Sapattivuosi

Sapattivuosi came together in Helsinki during 2000 as a Finnish tribute outfit devoted to Black Sabbath and reached the public with its first performances in 2003, quickly gaining favor through energetic concerts. Hannu Paloniemi supplied vocals, Janne Halmkrona played guitar, Mara Salminen handled bass, and Simo Vehmas sat behind the drums in the original configuration; Halmkrona already carried a decade of experience as guitarist in the chart-topping rock band CMX, which he had entered in 1990. Once Antero Aunesluoma joined on bass in place of the original drummer, the group issued its self-titled EMI debut, a set of Black Sabbath songs rendered in Finnish, which climbed into the national Top Ten and produced the Top Five single “Hautuumaan Lapset,” the local adaptation of “Children of the Grave.” Live appearances continued to draw strong crowds. The 2005 follow-up Sapattivuosi, Vol. 2 reached only number 22 on the Finnish albums chart, yet its single “Kännin Piikkiin,” based on “Sweet Leaf,” still landed in the Top Five. Paloniemi then left, and Marco Hietala—frontman of Nightwish and Tarot—stepped in on vocals, steering the band toward the Ronnie James Dio era of Black Sabbath, notably the 1980 album Heaven and Hell and the 1981 release Mob Rules. The resulting Ihmisen Merkki arrived in 2009, entered the Top Five, and featured the single “Pelon Lait,” the Finnish version of “Neon Knights.”