Erja Lyytinen has released a heavier new live version of ‘Hard as Stone’, the second single from her forthcoming 50th Birthday Live 2026 album.
The Finnish guitarist originally recorded the song for her 2019 studio album Another World, but seven years on she felt it was time to revisit it.
And her reason is refreshingly simple. The original had started to sound a little too sweet.
“In 2019, ‘Hard as Stone’ first appeared on my studio album Another World, and it’s always been a track I’ve loved,” says Lyytinen. “Since then, my guitar playing has evolved so much that I started to feel the original version was a little too sweet. I knew it was time to give it a tougher edge.”
That tougher version was captured during Lyytinen’s 50th birthday concert at the House of Culture in Helsinki on 21 March 2026 and is available now alongside an official live video.
Giving ‘Hard as Stone’ more bite
Rather than simply playing the original arrangement louder, Lyytinen went back into the structure of the song and made changes to suit the guitarist she has become.
“I changed some of the chords and drove them harder to give the track more punch, to make it truly hard as stone,” she explains.
A new addition to her guitar collection also played its part.
“I recently bought my first Floyd Rose-equipped guitar, a 1989 Kramer Nightswan, and it proved to be the perfect weapon for this song, especially for the Whammy Octave solo section and the heavier refrain.”
The result gives ‘Hard as Stone’ a noticeably more aggressive blues-rock edge while keeping the identity of the original intact.
“Hard as Stone is the second single from the live album, and I’m thrilled to have it back in the set list,” says Lyytinen. “It has a force and personality all its own and stands apart from the rest of the songs.”
A 50th birthday captured live
Erja Lyytinen – 50th Birthday Live 2026 will be released through Tuohi Records on 9 October.
The main concert captures the 90-minute birthday show at Helsinki’s House of Culture, drawing from across Lyytinen’s career with material from Voracious Love, Another World, Dreamland Blues and her latest studio album Smell the Roses.
The album also includes some notable guests.
Sami Yaffa, whose career includes Hanoi Rocks, New York Dolls and Joan Jett, joins Lyytinen on ‘One Thing I Won’t Change’, while Swedish trio Baskery appear on ‘Torn’.
The set moves between heavier blues-rock material, slide guitar and older songs given a fresh approach, including ‘Bird’, ‘Lullaby’, ‘Cherry Overdrive’, ‘Another World’, ‘Stoney Creek’ and ‘The Ring’.
The package also includes a second concert recorded at Tempo in Mikkeli, Finland, in October 2025 during the Smell the Roses album tour.
Erja Lyytinen heads to the UK in October
The live album arrives in the middle of an eight-date UK tour, beginning in Dudley on 8 October and finishing at The Old Brewery Store in Faversham on 16 October.
The run also includes Edinburgh, Sheffield, Oxford and London, plus a solo performance in Darlington.
UK tour dates
TICKETS AVAILABLE FROM https://erjalyytinen.com/tour
8 October – The Lamp Tavern, Dudley
9 October – Parish Hall, Sedgefield
11 October – La Belle Angele, Edinburgh
12 October – Angels Cut, Darlington, solo show
13 October – The Greystones, Sheffield
14 October – The Bullingdon, Oxford
15 October – Half Moon, London
16 October – The Old Brewery Store, Faversham
‘Hard as Stone’ is available now on all major streaming platforms.
Erja Lyytinen – 50th Birthday Live 2026 will be released on 9 October 2026 through Tuohi Records on double CD, double vinyl and DVD, alongside the digital release.
