Estonian Rockmusic

In the beginning... The Estonian rock music scene saw its beginnings in the mid-sixties during Khruschev's thaw in the Soviet Union and the rise of British bands all over the world. The first Estonian rock-groups were primarily high school bands playing cover versions of the current UK Top 10. Despite the lack of official support from Soviet authorities (rock music was seen as undesirable Western influence) some of these groups, posing as dance music bands in various clubs, gained a large underground following. Some groups managed to make proper studio recordings and appear a couple of times on television.

Sixties & seventies During the late sixties and early seventies, as both rock and roll and the young Estonian musicians aged, the music became much more complex. Progressive rock, with hard rock influences, began to become more prevalent in Estonia. Musicians from the sixties, who continued their musical career either became established pop-stars or became interested in progressive rock. So called progressive or intellectual rock could be an indulgence, a way to prove the Soviet authorities that rock music could have a deeper meaning. Because of the lack of proper gear some young engineers like Härmo Härm started to make equipment like synthesizers for rock bands. During the seventies Estonian bands began touring in the Soviet Union, some of them becaming quite popular. The first EP's and LP's were released under the Melodia label. The most notable groups of the sixties were Juuniorid (the very first), Optimistid, Mikronid, Kontrastid and Virmalised. Noteworthy groups of the seventies were Ruja, Gunnar Graps Group, Meie, In Spe and Apelsin.

Eighties The early eighties saw the rise of punk rock in Estonia. This rise could be described as back to the basics. Much like early Estonian rock music was a copy of the UK Top 10 back in the sixties, the new Estonian punk music was highly influenced by UK77 and UK82 raw punk rock. American bands were unreachable. And like rock music in the sixties punk rock was highly disliked by the Soviet authorities. Besides punk rock, the Estonian rock scene in the eighties had its own answer to everything that was going on in the free world - heavy metal, new romantics, and synthpop. However there was a few years of delay between the Estonian scene and the rest of the world. Despite this, Estonia remained a step ahead of the rest of the Soviet Union and during the perestroika period a few underground bands like J.M.K.E. and Röövel Ööbik became well-known in Finland. Bands that need mentioning include: Generaator M, Radar, Rock Hotel, Vitamiin, J.M.K.E., and Singer-Vinger.

Nineties The nineties saw the fall of music and musicians from previous decades. Youth, looking for something new as usual, got the first taste of electronic. In the early nineties there were simultaneous small-scale outbreaks of indie rock and metal. A punk surivivor from the eighties - Vennaskond saw mainstream popularity and gained a large following, becoming arguably the most influental Estonian rock band ever. The late ninteties were the lowpoint of the Estonian rock scene. Acts from the first half of the decade continued with minor success, and no new big acts appeared. Most famous bands of that time include: Vennaskond, Terminaator, The Tuberkuloited, Blind and Psychoterror.

What future brings? The new millennium has seen the slow but continuous rise of rock music. Currently strong metal and indie scenes exist. Pop-rock and punk-rock bands are gaining ground. Tanel Padar & The Sun, Slide-fifty are few of the bands that have helped design the current rock scene of Estonia.

Tanel Padar & The Sun Tanel Padar (born October 27, 1980) is an Estonian singer. He is best known for winning the Eurovision Song Contest Padar became famous by winning the Kaks takti ette, a biennial televised competition for young Estonian singers, in In 2000 he was one of the backing vocalists for Ines - who at the time was also his girlfriend - at the Eurovision Song Contest In 2001, Padar claimed the spotlight for himself along with the boyband 2XL and the Aruban born Dave Benton, a novice at the Eurovision, but with extensive performance experience. They won the Eurovision Song Contest 2001 with their song Everybody. Padar performs with a band known as The Sun and is currently somewhat popular in Estonia.Tanel Padar was married to Katarina Kalda, a former model. He is currently dating Evely Ventsli. Tanel's sister Gerli Padar is also a famous singer in Estonia, who became well-known years before Tanel did.