Rock band Ginger Evil blends melodic rock with layered songwriting and an organic sound. With the release of their debut album The Way It Burns, the band is now bringing their long-developed music to a wider audience.
Fronted by singer Ella Tepponen and featuring guitarist Tommy Lindgren, bassist Veli Palevaara and drummer Tony Mustonen, the band draws inspiration from artists like Fleetwood Mac and Foo Fighters. We spoke with Ella about the band’s origins, the making of The Way It Burns, and life on stage.
Welcome to Ginger Evil
Hey, Ella, how are you doing?
Hi. I’m good. I’m just recovering from last night.
For those people that don’t know Ginger Evil, would you mind to give us a briefly introduction of who you are and when the band started?
I have to say I can’t remember the year that bassist Veli and guitarist Tommy met. But when they started Ginger Evil, but I think it was the early 2000s and later on we met with Veli on 2018 or 2019 and he heard somewhere that I like to sing and I like this rock style. Then we went for a coffee with Vali and Tommy. we just clicked.
The beginning of Ginger Evil
Our sense of humor clicked right away, and we love the same kind of music. We like Fleetwood Mac and Foo Fighters and we scheduled a rehearsal for play something and then it just felt right and there we were, I think. Afterwords, ome and our drummer Tony joined the band and it’s really about just having fun through music. And of course it’s rock and roll.
So, there’s a lot of expression and our songs are very layered. It’s not just rock. It’s hard to put in a box. Indeed, it’s just all about making good music and enjoying each other’s company. That’s in a nutshell what Ginger Evil is about. We wanted to bring some music that last in time that. That’s why we have a pretty organic sound in the band.
The debut album The Way It Burns
And you have released your debut album, The Way It Burns last February. So what can you tell about its genesis and lyrics?
Well, like I told you, Willie and Tommy gathered the band already in the early 2000s and they already then had the first demo. Some of the demos are really, really old. Actually, the first rehearsals we had or a play session, whatever you want to call it. In the end of the rehearsal, Tommy was playing a riff that I really liked. It sounded really good and I was like, “Wait a minute, what you’re playing?”
The debut album The Way It Burns [cont]
And he repeated and we started like jamming on top of that. This was in the first. The first time we played together and actually that’s how the song Flames was born and included in the record.
However, it took some time to take its final form. Regarding to the other songs, I mean, we had a bit of a rush when we started making the record. We only had like six months to do a 12 piece album and that’s quite a lot to do in 12 months. I think we had like half of the songs then and we had a lot of good demos and our producer, Teemu Aalto, he helped us a lot to pick some good stuff.
The debut album The Way It Burns [cont]
And lyric wise I’ve had help some from the lyricists Richard Stanley and Tracy Lip. During the whole process, I’ve been also banging my head against the wall to get it all figured out [laughs] because we did it kind of the opposite way that maybe most of the artists do their music.
Ginger Evil: “I mean we had the backing tracks before”
I mean we had the backing tracks before. We had the melodies and the lyrics. So when you do it like that, I would say it’s more narrow of where you can go with melody or the story because, you know, it can’t only be lyrics all the time. You also have to have breaks and let the music breathe.
The lyrical themes in The Way It Burns
That’s also the reason why the album is called The Way It Burns. There’s a lot of themes that concern climate change, but also this crazy stuff that’s going around the world at the moment. And there are some songs about mental health and of course a few love ballads.
They always needs to be at some point in the inner album, because love moves the world.
Yes, that’s right. And that’s probably at the end of the day what we want to say with it. But there’s also a lot of different themes on the album. I think it’s rich that way.
Ginger Evil working with producer Teemu Aalto
And you mentioned before that you work with Teemu Aalto as producer. So how was work with him?
It was awesome. He is such a talented and musical person and. And he has a long, long background with bands, playing in a band or working with bands and he really he plays all the instruments. He has a great ear.
We had a lot of fun when we were doing them the harmonies for the melody parts and, and sometimes we would stop to listen like, “Wow, this harmony really should be the melody”.
And yeah, it was a lot of fun and effective, I would say. Now we’re waiting to write down some new demos and some new music so we can start the next album.
Working with Svante Forsbäck
Following this, the final mix and master of the album was Grammy-nominated Svante Forsbäck of Chartmakers. How did it happen that you decided to have the final mix and master with him?
Well, he’s very good what he does. And I don’t know if it was Veli or Teemu [that proposed this collaboration] but I think we had a mutual feeling about that choice. We just wanted the best guy to do the mastering because it’s quite challenging.
During a concert
Thinking about your recent gigs, what’s going through your mind when you’re on stage?
Well I have a lot of views if I can say that, like depending on a song, I think they’re for me, old views in my mind because we’ve been working on these songs for a long time in, in the studio or before. After so much time, you just kind of have the scenery where you think about.
For example, Flames is a driving song. When we composed that song, we felt that should be a song that you listen when you drive a car during a sunset. It’s a bit of a cliche but it just felt right. So I just tried to like express what goes in my head.
During a concert [cont]
Sometimes I do really, really funny and stupid faces on the stage because I have this scenery, my mind or some of the songs. Even though the lyrics might be a bit heavy, I mean theme wise but they’re also about having fun. Of course I try to interact with the audience.
I try to interact with them because that what music is all about.
And, if I’m not having a good day with my voice, in my mind I’m trying to work on that because some of the songs are challenging. So I’m just trying to you know, like maybe I should change that setting or that setting. I keep try to stay in the moment because that’s, that’s the best you can do.
Taking care of the voice
And how do you take care of your voice?
Well, well, I drink a lot of water. And also of course I have to stay in some kind of shape. I still have a lot to work on in that area, since I’m a freelance musician and most of my time goes into balancing the different projects I do within music.
Taking care of the voice [cont]
Anyway, if I’ve had a rough day singing—like when I’m sick or my voice just isn’t cooperating—I usually stay quiet and drink something warm, not too hot or too cold.
But if it’s just a regular gig, I like to go for a walk the next day. I don’t do any heavy vocal exercises, but I keep using my voice gently. I’ve noticed that this helps a lot—kind of like with your body after an intense workout.
Taking care of the voice [cont]
Moving a bit feels much better than lying around all day, even though resting might sound tempting. It’s the same with the voice; gentle activity seems to help it recover faster. Then I might do some steam inhalation or go to the sauna. I also like to do cold-water swims — in fact, I just did one this morning.
Starting the singing career
How did you first get into singing, and when did you start? Could you tell us more about your career since then?
Well, I’ve always liked singing since I was a little kid. But I was really shy and actually I started with piano when I was 5 years old and I studied many years for that. Then when I was a teenager, I changed that for theater and when I was 19, I first went to a singing class. I took some classes, and afterwards I applied for a conservatory to study singing.
And, I graduated from the conservatory in 2018. Since then, I’ve been working as a freelance musician for almost 10 years now. Basically it means that I’m involved in a lot of different gigs with different artists. Then, I play also solo with a piano.
Starting the singing career [cont]
Actually, I’ve also done professional theater. I just finished our last musical at Kotka City Theater—Big Fish, based on Tim Burton’s movie. I’ve worked as backing vocals with various artists and bands too. I feel really lucky to have built a career in this field. I got some great visibility from X Factor in 2018, which led to a ton of gigs afterward. I’ve been gigging steadily for 10 years now—it’s my passion. There’s always something new to learn or improve, and that’s what keeps inspiring me.
“That’s exactly where the magic happens”
Someone said that when you think that you know everything about a job or whatever, you should change, you should do something else, and in everything, you. In my opinion, you can always improve, you can always learn new techniques and so on, because there is a lot outside.
It’s true. Like we said earlier, when you’re on stage, you have to be fully present—or it just won’t work. That’s really tough in today’s world, where we’re always multitasking and splitting our attention in a million directions. But performing with five other people onstage forces you to focus on the moment. That’s exactly where the magic happens.
The musical influences
Which are your main influences?
Oh, when I was a kid, I was obsessed with big divas like Whitney Houston and Christina Aguilera—their voices just blew me away. They’re still my favorites. As a teenager, I got into Foo Fighters, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and had a full emo phase, so those bands really shaped me. Rock has always been close to my heart.
But working in so many styles means I love all kinds of music—it’s hard to pin down. Beyond rock and divas, I’ve been playing Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter on repeat lately. As an adult, I’ve also grown to appreciate Finnish artists I skipped as a teen. My singing pulls from everywhere, but those powerhouse divas are the biggest influence.
What have you been listening to lately?
What have you been listening to lately?
Yesterday, driving back from Helsinki to Kotka with our producer, we blasted Whitney Houston’s Bodyguard album on 92.5 FM, plus some Bryan Adams, Fleetwood Mac, and—like I said—Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter. Aerosmith, Foo Fighters, and whatever I need to learn for gigs too. Mostly classics!
It’s so rare to find new music that grabs me these days—I don’t listen to the radio much anymore. Maybe I should try a classics station. We were just talking about how nice it’d be to discover something fresh. Got recommendations?
Musical recommendations
Depends on the genre, but lately I’ve been into modern metalcore. Check out Awake Again—a band from Turku. Their YouTube cover of Katy Perry’s Black Horse is hilarious. Start with Uhemko’s River, then Luna Kills. For harsher vocals, my favorite 2024 album is from Plitiaris, a progressive band from Rauma. And One Interesting—a metal band from New Zealand with songs in Māori about society today. Genres are so blurred now, but these are killer picks!
Closing words from Ginger Evil
What future plans do you have lined up?
We really want to play bigger stages (though we still love smaller venues). It’s time to grow as a band, build our fanbase, and release new music. We were just talking yesterday about our musical direction—we’re headed somewhere good. Our different ages and tastes are our strength, even if we don’t agree on everything. We share favorites like Foo Fighters and Fleetwood Mac, and we just want to create fun, refreshing, lasting music.
Unfortunatly, we are the end of our interview. Thank you so much for your interview, Ella. It was a real pleasure. Do you like to say something to your fans and our readers?
Thank you so much for contacing us on the socials, coming the gigs and buying our record. We are so thankful for that. I think that the rest of the band will agree on my words. Thank you so much for the interview.