Exclusive: Former Children Of Bodom guitarist Alexander Kuoppala interview about Thyrargo

[@hyorinmaruthug9172]

Holy fuck! I never thought I would ever hear a word from this guy! The original guitarist of COB in the greatest era of COB!

[@jucci69]

Back in the day I played with Alexander in a cover band for a while. We did weddings and parties. Ale played the trumpet, but he could play pretty much anything, he is that musical. I had no idea he was a bloody guitar titan, he never mentioned it. Until one day he asked if he could try my ESP telecaster out and shredded the shit out of it. I was absolutely devastated, took me a while to be able to pick the thing up, knowing that there is a virtuoso guitarist in the band goofing in the horn section. Once our keyboard player missed a ferry on a wedding gig and the wedding waltz was a piano piece. Ale took the notes and played it prima vista. Never bothered to mention he could play the piano too. But I suppose that was just him being Alexander. Never made a fuss about himself. He was there to have fun and enjoy music. I wish him and Thyrargo all the best!

[@Ramon-gg3bd]

Lovely story, thanks for sharing :)

[@NarviMusic]

So nice to hear from him. I would also love to see an interview with Roope

[@humppa5]

I was exactly thinking the same thing when I heard him. 🤘🏻

[@NarviMusic]

@@humppa5 Yeah, would be nice to hear the story from his point of view. And I mean, it's Roope, who wouldn't want to see that guy, we all miss him, would be interesting to know what he is up to nowadays

[@NorgGrimm]

@@NarviMusic Roope became a heavy drinker after getting kicked out of CoB.

[@prehistoricgentlemanbird9131]

@@NorgGrimm didn’t become a heavy drinker. He always was a heavy drinker which resulted in him being booted from CoB.

[@lkkfkKJK]

I got to play with Ale few weeks back, an awesome experiense

[@dayanmcar7578]

Wow So many years without knowing anything about him, important guitarist in a great era of bodom.

[@Ballovirta]

Yeah he was a great guitarist and had some awesome leads/solos on something wild

[@MrT1o9P9i2]

COB did their best albums with him imo

[@Ballovirta]

@@MrT1o9P9i2 totally agree with you 🎸

[@KevinGsWK]

Ikr? The only recent thing about him was a decade ago

[@benthomas8765]

BEST era of bodom

[@OnkelTomAngelripper1]

Seeing Alexander doing well is honestly the best thing this year

[@al69420]

I know right brother. I hope you are doing well too my friend. Only love \m/

[@GarrettTurneyMrTremelo]

Alexander sounds like a super standup guy. There has never been a lot of content focusing on him from his time in the band, and hearing how he carries himself in this interview is amazing from a fan's perspective. I'm happy more has been brought to light!

[@oxtoxes]

@RGGuy4Laiho roope was a better guitarist tho just check out sinergy for example

[@melgibsonfan9082]

The quality of CRY's was garbage all around. Roope was a monster in Sinergy and the few rare videos you can find online where he plays by himself.

[@melgibsonfan9082]

@RGGuy4Laiho I saw them live 5 times before that DVD was made and never once heard that awful tone. I love the band but their live recordings later on sounded muddy to me. Alexi and Roope both sounded like sloppy drunks around 2010 onward. Sinergy was perfect form.

[@oxtoxes]

@RGGuy4Laiho i was talking about technique as well. But I agree, they didnt play that clean later on because practise was replaced by something else 🍻

[@simonarsenault3298]

Roope was great too! But for cob. I prefered Alexanders. Roopes slopiness might come from the fact he was rly a drunk

[@danieloconnell4225]

Co-wrote some of the greatest death metal music of all time, but now (and for years) works with special needs kids? This guy is amazing, and deserves so much respect. Really.

[@babbonatale276]

Wow, he looks like a really good man with a clear mind. So sorry for Alexi, Rope and all those rock/metal musicians with alchol issues. Alexander shows that you can be a great musician, then teach, do side projects, have a family and basically make all the choices you want in your life. Just don't be stupid, don't drink your life away.

[@rogeliocamachoosuna2666]

THANKS ALEXANDER. BODOM'S FIRST FOUR ALBUMS ARE PURE GOLD.

[@laurentdupont-gagnon7889]

they are all gold!

[@BLACKDIVISION1]

And so are AYDY and BD only that they have other style and production. That has started with the HCDR.

[@oxtoxes]

Dude is very humble and down to earth and yet a straight up legend

[@reappear89]

If you still haven´t realised ,those features are in his blood. He is a finn goddamitt.

[@video_ouija7114]

This guy was on the best bodom albums

[@P3KaX]

This interview is pure gold. We, the ones who were there listening to those guys, 20+ years ago, have been waiting for his real reasons to leave the band. It was said that quit the band due to his family things, but it is better to hear it coming out of his mouth, instead of reading the same thing on the media. So, congratulations for this.

[@bonkosuckacocka983]

Guys I'm still devastated that alexi is gone. If you're hurt too, I love you okay?

[@sebastiansiemaszko1976]

:///

[@evanhayes5891]

Prove your love to me.

[@DionysLucifer]

What a great interview. Alexander is a legend. And good job by the interviewer to actually let Alexander speak instead of interrupting him the whole time (that pretty much annoys me with most of the interviewers).

[@kaaoszine_virallinen]

It is also a lot about the interviewed person. If he replies in a way that there is short pause after each sentence it is something really fucking hard to know when he actually stops replying to a question and when he wants to continue answering it. :D In this case it was easy as he replied and then when he had said what he had to say he stopped and let me ask the next one. It is not always the interviewers fault really as some people are just hard to read :D

[@TrulyStucker]

@@kaaoszine_virallinen great job on that interview, please consider making one with Roope. In case he is available.

[@ozakki8719]

What a dude. Thank you, Alexander.

[@pupu6oi74]

Alexander is very humble. Great player.

[@iirohapponen]

Interview with roope!

[@chaoszine]

Lets see if that happens. =)

[@MightyALX]

Yes!

[@RobboElRobbo]

please!!

[@jpnou8454]

Totally!!

[@briars-atlas]

Legend. Responsible for a few of the great metal albums of the late 90's / early 00's. Hope he's happy and healthy and can't wait to see this interview.

[@Ddhxii]

Never thought I’d see this. It’s amazing after all this time

[@danieleizaga3589]

Right ? LOVE this guy

[@jonppu-sf224]

Alexander is a teacher at my school

[@stevehunt914]

Oh my actual god..... Alexander fucking Kuoppala! i have MISSED you dude!! You were the secret ingredient that made Bodom RULE. You left a dent that couldn't be filled. Thank you SO MUCH for this interview i've often wondered about how you're doing. that final Tuska gig was one of the greatest things i've ever witnessed. i LOVE that you still have/use the Hatecrew guitar. REALLY looking forward to hearing Thyrargo!! ♥

[@fishtitz6830]

Very interesting to hear why he left CoB. I always wondered why he did that, but his reason is completely understandable. Respect to him for going his own way, and thanks for doing the interview in english! Will absolutely check out his band when they release an EP.

[@sinistermephisto65]

What a pleasant man. Anyone that works with special needs kids is a hero in my eyes. So humble

[@CryonicDragon]

Alexander seems like a cool guy and I understand his decision to leave. A real legend

[@cinzamiasma]

Alexander is a nice guy, amazing guitarist and a person who seems to understand the simple meanings of life. Cheers from Brasil!

[@martinpamal]

Alexi had his own style and sound. I could recognize his sound/technique out of thousand other guitarists. He was absolute unique. R.I.P. Nice interview.

[@cosmos0916]

Thanks Alexander! Alexi maybe smile watching this interview in heaven:)

[@OldManDoom]

Man it is good to see Alex. The band wasn’t the same when he left, the albums up to when Alex left the band are some of my all-time favorite metal albums. I don’t know if he was just the lucky charm or something, but the difference between Hate.Crew and Are You Dead Yet? was like the end of an era for me. I hope Alex is doing well

[@cky2k3]

It was blood drunk that ruined it for me until i heard 'Morrigan" & the album I worship chaos! The following album Hex is good as well, subliminal messaging on Alexi's fate seems riddled within tho, and Halo of Blood i skipped and found that it was also ok when i went back. But the album 'Follow the reaper' and previous are the Best by far!! Kissing the Shadows is still some of the most melodic craziness ive ever heard from a guitarist!! While being some of the smoothest, most precise, effortless, and fastest notes in a riff, chorus, solo, and outro that I've ever heard executed in one song!! The entire song is shredding riffs as if solo'ing for the entire song at your absolute limits! The back and forth solo between guitar and synth is a masterpiece, and the outro solo is insane

[@Ramon-gg3bd]

Fully agree, those first 8 years were their absolute best. I lost interest in them after Alexander left. Maybe he kept the band grounded?

[@peteredwards2318]

I'm a big fan of the Bodom era that contained this mans guitar work. Saw them live in London when I was 16, my first proper metal gig, and it blew my mind.

[@Rockersrule1011]

I also saw them on their 20 Years Down And Dirty tour in London in 2017. Best gig I've ever been too! Mainly because they played mostly songs from their first 3 albums. The cherry on top was playing Towards Dead End as the final song.

[@KromheimOfficial]

Such a humble guy! Really interesting stories as well

[@caiobotrel5458]

Such a nice guy and interview! KaaosTV always bringing out the best.

[@chaoszine]

Thanks dude. 😊🤘

[@NoName-t7e]

5:10 years ago I was talking to the guys from Impaled Nazarene about Alexi Laiho and they pretty much said word for word what Alexander said, that Alexi just lived for music, that he totally dedicated himself to that. Good interview btw.

[@hulluu.elf007]

Sooo nice to know about you Alexander! We are a lot who totally comprehend as Henkka the reason why you left the band. Keep doing good stuff!

[@ahmedsgallery3507]

Its beyond legendary how Alexi was able to learn so fast and accomplish so many music abilities so so fast!! its talent that God put in him and his incredible dedication to the guitar. VERY RARE type of individual RIP King Laiho ... just wow

[@jessiemajeskie8821]

Holy shit I never thought I'd see him in recent years. 😮 Good to see he's doing well.

[@DevanArya]

​Yeah! I've been waiting for news about him for so long! Thank you for this!

[@chaoszine]

I was also interested about what he is doing musically so I reached out and he said he would love to do it so we made it happen. 😊🤘

[@DevanArya]

@@chaoszine I would love to see an interview with Latvala as well, that would be really great!

[@chaoszine]

@@DevanArya lets see if that would be doable at some point. Dont have direct contact to him so its a bit more trickier to organize than this was. =)

[@hellrazzer23]

@@chaoszine Can you interview Jaska too? He's known Alexi since they were teens.

[@chaoszine]

@@hellrazzer23 there will be time for that when his new band will release new music for sure. 😊

[@paty666]

Nice to hear from him! Alexander seems to be a really nice guy!

[@HenryGosuen]

this interview was so important to my life

[@Vestu]

I've been waiting for a Kuoppala interview for 16 years or so :D a CoB fan since 2000

[@TheDudeabides86]

Alexander seems like such a humble man.

[@C_GOODIES]

He is a stand-up dude. Never actually have heard him talk before. Also, super appreciative with them talking english. They are super good at talking too haha

[@MichaelHolmgaard]

Amazing to finally hear from this guy! In my opinion, Alexander is the most iconic rhythm guitarist in COB, having featured on all of their classic and best albums. He was part of COB at their peak and was such a great fit. Alexander clearly had a very close connection with Alexi and I think it hit hard when he left. Probably also had something to do with the band's decline...

[@craigwoudstra2932]

Decline? Who are you

[@asentientpatchofhaze]

Alexander is such a cool guy, thanks for doing an interview with him! And also thanks KaaosTV for making content also in English - I understand enough Finnish to be able to watch interviews with my fav Finnish musicians in their mother tongue but this way I can also share this stuff with my friends who don't speak it at all, so thank you for that :)

[@adamdavid8579]

Respect to the interviewer for doing such an organic job of directing the interview back and forth between Alexander's non-COB work and his history with the band!

[@chaoszine]

Thanks dude. 😊🤘

[@MissJacqification]

Arto is such an excellent interviewer.

[@NahtramMetal]

Great interview! The first four albums were definitely my favourites!

[@mikeg6913]

He’s sounds super kind and a nice guy glad he’s doing great 👍

[@Lofausto66]

Great man and true legend. Thanks for the music Alex.

[@consonaadversapars]

I was at a COB concert during their Hate Crew Deathroll days and Alexander was great, he stayed after the show, giving autographs and taking photos even after all the other band members left. :D Thank you for the interview and good luck with your projects!

[@Kalkschwarz]

KaaosTV, I hope you know that this interview is a real treat for us long time CoB-fans.Thank you very much!

[@UnderratedRiffs]

Thank you for this interview! CoB's first 3 albums are such classics! They were the last "new" metal band that I fell in love with when they came out!

[@opusamens]

Same! I got to know the band with Hatebreeder and loved it immediately. But I stopped listening to it after Hatecrew Deathrow

[@djahjeband7249]

Alexander sounds like a real chill dude..awesome interview & RIP Alexi..

[@lowbow9028]

Good to hear about him 👌🏻

[@chaoszine]

He was part of in my opinion the best albums the band put out. They are all great though but I consider first 4 the best. 😊

[@darkstar19]

100% will be supporting Alexander and Thyrargo. Dudes a legend.

[@ironbar5786]

Its so great to see an interview with Alexander. We dont see him in interveiws and he seems like a very cool guy

[@Monochromatic666]

Alexander, thank you so much for all the things you did for the band!

[@nn4299]

Yesterday watched this and really happy and proud Alexander doing well and kudos and thank you Alexander for being kind to those people with disabilities to give something from your end so that they can enjoy life ❤️ heart of gold and hope to see you more often with music you may have upcoming

[@yarpenzirgin]

That was great to watch. He is such a nice guy. Good he said what was him leaving about. Oh, and I will check Thyrargo when it's out. It is heartbreaking his band will not meet CoB / BaM at some stage.

[@CR-tw7hc]

Much respect for this guy. COB will live on!

[@GOS61]

Another great player !!! - awesome to here from Alexander !!!!!

[@fatsuperfly]

The fans still love Alex! Man! Keep making music, ill keep listening bro! Ppl sometimes don’t realize, you can love your job, but family is always first.

[@martintucci8609]

Such a down to earth dude, it's really cool listening him talk about Bodom years.

[@stevew5211]

Alexander seems like such a great bloke, I'm always curious about projects he's been in. Can't wait to hear Thyrargo. Greetings from Australia!

[@chriszaferes5984]

What a GREAT interview! Really respect Alexander, and agree with some of the comments on here. A lot has come to light hearing what actually happened.

[@demigod1013]

Early era COB with Alex was their best work - legendary/ groundbreaking. They peaked with Hate Crew Deathroll, if not Hatebreeder🤘

[@MickyVegaMusic]

It is so good to hear Alexander explaining the reasons why he left. I can totally understand his situation at that point. He seems to be like a super nice guy. If I ever meet him, I will thank him for those epic albums he made with COB, you definitely can tell the passion the whole band felt at that time. If the passion goes away, you must stop. There are other ways to enjoy music. That is the most honest thing you can do.

[@drohnenderdonner3672]

A true artist. Honest with himself, with the band, with the fan.

[@LaObraDeMarteLODM]

I loved the fact that you guys uploaded this interview. I have been waiting for years to hear Alexander's side of the story. I have a great appreciation for Alexander because COB with him was when I started listening to the band.

[@inashentears]

The best Bodom Years were when Alexander was in the Band... i remember as it was yesterday when i saw "Something Wild" in the NEW Releases Section in our local record store and i grabbed the cd and gave it a listen... instant fell in love... Something Wild/Hatebreeder/Follow The Reaper/Hate crew Deathroll - The big 4!

[@hyramjackson]

Thanks for this interview, his guitar work in the early Bodom albums is amazing

[@vironized8606]

Great to see and hear Ale. Thanks for the interview!

[@nicolasmaugy4253]

Alexander played on the best albums !

[@JorgeLeitner]

Awesome to finally see an interview from the man himself

[@vinaymulukutla358]

Really enjoy hearing that strong Finnish accent in both Alexander and the interviewer. It's a very distinctive accent and my roommate (also from Finland) has it.

[@franknada8235]

Finnish language has somewhat limited types of sounds, but also such that aren't used in English. The sounds are very clearly pronounced (drunkards&fast talkers the exception), unlike in English in so many cases. A Finnish person would need to "reprogram" his wiring of strong and dominantly guttural sounds (less tongue action) to a very different kind of fast but _relaxed_ tongue action and sounds coming more from the front of the mouth. Many Finns have even difficult to pronounce a B which is soft and relaxed (they pronounce it as P), G (->becomes K), D (becoming T).... and the R is strong so the soft variations of R are difficult. Finnish language has connections to the proto-Indian languages and other surprising languages too.

[@humppa5]

Thank you for this interview KaaosTV, any fans at any doubt would appreciate this. Alexander the Great 🖤

[@achillesamusic]

Such a kind guy, thank you so much for your words

[@thepredator666qc4]

nice to hear from this legend!!!

[@craigwoudstra2932]

That was the interview I wanted and the interview I needed

[@eviekroos431]

Great interview, thank you for making this.

[@chaoszine]

Thanks for the nice words. We will prolly do another one in the fall when his new band has new music out. 😊

[@leandrovasquezvega6003]

Thanks for the interview, it's really good to see and know about Alexander.

[@peanutbutterisfu]

I wasn’t a big COB fan but when I first started playing guitar like 12 years ago Alexi came across my KZbin radar and I remember watching all these videos of him showing how to play his songs and just thinking fuck man this dude is an amazing guitarist and after some digging around I realized how young he was when he recorded some of the stuff. The world lost and amazing musician.

[@ottomaani1322]

ROOPE LATVALA INTERVIEW!

[@ilikevideos4868]

YES PLEASE

[@ironbar5786]

yeeeeeeesss

[@michaelk4896]

Needs to happen!

[@atteljas]

Alexander is brilliant to be interviewed. Roope isnt as outspoken. Also after Bodom he has been laying low which we should respect. Also main focus on Roope would be why he wasnt in the Bodom, which would most likely be hard for him. Remember when he came out late 80s he was first metal guitar superhero and he was influence on Laiho.

[@ryssijussi1]

I hope Roope is doing well, he is a hell of a guitarist but also a thirsty one.

[@yellowlightingbolt]

He seems like a nice guy and his English is excellent to be based in Finland. I hope he catches up with the other member when he has the chance before something like what happened to Alexi happens to any of them.We never know what is waiting around the corner

[@filipevieira3343]

This guy and Alexi made beautiful music together!

[@Underp4ntz_Gaming_Channel]

Roope and Alexi were the duo... sadly they backstabbed him. Alexi only got so much credit is because he also was the singer.

[@nfrankiksa4596]

nope he was the main writer, even in sinergy. Don't talk nonsense @@Underp4ntz_Gaming_Channel

[@phat80]

Looking at Alexander you suddenly realise how old you are... we have almost the same age.

[@gulanhem9495]

Yeah, I know. Nearly 2/3 of life already gone and many weak and possibly painful years ahead of you lol

[@gocsa]

You can take MUCH better care of yourself than Alexander though...

[@СергейДубровин-ы7к]

In 1997-2003 was best albums COB

[@ultimaforsan899]

What a wonderful man. Thank you!

[@dedenapraia]

Such legend. Children of bodom has one of the best music ever written

[@Greycurls_95]

You’re right män! 😏 !

[@timothywheeler671]

it's an interesting act

[@666percentfishing]

I was devastated when he left, as a huge fan at the time. He was an awesome element to the band. I love his bodom after midnight riff in the solo. I was glad they found a great replacement for him. I always wondered why and how he left. What a good bloke, and also alexi for understanding the reasons. Bless him.

[@timothywheeler671]

He was a banger in the band and a good member.

[@mokuscsik]

Thank you for this! Really nice interview. Alexander seems to be such a down to earth guy. Would be nice to have him as an uncle. Kitos for making it in English! 👍🏻

[@metalstorm7506]

Such a great guy, I wish him all the best

[@Jason-ut8wc]

Such a nice snd humble guy. Thank you!

[@dianketo6663]

i would sell my right kidney to witness alexi and alexander practice for a whole night during their early years, when most of the old school bodom songs were made

[@shayanbakhtiari2552]

This one's great ! And ... Please, do an interview with Roope

[@DiscolorBlind]

He was right. Not saying he should have left. But that point was an alarming point for Children of Bodom and an amazing commercial opportunity... he wasn't really into. He did the best records, the real Children of Bodom with them.... the man of all men. Alexander Kuoppala. Of course Alexi Laiho is my favourite guitarist mostly because of his creativity but surprisingly my favourite Children of Bodom song ever, Bed of Razors, has Alexander in its composition credits... wow. Amazing.

Great to hear what he has been up to. Always liked Alexander in COB and it's cool he is so down to earth.

[@benthomas8765]

This is great! Best Bodom albums were when he was in the band.... no disrespect to Roope. I have wondered for 18 years what Alexander was up to. I think this interview covered all my questions

[@aeugnewtype]

Such a great interview from such an influential guitarist. It seems most people never mention him when talking about COB and attention is always on Alexi, but Alexander played some of the meanest and tightest rhythm guitars in all of metal music for those four albums he was there. And the fact that the music quality declined after he left says a lot about how strong the musical collaboration was between him and Alexi and how it made all their music that much better. Thyrargo is also awesome and brutal, so I hope to hear more from Alexander in the future.

[@jokife5642]

Oh wow,thank you for the interview :) :)

[@chaoszine]

Np. This was really nice one to do. 😊🤘

[@al69420]

What a fucjin amazing interview. Thank you bro. I love chaoszine

[@chaoszine]

Thanks!