The Rasmus merge their signature blend of dark atmospheres and anthemic melodies with lyrically relevant songs about the world around them and the misfits they proudly identify with. The Finnish 6x Platinum and 8x Gold-certified rockers share “Banksy,” the latest single and video from their 11th studio album ‘Weirdo’ via Better Noise Music. The hard-charging song tips its hat to the controversial British street artist and political activist whose stencil graffiti work appears in public spaces. Bassist Eero Heinonen directed the live video, filmed at a recent tour stop in Helsinki at the legendary venue Tavastia.
Banksy ranks among The Rasmus’ biggest inspirations, especially his recent work commenting on the war in Ukraine and environmental issues. “Banksy has been a big favorite of ours for a long time,” says frontman Lauri Ylonen. “We’ve gone on tour spotting Banksy’s graffiti around the U.K., and I have my own background in graffiti painting. The fans have reacted really well to this song at our shows, it’s a lift-up song in our set. It’s fast and full of energy, which fits the live set extremely well. With seeing the fans’ energy every evening, it gave us the idea that this song deserves a music video. Specifically, a video that shows the audience, the uplifting energy and feel of our live show. This song has became a fan-favorite.”
“I wanted to direct a video for us, with an insanely fast visual tempo, so that too much is happening on the screen all the time,” explains Heinonen. “I believe we achieved that. It’s really cool that it includes street graffiti we’ve seen all over Europe, throughout the ‘Weirdo’ tour.” In their native Finland, where they reign as the number one rock band, The Rasmus stands at number one on Spotify with over 941 million global streams, YouTube, Instagram, and Deezer. The best bands keep surprising you time and time again in thrilling ways, something the group has done since their major label debut. Their albums present a kaleidoscopic collage of heavy guitars against futuristic electronics alongside pop hooks that reach any kind of music fan, making them one of Finland’s greatest musical exports with millions of records sold worldwide and numerous awards.