Artists : The Rasmus

The Rasmus are a Finnish pop-rock band formed in late 1994 in Helsinki, Finland. Band members Lauri Ylönen (lead vocalist), Eero Heinonen (bassist, back-up vocals), Pauli Rantasalmi (guitarist) and then-drummer Janne Heiskanen formed the band 'Sputnik' when in high school, changing the name of their band multiple times before settling for 'Rasmus'.

In 1995 the band were signed to Warner Music Finland and, with the aid of their manager Teja Kotilainen, produced their first studio album Peep. It spawned three singles, 1st, 2nd and 3rd, of which the latter reached #8 in the Finnish charts. Rasmus played shows in Finland, Estonia and Russia and, in 1996, received the 'Best New Act' EMMA award (the Finnish equivalent of a Grammy award).

Summer 1997 saw the release of Rasmus' second album Playboys, which included the funky sound of trumpets and saxophones. The album was produced under a different manager, Illka Herkman. The four singles Blue, Kola, Playboys (the only song for which a music video was shot) and Ice were all successful in the Finnish charts, Blue even reaching the #3 spot on the Finnish charts. Rasmus supported the bands Rancid and Dog Eat Dog across Finnish and played their first show in front on live television at Helsinki's Olympic Stadium.

In 1998, Rasmus released their third studio album Hell of a Tester (also spelled HellOfATester), along with the music video to the song Liquid, which was later voted Song of the Year by both music critics and the Finnish public. The second single of the album, Swimming with the Kids, was released in 1999, being the last single they would release under the name of Rasmus. Rasmus continued supporting world-famous bands like Garbage and Red Hot Chili Peppers during their tours across Finland. Drummer Janne Heiskanen decided to leave Rasmus in late 1998, preferring to travel across Thailand than to stay in the band. He was replaced by former merchandise-seller Aki Hakala, who had previously drummed for the Finnish bands Killer and Kwan.

In 2001, Rasmus changed their name to The Rasmus and switched record labels. They were signed to Playground Music Scandinavia; their new manager being Seppo Vesterinen, who also manages the Finnish bands HIM and Hanoi Rocks. Their new album, Into, went double platinum, a big surprise since their former albums had only received Gold status. The first single from the album, F-F-F-Falling, shot to #1 in the Finnish charts and remained there for three months. Chill, the second single, was released in all of Scandinavia and lead to the release of Into in multiple European countries. The following singles Madness and Heartbreaker/Days received less airplay, but were nonetheless successful.

In early 2003, The Rasmus released their fifth album, Dead Letters. This time, it broke the European market and, besides Finland, reached the top of the album charts in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The first single, In the Shadows, proved to be an enormous success, receiving massive airplay throughout the most of Europe, the United States and even New Zealand. The following singles, In My Life, First Day of My Life and Funeral Song, however, did not live up to the expectations of the public and The Rasmus were bottled off stage at the 2004 Reading festival. Guilty was the second single to be released for the American market after In The Shadows. After extensive touring across Europe, The United States and Asia, The Rasmus took six months off to record their sixth album Hide From the Sun. It was successful in Finland, pre-ordering Platinum, but failed to do well across the rest of Europe. The first single from the album, No Fear, was received to mixed reviews, some critics claiming it was a fresh new sound, others saying The Rasmus had 'got off easy' with the simple chorus (consisting of four words: No fear, destination darkness). The second and third single, Sail Away and Shot, received little airplay outside of Finland. The Rasmus toured across multiple continents to promote their new album, joined by Finnish bands Negative and HIM in Germany and, in the United States, by Welsh band Lostprophets and American band Kill Hannah. The song Immortal was not released as a single, yet a music video was made for it.

Since the winter of 2006, The Rasmus have been semi-sabbatical, working on material for their seventh album instead of touring. Multiple websites have confirmed the album will be produced by American producer Desmond Child, who was previously worked with the likes of Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Kiss and Alice Cooper. The new album is said to be released in early 2008.