish fans are too quiet etc. And also, the age structure (among fans) in Finland is different than in many other countries: Most fans are very young girls. That's why I didn't know what to expect (maybe a lot of pushing or problems with queueing?). And I was SO wrong!!!! All the girls I met while queueing were smart and polite, exited but in a very sweet way. (The only upsetting situation happened with an older person. You know how it is, there are always persons like that. No matter how clearly and simply you try to explain, it's never clear or simple enough, they never understand the point. But things like that just happen).

 

The audience was amazing. People sang and danced the whole gig, I felt I was in the middle of the wavy sea (it was so much fun, no unpleasant pushing at all). And as Suzie told, Mika enjoyed every moment, he smiled and let fans touch his fingers, it was the sweetest and heart-warming thing ever, I just wanted to go and give him a hug, just because he can be SO sweet It's difficult to explain, but it was like a dubble joy for me, first to see how many exited fans he has in my small country, and secondly to see how lovely and understanding he was with them.

 

Also, it was a double joy because the gig was so amazing (so small, intimate and hot, lol ) and I enjoyed so much AND because it looked Mika had fun too. It really looked he enjoyed and had fun, I hope he did.

 

What else can I say... He started Love Today on his knees in front of us, and it's a very, very important part of his show for me, so it was just perfect. And, I was afraid he is not doing Sweet Dreams because he skipped it from the set list but he did it as an encore, also just perfect.

 

It was a very good gig, I really loved it. And during M&G he came in front of me and said, "so, finally I'm here" and all I could think was "YES, finally you are here :fangurl:" Lol!

 

Really enjoyed reading your report Nina and really happy that your home gig was so great!!!!

[Marianne84]

There's a REALLY positive review in Helsingin Sanomat about this gig! It made me grin big time! I'll translate it for you, shall I?

[sienna]

There's a REALLY positive review in Helsingin Sanomat about this gig! It made me grin big time! I'll translate it for you, shall I?

 

Yes, please do!

[mariposa]

There's a REALLY positive review in Helsingin Sanomat about this gig! It made me grin big time! I'll translate it for you, shall I?

 

Yes, please do!

 

yep yep ! *please*

[babspanky]

There's a REALLY positive review in Helsingin Sanomat about this gig! It made me grin big time! I'll translate it for you, shall I?

 

That would be great! Not by the journalist that wrote the first piece was it?

He needs to eat his words!

[sariflor]

My full list of videos for this gig:

 

 

Mika - Blue Eyes @ The Circus in Helsinki 30 July 2010

 

 

 

Mika - Kick Ass @ The Circus in Helsinki 30 July 2010

 

 

 

Mika - Happy Ending @ The Circus in Helsinki 30 July 2010

 

 

 

 

Mika - Sweet Dreams @ The Circus in Helsinki 30 July 2010

 

 

 

Mika - goodbye @ The Circus in Helsinki 30 July 2010

 

 

 

Mika - after gig @ The Circus in Helsinki 30 July 2010

 

[Marianne84]

That would be great! Not by the journalist that wrote the first piece was it?

He needs to eat his words!

 

 

No, it's by another journalist, a man, may I say. Here it comes. But excuse me if some things sound weird. The grammar in Finnish is so different that frankly: some things are impossible to translate so that they sound the same. In addition, we have so many rich adjectives that I had to think a lot to find equivalents for them. I didn't always succeed. There wasn't a picture, but the review makes up for it. This is the most hilarious thing I've read in a long time!

 

 

The Spring Man in Full Swing

 

Mika at The Circus on Friday

 

Concert. The audience screams loud when four giant plush letters bound onto the sunflower-lined stage of Circus the nightclub. He is here today and for the first time in Finland, even if it has already been three years since his breakthrough: the Lebanese-born British singer Michael Penniman aka Mika still seems to interest, as there is a lot of audience present despite the quite expensive ticket price of 50 Euros.

 

The audience lives along briskly from the beginning to the end, and why wouldn’t they. Mika is an expressive, funny and energetic showman, who wriggles on stage dripping sweat, with a top hat on his head, springy like a gymnast. He sings convincingly and honks an imaginary trumpet through his fingers. Hilarious to watch.

 

The songs strike clearly better live than on record. The five-piece band backing him up and the swinging dancers in their neon-coloured bride’s veils and masks who have apparently been picked from the audience drive the easy and catchy songs to a fine fly. There is plenty of wittiness: in the middle of it all Mika and the lead guitarist play with the theme of the Top Gun movie, and at the end a giant plush doll is laid on the hands of the audience.

 

The night is opened with the excellent Relax, Take It Easy and the hilarious Big Girl (You Are Beautiful). We hear the Eurythmics cover Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), Grace Kelly and the Pop Cabaret type Lollipop in the row of hits at the end. The audience sings longingly along Happy Ending. Musically, visually and as a singer Mika takes a stand where Robbie Williams and Rufus Wainwright are.

 

Judging by the audience Mika is in the favour of sexual minorities. When Mika throws his T-shirt away in the middle of the concert during the saucy song Rain and dances with these Dwayne Wayne humour glasses on he has picked up from the audience, even a straight person is astonished. Handsome fellow, appealing show.

 

Aleksi Kinnunen

Edited August 4, 2010 by Marianne84
Changed the daisies to sunflowers