As fans continued to mourn the death of Children Of Bodom frontman Alexi Laiho, who passed away in December 2020 at the age of 41, remaining members Jaska Raatikainen, Janne Wirman, and Henkka Seppälä shared the following announcement about an unexpected, but altogether welcome venture aimed at preserving the band's legacy: They opened the Bodom Bar & Sauna in Espoo, Finland in November 2022.
A&P Reacts caught up with Wirman to discuss the inspiration behind creating Bodom Bar & Sauna, the possibility of expanding beyond Finland's borders, and Children Of Bodom's legacy.
Wirman on the band's last show, which took place in Helsinki, Finland on December 15, 2019:
"It was crazy. Really crazy. Somehow we pulled it through, though, because we were somewhat professional (laughs) but it was difficult being up on that stage and thinking 'Man, I'll probably never play these songs again.' And I knew I would never play those songs with those guys ever again, possibly. It was difficult."
Following is the band's original announcement for the launch of Bodom Bar & Sauna:
"We toured actively from 1998 until 2019. We have visited a bar in almost every town we ever played in. From Hard Rock Café Tokyo to a dive bar in the outskirts of Milwaukee. Everything from the legendary Rainbow Bar and Grill in West Hollywood to the Crobar in London UK.
Almost everyone in our profession dreams of opening their own bar at some point and we were no exception. When the active career of CoB was already coming to an end we started looking into it a bit more seriously. We had a warehouse full of memorabilia and we thought that a lot of people would want to see some of this stuff that used to be and still was very meaningful to us and the career of the band.
A thought of a museum felt a bit foreign but an idea of a bar that works as a museum displaying our gear and memorabilia seemed quite natural at this point. We had almost given up on this dream when the power duo of Jykä Peltonen and Kimmo Helistö emerged and were ready to provide us with their know how in the matter. Together we will build this unholy concoction of hard rock café and dive bar with a lot of Bodom in it. The new HQ of CoB will combine a museum and a bar but also include the possibility to experience the Finnish sauna culture. Situated naturally in Espoo only a stone´s throw away where the band started their career.
Bodom Bar & Sauna is being built in Espoo into a location with easy access to a Metro station. The establishment will also include three saunas. There will be no entry fee to the Bar and no age limit. There will be a fee for the sauna experience. We will open the Bar on 10.11.22."
Bodom Bar & Sauna opened according to plan, and some attendees have posted photos from their visit, which can be viewed below. In addition, Tuonela caught up with Raatikainen, Wirman and Seppälä to discuss the venture. Check it out below.
Follow Bodom Bar & Sauna on Facebook for updates as they emerge.
Top photo by Mika Jussila
