"In terms of musical styles, my solo career is supposed to stand for everything that the current Waltari is not. Waltari´s sound is moving nowadays more and more into progressive metal, so, as a solo artist, I want to impress all the other musical passions I have in my head." 

In October 2007 Kärtsy took contact to a young (17-year old) guitarist called Pyry Nikkilä,  wanting to start writing some pop songs with him. Pyry had had a try-out to WAX Real Time Orchestra (Kärtsys live side project) some months before as a guitar player, and Kärtsy got a good impression about this young talent. Kärtsy had never really seriously tried to do real pop rock music so far, so this new target started to feel exciting. At the same he heard that Sunrise Avenue ( a big Finnish poprock band, which had a lot of success in Europe with their album One Way To Wonderland) had given up their second guitarist Janne Kärkkäinen, so he immediately called the guy and asked him whether he wanted to join the group as well. Janne said yes, and for drummer they also found a young raising talent called Vellu Yli-Mäyry (Muusa, Jani Wickholm).  

In December 2007 the line- up already started to do a kind of hush-hush low profile club gigging around Finland to run in this new line-up. Onstage they have also had two additional members Marko Haataja (bass) and Janne Rintala (keyboards) from the Finnish rising newcomers Blanco and Firenote. During spring 2008 Kärtsy Band started to seek for a label for a real solo cd and then in winter 2008 the new label called IVK Music and Kärtsy agreed upon co-operation. They hired for producer, a very experienced one with all the Finnish top radio acts,  a man called Tero-Pekka Virtanen and the recordings for the first album with this line- up started in April 2009.

Still, the history of Kärtsy's solo career leads much further into the past. 

In the year 2000 When Waltari took a break, first time after 14 hectic years, Kärtsy saw a chance to sow the first seeds of his solo career, at that time in a form called K2, and released two electronic dance singles through EMI. He already had had for many years an idea to start to do some stuff outside Waltari as well, since his musical idea bank never seems to dry out and the new musical ideas just were following up one after another all the time. The overhectic Waltari timetable just didn´t seem to give him any chance to this until now. The exact musical idea to do dance stuff came from the big cross- over hip hop act in Finland called Bomfunk MC´s, a very famous one at that time ( best known for their “Freestyler” hit single, the biggest selling hit in Europe the year 2000!). Kärtsy had been a quest star in their smash hit album “In Stereo” (Sony 1999) in a song called “Sky´s The Limit”, which turned out to become a huge radio hit in Finland. Their producer JS 16 (also very well known globally for his massive production for Darude´s Sandstorm hit) got together with Kärtsy to produce his first solo single” Lights Go Wild” and it was released by EMI. The second EMI single was then produced by Hakan Lidbo, also a well known Swedish dance producer. For some reason Kärtsy still didn´t feel comfortable in changing his style throughout and suddenly to dance music, and when Waltari then decided to get back again after a one year break, Kärtsy was again massively back, creating  new plots with his dear cross- over metal monster. And it took as long as 7 years for him to get back to this solo career again, this time on a very serious level. It was then the year 2007 and this time the idea was to remain there for good. 

Meanwhile, this decade, Kärtsy had some side projects going on besides Waltari, like his massive musical contribution to the  legendary multipopular pc computer game called “Max Payne.” To these two games “Max Payne” 1 and “The Fall Of Max Payne”, he made the internationally respected and also awarded soundtracks with Kimmo Kajasto, the legendary Finnish electronic sound monster ( Rinneradio, Koneveljet). The games turned out to be huge hits globally with sales more than 6 million units altogether. More studio work was done in 2003 when Kärtsy was asked to compose theatre music to a piece called “Akseli ja Eelo.” This work was also released as a cd called “Akseli Ja Eelo” (2004 IHT), and therefore can be considered Kärtsy´s first full length solo cd. 

Kärtsy had also been doing quite a lot of live shows with his houserock line- up WAX Real Time Orchestra, mainly in Finland though.WAX´s idea has been created by Jori Hulkkonen, the globally well-known house dj and -artist. The purpose is to play legendary and popular underground house hits as guitar versions without any keyboards or programming. The line up consisted of very well-known  Finnish top musicians (members of Apocalyptica, Ultra Bra, Ismo Alanko Säätiö, Waltari etc.etc.), and was a kind of an all star gang. A WAX´s visit at one of Londons most legendary techno clubs, Fabric, proved this line- up to be a killer live act and a satisfaction- guaranteed party band, with their neon masks and light cable clothes. The band was about to start to record as well, but almost as soon as they had signed to the Finnish label GB Fam, and after getting their first single “Smalltown Boy” ( cover of an old Bronski Beat classic) out, the label ceased to exist in 2007, and due to those changing circumstances Kärtsy's mind then already was heading towards the next and current step in his solo career..KÄRTSY BAND!  

Kärtsy Band:

Pyry Nikkilä:

The lead guitarist in the band is called Pyry Nikkilä. He is only 20 years old, but plays like hell his instrument. Kärtsy met him at Ääni Ja Vimma national band competition when he was only 17, and saw immediately a talent, and wanted to ask him to join this new solo project he had already then in his mind. Since 2007 then they have been working together.

Pyry uses
Marshall amps. Epiphone, Fender and Hagström guitars. And sure various pedals.

He admires players like Adam Jones (Tool), Kaki King, Troy van der Leenwen (Queens Of The Stone Age, A Perfect Circle).

Pyry also is an actor, and playing also second guitar in Jannes band Phoenix Effect.

Vellu Yli-Mäyry:

Drummer in the band is called Vellu Yli-Mäyry. He joined the band end of
year 2007. Kärtsys and Vellus mutual friend, A guitar player Jaakko from Kärtsys WAX-project, recommended Vellu to
him. Both Vellu and Jaakko also play in the band called Muusa.
Wellu uses Kumu drums.

Janne Kärkkäinen:

Rhythm guitarist in the band is called Janne Kärkkäinen, former guitarist of Sunrise Avenue and nowadays also having his own band called Phoenix Effect. October 2007 Kärtsy heard that Janne is free from his other engangements, so he asked him to join the band. Kärtsy saw, that his rock orienteering talent could be very suitable to this simple nice rock music what he now does. Janne brings a lot participation to the song arrangements, and is a nice guy to work with:)

Kärtsy´s discography so far: 

2000, Lights Go Wild (Single)

2001, Get On Top (Single)

2004, Akseli Ja Eelo (Album)

2006, WAX Real Time Orchestra: Smalltown Boy (Single) 

2010, Duty Freedom (Album)