Thoughts on Melody

Leaving the Folk Music Behind

2011-12-31T19:31:00.003+02:00

What a cool coincidence to notice that my latest post before the very long break was about a Mamas and Papas song. That band has, in fact, become quite a big favourite since then. I had known about the band for years and I enjoyed some of their songs such as Monday, Monday and I Saw Her Again. The harmonies and vocal arrangements always struck a chord with me but it took a while to finally begin to see all of the beauty behind this group of two men and two women.

The Mamas and the Papas were not a very long-lived band but recorded lots of excellent late 60s baroque/kind-of folk pop music. Huge harmonies, baroque elements and sunny California spirit also justify a link to sunshine pop. In my opinion, the Mamas & the Papas stand out best due to their brisk, cheery male-female vocal harmonies, arranged by John Phillips.

Despite the harmonious, well-balanced, often even playful sounds, lyrics and rhythms, there was quite a bit of drama in the band. The members ended up disliking each other and breaking up on more than one occasion. They however became an iconic American band of the late 1960s having released five albums and several successful singles in 1966–1971. The Mamas and the Papas also performed at the prestigious Monterey Pop Festival in 1967.

As usual, I ended up enjoying this band a great deal after the usual getting-to-know period. There is indeed a lot to love: beatlesque stuff such as Straight Shooter, the huge sunshine pop harmonies of Monday, Monday, the band's most famous hit California Dreamin', a non-successful yet awesome debut single Go Where You Wanna Go, Dancing Bear with its great baroque sensibilities, as well as other quieter songs Got A Feelin' and Strange Young Girls. The Mamas & the Papas also show their talent with several versions of good old classics such as Do You Wanna Dance, Spanish Harlem and Dancing in the Street.

I also discovered a song called Twelve Thirty (Young Girls Are Going to the Canyon) and knew immediately there was something quite special about the song. Listen to it on the headphones and you'll hear the pure genius of a vocal harmony. There are different interpretations of the lyrics and I don't know which ones are true but the song is anyway amazing in its baroque melancholy.

A lot of the Mamas & Papas magic comes from Cass Elliot's superb vocal abilities which also play an important role in the band's overall sound. I don't pay attention to female singers all that often but here is one that I really appreciate. There is no denying the power of her impeccable sound and sense of style and dynamics. Check out songs such as Dream A Little Dream Of Me, Words Of Love, and The In Crowd.

The Mamas & the Papas are probably usually remembered by California Dreamin' but there is a lot of other great stuff as well. Their charming music is definitely worth checking out.

Going Back in Time – Centuries for a Change

2011-12-23T19:30:00.005+02:00

Sorry once again, folks, for my long-lasting absence from this blog. It's been a busy fall but now the holidays are here once again. While trying to get as much rest as I can I also hope to write down some of my most cherished memories of late 2011.

First of all, meet my new favorite live act. They are probably the biggest group of people I have ever seen playing music together. They are the Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra, my home town's very own orchestra. Like probably almost any other orchestra, this one performs mostly old classics from the 18th and 19th century but also “new” music of the 20th century and even brand new pieces every now and then.

The transition from popular music to art music surely feels difficult for a lot of people. Classical music differs from popular music in many ways but I don't think there is much reason to be afraid of going to a classical music concert. The first concert may not be the most pleasant experience you can think of but it will get better every time. Classical music doesn't rely on catchy rhythms, explicit melodies or moving lyrics. Instead, there are complex harmonic structures, wildly twisting melodies and dynamics that require sitting on the right seats to be fully appreciated.

However, I am not saying that classical music is difficult. Enjoying any new type of music requires practice. The brain needs to accustom to new ways in which sounds, rhythms, and dynamics are combined. Any person able to sense the basic elements of music will develop a deeper understanding of classical music while listening to different symphonies, concertos, and other pieces.

The first time I heard classical music live was while still in elementary school, which certainly was too early to understand anything about it. Like any other music, classical music is also best served when you are ready for it. Still, now is as good a time as ever to test if you might be ready for classical music.

My interest in classical music began when my dad wanted to take my heavy metal loving brother to listen to some proper acoustic music last summer. I went along and was immediately incredibly moved by the overwhelming harmonious beauty of the violins, cellos and other instruments. A few months later I went to another concert with some people from the university. Then, I realized I wanted to go every week, so I went as often as I could. I heard Barber, Prokofjev, Brahms, Schubert, Finland's pride Bergman and a fabulous concert with music from Weill, Britten and Bartók on my birthday. The last concert of the year was a beautiful baroque Christmas concert with music from Händel, Telemann, Corelli, and Bach.

After all, classical music is actually not so different from baroque pop – the pop part is just kind of replaced with something else. Usually that results in more complex structures, harmonics and melodies that make it more challenging to hear the music as a whole. In the end, perhaps the challenge results in even more rewarding listening experiences.

Eerie, Yet Terrific

2011-10-16T19:56:00.007+03:00

Now let me share with you a childhood memory of mine. Even though it isn't winter yet, this song is just perfect for this moment – despite the fact that the darkening evenings and cold weather rather tend to make me choose my sunniest sunshine pop hits...

A couple of months ago it occurred to me once again that my favorites, the Beach Boys have also made a version of California Dreamin' which was originally performed by the Mamas & the Papas in 1965. When this Beach Boys version first came out in 1986 I hardly had been born but I remember hearing this sometime later, when I was still only a child. It was the early or mid-90s and for some reason this music video was aired on Finnish TV, possibly even a few times, actually. The video seemed to make a huge impact on me because it looked really familiar when I watched it again many, many years later.

I still find this video impressive. It is definitely gothic and eerie, which is always unusual of the Beach Boys. Seeing the guys here is really nice even though it leaves me feeling kind of melancholic. Roger McGuinn makes an appearance with his 12-string Rickenbacker (wow...) and there are also alto sax solos (arguably the coolest instrument there is) by John Phillips. I also enjoy the 80s-styled production, not to mention incredible vocals from Al and Carl! I could listen to this for hours.

Folk Rock Gates Opened

2011-10-14T22:09:00.003+03:00

It is starting to look like I have been enticed into a small folk rock craze, mostly thanks to the Association. Listening to the Association was at some point like a learning session aiming at a deeper understanding of the band. Now, every second with the Association is like being in heaven... While getting acquainted with the band, I also learned to appreciate folk rock style, melodies and aesthetics more than ever. Now, when I put on anything that has those folky melodies my mind screams: aah yeah, folk rock, this is the good stuff!

Well, this isn't really the first time I have been interested in folk rock. However, we may have to say something about the term folk rock at first. There are countless different manifestations of folk rock. There is folk rock, folk pop, folk metal, neo-folk and who knows how many other variants of music that is based on folk. There are also local variants of folk and folk rock all around the world. For me, the starting point is the Association, so that defines my current interest. I am mostly talking about music that was inspired and developed from American folk music. Still, I don't wish to limit myself. Instead, I hope to keep an open mind. If I discover a great Arabic folk music band, I will definitely check it out...

Anyway, probably the most famous folk rock band I have listened to before is the Byrds. Both the Byrds and the Association have recorded Bob Dylan songs. If I haven't misunderstood all of this, those jangly and harmonic Dylan covers played a big role in the American folk rock success. Dylan himself also went electric which made him more and more popular.

We could now perhaps define folk rock as being folk decorated with elements that make it more appealing for large audiences. A traditional folk song is bare and has little decoration. There isn't much auditory spectacle. A folk troubadour singing alone and playing a guitar can obviously be wonderful, but a band like the Association with its rich full band arrangements and enormous vocals gives the music a whole different treatment.

This question has a lot in common with the dilemma of how much a song needs decorations, different instruments and production. Some people want more, some people want less... And it depends on the song, time, genre, etc. In my opinion, the composition (with its tunes and chords) is the core of any traditional (pop) song. Still, a rich sound with an excellent, carefully conducted arrangement can make a song rise to a whole new level. So, even though the bare song, the idea, is the most important thing and an achievement in its own right, it also helps a great deal to make it sound as appealing as possible.

My next goal is to find out and compare how different bands transform their folk songs into more ambitious arrangements – or decide to stick to more simple arrangements. I have a list of interesting performers. On that list there are the Mamas & the Papas, the Beau Brummels, the (New) Seekers, Donovan, and P. F. Sloan. Finally checking out Bob Dylan would probably be pretty useful, too.

I have to say I don't really know much about folk rock. I only know a few artists and I know who the most influential UK and US folk artists were. So, I could say that the search is now on. The real gems are often hidden I would be more than happy to get recommendations. What are your favorite folk rock bands?

New 60s Favorites, Part Three

2011-10-14T11:55:00.007+03:00

A beautiful thing about 60s pop/rock groups is that whenever you decide to take a look at one of them, the band comes across as charming and really good pretty much every time... This time it was an Australian band called the Easybeats.

For music-lovers this band is probably very familiar. The Easybeats have even been referred to as the Australian Beatles. On the other hand, asking any (especially younger) person on the street about the band just might result in ”never heard of” type of answers. For instance, there are probably only one or two Easybeats songs that have been performed by Finnish artists. At first there weren't almost any Easybeats songs I remember hearing on the radio or anywhere else.

I am telling you this just because it plays an important role in my previous knowledge of the Easybeats. Now, just like the Association and the Creation, this band has shown me several sides and styles which really makes the music stand out. The Easybeats especially seem to enjoy the straightforward, groovy rock'n roll songs (Good Times, She's so Fine, Made My Bed (Gonna Lie In It), Wedding Ring, and For My Woman), even throwing in some Motown soul (I Can't Stand It).

There are also some songs that almost sound like they were recorded by the Beatles for some early album (Pretty Girl, It's so Easy). A song like Falling off the Edge of the World is an interesting example of a song that at first sounds a lot like the Beatles – but it still sounds more like the Easybeats after all! Some of my other favorites are the melancholic psychedelic melodies of Land of Make Believe, Remember Sam, and Come in You'll Get Pneumonia. Heaven & Hell, the single that was banned in the US, is also a wonderful slightly psychedelic pop song. It certainly would have been a great follow-up to Friday on My Mind.

River Deep, Mountain High is probably one of the most famous songs in the band's repertoire. It is so good that I don't feel like I need to hear the Ike & Tina Turner version at all... Stevie Wright's lead vocals are superb: he definitely has all it takes to perform soulful songs that also tend to have raw rock'n roll energy. Hello, How Are You is also such a great ballad that I want to mention it. And don't forget The Music Goes Round My Head, a cool baroque piece!

The band was founded in 1964. Children of British and Dutch emigrants, the Easybeats became very successful in their home country and soon were touring Europe and the US with the Rolling Stones. Friday on My Mind was a million-selling hit and a few smaller hits followed. Originally, lead singer Stevie Wright and rhythm guitarist George Young formed the songwriting team, but Wright was later replaced by lead guitarist Harry Vanda as a songwriter. Problems with management, radio airplay and record company support as well as the songwriting team becoming increasingly independent resulted in the band breaking up 1969. The songwriting team continued working on other projects, and there was an Easybeats reunion in 1985.

The Easybeats were a band that had their own unique voice and energy. They definitely weren't just another Merseybeat-styled band or generic 60s rock group. Instead, they sound like a band that took many great things from contemporary music and combined the influences to make a basis for their own music – a method that works even today!

The Joensuu Gospel

2011-10-13T14:04:00.008+03:00

Although shoegaze is probably not really mainstream kind of music – definitely not in a small country like Finland – Joensuu 1685 has gained quite a lot success. Due to this success even I decided to check out what it was all about. But as usual, other things got in the way and I never really got around to concentrate on the self-titled debut album, released by Bone Voyage (a record company led by 22 Pistepirkko guys) in 2008.

Joensuu 1685 was considered to be one of the most important indie bands in the release year of the debut album. The band was also one of the most popular live acts at Lost in Music festival the same year. I remember attending the gig and enjoying it quite a lot despite the very strange power shortage at the end... The band consists of Markus and Mikko Joensuu who are brothers, and non-related Risto Joensuu who just happens to have the same last name.

For a three man band Joensuu 1685 makes a whole lot of noise – that noise is very pleasant to any open-minded rock lover's ears, though. I have finally been listening to the Joensuu 1685 album properly and I enjoy everything about it. There is a lot of charm in its dynamics, heavy but nice rocking psychedelia and interesting sounds. All in all, I would call it a masterpiece of both modern sound and recording technology. Lead singer-guitarist-Farfisa player Mikko Joensuu is an openly spiritual person which shows in songs like (You Shine) Brighter Than Light and Electric Ocean Sailor. The spiritual aspect definitely gives an interesting vibe to this music.

Crystal Light is one of the most fascinating things here: a seven-minute song of noise, monotonic driving kraut beat and a thick vocal effect. Compared to this song Kill/Shot/Love, Sick City, and Baby, Baby, Baby are somewhat easier to the ear, practically quite catchy pop (or rather rock) songs. Nothingness also has that monotonic kraut vibe but the song is a lot more slow and calm. At first it sounds a bit threatening but soon transforms into one of the most blissful melodies I have heard in some time. The transitions between songs on this album have been rendered very carefully. Amazing, perfected sounds and fascinating songs make this, in my opinion, an A+ album.

Joensuu 1685 has been on hiatus during the past couple of years. The Joensuus have been working on a different project called Siinai and debut album Olympic Games came out in July 2011. Siinai describes its own music as new age, which may not sound all that appealing to some people... In fact, you can just as well describe the music as instrumental kraut rock with massive soundscapes. I was very impressed by Siinai's performance at Monsters of Pop festival a few weeks ago. Mikko Joensuu also played a solo gig (which I sadly didn't see) at the same festival. I hear there was some really good solo material performed. Maybe a solo album is on the way?

For now I will stick to Joensuu 1685 and check out Siinai's album later when I am once again in need of something different and refreshing.

Joensuu 1685 at MySpace
Siinai website

New 60s Favorites, Part Two

2011-09-30T13:11:00.010+03:00

Red with purple flashes. That is how guitarist Eddie Phillips has described the Creation's music. The Creation are my latest 60s favorite number two. This band came from the UK and was founded in 1966. The Creation were a short-lived band but achieved quite a lot during their short period of existing as a band. These achievements were not chart-topping hits but insteadmany excellent mod, garage and psychedelic rock songs that are still living pieces ofsome of the most energetic British music of the era.

Originally I decided to check out this band due to its alleged influence on power popmusic. I had these two compilations, Complete Collection, Vol. 1: Making Time and Vol. 2: Biff Bang Pow, in my possession for some time before the time was right to discover the wonders they contained. These CDs include all music by the band made in the 60s with some different mixes and versions.

I was fascinated by Nightmares from the very beginning. That song is a good example of the certain kind of dark mood that is sometimes present in the Creation's music. I don't know exactly what made it a bit difficult to hear the beauty of this music... Listening to it more was surely the thing that made it open up to me. There is after all a lot to process: a lot of harmonic sound, lots of great songs, lots of different influences.

I have been listening to the first CD more and come to appreciate the stuff very, very much. Everything is solid, well-written and has a pleasant, somewhat heavy garage sound. The combination of melodic British beat music tradition is mixed with rhythm and blues and often psychedelic elements resulting in really impressive, soulful, catchy and memorable music. The mysterious psychedelic feel is also quite enjoyable and there are excellent vocal harmonies.. Check out Making Time, Tom Tom, How Does It Feel to Feel, If I Stay Too Long, All That I Am, the successful single Painter Man, or any other song for the matter! This really is pure kick-ass rocking 60s magic.

The closest counterparts to the Creation are obviously the Who, and perhaps the Kinks. Listening to the Creation can actually momentarily make you feel like you're listening to the Who. The sound can be very similar to the early Who. I think I'll need to dig deeper into this mod music, as well as freakbeat.. and garage.

New 60s Favorites, Part One

2011-09-23T23:49:00.009+03:00

I wish I could write more often... For some reason I can't seem to find time to do it. The important part, however, is that I have three new 60s favorites! I often like to think about the 60s as the best time of music: a decade with charm that hasn't been topped by any other decade and probably never will be. The 60s is therefore kind of a project to me: I hope to familiarize myself with as much good 60s stuff as I can during my lifetime. Even though the huge fragmentation of music hadn't progressed all that much in the 60s, by the end of the decade there were already many different types of pop(ular) music and rock.

The Association, one of the three new favourites of mine, is a band that represens sunshine pop, baroque pop, folk rock, and soft rock. Even though surf music is not on the list the Association is a perfect path to take after the Beach Boys. The vocal arrangements are huge!

The band debuted with And Then... Along Comes the Association in 1966, produced by Curt Boettcher. Windy was the band's first number one hit, selling a million copies. Other million-selling hits followed (Cherish, Never My Love) but the biggest commercial success ended after a couple of years. The Association was the lead-off performer at Monterey Pop Festival and remained a popular live act during the rest of the decade. The group never disbanded for long even though there weren't many new albums or singles produced after the first half of the 1970s. The Association is still around, and the group toured the United States with several original members in the summer of 2011.

One of the Association's secrets of success has definitely been the vocal arrangements that turn soft pop songs into something a lot bigger... There are also recognizable lead vocalists. When it come to the biggest differences between the Association and the Beach Boys, the Association sounds somewhat more adult all the way. Even though the Association applies hooks like any other pop band (such as the Beach Boys) there is a somewhat clear difference in style. Doo wop and r&b influence is not very obvious but instead there are elements of folk rock tradition. However, the Association is certainly not too different from other psych-baroque sunshine pop bands, such as Curt Boettcher's projects. Musically speaking the Association is still probably a bit more down-to-earth than its more psychedelic sunshine pop counterparts. I bet no one would blame the Association for being too psychedelic.

So, the Association likes to focus on the songwriting and effective vocals and not paying too much attention to the fanciest, weirdest new psychedelic sounds and innovations. The Association's music is rewarding to especially those who appreciate traditional soft rock songwriting and the nuances of elegant multipart vocal harmonies.

As far as I know, the Association are quite unknown in Finland. Many people of the younger generation would surely recognize Windy due to a Finnish group Ultra Bra plagiarizing the melody for their song Jäätelöauto back in 1999.

It actually took really long for me to find the essence of this band. It was probably because the Association is not really famous for the cathciest possible songs – you are not going to hear anything like I Get Around here... Instead the music of the Association is about getting into the band's own style and the music as a whole. The band becomes familiar and recognizable and soon you will enjoy everything from the catchier songs (Forty Times, Enter the Young, Time for Livin', Six Man Band, Yes I Will) to the mellowest of mellow ballads (Under Branches, Birthday Morning, Barefoot Gentleman, Along the Way). How could I resist the cheerful sunshine pop of Come on in, the incredible wall of vocals in Just about the Same or the stunningly emotional folk ballads Look at Me, Look at You and What Were the Words?

Pop'n Roll Energy from the Past

2011-08-31T15:20:00.006+03:00

Now here is a real gem! I have been listening to this CD many, many times during the past few days and don't mind at all hearing it several times in a row. Skipping tracks is not necessary at any point! Sorrows were a New York band, formed in 1977. Half of the band (Arthur Alexander and Jett Harris) had been members of the Poppees before. With Joey Cola and Ricky street added the band rocked both live and on vinyl.

Guitarist/vocalist Arthur Alexander described his band's sound as “ABBA meets the Sex Pistols”. This description sounds quite good even though you could also describe Sorrows having a typical late '70s/early '80s power pop sound. Beatles influence is obviously strong and some of the more hard rocking material reminds of the Undertones or Cheap Trick, while the music also sounds like Paul Collins Beat and other power pop bands of the era. Also the Flamin' Groovies and even Sparks come to mind occasionally.

This is the first time any music by Sorrows has been relesed on CD. Bad Times Good Times is a worthy addition to any collection of good pop-rock music. Even though some of the material was, in fact, rescued from a demolition dumpster, the sound of this release is perfect. Even the demo/live stuff sounds good. The songwriting is of great quality, every song is catchy, and a real kick-ass pop'n roll spirit is present. Get it now, while it still is easy!

Gardening Tips

2011-08-29T16:07:00.004+03:00

As I already wrote about the Secret Powers and the Electric Family Choir album I don't think I need to talk more about it. Listen to it, I guarantee it is some of the best 21st century power pop you can find.. If not some of the best 21st century music. I think I will have to skip Lies and Fairy Tales (2010) for now and maybe get back to it later. Today it is time to talk about What Every Rose-Grower Should Know, a 2011 release, the very latest album by Secret Powers. When it comes to this band I think their most strangely-named albums might also be their best.

I like to think about the first album as stylewise the most coherent Secret Powers album and the Electric Family Choir as the most versatile album. What Every Rose-Grower Should Know lies somewhere between these two albums: the soundscape is quite coherent all the way but there are clearly also songs performed in different styles.

Generation Ship has already been decleared as “the closest to ELO you can get” or something like that. The song definitely reminds of ELO, though not so much that you wouldn't be able to hear a strong Secret Powers signature in the song. Maybe needless to say, I enjoy this song so much that I used to listen to it many times in a row... There are however other great songs on this album as well. Tarantula comes next, changing the mood to beatlesque – I love it! Then follows Secret Powers' Styx moment (yeah!): What Every Rose Grower Should Know. If anything that riff reminds me of those cool fuga-inspired things that Styx/Dennis DeYoung have occasionally used. The drums in this title track are awesome, as well as the psychedelic background vocals in the chorus.

Candy is real candy. Just give me bouncy bubblegum rock with gentle vocals – and resistance is futile. The same is pretty much true of Crocodile, but instead of bubblegum there is real ear-melting harmony heaven, a definite romantic song for romantics. They got me, I confess...

I'll Be Home sounds like an ultimate Ringo Starr homage. The topic of the song is very serious but the performance always brings a smile to my face. It Should Have Been Me, a joined Secret Powers songwriting effort (a really catchy one, too), has a slightly harder edge. Still, despite its rocking feel the sound is not very hard-rocking. I love the psychedelic organ.

Objectively you might say that the songs in the end of the album are not the strongest material Secret Powers has to offer. However, I enjoy those songs a great deal. Well, yeah, My Idea is not the best Secret Powers song ever but I don't dislike it. It is OK. Besides, the guitar solo is cool!

There you have it, another awesome Secret Powers album. Now that I think about it, is just seems to get more and more difficult to decide which album I like best. I used to listen this album dozens of times while riding my bike all around in the sunshine. There is more to this album that just music... Wonderful memories and charm, too.

Explorers of Greatness

2011-08-29T14:28:00.004+03:00

Now, something I was planning to write months ago but everything else got in the way. Secret Powers caught my attention with their second album ..and the Electric Family Choir (2009) already in the spring. Soon the band earned a place in my heart and all I could listen to was that strangely named album... I had to get more stuff from the band so I ordered everything the band had released. After a recording career of four years there are already four albums available which is admirable in its own right. Not only are Secret Powers prolific, they also create high quality pop suitable for anyone who enjoys traditional '60s-influenced pop music.

Secret Powers mix elements from the Beatles and ELO with genuine songwriting talent, really good lyrics and gorgeous sounds and arrangements. Explorers of Solar Eclipse (2008) is the first album by Secret Powers and it is indeed a great debut album. The cover is snowy and arctic and it somewhat describes the mood of the album: fresh, bright sounds with a melancholic, yet hopeful feeling. I often find myself comparing Secret Powers to Wondermints. In a way the Wondermints debut album comes to mind, even though Secret Powers music is not equally dreamy. Still, there are similar cleverly constructed Beatles references – it also has to be pointed out that the band's own voice is also very strong.

Compared to the later albums this one is more Shmedly-oriented. Band leader Ryan “Shmed(ly)” Maynes is responsible for all composing work with the exception of Kitty on the Brain (written by Troy Warling). He also sings lead most of the time and does a good job with his gravelly yet melodic voice. Smedly's piano is also one of the dominant elements on the album, making the music even have some similarity to Keane's piano pop at times (just listen to Jenny). There are of course guitars, too, and actually the piano/keys make a very balanced combination with guitars.

We Are Alone is a perfect opener with lots of bouncy groove, ELO-like piano and sounds layered with style. Awfully Nice and Place I Can Breathe are all strong, catchy songs that explore the ever so interesting world of semi-happy, semi-melancholic music. Counting Stars (hear that drive!) represents Smedly's interesting way of occasionally writing songs that, in my opinion, don't seem to have very conventional choruses. Therefore the chorus of Counting Stars sounds to me more like a bridge. Anyway, this bridge-like chorus is really cool and makes the song all the more interesting – not to mention the long instrumental solo with cool background vocals in the end!

Rose repserents the typical Secret Powers ballad. Magical it is, indeed.. Similar, possibly even more lovely and gentle ballads can be heard on the later albums. There is strong material even at the very end of the album. Funniest Girl in the World is a melancholic schlager with accordion and jazzy piano. The final song Walking with That Doll has the magical, soft Secret Powers harmonies that I bet anyone would enjoy.

Generally speaking, Explorers of the Polar Eclipse is a strong album with great songwriting and impeccable pop/rock sounds. I enjoy sensing the mood changes as the album progresses as well the overall coherence and continuity that the album has from beginning to the end. Musically, the album feels like a continuing story. It is always a joy to hear this album. Sometimes I have found myself thinking if this is actually my favorite Secret Powers album. The Electric Family Choir is a tough competitor, I have to say...

Secret Powers on MySpace
Secret Powers website

20 Big Ones

2011-07-21T22:59:00.010+03:00

To reflect the years I have had with the Beach Boys I decided to present my 20 dearest Beach Boys tracks. Here they are: my favorite Beach Boys songs, original or cover, from the oldest to the newest (approximately).

1. Surfer Girl
Lovely, lovely... Here is Brian's surf melancholy at its finest. The Beach Boys harmonies resonate right through my (and anyone else's) heart. This is a magical song inspired by When You Wish Upon a Star. The harmonies are simply stunning. Especially with headphones it is an experience like no other. Vocals have always been my favorite instrument and this may be the most attractive, most powerful way to perform them. You can actually feel the harmonies resonating all the way through your body.

2. Catch a Wave
This song is both extremely cheerful as well as exhilarating. I bet quite a few people decided to try surfing after hearing songs like this.. I have never surfed but it surely is impressive to hear such enthusiasm towards surfing from people who didn't surf either, with the exception of Dennis who did surf. Amazing harmonies, amazing interplay between Mike and Brian, as well as a great arrangement make this a favorite.

3. The Surfer Moon
Brian's music developed at an incredible speed. In this surf ballad can one already hear his potential. Only a couple of years later would this young man compose, arrange and produce Pet Sounds. Based on The Surfer Moon it doesn't seem impossible at all. There is melancholy, a great string arrangement, and a very memorable composition. Brian's vocals are also gorgeous (be prepared to hear this many times later!).

4. I Do
A song that was given to another band (the Castells) but a Beach Boys vocal version is featured on the Surfer Girl/Shut Down Vol. 2 CD as a bonus track. I wonder why it was given away because it is a wonderful song. As usual, Mike's vocals are solid, Brian performs beautiful falsetto and the rest of the harmony vocals are like strawberry ice cream on a hot summer day. And, yeah, all the handclaps and bells are just great.

5. Don't Worry Baby
I remember hearing this already as a child a long, long time ago. I also remember finding the surf guitars very strange-sounding, almost disturbing. Now I love the guitars, the slow tempo, Brian's extremely pretty vocals and the perfect harmonizing. Even though it is in a way a car song it is one of the most beautiful and comforting songs Brian wrote during this period. “Don't worry baby, everything will turn out all right.” Those are the exact right words, period.

6. Why Do Fools Fall in Love
Brian is definitely creating his own wall of sound here. There are some really interesting percussions and rhythms in this cover version of the Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers song. What really makes is stand out is Brian's lead vocal: perfection.

7. I Get Around
A number one hit for the band is indeed a lot of coolness, very much based on an extremely fun, inventive and hook-filled vocal arrangement. The instrumentation is also interesting which surely contributed to the success. No one would probably deny that this was an instant classic – or be able to get it out of their head...

8. Wendy
A bittersweet Beach Boys song? I think this one fits the description, yet somehow it sounds quite upbeat at the same time... In my opinion, we have exceptionally juicy harmonies here. This song appeals to me probably because of the so very curiously attractive girl-leaves-boy theme – and because it sounds amazing.

9. Please Let Me Wonder

I'm so Young

Kiss Me Baby

She Knows Me too Well

In the Back of My Mind
Yes, this is five individual songs but I wish to include them as a single unit here. I sometimes like call them “miniature Pet Sounds”. Except that they are even more warm, loving, and emotional songs than practically anything on Pet Sounds. Therefore they actually have fewer dimensions. While Pet Sounds is a more comprehensive healing and comforting experience, these five songs are basically the most mouth-watering love ballads Brian ever created (and did a cover version of). There are so many great things to mention that I will just point to Brian's awesome lead vocals, Dennis doing great job in Back of My Mind, and of course the incredible Beach Boys harmonies that will melt your heart.

10. You're So Good to Me
This song is really catchy and different from everything else Brian did during that time period. I don't think Brian has shown this side of himself all that much – the side that isn't mostly about being wistful and melancholic. Brian actually sounds quite mischievous and playful here. I always love to hear him singing in lower pitch than usual. Also, the lalalalala chorus is pure genious.

11. The Little Girl I Once Knew
No wonder this one didn't do well on the radio. Still, everything about it is gorgeous. The sophisticated instrumentation, jazzy feel, Carl's vocals, and hooks all around among other things make this a perfect song. I think this is just as good as California Girls.

12. You Still Believe in Me
Then, something from Pet Sounds... It is impossible to fully explain why Pet Sounds is so good. And it is good in so many ways, not just artistically. Brian was able to arrange music in a way that reminds more of symphonies than your usual rock'n'roll music. Brian chose the exact right instruments and worked until everything in the harmony, sound and rhythm sections sounded perfectly balanced. Then, he arranged complicated four-part harmonies to the music.

The full capacity of this song can be noticed for example when you listen to this song while feeling really sad. Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys make it better in just two and a half minutes. It really works! This song is the ultimate display of everything tender, loving and beautiful. The lyrics say that even though you have failed someone still believes in you. Everyone fails sometimes which is why this song is so important. I would believe anytime that it is actually Brian Wilson who believes in you – he sounds so convincing in what he is saying. There are sounds prettier than anything I have ever heard, the bicycle bell reminds of childhood, then Brian and the Beach Boys chant “I wanna cry.” Too beautiful for a human being like me to comprehend. This song was sent from another world.

13. I'm Waiting for the Day
One of the most dynamic and attractive arrangements of the entire Pet Sounds. There are mighty drum sounds, beautiful oboe, happy organ, violins... I love the way the mood changes from tender to wildly energetic and back. I have come to notice that the most interesting moods in music are not the extremes but something in between. In this song the “you” character is literally in between sad and happy, just recently broken up with someone but already about to find someone new. Brian's vocals are among the best he has ever performed. The background vocals are also brilliant – which is hardly surprising considering this is Pet Sounds...

14. God Only Knows
This one is self-explanatory. I can't think of a more beautiful, more magical, more comforting, more spiritually blessed pop song.

15. I Know There's an Answer
This song was originally called “Hang on to Your Ego”. I love this already because of the tambourine alone... All in all, it is a very vigorous song. And, yes, the drums are also amazing. And I guess I have to mention once again how much I enjoy hearing Brian sing non-falsetto.

16. Darlin'
Here is a song that I enjoy for a couple of reasons. Darlin' is a very upbeat, danceable, energetic soul pop song with amazing vocals from Carl and excellent horns. I also used to enjoy banging the lovely chords of this song on the keyboard. I wish I had a keyboard of my own...

17. Time to Get Alone
Oh my! Such warmth from Carl and rest of the boys. There are harmonies everywhere, as usual, covering this song like a warm blanket. There are awesome strings, the melodies are lovely... Brian's vocals in the chorus are one of the best things... ever.

18. Deirdre
An incredible song sung by Bruce Johnston. His voice has such tenderness and it suits perfectly to this semi-melancholic song. To me this song sounds so... cozy and comfy. Brian's voice in the chorus harmonies again makes this an A+ song – even though the Beach Boys vocal mix here is more democratic than ever.

19. 'Til I Die
When I first heard this I think it sounded scary, with the title and all... I was used to hearing mostly happy songs from the Beach Boys and then came this. When you think about it, there aren't probably any other Beach Boys songs that would be so full of tranquility and desperation at the same time. Something about this song still sounds cold. But I love it nevertheless: a perfect, different melancholy track from Brian – and awesome lyrics.

20. Getcha Back
I have no idea why I like this so much... Except for that everything about is simply is so catchy. The saxophone has a big role in this song, and so do the big drums. The vocals are obviously cool. I just love hearing the same Beacb Boys concept arranged differently in 1980s style!

These were the songs I chose today. They are surely going to be different some other day. Actually, I would rather say that I love the Beach Boys so much that I even enjoy some really crazy stuff... How can I be critical towards my favorite band? I guess there is no need...

On the Beach with the Beach Boys!

2011-07-21T22:35:00.007+03:00

After another quite a long break (been out of communications range again...) I am very, very happy to return with a huge mania regarding an old favorite of mine, my favorite band of all times – a favorite that has been with me longer than that one psychedelic power pop band I talk about all the time... Well, I admit being quite illogical in this matter. The truth is that I actually have two #1 favorite bands.

The Beach Boys have been with me since the autumn of 2004. First, I fell in love with the early sound of stuff like I Get Around and Fun, Fun, Fun. Then, I heard Pet Sounds. Since that I haven't been able to say which I enjoy more: the early cheerful rock'n'roll energy or the later orchestrated gorgeousness. These are two worlds quite different from each other, but the four-part harmonies are excellent everywhere. I guess I am just not the kind of person who undermines good-sounding and entertaining stuff just because there is also something more sophisticated available.

I saw the Beach Boys live for the first time in Helsinki in 2006. It was a concert performed by Mike Love, Bruce Johnston and a group of very skilled musicians. Then, I had a similar experience just little over a week ago. Well, it wasn't all that similar, actually. The 2006 concert was arranged at a huge indoor arena in November and this more recent concert on a beach in southwestern Finland by a lake in July. The concert was originally supposed to happen in Yyteri by the sea but was moved to another more outlying place called Eura.

I don't know why this concert wasn't booked to Helsinki. A lot more people would have come... I was a bit worried about the attendance before the concert. But once the band stepped on the stage I couldn't worry anymore. There were lots of people there, dancing like crazy in front of the stage all through the gig.

I soon joined these lovely people and danced through the endless cavalcade of old Beach Boys hits – songs many of which were almost 50 years old but when are we really going to stop needing happy, carefree rock'n'roll songs - and loving especially these ones? The Beach Boys music is still as current as ever because it was written to make people smile and forget about all the bad things at least for a while. Everyone needs to have some fun every now and then... So, why not have fun with one of the most talented rock'n'roll vocal groups that has ever existed?

In the 1960s, and that day, the Beach Boys sung songs about surfing, cool cars (even love songs to cars!), and pretty girls. However, I don't think the songs need to be interpreted literally. Simply said, the Beach Boys music is like a celebration of doing what you enjoy. Enjoying life and all that it can offer! Catching a wave can easily be seen as a symbol of feeling good and mighty in any situation, and succeeding in something you wish to succeed in – to cut a long story short: fulfilling your dreams.

Little things like saying to somebody in music that if I did it then you can do it too, what ever your “do it” might be (Brian Wilson commentary for Friends remastered)

So, the concert was a blast. Mike and Bruce had again very good musicians with them and the four-part harmonies sounded as fresh as ever. I was very impressed by the vocal performances: those guys really seemed to be able to transform into Brian, Carl or Al Jardine! It was a good thing that they had included a few non-hit songs in the set as well (!). I enjoyed everything from Surf City to Getcha Back. Bruce gave a nice performance of God Only Knows. The psychedelic songs (Good Vibrations, Heroes and Villains) sounded really good and also stood out. What a curious feeling to think for yourself (even though you already have listened to it countless times): is this music really from the same band that performed those primitive car songs?! It also became clear that the Beach Boys have recorded many, many great cover versions of popular songs and given them a good Beach Boys treatment. After the concert I got Mike Love's autograph. I bet I don't have an autograph by anyone more famous!

Now, let me tell you about a dream of mine... As you already guessed, I would like to see all living original members of the Beach Boys performing together. In fact, just seeing Brian Wilson would be such a pilgrimage to me. I'd better monitor Brian's tour schedules and if he ever comes to Northern Europe again...

More Beach Boys blabber to come. I'm feeling BB manic.

The Early Days of SS1/2

2011-06-29T11:04:00.005+03:00

While waiting for the new Sun Sawed in 1/2 album to come out it is time to talk about the band's first release available to public. Apparently there was a “self-titled cassette” in the very early 1990s but it hasn't been made available on iTunes or elsewhere. The Happiness and Other Short Stories (1992) is a release of seven songs, making it an EP or mini-CD rather than a full album. Even though I wouldn't necessarily recommend making this the first Sun Sawed in 1/2 release you ever listen to, it is a must-hear for anyone who enjoys this band and especially for those who love the band's early neo psychedelic sound as much as the later more straighforward rocking power pop sound.

The overall sound here is very similar to the following release Hot Feet for Monkey God, which is quite different from the direction the band would take on the 1995 album Mind Flip. In the early years the band was very much into making the psychedelic influences show. There are lovely organ sounds everywhere as well, clean or wah wah guitar sounds, cool saxophone, as well as very energetic drum work. It is obvious that a lot of work went into planning the arrangements, and the result is excellent. Tim Rose's songwriting pen was sharp when making this album and his work of high quality and adventurous – just like today. As always, extra points go to lead vocalist Doug who sounds just as amazing as everything he has since contributed to music.

Everything is very well balanced which makes The Happiness and Short Stories a lovely thing to listen to. It doesn't rock as much as the later stuff but that is why it makes a nicely different companion for Mind Flip and Fizzy Lift: more serene, subtle and mysterious music with more focus on details, soundscapes, and psychedelic feel.

The interesting part of Happiness is that there are some very unique moments that you are not going to hear anywhere else in the SS1/2's discography. For instance, there is a very charming song called Down, sung by Ken Rose – and it is the only song written by him to appear on a SS1/2 album. Very interesting, I say! It is a very nice song, too. After that, you get the only Sun Sawed in 1/2 tango I have ever heard: Sonrise Serenade. The song has some very interesting turns towards the end, check it out! Bed of Roses is a really catchy one, and the final song She's Known to Levitate is obviously my personal favorite here. I also enjoy Hippity Hop, an image from childhood, the melancholic title track The Happiness, as well as Incredible Journey. I would say that this release begins really well and gets gorgeous towards the end.

All in all, many of the things that made Hot Feet for Monkey God a fabulous album already appeared on this previous release. I love The Happiness and Short Stories all the way. I think it is cohesive despite most of the songs being quite different from each other.

So... I have covered the entire Sun Sawed in 1/2 back catalog. The next SS1/2 review/analysis will be about the whole new album Elephants into Swans... Really! I can't wait to hear it.

Here is some pre-Happiness footage:

New Video from Secret Powers

2011-06-28T13:36:00.002+03:00

Secret Powers are my latest huge new favorite I am definitely going to discuss the band in detail later. While I'm trying to find some spare time to do it, here is a new video for a lovely, lovely song from the 2011 release from Secret Powers, What Every Rose Grower Should Know: Generation Ship. I have listened to this song dozens of time and I still love to hear it.. obviously!

Non Stop Wombling Womble Mania?

2011-06-28T13:12:00.011+03:00

Oh boy... I am still so very much fond of the Wombles, Mike Batt's spin off novelty/bubblegum music project for the British children's TV show the Wombles.. I listen to the Wombles every day.. Seriously, every day! And what a perfect timing it is: the Wombles albums have just been released on CD for the first time.

I ordered all of them and hope to get them when I get back from Norway (yeah, that's where I've been for the past two weeks...). It seems that my favorites (Wellington Goes to Waterloo, Womble of the Universe, Down at the Barber Shop (Singing in Harmony), To Wimbledon with Love etc.) will probably get company pretty soon.

A big wombling thank you, Mike Batt!

An Exciting Comeback

2011-06-06T12:33:00.002+03:00

I feel like I don't get anything done with this blog. The only thing to do now is to try to make it make it better - despite all the other (more important?) things. A new post, say, every two days is not such a chore. Gee, why do I think it is? And I always have lots to say..

I was quite excited to hear that The Cars have returned, and it is not The New Cars, it really is all the original living members of the Cars: Ric Ocasek, Elliot Easton, Greg Hawkes, and David Robinson. I should get the new album right away. Now that I think about it, why haven't I already?

Here is a new single and video from the album Move Like This.. I feel quite thrilled... As if nothing has really changed about the Cars since the 70s/80s and that is the way it should be. Wonderful, wonderful.. I really didn't expect this and I hope to get the album soon!

The Cars website

Golden Bubble-ABBA

2011-05-16T13:33:00.009+03:00

Now, let's forget about ice hockey for a while and concentrate on excellent music...

I don't remember exactly when but I did purchase every single studio album by ABBA some time ago... I got them for one euro each. Now I am starting to think that I may have made one of my best puchases ever when you compare the price to the quality. ABBA was, and after all still is, one of the most popular pop groups in the whole world. And, unlike today, in the 70s commercial success still often was a sign of high musical quality.

Slowly but surely I have begun the journey of listening carefully to every album by ABBA. The first album was a good place to start. And what did I find... Oh my, I found some of the loveliest bubblegummy 70s pop music with impeccable songwriting, lovely singing, and fabulous instrumentation. The album is, of course, called Ring Ring (1973).

Even though I heard every famous ABBA song already as a child, hearing the song Ring Ring now seems to to point towards a certain British classic Love Grows – which is obviously a very good thing. I also have to praise the idea of using male vocals in addition to Agnetha Fältskog and Frida Lyngstad's voices. In my opinion, the combination of female and male voices here makes a considerably more interesting and warm harmony than just using the voices of two women – even though they both sing like birds.

Some of the songs here simply have a very bubblegummy vibe, reminding of the Partridge Family, or perhaps Bay City Rollers. These kinds of songs include People Need Love, Love Isn't Easy (But It Sure Is Hard Enough), Me and Bobby and Bobby's Brother. He Is Your Brother also fits in this category. The slow songs are also fabulous. Disillusion sounds like it was written by, say, George Harrison.

I can't possibly express how excited I am about the greatness of this music! There is bubblegum, the Beatles, and a ton of overall irreplaceable, magical 70s pop feel. The only thing stopping me from going insane is the lack of bubblegummy male vocals.. But as I said, all the vocals on Ring Ring are excellent.

Hooray ABBA, hooray Sweden, hooray real songwriters, hooray lovely 70s pop music! I feel like I should give the whole thing a parade... And notice that there are still thousands, if not millions of people who love ABBA and the undying, timeless 70s pop.

Discover This!

2011-05-16T13:24:00.005+03:00

Now... Stuff I wrote actually a few weeks ago but still very topical!

I have been a huge fan of ELO's Discovery (1979) ever since I had listened to it enough to get into it... Which isn't all that many months ago. To me music is really quite a lot about memory: having some kind of familiarity with the music always seems to make it easy to fall in love it. In the process my brain might even create a memory of listening to the music in some specific place or situation. For me, that often nowadays becomes a memory of listening to the music while riding a bike to school and/or grocery store. Cool, right... Well, you can mostly turn the memories into something else, if you start listening to the music somewhere else.

Shine a Little Love opens the album and reveals a perfect disco song. I enjoy disco and don't mind at all that it is present even in Jeff Lynne's music. While the first track gets you into a good mood the next two songs go straight to the point. First comes Confusion: a song that is just as incredibly catchy as it is comforting. Need Her Love is the next song, a very traditional love ballad with such a loving mood, added with a hint of ELO melancholy.

Last Train To London returns to the disco theme. Don't Bring Me Down in the end of the album is another classic dancing song. I love everything on this album.. How could I not? The music is so catchy, happy, classy, 70s baroque disco/ballad/pop song gold! Jeff Lynne wrote this music from his heart and made it sound interesting, yet pleasant for anyone to listen to. How come I can only think of about three people that I know who care even a bit about this stuff, or this kind of stuff...

Well, if I knew more people who cared about this kind of stuff, I probably wouldn't be here, writing.

Too Busy to Blog... Or Not

2011-05-16T13:21:00.002+03:00

Folks, readers, popsters... Sorry, once again, that I haven't been active in this blog lately. First, there was a time when I was quite busy with fulfilling my duties. That is what you get when you agree to work hard (more than) eight hours a day and get paid considerably less than what most people think is enough to survive. There was also a time when I wasn't able to use the Internet due to being out of communications range. After all that you just start forgetting that you were supposed to publish something on the internet.

Fortunately, music is always there to help. Listening to anything by, say, Electric Light Orchestra already makes life a lot easier. Jeff Lynne, just like any great musician/songwriter, disguises the hardships of life and, rather than just feeling sorry for oneself, weaves the hardships into beautiful, comforting songs. Gee, I should try to do something like that too!

Besides, team Finland just won gold at the ice hockey world championships. Sufficed to say, a childhood dream come true to see it happen after so many years.

Tasty stuff

2011-03-31T15:49:00.005+03:00

I'm telling you, if I don't write about this band now, I may not do it for quite some time... The same goes for almost any band these days and the reason is simply my laziness.

It all began when I was watching TV... Or rather my brother was channel surfing and came across a video by a really good-sounding female rock band. In the end of the song I found out that it was Barbe-Q-Barbies, a band from Finland. I had to check these Barbies out, so I went to see them live. They rocked real nice and I enjoyed most of the songs immediately. The evening resulted in me going home with the band's debut album All Over You in my bag.

Listening to the album revealed that I had just discovered probably the closest possible Finnish 21st century female equivalent to 70s KISS. Cool 70s hard rock riffs drive this melodic, rocking, catchy music. This release is truly like a fresh blast from the past even though it came out in 2010. In fact, there is one real 70s song here, a cover of Wig-Wam Bam, which is really good. I also enjoy Twisted Little Sister, the more melancholic Dedication for a Friend, and of course Spell. The title track is also great. I wouldn't say there are really any weak links on the album.

So, this album is really all about straightforward rock & roll energy. There is definitely a lot of girl power here but even though the girls have a kick-ass attitude they are not angry. Their music is honest rock and the point is to play good songs. Barbe-Q-Barbies are actually quite experienced already because they have been around since 2002. Therefore the musicianship is on a high level as well as vocalist Niki Rock's skills. By the way, she often sounds just like Avril Lavigne! If only Avril made music this punchy these days...

Energetic, melodic rock with great sounds still makes my day. Like any superb female rock band, Barbe-Q-Barbies are also an inspiration for a wannabe musician like me. If I had friends who can play an instrument I would start a band like this right away!

Barbe-Q-Barbies MySpace
Barbe-Q-Barbies Website

Also check out the music video for Spell

B-days

2011-03-29T15:23:00.000+03:00

As usual, I forgot that my blog had gotten older, once again... Hooray for the three-year-old! I can't think of how much joy this blog has brought me and that it is all because of the great music there is.

Instead of blabbing more about this silly blog of mine I encourage you to check out another site that is currently celebrating its 10-year anniversary. One Chord to Another is a brilliant site (nowadays a blog) that has introduced me to dozens of great bands from Finland and elsewhere. The focus is on folk/country, americana, power pop, indie pop, and other cool things.

If you are looking for stuff mentioned above or maybe wish to acquaint yourself with the best alt. pop from Finland, check it out now!

One Chord to Another
One Chord to Another on Facebook

In the Heart of Pop

2011-03-29T13:17:00.010+03:00

For some reason it is not very easy to discover new excellent bands. I don't work too hard trying to find them but I think I have discovered a new one. Originally I saw the name Secret Powers in email newsletters from Not Lame. I had even ordered myself an album by the band but never really had time to get into it... I got several other cool CDs at the same time.

A few days ago I decided to check out an album by Secret Powers: Secret Powers and the Electric Family Choir (2009). The album cover seems to refer to a sunshine pop band of the 60s but the music is something a bit different. The overall feel surely is all about spectacular 60s pop hooks in the spirit of the Beatles. There is also a lot of influence from ELO: big harmonies, beatlesque melodies. The result sounds quite a bit like Wondermints which is always a good thing. Extra points go of course to great songwriting and arrangements and musical variety – a country song in the middle of the album is just cool. To cut a long story short, and even though my acquaintance with this band surely has been short, I am most definitely willing to announce Secret Powers as classic pop perfection!

So, even at first this album sounded really interesting. I was probably too stressed out to be able to hear the absolute beauty but now I am starting to hear it. One of the best things is that Secret Powers has released several albums during a relatively short time period. I am going to get them all.

I can't help loving the dramatic feel of Lazy Men, soft pop of By the Sea, Treat Your Mother Nice (Beach Boys, anyone?) and Misery (ELO alert!!), country of Ghost Town, Wondermints psych-pop of You Know It's Time... Everything here is really good. Gee, I am just really excited about this stuff! It is melancholic (but so is ELO, too), creative, carefully arranged and has soul.

Many popsters have already checked this band out but if you haven't, go ahead... There are some really excellent songs at MySpace. On the website there are some videos, including one for Orange Trees which is a song from the Electric Choir album. The video has some quite violent imagery but I guess that is the point of it.

All in all, lovely music... I'm in love.

Secret Powers Website
Secret Powers at MySpace

(No) Thank You, Council of State

2011-03-29T13:05:00.006+03:00

Now, quite exceptionally, something political. The reason I am sharing this is because, for a change, I am really unhappy with Finnish radio policy. There have been extremely few listenable radio stations where I have lived during my lifetime. My favorite radio station Radio Asia (http://www.radioasia.fi/) has not been given a nationwide licence that would make the station cost-effective. Therefore Radio Asia and will disappear from the radio waves on Thursday.

Radio Asia, which could be translated into, say, 'Radio Relevant', has been on air for only one year and is now coming to an end. There has been talk about Radio Asia continuing as an online radio, which would be nice. Still, this whole episode has shown a huge flaw in the system. A radio station that plays music from the golden 60s to the glamorous 80s, broadcasts shows in Finnish, Swedish and English and focuses on multicultural music, versatile genres, hits and lost gems from the past is the best thing that has ever happened to the radio in my lifetime. "Music from the Beatles to Black Sabbath, The Rolling Stones to Rush."

More specifically, the things weren't that bad in the early 90s but I was a very small child back then. 20 years ago there were actually many different genres represented on the Finnish radio. Musical variety was presented in different radio shows each of which had a slot of their own in the program chart. Nowadays, there are mostly no radio stations like that. I am not really taking account of YLE, Finland's equivalent to BBC, here but it is sufficient to say that YLE doesn't play all that much interesting music.

As Radio Asia disappears, the only Finnish radio station with no money-greedy ulterior motives (or playlists!) will be Radio Helsinki, which cannot be listened to outside the capital region without the Internet.

Before you tell me to go listen to Internet radio stations, I have to tell you I am not a person who listens to the radio much. Therefore I haven't even been an active listener of Radio Asia. However, this doesn't mean that I don't love and cherish Radio Asia to the bitter end. I guess it is anyway reasonable to have one listenable radio station. It is still uncertain if Radio Asia will even continue on the Internet.

Generally speaking, today's radio culture is hideous. The main purpose of every station has to be making money, lots and lots of money. Music is just a by-product of radio stations selling profiled audiences to advertisers. Why does it have to be like that?

The sad truth is that most people are not really interested in music. For a person like me it is however a burden to be forced to listen to ultimate musical blandness, say, in the grocery store or gym. Due to people not being interested in music, the music selections on the radio are the result of carefully conducted studies that aim to determine which songs don't irritate (or delight?) anyone. Personally, I don't see the point of listening to music that doesn't arouse any kind of emotion.

Radio Asia wasn't granted a cost-effective nationwide licence to continue broadcasting as a radio station different from the mainstream. As stated on Radio Asia's website, Radio Asia proved that there are people in Finland who like to enjoy their music with soul. Commercial playlists haven't brainwashed everyone. Radio Asia thanks the audience for proving that the concept works.

Listen to Radio Asia (while you can!)

Awesome Bubble-Beat by “Dave Dee, Dozy & What-Was-It-Again?”

2011-03-16T13:53:00.004+02:00

Here is my latest 60s favorite: Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich, a British band that existed from 1964 to 1972. My first contact to this band occurred when I was record shopping on the Internet and a best of CD by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich (later referred to as DDDBMT) was recommended to me. I read reviews and decided to order the CD – it hardly cost anything. When I got the CD it ended up in my CD shelf and I never really came around to listen to it. I probably listened to a couple of songs, thought “sounds weird” and decided to put it away and listen to it some time later. Strangely, this is what happens to quite many CDs I purchase...

Not very many years later I decided to give DDDBMT another chance. I remembered hearing Hold Tight! in Tarantino's Death Proof and that the song was really one of the nicest things in the movie. In fact, I also have a friend who was interested in this band long before me but it didn't result in anything further – until about a month ago. I simply decided to give The Very Best of DDDBMT a try and put it in my mp3 player. I listened to it and instantly enjoyed it a lot. When I had listened to the whole CD (18 songs) several times I noticed it wasn't just any 60s band. It was a fun, happy-sounding, creative and talented band that never seemed to be afraid of trying different styles, sophisticated instrumentation, big vocal harmonies and big sounds, and most importantly, never afraid (or incapable) to perform amazingly catchy songs.

DDDBMT was a group of friends from Wiltshire, originally called Dave Dee and the Bostons. The band started working with songwriters Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley, changed the name, and it didn't take too long for the boys to score million-selling hit singles, including The Legend of Xanadu.

Musically DDDBMT are closer to bubblegum than beat music – two concepts that of course have a lot in common (therefore the title “Bubble-Beat”). As a result, one could argue that there were also some bubblegum aspects about the Searchers and the Hollies but an even better comparison to DDDBMT would be the Monkees, or, in my opinion, why not a band like Gary Lewis & the Playboys. By the way, why do vocalists from all of the British bands mentioned sound just like each other? I really enjoy all of them, of course...

The really important part is that DDDMBT performed some first-class catchy pop that always makes my day. When I think about the melodic complexity of the chorus of Wreck of the Antoinette (and the harmonies..), or the gorgeous feel of Snake in the Grass, Okay!, You Make It Move, Don Juan (not to mention the awesome sunshine pop of Last Night in Soho!) I can't help thinking to myself: this is how it's really done – do the same if you can, I dare you!

All in all, I had no choice but to order myself some more stuff by DDDBMT. Gee, I never get tired of happy 60s pop... I want more! The good news is, there is plenty of stuff to choose from.

Apples Go 80s

2011-03-16T01:34:00.002+02:00

As you already probably know, I love the Apples in Stereo. There are still many albums of theirs I haven't listened to but I have time... Next I think I'll dig into The Discovery of a World Inside the Moone. But now, here is an awesome song and video from the latest Apples in Stereo album (Travellers in Space and Time, 2010). I wish bands made more videos that are as over-the-top and funny as this!

Welcome, Mr. Lynne

2011-03-15T20:45:00.005+02:00

Hooray, hooray, I have finally discovered Electric Light Orchestra! By ”discovering” I of course mean the beginning of active listening. Now that I think about it is quite strange that it didn't happen earlier. ELO is a dream come true for a popster like me but I never got around to check out the band until about a month ago.

It all began almost Out of the Blue. One day I noticed I had put some ELO into my mp3 player and thought about trying something ”new”... I listened to the album once and immediately heard a lot of pop beauty. Repeated listening revealed new dimensions and soon I was hooked to everything on the album.

The sound... The songs! The string arrangements... The mood! Based on my current listening experince of Out of the Blue and Time (1981) I can only say that I have discovered some sort of a missing link that explains certain common things about many bands that I admire. I feel I understand now why many bands sound like what they sound like. Even right now, as I listen to ELO, I constantly think to myself that the music really sounds like the Flaming Lips, or the Apples in Stereo. While being pure 70s pop gold ELO is a link to both the past and present. ELO is an intriguing combination of 60s influence (the Beatles etc.) and being the influence for countless later bands.

Out of the Blue was released as a double LP in 1977. By today's standards it doesn't feel like a double album but it doesn't matter at all... I can't really think of any other album that contains as many songs as 17 all of which are really great. In addition to great songwriting, beautiful melodies and hooks there are stunning strings everywhere. The album has a good balance between classic single hits (Turn to Stone, Sweet Talking Woman, Mr. Blue Sky), rock-oriented material (Across the Border, Birmingham Blues), powerful ballads (Stepping Out, Big Wheels) and songs that, in my opinion, are memorable especially because they are instrumental-driven (Standing in the Rain, The Whale)

So, what else would I like to mention about this album (or ELO in general)... Of course it has to be said that the harmonies are gorgeous – very Queen/Styx, I think. But there is a lot of the Beach Boys as well. On the other hand, the vocals often remind me of disco-era Bee Gees... Another really interesting thing about ELO is that the music tends to have a nice, gentle psychedelic vibe. The songs with their arrangements create such a strong atmosphere that it almost scares me! Music like this is from another world – a world more interesting and colorful but also more dramatic and sometimes wondrously melancholic, when you think about it..

Perfect, catchy symphonic pop/rock with big harmonies, rich sounds, a wonderfully grandiose mood and impeccable songwriting. Gee, ELO's got everything! Why doesn't music like this sell millions anymore, why oh why... (If it did it would probably have many nice by-products - more frequent concerts, for instance.)

There is so very much to cherish on this one album [Out of the Blue] alone... But I intend to listen to the other ELO albums as well. I don't want to rush but sometimes I just can't keep great pop waiting. And there is of course the Move. We'll see what happens next...

Time to Get Myself Together!

2011-03-15T20:35:00.006+02:00

I am in serious need of blog therapy. Utter laziness has been controlling me, as usual, but I have noticed that this laziness causes nothing but trouble. Everyone needs a chance to express their opinions, thoughts, the important stuff, and I think I am the kind of person who really needs that. I don't have anyone to open out about music in real life so this blog is my only way to let off steam. Even though writing takes a lot of time, it is well worth it.

I have several new favorites and I plan to discuss them very soon. But now here is a song that I listened to a few times the other day, and a couple of days later I noticed that the song was playing in my head. Well, it is a very 60s-influenced song: Candy Street by Colorama. They say the album is good so I might get it quite soon... Oh, and what a totally cool video!

J-Pop Moment

2011-03-03T12:15:00.009+02:00

Yeah, I don't listen to Japanese music much but sometimes I discover real gems like this... This was originally a lyrics workshop assignment at school. I ended up listening to this song very many times and soon I realized this song sounds really perfect to me in every possible way. It is a song by Hitomi, a singer-songwriter who has been releasing music since the mid-90s.

Wow.. I can't help loving such a great song with a great arrangement. I also enjoy the very glam video.. Cool light saber!

Believe It Or Not...

2011-02-28T12:20:00.008+02:00

Now, another cool song. This I would actually call a perfect pop song. The most bizarre thing is that I discovered this song watching the Cinema Snob, also known as Brad Jones (not to be confused with the power popster of the same name) who reviews slasher and exploitation film curiosities of the 70s.

This amazing song Believe It Or Not was originally the theme song of Greatest American Hero, a superhero drama-comedy TV series that aired in the early 80s. I haven't had a chance to see this series for a couple of reasons but I enjoy singer Joey Scarbury's voice so much that I actually might end up searching for more of his music - even though the label "adult contemporary" may not be the most interesting attribute I can think of... In any case, if the music is as heartfelt and catchy as this I don't care what the genre is called.

Check out the TV version below or the full song with better sound quality (also from YouTube - there is a Seinfeld version of the song at the end of the video).

Hobbit Fun

2011-02-28T12:07:00.003+02:00

It is time for an update after another quite long break. Sorry again for not posting anything but I've been busier with school than ever...

I had a Lord of the Rings board game evening with my friends a few weeks ago and this song became a small hit then. I had actually never thought that Leonard Nimoy would sing but here he is, singing a cool little bubblegum/sunshine pop/novelty song about Bilbo Baggins. Despite not being perfect I think it is a really catchy song.

Kick-Ass Pop from Chicago

2011-01-27T10:30:00.008+02:00

When I think about the development of my music taste, I can notice at least one thing: it is getting more and more hard rock -oriented! It can be stated that 2011 was my first big hard rock year. It can get bigger, though... Meanwhile, I still enjoy power pop just as much as before. And when it comes to just about any kind of music, I can be really slow. I got this album more than a year ago and not until now I can say that I have found the essence of it. I am talking about The Webstirs album So Long, released in 2009.

Sometimes the Webstirs sound like Weezer, sometimes like KISS or the Beatles, sometimes even 80s ELO. All the time they sound like an excellent pop rock band with music that is not really bubblegummy or candy-coated but melodically it definitely is pure candy. Every song is fantastic and memorable, and for some time I didn't feel like listening to anything else because So Long sounded so good. Excellent songs and sounds, solid performance and well-written lyrics make a gorgeous music experience.

There is also of course the thing about the Effingways. The Webstirs are also the Effingways, with the difference that Doug from the Sun Sawed in 1/2 takes care of the lead vocals. And what do I think about Doug? Don't even get me started, he is the greatest singer in the universe! I hope to hear an album by the Effingways in the future. Doug actually sings background vocals on So Long and you can hear him very well. At first I was a bit confused but... He sounds awesome and this definitely adds to the quality of the music.

Here is Wesley Station, a video that I already posted here a long time ago but here it is again. I don't think it is the best song of the album but it definitely is good. The last time I checked the entire So Long album could be listened to on Spotify.

The Webstirs at MySpace

Greatness from Farrah

2011-01-27T10:12:00.006+02:00

Now, another music video.. I just noticed there is also a video made for Swings & Roundabouts, a song from Farrah's self-titled album. Do yourself a favor and check it out - it is a wonderful song!

Farrah at MySpace

Music Video Time

2011-01-27T10:05:00.002+02:00

Taylor Locke & the Roughs released the great album Grain & Grape last year. You can also see the album in my "best of 2010" section. Here is a video for Jennifer.

Best of 2010 – Part Two

2011-01-27T09:30:00.006+02:00

Time to wake this blog, once again... Well, what can you do when you also have lots of other things to do all the time? Here is the second part for my very modest 2010 ”year end list”. I must remind you that I am a real slow listener. I have a tendency to start buying albums a long after they have been released (and listening to them may take years..). If I happen to be really active for some reason (it is an album by my favorite band, for example), I might even buy a CD on the day of its release but usually I wait for other people's year end lists and then buy the best music... It actually sounds like quite a good method of skipping disappointing albums.

So, here are a few other 2010 albums I like. I still didn't mention everything but I had to finish this to move on to other topics.

Ben's Diapers: Up in the Mountain, Deep in the Sea

The great band from Turku made probably the best album of their career. I loved listening to it during sunny summer days. Every song is catchy and the style varies from country rock to 70s hard rock feel – not forgetting the catchy power pop. I also like to look back to the two Ben's Diapers gigs I witnessed in 2010. This band is always cool to see.

Farrah: s/t

As usual, a new album by Farrah needed some time to grow. But when you let it grow, the results are amazing... The album practically becomes something quite different in the process. Farrah is still great in many different ways, not least because of Jez Ashurst's lovely voice. The music is still cheerful yet bittersweet – as we all probably know, it is a match made in heaven. In a way, this album is Farrah's most peaceful album by far. On the other hand, Farrah has never been much about wild rock & roll. Sweet and catchy songs always make my day!

Seth Swirsky: Watercolor Day

A real grower this one! Everyone who reads this blog knows that I am a sucker for loud, distorted, overly happy and bubblegummy music but I do enjoy quieter music too. Watercolor Day is an album that is quite easy to judge too quickly. Underneath the peaceful soft pop surface there are many songs that you will remember for a long time. There is definitely something very special about this release. Some material from the album has come back to my mind at some completely random moment like a warm summer wind. This album also made me listen to the Red Button album She's about to Cross My Mind again – and it was still lovely! I think I really should get myself Swirsky's previous solo album as well.

Taylor Locke & the Roughs: Grain & Grape

A side project album from a member of Rooney? Yeah, why not. Before I knew it, I actually ended up finding this more interesting than Rooney's two previous albums. There are really catchy songs on this album, the sounds are spectacular, and Locke's voice is just great – everything is great. The music feels like sincere and has a lot of emotion. There is always room for great albums like this!

The Coral: Butterfly House

Well, if the media thinks it is one of the highlights of 2010, I have to agree... Seriously, Butterfly House is an impressive album from the always lovely British Coral. It is partly very much like the previous album but there is something that makes it atmospheric in a whole different way. Great album, great band.

Best of 2010 - Part One

2010-12-28T01:44:00.006+02:00

This is not a real year end top list. This is just a small non-numbered list of 2010 releases that I have enjoyed a lot. I am really slow when it comes to new releases. Therefore it might actually be more useful for me to write a best of 2009 list but that would be obsolete now.. So, here we go:

The Posies: Blood/Candy

A beautiful album by one of my very favorite bands. Gosh, I wasn't sure at all that they actually hadn't broken up – again.. Even though there aren't that many distorted guitar sounds, there is plenty of rock on this album, I think. Yes, the overall sound is at its cleanest since Dear 23 (which is actually probably my #2 favorite album from the Posies!) but does it really matter if the songwriting is absolutely superb? Blood/Candy is an album that doesn't wear out even with intensive, repeated listening.

Lemonator: Shake, Shake, Shake

A WONDERFUL album by dear, dear Lemos! Also my favorite band from Finland had been causing me to worry a bit if it was still around at all.. Relief came in the form of Shake, Shake, Shake: a fresh addition to the absolute high-quality Lemonator discography, and a very well balanced album. Shake, Shake, Shake can be seen as the first clearly ”happy” album since the debut effort Yellow (1997) but anyone who has paid attention to the band's music as a whole knows that Lemonator's music always comes with a dash of wistfulness. Sometimes the very Brian Wilsonesque melancholy remains hidden but it is still there – creating a big part of the magic.

Teenage Fanclub: Shadows

An album that I ignored at first (even though I had puchased it..). Then I received the gospel of Teenage Fanclub alive in front of me and I was made a whole new TFC fan! I ended up becoming a worshipper of Songs from Northern Britain rather than the new one but Shadows is a real beauty, of course. It was actually the songs from the new album that appealed to me the most in the live situation. Just like with Blood/Candy, one of the things that especially make me happy, is that TFC is also still going strong and maintaining its identity as the most cosy and charming power pop-related band of the planet.

The Apples in Stereo: Travellers in Space and Time

Yippee! The Apples made it: a more compact album than the previous one (New Magnetic Wonder) with the same lovely futuristic pop elements. The number of songs could have been smaller but I don't mind the album being the way it is either. Travellers in Space and Time is a cheerful, exciting, and fresh album that weaves some electronic dance music into power pop as if it was the most everyday thing.. The songs are catchy, and Robert Schneider sounds like a candy bar. That's the way it's done, friends!

Vampires + Country Music = Cool!

2010-12-25T17:23:00.007+02:00

A bit surprisingly, it's country music time. I have been enjoying the TV show True Blood lately, and the theme song, Bad Things by Jace Everett. It is a really charming country song. I hear rockabilly in it as well as a great dark psychedelic vibe. Everett's voice is also lovely. All in all, cool song, and really catchy!

Have a Wombling Merry Christmas

2010-12-24T20:01:00.001+02:00

Happy holidays, everybody!

More Finnish Girl Power

2010-12-21T15:13:00.004+02:00

Gee! I just realized Stalingrad Cowgirls are not the only cool kick-ass girl band from Finland that I have missed/ignored lately. Barbe-Q-Barbies, another really fresh band, has even got some good attention in Finnish music magazines and TV, but I ended up paying zero attention to these "barbies"... Well, it was the band's name that killed my interest at first but hearing a short music sample made me change my mind very quickly.

Here is a song from Barbe-Q-Barbies debut album All Over You, released in October 2010. The video might be even too glamorous for my taste but.. well, it is the music that counts. The sound is impeccable, and style wonderfully straightforward. I have a soft spot for stuff like this.. I might end up going to the record store.

Barbe-Q-Barbies at MySpace

Barbe-Q-Barbies website

People in Funny Animal Costumes, Part 2

2010-12-04T14:27:00.005+02:00

Here is another mistreated bubblegum gem: the Banana Splits. Like most 60s/70s bubblegum artists, the Banana Splits starred in a Saturday morning children's TV show. An album called We're the Banana Splits was also released in 1970, featuring many of the songs from the show.

We're the Banana Splits album was even re-released on CD (added with songs from another children's show, The Beagles - a show that accidentally vanished entirely and therefore cannot be seen anymore). However, if I remember correctly, this CD was a limited edition (why, oh why?). If you want to buy a used copy, be sure to have at least about $60... It is not really for sale as mp3. And how come, the TV show is not really available either. All in all, this is quite bizarre, I think. Hopefully the situation will improve some day.

The music is timeless, though.. Many of the songs seem to have a very strong soul/funk vibe. Watching the video material is also hilarious! For a European kid like me, who never had the chance to see this show, getting to see the funny animal characters now is quite entertaining and a bit confusing.. The combination of killer 60s soul-bubblegum pop songs and funny-looking children's characters is almost surreal. It is a good thing to get confused at times, though – especially if the music is so good!

We're the Banana Splits
I'm Gonna Find a Cave
I Enjoy Being a Boy (In Love with You)
You're the Lovin' End
This Spot
Wait till Tomorrow
It's a Good Day for a Parade

Breakfast Cereal Music

2010-12-04T14:11:00.009+02:00

Talk about 70s bubblegum music that is in desperate need of a remastered release on CD... Introducing the Sugar Bears! I found out about this “band” while reading the Bubblegum Music Is the Naked Truth book. Bubblegum historian Bill Pitzonka has stated that along with Lancelot Link & the Evolution Revolution's album, Presenting the Sugar Bears is one the best bubblegum full-lengths ever released.

Songs by the the Sugar Bears were used to lure people to buy breakfast cereals (the songs were also released as a “real” album on Big Tree label). The material was recorded by faceless session musicians (including young Kim Carnes). The result: music that is so melodic, warm and gentle that it is easily among the most charming music made in the whole of 1970s. Bubblegum at its best, indeed – and rarest.

If there still was a chance to get music like that from cereal boxes, I would probably be constantly patrolling near the cereal section at the local supermarket. Getting music like this from a cereal box... That would be the best cereal box ever, regardless of what the cereals tasted like.

If this album was released on CD, I would buy two copies. It is SO good music. Why won't they release stuff like this? I mean, considerably more mediocre stuff is being rereleased all the time... Who should I contact to get it released? And would it really be of any assistance...

Happiness Train
You Are the One
Feather Balloon
Love, You've Been a Long Time Coming

The Genius of Mike Batt

2010-12-04T14:00:00.008+02:00

Recently, I have been drawn to the Wombles – again! As I already wrote about a couple of years ago in this blog, The Wombles originally appeared in a series of children's novels by Elisabeth Beresford. These imaginary creatures were also made into a popular TV show in the 70s.

Mike Batt wrote the theme song for the Wombles TV show. After that, Batt made four full albums of Wombles music which became very succesfull. Mike Batt (under the title ”the Wombles”) even ended up spending more weeks on British charts than any other artist in 1974. The attention was well-deserved. Batt's songwriting was very good and his range of musical styles varied from Mozart to surf pop. There were live concerts, performed by professional session musicians wearing Womble costumes. Batt also starred at the concerts playing the role of one of the Womble characters.

Mike Batt doesn't seem to be too enhusiastic about his Wombles music anymore. I read that this is why the gold-selling Wombles albums haven't been re-released on CD. Therefore they will probably not be released anytime soon... Such great bubblegum music would definitely cheer anyone up and be of great value in nostalgic sense... Not to mention how much people of younger generations (such as myself) would enjoy it! Great music for both children and adults... What else do you need?

Update (12/05/10): I'm so happy! They ARE going to be released after all!

Before the Wombles albums come out I'll get myself some of Mike Batt's later solo material... I looked at Batt's musical life story and it was really amazing. He has been all around the world, worked with symphony orchestras and million-selling artists – written some of their million-selling hits, of course... People seem to think Batt is a very underappreciated songwriter. I wonder if many people in general even have heard about him, considering how much he has achieved. One thing is for sure: writing four albums and eight hit singles for the Wombles doesn't look all that huge anymore when you think about all of the things Batt has done during his life.

But I still love those awesome Wombles tracks. Listen to some!

Womble Of The Universe
Nonstop Wombling Summer Party
The Wombling Song
Remember You're a Womble
Dreaming in the Sun
Banana Rock (Check out that accent...)
Minuetto Allegretto
Wombling Merry Christmas (Awesome Christmas song!)

Back to Bubblegum... Again!

2010-12-04T13:47:00.004+02:00

There is definitely another big bubblegum mania coming... at least to me. I know, I keep going back to bubblegum music practically all the time. I love bubblegum music and I don't think I'll ever get tired of sweet guys singing about “yummy”...

To celebrate bubblegum music, here is the original theme song of the Archies TV show, known as The Archie Show. Now that's catchy!

Gee, just look at that psychedelic blinking! And whoah, Jughead is invisible! I highly doubt they would allow this kind of stuff be shown on TV anymore...

And how cool it is that the Archie comic still exists! I am so going to subscribe it! No, really, maybe not... But the music still kicks ass. And the TV show is cool, too..

Of course this is also still the real deal!

Britain's Psych-Folk-Pop Champions of 2010

2010-11-30T17:12:00.012+02:00

The Coral's latest album Butterfly House (2010) is already being celebrated in the media as one of the best albums of the year. As usual, I have been too busy with other things to properly listen to this album... However, I listened to it today and was really, really delighted at it.

The Coral, founded in 1996, has already created quite a back catalog. Butterfly House is the band's sixth album. I got acquainted with The Coral's music when the band's 2007 album Roots and Echoes, had just come out. I spent quite a lot of time listening to that album... Well, it is certainly one lovely album. Just thinking about songs like Jacqueline and Cobwebs makes me feel warm and happy.

About Butterfly House then... The album definitely is impressive! The members of the Coral are masters of their own melancholic, soft-psychedelic folky, jangly pop style. Musically the band hasn't changed its ways all that much from the previous album but the Coral concept has been taken a couple of steps further. James Skelly's songwriting pen has been sharp, again, and writing most of the songs together with another band member seems like a good choice.

When it comes to the song order, Butterfly House is built in an interesting way. The first four songs are more like the stuff on the previous album. Then begins an almost uninterrupted row of songs with superb, very Byrds-like harmony vocals. Like diving into another wonderful mood.. The music is so atmospheric that you can practically feel the leaves falling down from a tree. Wow... Now that I think about it, I see all kinds of pictures in my head while listening to this album. Music that stimulates your imagination like that can't be bad.

There are jangly sounds and excellent harmonies, sounding a lot like the Byrds.. The general feel also reminds me of Surf's Up by the Beach Boys. Another band that comes to mind is America. Anyway, some of the songs here practically sound like immediate classics! Just listen to songs like 1000 Years, Two Faces, and Green Is the Color.

Humane, warm, atmospheric, wonderful organic (and jangly!) sounds, made by people who obviously love what they are doing.. That is what I call Music.

Here is a music video for 1000 Years.

The Coral at MySpace
The Coral website

The Story of a French Maestro on Silver Screen

2010-11-30T16:40:00.004+02:00

This actually happened a couple of weeks ago, but I still want to mention this film I went to see: Gainsbourg. It is not just any music film, you see. It is a 2010 film about Serge Gainsbourg, the great French composer, singer, poet, actor... whose music I haven't been paying much attention to even though it is obviously great stuff.

The film was really entertaining and well-made. The acting was good, and I enjoyed the unconventional way of describing Gainsbourg's inner self. The plot followed Gainsbourg's life story nicely, concentrating on the main character's personality, scandalous love life (obviously), and the way he developed his visionary music. In my opinion, the makers of this film could have highlighted the music part a lot more but I enjoyed it like this as well. I am endlessly curious about how musicians get their inspiration, how they work on their music, and so on. That is why I probably couldn't be satisfied with a film about a musician if it didn't include (preferably a lot of) stuff about making music.

I don't often see films about musicians. That is why there aren't many film reviews/commentaries in this blog. I would love to see films about musicians more often – and not just documentaries! The strange part is that I actually found out about Serge Gainsbourg while doing research on a power pop musician years ago. Good thing, and now I think I should finally start listening to the maestro's work!

Gainsbourg IMDb article
Trailer for English-speakers (YouTube)

Elephants... into...... SWANS!

2010-11-28T21:03:00.005+02:00

Just when I thought live couldn't get any sweeter...

The waiting is over, it really is.. The first new the Sun Sawed in 1/2 track is here! The track appeared on Facebook about 30 minutes ago. I can't stop listening to it... It is the title track of the new album Elephants into Swans.

Listen to the song here.

Right now I can only think about two things:
1. I LOVE IT
2. I want more!!

Belated Gig Reviews Part 4: On Volcano & Ultramariini

2010-11-26T20:08:00.008+02:00

So, a couple of weeks ago I went out, once again, to see bands play live. The headlining act of the evening was a band called Ultramariini but at the end of the evening I couldn't help thinking that the warm-up act On Volcano was actually a lot more interesting!

Yes, I realize that I have recently been exposed to such ambitious music that it might affect my thinking and reactions quite a lot. However, this blog has never been much about objectivity..

Grandiose, epic, big sounds... Music created in the spirit of shoegaze/indie rock bands and something about it even reminds of such bands as Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Sigur Rós. Those are the ingredients of post rock – and nowadays also On Volcano's music. With classy Christmas lights illuminating the stage, the skillful musicians of On Volcano played an amazing set. This wasn't the first or even the second time I saw On Volcano but now they had really found their sound and perfected their music – I am already waiting for a full album. Almost every song of the live set was longer than five minutes and there were long instrumental periods, but the music was still perfectly balanced... It is the magic of post rock! Also, you just have to love a band that concludes the set with a ”country ballad”. Definitely the best post rock band of my hometown Tampere!

Ultramariini plays pop that could be described as indie but it also has qualities to make it appeal to wider audiences. Frontman Matti Johannes Koivu has been doing solo albums during the past years and performing as a solo artist. I have seen him live probably three times and loved every gig. Now his old band Ultramariini has returned and released a new album called Ydin. I will probably check out that album at some point – and most definitely On Volcano's new EP New Blood which the band is giving out for free!

Free download of On Volcano's New Blood EP
Ultramariini at MySpace

80s Power Pop Moment

2010-11-26T19:01:00.004+02:00

This video was linked to Facebook several months ago. I spotted it and listened to it and thought to myself: "Wow!" Indeed, this is 80s power pop at its finest. Chris Von Sneidern was in this band, Flying Color, which existed 1984-1990.

There was such a rich jangly, beatlesque power pop scene in the 80s. I should do more research in that area. The availability of a lot of stuff from that time can be a bit questionable, though.. But giving up doesn't help either.

My goodness... Gorgeous stuff!

Greatness From Sweden

2010-11-26T16:24:00.014+02:00

Again, I have a million things to write about. I wouldn't want to keep it too brief but I may not have a choice. Better say things briefly than not at all...

First of all, something I have been wanting to mention for quite some time. If you already haven't, do yourself a favor and check out the latest from the Swedish power pop front. The Genuine Fakes is a new band and based on everything I've heard from them they are definitely worth some serious attention.

A couple of videos for starters. The first one, I Don't Want It: classic 90s power pop sound á la the Posies, or Popsicle. Loud, sweet, catchy as hell! Also, extra points for great dancing in the video.. Nice video, all in all.

Then, When Reality Hits You: another really catchy tune, featuring the guys... shaving.

The Genuine Fakes have also made a cover version of Beyoncé's song Irreplaceable. What can I say... It's really good! It can be heard at MySpace, for instance. The release date for the Fakes debut album, which is called The Striped Album, is very soon, December the 1st.

The Genuine Fakes at MySpace
Official website
The Striped Album site

Teenage Fanclub Live – Larger Than Life

2010-11-25T04:27:00.004+02:00

My musical relationship to Teenage Fanclub has been renewed. I feel like a whole new TFC fan – a lot more devoted one. More deeply charmed by the magic of the Bellshill Beach Boys than ever!

It is such an amazing thing to get Teenage Fanclub to Finland only a few weeks after the Posies paid a visit to this distant land. It is a real privilege... Besides, it never ceases to amaze me to actually see other people – lots of people – coming to see bands that I like really much. It is not all that common for me, you know... I have seen near-deserted clubs so many times. Although it is very difficult to be certain of it, experiences like witnessing one's favorite band with hundreds of other people might have some unexpected, positive effects on one's subconscious. I like to think that it does.

After traveling to Helsinki by train, arriving at Nosturi, and listening to Finnish warm-up act Delay Trees play a nice set, it was inevitable that I was going to see one of my all-time biggest favorites alive in front of me – for the first time.

Soon the gig started. There they were... Norman Blake, the most talkative guy, rhythm guitarist, a sort of lead character who was smiling sunnily almost all the time. Raymond McGinley, the absolutely sympathetic guy on the left who delighted the audience with his riffs and guitar solos. Gerry Love, the more serious-looking bass player, but still the sweetest-sounding guy of the entire band. Drummer Francis Macdonald, the current provider of the loveable TFC beats. Keyboardist/guitarist, multi-instrumentalist David McGowan. Together these guys made the Teenage Fanclub experience come alive.

It was amazing to see these people and what they look like while playing these songs. I have always thought that TFC has its very own special style that I respect deeply... Seeing TFC live felt almost like a pilgrimage, with the difference that the band came to Finland, instead of me going abroad to see the band.

The first song was Start Again. I was very impressed: only Norman and Gerry were singing but the sound was incredibly rich... Bang! The huge vocal talent of TFC suddenly became so clear to me that it was quite overwhelming. What an unforgettable moment! The current TFC line-up includes five guys, all of whom sing harmony vocals. Luckily most of the gig was very well mixed and the harmonies could be heard quite nicely.

Some of the most wonderful songs of the set were Sweet Days Waiting and When I Still Have Thee – both were songs from the new album (Shadows) and really fresh and new to me, who hadn't listened to them very much yet... I was also very charmed by I Need Direction, I Don't Want Control of You, It's All in My Mind, Verisimilitude, Don't Look Back, Sparky's Dream, and all the other classics! The gig was concluded with a great version of Everything Flows, as usual.

The warm atmosphere during the gig was, after all, just the beginning... During the next days after the gig I listened to a lot of TFC, mostly Songs from Northern Britain, and also other albums... I felt things I hadn't felt before this much: new, wonderful, warm feelings, as well as understanding. When I started listening to TFC years ago, I was generally quite new to pop/rock music.. or any kind of music. Since then I have introduced myself to many different types of music and therefore it is now much easier to see TFC in the context of power pop, or pop, rock, or any other music in general. Now I understand why some people regard TFC as the best pop band in the world. The people who don't appreciate TFC much... They just haven't been enlightened yet!

By the way... How I have missed listening to sweet power pop! I looked at my mp3 player and noticed there were practically only about ten power pop bands there. That is not much for a person like me, you know... Moments like this remind me of the fact that even though I don't wish to consider any specific music genres/styles better than others, I do like to amuse myself by placing sweet power pop above everything else. In a way I really think about power pop as my favorite music attribute. There is something very special about the combination of those features that tend to be present in the music called “power pop” by many people. Power pop often is sweet... I like sweet vocalists, most definitely I like sweet-sounding guys, who play sweet music with sweet sounds. I want more sweet guys into my life!

What a speech... Also, this might not really be the end of the subject ”TFC and me”. So, beware!

Another Dream Come True

2010-11-17T13:47:00.007+02:00

Nononononononono. I'm NOT talking about the very unfortunate and sad demise of Not Lame. This record company will be dearly missed. Thanks for everything, Bruce! I look forward to the new Pop Geek Heaven site.

What I wish to say is that Teenage Fanclub, the heroes of jangly, cozy and warm, extremely charming (power) pop, are playing live in Helsinki, Finland, tomorrow. I will be there, of course. I haven't seen the Fannies before, so I am really excited!

These Scottish popsters were among the very first power pop bands I ever listened to. You could say they are an old favorite of mine, although there most definitely are loads of people who have followed the band much longer than me.

I have paid so little attention the latest Fannies album Shadows (2010) that I really feel embarrassed. I purchased the album when it came out but somehow it got lost when I was in the middle of some another 70s hard rock craze... Fortunately it's never too late to go back to being a big Teenage Fanclub fan again!

In any case, Shadows is a really beautiful album... Sweet songs, peaceful feel, and definitely a lovely atmosphere! Soundwise it is like Man-Made (2005) with everything made sound even better. Some people were not happy with the sounds on Man-Made but I am sure they don't have anything bad to say about Shadows. I LOVE Man-Made – the sounds, too.

Well... I am not going to start analysing this band and my experiences with it any further now. I might do that after the gig.

Some really good stuff from 1997:

TFC at MySpace

TFC website

Love 'Em, Keep 'Em!

2010-11-16T14:06:00.006+02:00

Guess what... I have discovered the music of KISS! And geez, what a great rocking pop band they are. Inspired by my friend, the author of One Chord to Another, I decided to check out KISS a few months ago. So, I got myself some early KISS albums and started listening. I noticed very quickly that the huge fame was well-earned. The albums were packed with gorgeous hard rock sounds with good melodies, even some really nice vocal harmonies...

According to some rumors, Gene Simmons has stated that there hasn't been much magic in making music with KISS. The band is a product and it sells well. Sounds familiar to me... A lot of music from the past decades was targeted to an audience that knew what it wanted – and the music was made by people who knew what the audience wanted. A good thing is that the product may still sound very good more than 30 years later.

Pictures of KISS still surprise me. That is because I haven't seen visual KISS material all that much.. I guess I have been kept in the dark (or something like that). The band looks goofy! And very goth-glam, I have to admit. KISS has also been known for spectacular live performances. The band's latest gig in Finland was last summer. I didn't go to see the show but the next time I just might do that...

So, I have been listening to KISS, Rock and Roll Over, Destroyer, and a bit of Love Gun. My favorite is Rock and Roll Over. This album also introduced me to the band's other lead singer, Paul Stanley... Well, he sounds really good. Nicer than Gene Simmons, at least. Paul Stanley is an important person also because he is the only other original member who is still in the band. He has also been credited to numerous big KISS hit songs.

To me, listening to KISS is a nice hard rock project. I often have use for groovy, hard-rocking, energetic music like KISS. That's why taking KISS to, say, the gym is simply awesome. You can never get enough of those hard rock riffs, catchy playing, and good songwriting!

KISS website

10 Reasons to Love Einstürzende Neubauten

2010-11-09T23:37:00.011+02:00

Now that I have a new, extraordinary favorite I wish to share some of my thoughts concerning this experience. Here is a list of things I have learned to enjoy about Einstürzende Neubauten (EN) in a very short time. EN is an enjoyable band even thought it has little to do with traditional pop or rock music. It is a band for those moments when you want something completely different... Now, the things I love about Einstürzende Neubauten.

1. The Original Sound

Ever thought about the possibility of using random objects as musical instruments? Einstürzende Neubauten has always been known for custom-made instruments that are a big part of the band's sound. Throughout its career EN's sound has been composed of unique instruments made out of scrap metal, pipes, machinery, and tools - they even have an airplane turbine! Yeah, that sounds like a way to be recognized as avant-garde, doesn't it? But remember: if you want to start with something easier, try the newer EN material first. Leave the drilling machines and squalling Blixa Bargeld for a later time.

2. The Drums

I have always been a sucker for wild rhythms. I enjoy many kinds of drum playing styles and although I often stick to music that doesn't emphasize the drum section all that much, grandiose, ultra-energetic (non-electronic!) drums make me drool. When I started to get into Einstürzende Neubauten, one of the things that caught my ear were those intense drumming elements. It sounded so wild, like real African drumming. Einstürzende Neubauten also uses a lot of strange, wonderful things as percussion, such as pipes, canisters and barrels resulting in a sound different from almost any other drum kit in the world.

Well... Now you might just tell me start listening to music that only has drums in it. I love grandiose rock drums, jazz drum solos, and many other things, but I don't think I would be kept very interested for long with only the sound of drums. Another thing is that I have always preferred non-electronic drums, meaning drum sounds that were played by a real person by banging a drum or another drummable object. All in all, I want my music with both good rhythms and other instruments, with various sounds.

3. The Unexpectedness

Whenever I listen to Einstürzende Neubauten (especially those songs that I haven't listened much yet) I feel like anything could happen. There seems to be no way to know what will come next. And when the unexpected happens, you enjoy it. Then another wonderful phenomenon strikes in – that is listening to a song that you recognize having heard before.

I have always thought that the secret behind music is repetition and getting familiar with the stuff you hear. You can't easily embrace music that sounds strange and unfamiliar. Everyone needs time to adjust to music – that is why I don't recommend rejecting anything you haven't listend to properly and preferably several times.

4. The Dark Aesthetics

The gotchic aspects of Einstürzende Neubauten can be heard almost everywhere in the band's music. Especially in Neubauten's early material the industrial sound is the obvious gothic element but a certain darkness tends to be present everywhere in the band's music. Dark ambient sounds are obvious in EN's 90s and 00s material. I also like to describe some of the newer material as industrial - sounds created with metallic objects (other than the usual cymbals) are industrial to me.

5. The Nuances

Music benefits a lot from strong nuances. It is not to say that nuances are an absolute necessity but they tend to be a great asset. EN uses nuances so effectively that they probably couldn't be used in a broader scale. With the music varying from minimalism and even total silence to infernal noise Einstürzende Neubauten will fill your senses with the extremeties and everything in between.

6. Making interesting music with little emphasis on melody

Based on what I have found out about the band, Einstürzende Neubauten is more interested in sounds and, yes, even the verbal side of its music than melodies. Still, probably most of EN's songs have melodies – quite good ones, as a matter of fact. One of the band's strongest sides is making interesting music without those obvious, catchy pop melodies that I have grown so accustomed to. Sometimes I feel like some EN songs have too simple or monotonous melodies but... you get used to even those if you keep an open mind, perhaps even learn to see the melodic simplicity as a means of expressing something different.

Now, I can make a new statement about the most important thing in music. That is not necessarily melodies! Sound variation can be seen as an even more fundamental part of music, and the concept of sound variation does contain melodies as well. Of course any sound variation is not automatically good enough. The sound variation must be satisfactory to the listener or else it sounds for example bland or too complex.

From this perspective you can actually see that Einstürzende Neubauten just happened to cross paths with me when I was in a suitable state of mind: ready to learn to love new ways of musical expression. It could have been some other band as well... Or maybe not. There are so many special positive characters in EN's music.

7. The Persistence

Einstürzende Neubauten is currently on its 30th anniversary tour. 30 years is a good age for any band, especially for the ones that still have plenty of creativity left at that point. EN is currently unsigned but has operated as a self-releasing band for several years now, gathering supporters and giving out exclusive material to the supporting fans.

8. The Language

German is a great language, although not known for absolute beauty. However, if you think about it, softly pronounced German sounds a lot like French. German is also a good choice if you want to be particularly emphatic... I studied German in high school for two years and enjoyed it a great deal, but I don't understand German much.. It should be noted, though, that EN keeps changing the singing language in many songs. There are parts of songs or entire songs in English and French, even something in Spanish, I think.

9. The Artistic Versatility

Einstürzende Neubauten has never been limited to just performing music. There have been projects concerning film and theater and the live gigs have even been said to include elements from performance art. If I am not mistaken, everyone in the current line-up has released solo material. For instance, Blixa Bargeld is an author, actor and spoken word artist – some people have reported him being quite a stand-up comedian. He has also recorded an album of Bertolt Brecht's poetry.

10. The Inspiration

As a pioneer of industrial music and an icon of experimental/avantgarde music, EN has inspired numerous other music makers with crazy, inventive, revolutionary ideas. EN's music is just as enjoyable as it is difficult to categorize. After being exposed to EN's music for only about a week I started feeling like I should try to make music of my own in EN style!

To cut a long story short, I really like this band and the fact that there is sort of an intriguing battle between different aesthetical views going on in my head right now. In many ways I have already accepted these new musical beauty standards as my own. It's good to broaden the horizons. I feel like a winner.

Some (mostly live) videos from YouTube:

The Ultra-Energetic Yellowcard Is Back!

2010-11-03T15:15:00.004+02:00

It was annouced about a week ago that Yellowcard will play a concert in Helsinki, Finland, in February 2011. To me, Yellowcard has been one of those bands from which I like to listen to a couple of songs every now and then. Sometimes there is nothing like the energy in songs like The Takedown and Rough Landing, Holly!

Yellowcard took a couple of year's break from music but they are now back and recording a new album that will come out next year. I remember thinking a couple of months ago that if Yellowcard came to Finland I would most definitely go see them and mosh all through the gig. How come, my intentions are actually going to become reality!

Really, I'm not going to mosh all through the gig... But a part of it at least! To celebrate the great news here is a song from Yellowcard's latest studio album Paper Walls (2007): Light up the Sky.

Watch the video for Light up the Sky

Yellowcard at MySpace

Yellowcard website

30 Days of Dead

2010-11-02T19:25:00.002+02:00

Here is a quick music tip for you. The Grateful Dead are doing an interesting 30-day campaign. They are giving out a new, unreleased, free mp3 track every day during November. I am definitely going to check this thing out. Also join the Facebook fan page for GD information and hints for this campaign - there is also a contest going on. If you are a GD expert, answer the daily question and you might win something cool!

When it comes to my personal interests, Grateful Dead is still fabulous. However, I have been spending a lot more time playing Grateful Dead on the guitar than listening to the band's actual recordings... It was some time ago when I did listen to Terrapin Station quite a lot, and before that American Beauty was THE thing. I think I fell in love with the absolutely sincere and haunting country songs. So, now I enjoy playing the songs on the guitar, and singing, too. My favorites are Friend of the Devil and Ripple (that riff!).

Also, to pursue my hippie urges I bought myself a Grateful Dead t-shirt last spring. It must be one of the coolest pieces of clothing I have ever put on.

30 Days of Dead website
The official Grateful Dead Facebook site

The Posies Live = Euphoria!

2010-11-02T19:12:00.006+02:00

To see the Posies full-band gig again... To see a new Posies album was another thing that seemed unlikely to me mainly because it took quite a few years for it to be released. Well, obviously I hadn't been following the news too carefully because everyone else seemed to know about the album before me. So, the news came, the album was released and I went running to the record store. Blood/Candy is a superb album, definitely an improvement after the 2005 album Every Kind of Light. Soon it was time for a new Posies gig! I chose Turku due to the possibility of also seeing some friends there. The same day Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow even played an acoustic set in 8raita record store, which I of course went to see. It was magnificent – those gorgeous harmonies can be heard so much easier without all the other instruments.

I tend to enjoy Jon Auer's voice a bit more than Ken Stringfellow's but that composition always gets reversed in live situations. Ken's voice is better suited for hard-rocking live performances and his presence is more energetic. Jon Auer surely is charming as well and his angelic voice and intriguing stage personality could never go unnoticed. Together Jon and Ken are invincible.

Thank you so much guys and welcome back anytime!

Acoustic live in 8raita record store:

She's Coming Down Again!

So Caroline

The Posies at MySpace

The Posies website

Belated Gig ”Reviews” Part 3: Monsters of Pop

2010-10-25T02:40:00.007+03:00

I don't like the word “indie” too much anymore.. You can place anything under that term and, worst of all, skip power pop completely! Monsters of Pop, organized for the fifth time in Tampere this year, is an “indie music festival” that presents even quite hard rocking artists these days. I think that is bit contradictory to the festival being called Monsters of Pop.. Anyway, this year's MoP had again some great performances to offer. Here are a few of the bands that played a gig.

Technique is a quite new band, I think, that performs dark, atmospheric, minimalistic, yet entertaining electronic pop music. The songs also tend to have a slow tempo.. It all makes a great combination. I always enjoy seeing this band.

Technique at MySpace

There were also some international guests at MoP this year, some of them from Sweden. Francis, a Swedish pop/rock band, performed fancy tunes at Telakka. It was a good performance from good musicians. I especially remember the soulfulness of vocalist.. whose name I wasn't able to find anywhere. Anyway, a soulful and energetic performance from a female-fronted Swedish pop band.

Francis at MySpace

The most memorable gig was Them Bird Things, a band that I now saw live for the second time. And what a great improvement it was. I read in an interview that vocalist Salla Day would have wanted to make the band's first album an acoustic-sounding one but it was made into more electric in order to give the audience an immediate hit album (Fly, Them Bird Things, Fly! 2009). This acoustic vision was then realised on the band's second album Wildlike Wonder, released earlier this year. So, the interesting part is, that the band had a lot more acoustic live sound during the first album gigs. Now that Them Bird Things have released a more acoustic album, the live sound was more electric nonetheless, and the band sounded better that way. And maybe they had gotten better playing together.

Luckily the gig was even mixed well enough so that you could hear vocalist Salla Day's amazingly distinctive voice over the other instruments. The song material is also a very, very strong asset for the band. The new album is a gorgeous Americana/pop album, check it out on Spotify, for instance. The album has received praising feedback which is really well-earned.

Them Bird Things at MySpace

Lastly, I will mention another Swedish band that was the last performer of Friday. The band, Bye Bye Bicycle, had had problems with getting to Tampere so they were forced to take the stage probably only minutes after arriving from Sweden. Despite all the trouble the band threw an excellently energetic gig and presented lots of catchy, danceable songs. That is the work of professionals!

Bye Bye Bicycle at MySpace

That was this year's MoP. In the future, I might give up my current boycotting habit and even go see all the performers. That way I would at least have better means of criticizing the things I consider to be wrong... Such as the excessive number of electronic music performers, very noisy rock on a pop festival and the total lack of power pop artists. I am still happy this festival exists, even though my most cherished memories from the festival tend to a few years old already. The things used to be better... Or maybe I have just grown more demanding when it comes to my indoor pop festivals.

A Break from Prejudice

2010-10-24T13:23:00.002+03:00

Oh my. How easy it is to reject anything, anytime. How difficult to embrace the new, despite how different or frightening it may seem at first glance. I rejected this band but then realized, once again, that I won't ever find my way out of the world of conventional, sugary pop melodies if I don't accept anything else. My latest interest is... You guessed it, gothic, and I have, of course, felt attraction towards gothic music and aesthetics before. But I haven't felt attraction towards a German band since I was about 10 years old. And I have practically never felt attraction towards a band that doesn't seem to place too much importance on traditional instruments.

Einstürzende Neubauten (meaning Collapsing New Buildings) is a German experimental band founded in the early 1980s. The band's music at that time was unconventional, noisy, and aggressive, probably quite disturbing to the ears of a non-accustomed listener. I find it interesting, though... That noisy music was real pioneer work in the field of industrial music. More recently Einstürzende Neubauten has given up the aggression and instead makes quieter music but still utilizes extraordinary sounds. Based on my first impression I would say that this band is more interested in any kind of unusual sounds that, well, the sounds of traditional rock instruments. Why use a regular drum kit, for instance, when you can bang different metallic objects? Then there is also Mr. Blixa Bargeld, the band's lead vocalist, an iconic goth character and real gentleman. Bargeld's voice is very low-tuned but that it definitely part of the charm. Add lyrics in German language (sometimes in English) and there you have it: something you most certainly haven't heard before (unless you already have...).

I haven't decided yet if missing Einstürzende Neubauten's Tampere gig last Thursday was missing a chance of a lifetime and if I am going to be miserable and bitter right until the band's next anniversary tour. In any case, I am already quite convinced about the fact that seeing a band like this is a unique experience, no matter if you agree 100% with the band's musical preferences or not.

I can feel this is only the beginning..

Einstürzende Neubauten at MySpace

Einstürzende Neubauten website

Let's Dance

2010-10-23T16:36:00.012+03:00

All of a sudden I felt like dancing! So I listened to The Feeling, a great British pop band which has released two albums. One of The Feeling's most danceable songs is I Thought It Was Over, a bittersweet but uplifting tune from the band's 2008 album Join With Us. Like everything I listen to, this song too has a human point of view, something that I have recently noticed to be one of the most essential things in music. In a way this song is almost too serious for dancing.. Anyways, it is a lovely song. Dance if you like!

Gees, I just love this song - and band! Dan Gillespie Sells is also a great vocalist and frontman. It has been ages since the last time I praised The Feeling. So, voilà, The Feeling!

Belated Gig ”Reviews” Part 2: Captain Cougar

2010-10-20T14:55:00.006+03:00

And now... Something completely different. This gig took place already in the end of August but I still remember it like it was yesterday. So, I will share some thoughts concerning concert experiences as a whole.

On an August evening I went to Klubi see folk pop band Captain Cougar (as well as Jukka Ässä and Cry Bar) but I definitely have the most vivid memories of Captain Cougar's gig. What was it then? Perhaps the most well-planned concert I had ever seen. The core of every concert is of course music. Captain Cougar performed its latest, second album Of Dreams Long Gone in its entirety. And oh what a concert it was!

I have seen a few hundred gigs and very few of them included any kind of visual stimuli in addition to the band and the instruments. In the field of indie/underground/non-popular pop/rock bands there is rarely anything else on the stage than the band and the usual lights that the venue can offer. The ideal situation often is that there is no need for videos or anything else in the background – the music is so good and entertaining in its own right that extra props, video screens etc. are not needed. On the other hand, sometimes the music and the concert as a whole can greatly benefit from additional visual features. The most important thing is to think what the concert needs, what the band and the music have to say.

Captain Cougar had a good reason to decorate their concert with video screens. The band's latest album has a historical theme: it tells stories that mostly take place in the 1910s Finland. On the screens there were different old photographs and texts that looked like letters or poems.

However, the visuals didn't steal the show. That role belonged to the band and gorgeous lead vocalist Eva Louhivuori who I think must be one of the best and most expressive female singers in the whole country. I also loved to see many wonderful instruments being played: violin, horns, woodwinds, piano. Everything the band did on the stage showed deep respect towards the wonder of beautiful, touching music – music that matters and takes you to a whole different place. It is a good equivalent to reading a good historical novel but with less text and more audio temptation.

This world needs music like Captain Cougar. Music that is down-to-earth but utilizes effective nuances with style. Music that conveys real human emotions, organic instrumentation and stories that shouldn't be forgotten.

Captain Cougar at MySpace

Captain Cougar website

Belated Gig ”Reviews” Part 1: Stalingrad Cowgirls and Sweatmaster

2010-10-19T21:01:00.007+03:00

There are several past gigs I would like to tell something about.. At least mention the bands, because I always love a good gig that encourages you to check out new music.

Well, well.. First of all, let's say that on September 23rd I discovered the best Finnish all-female powerpop band. They are called Stalingrad Cowgirls and probably like to label themselves primarily as a punk rock band. Well, they do look very punk.. Black leather, black hair, definitely not too girly! These women were also the best female rock'n roll players in this country I had seen live: a wonderfully energetic gig, melodic songs and loud guitars! Geez, there's nothing like a good-looking melodic punk/pop band with good songs that also can play really, really well.

Stalingrad Cowgirls come from Salla, a small town called Salla, north of the Arctic Circle. These northern girls – Enni Kivelä (vocals and guitar), Riina Kivelä (drums), Henna Vaarala (bass) - debuted in 2007 with Somewhere High. Kiss Your Heart Goodbye followed in 2010. I will check out these albums. They can be listened to on Spotify.

Stalingrad Cowgirls at MySpace

Stalingrad Cowgirls website

These cowgirls in black weren't the headlining act on that night, though. The stage was also taken by another hard rocking band, Sweatmaster, from Turku. Sweatmaster is said to be the most underrated rock band in Finland. That might very well be true, although this country surely is packed with other talented, unnoticed bands as well.

This time Sweatmaster came to Tampere to promote their new, fouth full-length album Dig out the Knife. So how was the gig? Sweatmaster kicked ass, and the musicians were just as surprised by the roaring applause as always.

Check out the video for one of my favorite Sweatmaster songs: Good Looks, Big Deal. It was released on the band's second album, Tom Tom Bullet (2005). Now that's rock'n roll!

Sweatmaster at MySpace

Sweatmaster website

Hot Blooded

2010-10-19T20:16:00.006+03:00

Now that I am on holiday, it is time to write more than usual (which isn't much..). I have practically dozens of topics I would like to blab about, so let's see how many I end up writing about during this week...

Styx was the band that introduced me to magnificent, theatrical 70s rock music. Following the recommendations of Last.fm I soon discovered Foreigner and picked up the debut album from 1977. Musically speaking this band appeared to me as a sort of less grandiose but just as catchy little brother of Styx. In the summer of 2009 I spent many nice moments listening to Foreigner's self-titled debut album. No wonder I was drawn by such songs as Feels Like the First Time and Cold As Ice – they are great, melodic, rocking songs and contain really good vocal harmonies.

Given that one of Foreigner's founding members was the ex-King Crimson Ian McDonald, it might make you wonder why Foreigner's music is not all that progressive. Instead, any song by Foreigner I have heard so far sounds quite straightforward – there are no ultra-fast, complicated solos and the songs tend to be shorter than five minutes. On the other hand, it is quite understandable that by the end of the 70s bands started rather downplaying the progressive elements than still keeping them in their music. Maybe the progressive was slowly going out of style?

The other two founding members of Foreigner were Mick Jones, another British musician who had formerly served in Spooky Tooth, among others, and American singer Lou Gramm, who would soon charm the masses with both his excellent voice and songwriting talent. Together with drummer Dennis Elliot, bass player Ed Gagliardi, and keyboardist Al Greenwood, this British-American combo was ready to conquer the world. Unlike Styx, Foreigner managed to sell

multi-platinum already with its debut album. Several more multi-platinum-sellers followed in the footsteps of the self-titled album.I have taken it slow with Foreigner. So far I have only listened to the first two albums (the debut and Double Vision, 1978). Both albums are definitely good. The overall feel of Foreigner's music is very much like Styx: magnificent melodies, superb vocal harmonies, good energy, catchy hard rock riffs, added with a melancholic edge. Listen to a song like Blue Morning, Blue Day and you will immediately think about both Queen and Styx. A certain bittersweetness also gives Foreigner a lot of soul. Well, I guess I just described the ultimate pop song pattern, once again... Nowadays I call anything melody-oriented music “pop”. Foreigner is, in fact, pop in two different meanings.

Foreigner at MySpace

Official website

Marvellous! Perfect!

2010-10-14T21:05:00.006+03:00

I can't help posting this everywhere I can... It's a music video by my favorite Finnish band Lemonator, from year 1996. For the first time ever this video can be seen online from this day forward.

This was the band's first music video. The song is called Superb. It was released on an album called Yellow (1997). The song... is superb, of course! The video is also really cool.

Good to Be Here Again...

2010-09-29T00:03:00.006+03:00

Yeah! The new album Blood/Candy by the Posies just came out. I went straight to the record store and got myself a copy. So far I have listened to it three times. It is good!

This indeed seems to be the most successful comeback of the year. (Although I'm still waiting for another band's comeback album..)

More about the Posies and me later.

Groovy

2010-09-27T14:56:00.005+03:00

Oh my. I really want to see Groovie Goolies. The characters look like so much fun! Groovie Goolies was an animated TV show that aired in the early 70s. The show had a lot of references to old horror movies and there was also a pop song in every episode.

Yeah.. Sounds like it was made for me. A happy cartoon with horror movie characters. Gee, I really have to check out the show and the soundtrack.

Here is the theme song. Actually, it sounds quite a lot like the Archies.. Catchy, isn't it?

Like the Summer Never Ended

2010-09-27T00:51:00.021+03:00

It is time for some updating. Getting around to doing that seems to be way too challenging for me these days. I do think about writing almost all the time. The problem is that I have schoolwork to do and writing extra stuff doesn't feel appropriate very often. I need to relax sometimes too! However, I have also noticed that writing to this blog may be the perfect means of relaxation and therapy.

Anyways, my favorite band from Finland, Lemonator, released a new album on September the 1st. What can I say? They did it again: made the sun shine right when I needed it as the leaves started falling down from trees. The album carries the name Shake, Shake, Shake.. What a good indication of the lightheartedness it represents! It is the band's least rocking album yet but it is just as good as the other albums.

Lemonator is, in fact, one of my dearest and also oldest favorites (if you don't count childhood favorites). This magnificent Helsinki band made its way to my heart in 2003 when I saw the music video for a song called Broken Record on TV. Lemonator had just released a new fourth album Grandpop. I bought it and was instantly very impressed. Now that I think about it, Grandpop was the album that introduced me to power pop as a music style. It was a great introduction because of its great songs, rock & roll edge and capability of also showing the fabulously atmospheric and melancholic gentler sides of the band. In 2010, they are still my favorite Finnish band.

Well, yeah, there was that thing with Tehosekoitin and whether I might like them more than Lemonator. Tehosekoitin is (was) also very, very good.. But I still think Lemonator has the #1 spot in my heart when it comes to the loveliest Finnish bands.

It is easy to fall in love with bands that have made excellent albums - and if they also happen to sound like the Posies and the Beach Boys there is really no escape! So far, Lemonator has only released excellent albums the first being Yellow (1997), a happy, fun, fast-paced and loud album - perfect music anytime when you wish to hear high-energy pop rock (to me that is often...). The second album, Maison Rilax (1998), was a clear response to Yellow's overflowing happiness. Maison Rilax was a slower-paced album that dealt with lost love. The album included more complex song structures and various influences signaling that there was much more to Lemonator than just fun, rampaging rock'n roll. Maison Rilax was an impressive sophomore effort. The biggest hit, however, was yet to follow.

Most Lemonator fans probably consider the third album, The Waltz (2000), as their favorite. I do, too, of course... The Waltz is the culmination of Lemonator's best sides: it has an amazingly heartfelt and comforting mentality, spectacular songs that all have something important to say melodically, emotionally, soundwise and as well as lyrically. The album also shows Lemonator's sense of the dramatic. Even though the album presents a pretty broad variation of themes and moods - quite a few dark or melancholic ones too - the result as a whole is an album so deep, loving and touching that I still regard it as the Finnish Pet Sounds.

Following Grandpop (2003) came out At the Presence of Great Beauty (2006), the fifth album by Lemonator. This album was another really heartfelt effort. It had the heart of The Waltz, the rocking edge of Grandpop and the melancholic shades of Maison Rilax. All this made the album a simply unforgettable listening experience. The song material is gorgeous. Also, the string arrangements are a pretty good match for ELO's best work.

As I said, Shake, Shake, Shake is the latest album. It is lovely, of course it is lovely.. California Fun and I Always Wanted to Be a Drummer are some of the catchiest songs of the year and Hold Me Now is clearly the loveliest song of the year... At least to me.

Thank you Lasse Kurki, Risto Eskolin, Antti Karisalmi, Kelly Ketonen, and Mikko von Hertzen (former drummer). You always make my day!

Lemonator at MySpace

Lemonator website

Another Serving of British Bubblegum Sunniness

2010-08-11T19:45:00.006+03:00

While going through my massive piles of CDs that I haven't had time to listen to yet (at least not very much), I came across a release called The Best of Vanity Fare. I spotted this band on a bubblegum website several months ago and decided to give it a try.

Vanity Fare, originally called The Avengers, were a lot like the other British 70s bands like Edison Lighthouse and anything else connected to Macaulay and Macleod - sunny, soft-sounding, baroque-tingled, melodic, and often absolutely gorgeous.

This band released some really wonderful melodic pop singles such as I Live for the Sun (a minor hit for a Murry Wilson-managed American band The Sunrays) and Early in the Morning already in the late 60s. Vanity Fare actually hit it big with I Live for the Sun – it was a huge hit especially in America. Vanity Fare wasn't just a cover band, though. The band also wrote original material right from the start. For instance, check out You Made Me Love You from 1969, written by keyboardist Barry Landeman.

To be honest, one of the reasons I am writing this is to get myself to listen to this band more. Music with such great harmonies, lovely melodies and optimism is always a winner – and so is anyone who listens to it.

Enjoy Hitchin' a Ride, from Top of the Pops, 1970! The band is understandably misspelled by the uploader here.

The Ultimate Guidebook

2010-08-05T11:45:00.004+03:00

I would like to introduce you, readers, to my bible. And, with its help introduce many great bubblegum artists and phenomena. I bought this book about two years ago to satisfy my enormous curiosity towards bubblegum music. The book is called Bubblegum Music Is the Naked Truth. The Dark History of Prepubescent Pop, from the Banana Splits to Britney Spears (Feral House, 2001), edited by Kim Cooper and David Smay.

Well, yeah, Britney Spears being mentioned in the book title is somewhat unappealing. However, the writers of this book surely couldn't know what was going to happen in the near future. Don't worry! This book is mostly about considerably older stuff than just late 90s and the 00s.

Bubblegum Music Is the Naked Truth is exhausting even for a bubblegum maniac like me. It is 300 pages long – and believe me, the pages are large and the font small. There are lots of black and white photos and pictures but they are mostly very small. The book, with its numerous writers, goes to great lengths describing, reviewing, criticizing, and, of course, admiring and advertising dozens and hundreds of bubblegum hitmakers and bubblegum-related things.

The book contains loads of detailed descriptions of obscure and well-known bubblegum acts, real bands and the imaginary ones, too. Just browsing the book is entertaining and every time you find yourself amazed of the incredibly detailed work that doesn't leave one rock unturned. There are articles about artists, record labels, related genres, the international aspects of bubblegum, people reminiscing about the subject, bubblegum merchandise... This book deals with even the most questionable, money-thirsty, x-rated aspects of bubblegum music.

I went crazy reading this book.. It is well-written and interesting and really not just about bubblegum music but also lots of other things that have something to do with bubblegum. Although sometimes things don't even seem to have a relation to bubblegum and are more like descriptions of obscure and/or great 60s/70s pop records or something similar. It seems that a lot of things are somehow connected to the bubblegum scene..

So, what is the essence of bubblegum music? It varies, of course, especially through different time periods. In its original meaning bubblegum music is music made for children in the purpose of selling records, breakfast cereals, toys, anything, but bubblegum music is at its best also so catchy and well-written music that it appeals to children as well as adults. A real bubblegum song is something happy that plays in your head all day – and the next day too. A piece of cheerfulness stuck in you head... Things could be worse, don't you think?

Soulful Disney Bubblegum

2010-08-05T11:32:00.005+03:00

Now, some reminiscing! That coming from a twenty-something (me) tends to deal with childhood, which is no surprise, I think. I was just watching Nostalgia Critic (fun show, check it out) and came across an episode of the catchiest children's TV theme songs from of the 80s and 90s. Number one on that list was DuckTales.. At that point, I got really excited because I had not heard the song for over 15 years. Gee, it was so good I had to listen to it many, many times.

The DuckTales theme is basically soul music.. With lousy drums and great horns – and an impeccable melody! Being a theme song written for a children's Saturday morning cartoon it is of course bubblegum music too, a wonderful addition to the collection of excellent bubblegum TV themes.

If I remember correctly, when I was a kid DuckTales was also my favorite cartoon. The whole show with 100 episodes even seems to be on YouTube. Now I know what to do with my spare time... In addition to all this, I suddenly got really interested in cartoon music and other great TV tunes (for children). There isn't probably a collection of “most fabulous children's TV themes” but Disney soundtracks may be a good place to start...

A Bit of Baroque Bebop

2010-07-30T01:41:00.006+03:00

Yes... Now comes a recommendation for a jazz album. Why jazz? It is very simple. Jazz is the most melodic music genre there is. Just think about bebop, for instance: the melodies in it are so complicated that you might even have a hard time listening to it.. I don't like to think that being complicated automatically makes music or a melody better or more valuable but I do believe that a good complicated melody is valuable because it is a good melody and therefore melodic. To me, the purpose and definition of music has always been melodies – in most cases. There are few things which don't have any melodies in them but which I still value as music.

Charlie Parker was probably the most legendary alto saxophonist of all times. In years 1947-1952 he recorded jazz standards accompanied by a classical string section and a jazz rhythm section. The result was an exciting combination of bebop and classical music instrumentation originally released as two albums in 1950. The whole idea came around accidentally when Parker was playing saxophone in a recording studio and during a break he visited a neighboring studio room in which a symphony orchestra was making their own recordings. Parker asked if he could join them with his saxophone and the rest is history.

I am of course so excited about this because of the Bird With Strings! concert I saw at Pori Jazz about a week ago. As I already told in my Pori Jazz report, that concert was a live recreation of some of the coolest Charlie Parker with Strings recordings. Jukka Perko, his ensemble and Pori Sinfonietta (“Pori city orchestra”) really made the thing come alive. Then, why am I talking about this stuff in this blog... Because I think this is one of the best ways to get interested in old jazz and because these recordings are just beautiful! They are very baroque and the alto saxophone is one of the loveliest instruments in the whole world.. Besides, Charlie Parker was the best.

Just Friends was the song which Charlie Parker said to be his favorite “Bird with strings” recording. It is lovely... Check it out, and other stuff such as Summertime. The whole Charlie Parker With Strings compilation album, released in 1995, is also available on Spotify.

Listen to Just Friends by Charlie Parker with Strings on YouTube

Pori Jazz 2010 and What I Saw There

2010-07-29T23:16:00.008+03:00

It is time for another report from Pori Jazz, my favorite summer music festival! This fesival also happens to be the biggest public festival in Finland which is no wonder due to the nine-day duration. I spent four days at the Jazz and saw a couple of dozen acts most of which were free of charge. I linked most of the artists to their MySpaces or other sites with music samples. This time there are no pictures in the Jazz report... Sorry about that.

The Pori Jazz organization had, once again, booked many big artists that have nothing to do with jazz. John Fogerty, Toto and Tori Amos are great artists but not very jazzy, I think... But those non-jazz artists do bring the masses to the festival and help the festival to pay the bills. It may be possible that Toto performing at Pori Jazz actually benefits the jazz side of the festival. Another good thing is that there is always plenty of jazz too. The absolute coolest things this year was hearing Charlie Parker's symphony orchestra recordings played live at Pori theathre.

Jouni Hokkanen Quintet. Jouni Hokkanen's band was a good start for my Pori Jazz 2010. Contrabassist Hokkanen and his friends played some traditional jazz with swing and great instrumental solos. The material was original and the songs had fun names such as Paten ja Jussin kanssa kalassa (Pate and Jussi gone fishing) – a song that obviously was born while fishing with Pate and Jussi. This gig was a great introduction to the priciples of jazz, such as the structure of a typical jazz tune.

Conjunto Café. Not to be confused with the American band of the same name.. This was definitely the first time I heard salsa at Pori Jazz! Conjunto Café are the first and only salsa band from Satakunta area but they were very good. Good playing, nice singing.. I just loved those rhythms, they are very danceable. I don't hear stuff like that very often: music from Cuba and other Caribbean islands.

Ted Curson Ensemble. Ted Curson is famous for performing at every Pori Jazz festival – since 1966! He is also known for performances and recordings with Charles Mingus. This time he performed several concerts, some of them being free admission gigs. Curson is a trumpeteer who also sings. The performance was excellent and Curson singing stuff like Georgia on My Mind was really wonderful.

Bird with Strings! Pori Sinfonietta playing with alto saxophonist Jukka Perko's quartet was a mind-blowing experience. This concert was a recreation of some of the recordings that saxophone legend Charlie Parker made with a classical string section back in the late 1940s nad early 1950s. It was an impressive and extremely beautiful recreation. The symphony orchestra followed the original arrangements very closely while Jukka Perko added some features of his own style to Parker's original bebop saxophone work. The beauty of it all was that the jazz ensemble focused on maintaining the jazz swing while Perko soloed and the symphony orchestra played what they know best: playing in the style of classical music, sort of spicing the jazz with lovely symphonic elements. You can't really make a symphony orchestra swing so this is the best possible way to bring jazz and classical music together. I highly recommend checking out Charlie Parker's original recordings of these songs.

Ricky-Tick Big Band was all about a 15-piece group of young talented Finnish jazz musicians playing together and performing their original material, conducted by Valtteri Pöyhönen. These musicians are also in other smaller jazz ensembles (The Five Corners Quintet, Timo Lassy Band, Astro Can Caravan...) and many of them make recordings for Ricky-Tick Records. I enjoyed hearing modern big band jazz and original compositions, as well as seeing all these talented jazz musicians.

Dallapé. A legendary Finnish jazzy dance orchestra that has survived from the 1930s to the 2010s? That should be at least a bit interesting. Well, mostly it wasn't. I expected to hear something jazzy but ended up hearing new and old Finnish schlager songs performed by a big, classy orchestra with some quite interesting threatrical elements being brought to the stage... Dallapé was good at what it did on the stage, the lead singers (including Sami Saari) were good, the white suits were nice... But I would have wanted to hear more of that jazzy side. I mean... They were performing at Pori Jazz – why not play jazz?

Kadri Voorand feat. Jussi Kannaste. This year's Estonian guest was the lovely jazz singer and composer Kadri Voorand who performed with her band and Finnish saxophonist Jussi Kannaste. Voorand proved to be a talented songwriter and an excellent singer with a very distinctive voice – perfectly suitable for her jazz that contains elements from contemporary pop and latin jazz. Voorand brought sunshine, emotion, great songs and impressive scat singing to Pori Jazz.

Dalindeo is a talented combo of young Finnish jazz talents with all or at least most members also being in Ricky-Tick Big Band. Dalindeo's sound was exotic and fast-paced. Polyrhythms created by conga drums made the music even more danceable. The band characterizes its music as cinematic jazz. In my opinion, this music was very entertaining and energetic. I will definitely go see them again if I get the chance.

Tuure Kilpeläinen performed some nice singer/songwriter stuff accompanied by his band that really seemed to be in a mood for Latin American music. Kilpeläinen is a quite famous songwriter and solo artist from Finland. I have never really listened to his music properly but this gig was good and memorable. This was actually the second time I saw Kilpeläinen live – I also saw him last year in Tampere opening for Egotrippi. He performed alone with his acoustic guitar. Already then I decided that when it comes to his voice and singing style he is Finland's Mike Viola. I still agree.

Plop is a band lead by Mikko Innanen, a talented Finnish saxophonist who has been in many bands and projects. I saw Innanen's other band, Mikko Innanen & Innkvisitio last fall at Tampere Jazz Happening. This gig was consistent with that performance. Innanen loves adding some totally weird stuff to his music and performances. At one point the musicians are playing sweet jazz melodies, the next moment you see the band playing unusual percussions and rather scratching their instruments than playing them... Based on what I have seen and heard I recommend Mikko Innanen's music to jazz experimentalists.

Myron & E with the Soul Investigators. This was the last performance I saw at the festival. The Soul Investigators are a soul/funk band founded in Finland 1998. The band is known to release lots of vinyl singles on Timmion Records. They previously worked with Nicole Willis and at the moment their vocal section is in the care of a California male vocal duo Myron & E. This Californian-Finnish soul band sounded amazing. With excellent playing and a soulful vocal section doing their job with expertise the result was people dancing all around. The Soul Investigators played really catchy melodic music that I hope to hear more.

So, it was a good festival, as usual. I already look forward to next summer. You always learn something new at Pori Jazz, and even when the jazz is downplayed, you get to hear lots of other interesting music. Now... It's time to listen to Charlie Parker!

Pori Jazz website

Proto-Bubblegum by the Searchers

2010-07-26T13:50:00.004+03:00

I love The Searchers. Sweets for My Sweet is a nice dose of sugary beat music. I just thought about searching for the Searchers (!) on YouTube and found a live video for this mid-60s song.

The Searchers have given me many wonderful 60s beat music moments. They have been active after the 60s too and I plan to do research on the subject.. And listen to lots of good music!

Maestro Soloing

2010-07-26T01:14:00.006+03:00

Dennis, Dennis.. You should make studio albums more often. Albums as wonderful as your 2007/2009 release One Hundred Years from Now. I know, there have been other solo albums as well: Desert Moon (1984, the only Dennis DeYoung 80s solo album affordable for a reasonable price), Back to the World (1986), Boomchild (1988), 10 on Broadway (1994), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1998), The Music of Styx – Live with Symphony Orchestra (2004). Still, not that many traditional solo albums in the past 20 years...

Now.. No more talking to Dennis. About this album: One Hundred Years from Now.. Well, it is excellent, just excellent. Dennis has found a fresh way to bring his new songs to the 21st century and I couldn't be happier. He still uses his 70s keyboards and the familiar Styx sounds in many songs but they actually make a good addition to this album that is packed with pop melodies and rock instrumentation.

This album was originally released in Canada in 2007. I didn't pay much attention to these different versions when I purchased this album from Amazon but now I know I got the exact right version. Believe me, you will want to get the 2007 version. On that album Dennis sings a duet with Canadian singer Éric Lapointe who sings in French, and so does Dennis – partially. This duet is called One Hundred Years from Now. It is one powerful song... Oh my, it really is powerful. If you choose to check out this album get the Canadian version. On the US version Lapointe's vocals have been replaced with Dennis singing every line alone in English. Yeah.. Dennis is an amazing singer but throwing Lapointe's impressive rock vocals out is just not right.

This album, however, is about a lot more than just that one song. Every single song on it is really good. Dennis sounds as lovely as ever and his songwriting pen is as sharp as it was back in the 70s. To be honest, something has changed. Based on this album I would say that Dennis has mostly given up writing grandiose, epic rock songs. This album is more down-to-earth but it is still Dennis – a new kind of Dennis, you might say. It is a humbler Dennis... But he still has great hard rocking guitars and he lets his voice blend with the background singers. The result is very much like what he did with Styx: tight harmonies from which you really couldn't hear anyone's voice louder than the others. That is very democratic, I think, and also what made Styx harmonies so special. Breathe Again starts with a prelude that sounds very much like 70s Styx, and the keyboard solo sounds just as familiar... To cut a long story short, on this album DeYoung has preserved many key elements that were a part of his musical toolbox while being a member of Styx. Whether it was a conscious choice or not.. I don't care. I love the end result just the same. And I bet others enjoy the nostalgic references too.

But.. I don't mean to say that this is some kind of a nostalgia album. Well, some aspects about it are but as I already stated, it is a brand new album with fresh songs. Everytime I hear This Time Next Year, I just think to myself: “Gee, Dennis sounds like Jellyfish..” Meaning, what a bouncy, happy feel. Rain is lovely and so is Save Me (He just keeps coming up with these fabulous classical piano songs!). Crossing the Rubicon contains an interesting reference to rivers.. Sort of. That song is not even the only song in which I hear these hidden messages. I admit that it is probably just my mind playing tricks but it seems that Dennis wanted to be sure his interest towards his old style (and band!) is still very much alive.

Now, I could just go on and praise every other song on this album. I can't really pick any specific favorites. The difficulty of picking a favorite song definitely originates from every song on this album being so good. This is my honest personal opinion. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go shopping for some more DDY stuff... Sometimes that man just controls my life. I enjoy every moment of it.

Dennis DeYoung website

Most Loveable Music

2010-07-19T19:05:00.007+03:00

The discovery of Love was something a bit unexpected to me. I had known about the band for years but never quite come around to listen to the music – apart from the song Alone Again Or which I had adored ever since I heard it for the first time. The song is such a surprising thing and I didn't expect to find anything like it among 60s pop hits: an extremely heartfelt, actually heartbreaking song with lots of Spanish music feel. Very, very impressive.

Then my friend (whose taste in music is considerably different from mine) recommended that I should check out Love. My friend had apparently listened to Love's first album and it somehow sounded suitable for me. So, I took this advice and started listening to Love Story 1966-1972. After many hours of listening to the first CD and later the second I was beginning to be totally charmed. Listening to the band's incredible baroque arrangements and absolutely lovely melodies was such a pleasure. This band I will not want to give up anymore!

Love, an L.A.-based band existed from mid-60s to early 70s producing several excellent albums and later reuniting in different forms. The era of psychedelic music had a strong influence on the band's music in the late 60s. Love was not only a psychedelic rock band but also used elements from baroque pop, garage and folk.

On the first album (self-titled, 1966) Love sounds a lot like the Byrds. It is no coincidence as Arthur Lee, lead singer, songwriter and guitarist, in fact, wanted to capture a Byrds-like jangly sound in his band's music. Can't Explain is a good example of this Byrds sound. The song and its bittersweetness remind of I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better, while My Flash on You, as well as the band's famous version of Burt Bacharach's My Little Red Book, show Arthur Lee's punk side. The same jangly sound is also present in the longing of Softly to Me and No Matter What You Do. Today, Love's first album is well-respected but it is still not as spectacular as what was yet to come from the band in late 60s.

On Da Capo (1967) Love took a step towards baroque. Both harpsichord and saxophone are introduced in the first song Stephanie Knows Who, a song that makes interesting use of waltz rhythm and Arthur Lee's energetic punk expression. Compared to its predecessor, Da Capo is a more complicated and psychedelic album in many ways. It includes elegant and melodically lovely songs Orange Skies and ¡Que Vida!, and on the other hand, high-energy psych-rock songs like 7 and 7 Is. Da Capo includes loads of great songs, fresh song structures, cool baroque instrumentations, and all in all, plenty of interesting music! Perhaps the most memorable song is She Comes in Colors: a melancholic, wonderful baroque pop song. I also have to mention that I love playing these songs on the guitar and singing them too!

The next release was called Forever Changes. It opens with Alone Again Or, written by Love's other songwriting force, Bryan MacLean. Well, well... If I had to make a list of favorite songs of all times I might end up placing this song in the top 10. Everything about it is just perfect. And it is just the beginning of one of the best albums ever recorded. This was the second release by the band in the same year - what a year for Love! To me, this album and, in fact, the whole band, are such wonderful things because Lee and MacLean write impeccable melodies... Melodies beyond impeccable, really – stunning is a more suitable word!

A House Is Not a Motel charms with its melancholy and mighty guitar solos in the end. Then comes Andmoreagain, a song that is a perfect match for the Left Banke's baroque beauty. There you have one of the prettiest melodies you have ever heard, some acoustic guitar and strings... A baroque classic! Of course, it is not even the only one on this same album.. The Good Humor Man He Sees Everything Like This on the b-side is equally great and charms even more with its magnificent string arrangement that is supported by horns.. Listen to this while lying on a green lawn, looking at the blue sky and you will feel like you are floating away to another world.. A world of Love.

Old Man is not the punchiest song of the album but just listen to the arrangement! It is such a pleasure to listen such well-crafted, symphonic music. The Red Telephone is a more cathy melody and just as excellent when it comes to the instrumental performance. Maybe the People Would Be the Times or Between Clark and Hilldale is another long title, another lovely, A++ song, one of my favorites. When you think about Arthur Lee's singing on the first album, he sounds like a whole different man here: more confident, more convincing and at the same time more vulnerable, more human.

Bummer in the Summer changes the mood after the baroque loveliness of The Good Humor Man... This time the melody and Arthur Lee's vocal performance are a bit unusual but they suit the song well providing interesting variety. The last track You Set the Scene downplays the catchiness in the beginning but by the end of the song has left a permanent impression – that is what I would call a really haunting melody. Forever Changes is a psychedelic baroque pop/rock classic album and should not be missed by anyone who is interested in... music. This album is a gorgeous combination of acoustic and electric sound with some of the loveliest, best string arrangements AND horns I have ever heard.

On Four Sail (1969) (which I haven't actually heard entirely) there are more cool songs that are definitely worth listening. Love Story contains about half of this album – they are the ones I have heard. The Love Story 2CD compilation doesn't skip hardly any songs from the first three albums but later selects more carefully. The reason to this is probably wanting to focus on the early material. The opening track of Four Sail is August - a cool combination of another beautiful Arthur Lee melody and psychedelic restlessness. Your Friend and Mine – Neil's Song is great fun, and Singing Cowboy and Robert Montgomery are also really catchy pop songs. Always See Your Face is pretty and memorable. Lovely, oh so lovely..

The same year (1969) came out Out Here that added more great songs to Love's catalog. I'll Pray for You is one of the happiest Love songs. Arthur Lee also gives out two stunning folky ballads: Listen to My Song and Doggone. On Love Story the latter is presented in an edited 3-minute form - the original album version is 12 minutes long. Doggone actually sounds like a lullaby. Run to the Top is another really nice, happy song. Listening to these songs actually makes me want to hear the whole album.. I should get all Love albums that I don't already have.

Love's first 70s album was called False Start (1970) and showed influence from Jimi Hendrix who even played on the album providing lead guitar to The Everlasting First. By the seventh album Reel to Real all original members had exited Love with the exception of Arthur Lee who still wrote songs for the band. The latest incarnation of Love apparently toured as recently as 2009. Even though almost no one from the original line-up has survived to the 2010s (Lee passed away in 2006), Love keeps influencing music and new people.. like me. Check out Love if you already haven't!

Love site (by Torben Skott)
The official site of singer, songwriter and poet, Arthur Taylor Lee
Love discography

Jangly, Bouncy, Catchy = Irresistible

2010-07-19T18:52:00.006+03:00

I believe I never mentioned how I discovered the music of Throwback Suburbia? It was of course through Powerpopaholic blog (great blog, check it out!). What I found was an album filled with everything you could hope to hear on a good powerpop album: extremely catchy melodies, jangly sounds and happy, energetic feel.

Throwback Suburbia's debut full-length release (self-titled, 2009) is a rather typical powerpop album: at first you have some doubts.. Some songs for instance may sound familiar but soon notice you can't stop listening to them. I still tend to listen to Throwback Suburbia's debut full-length every now and then and it sounds fresh and encouraging every time. Music like this just makes (and keeps) me happy.

It doesn't have to be any more difficult than this: write 12 excellent songs (with 12 excellent choruses..), add some jangly guitars, basic organ sounds and bittersweetness and there you have it: an irresistible album of bouncy pop-rock. It is a simple recipe, yet not that easy to implement. There is no room for uninteresting material. This album fortunately keeps the standards high all the way. My favorites include, first of all, Same Mistake – obviously! How could you go wrong with a smoothly sweeping drum beat, cute verse melody, organ, Byrds-guitars, excellent background oooh/aaaah vocals, and a killer chorus? Those Byrds-guitars also appear in Rewind, and All about Me.. Oh my, that guitar sound just makes me drool... I also love Halfway to the Stars... Ba bop-ba-daa! You'll Never Know is the coolest ballad, surely, it is one the few ballads on the album.

Yeah. I thought it was good. Now that I think of it, it is even better. Do I have some sort of a jangle obsession or not? And, I will admit it anytime: catchy melodies have a strange power over me.

Thank you, Throwback Suburbia!

Throwback Suburbia website
Throwback Suburbia at MySpace

Sweet and Sinsational

2010-07-13T22:54:00.003+03:00

Lisa Mychols, her talent and tremendously beautiful voice have been sweetening the airwaves and enriching the L.A. pop scene since the early 90s. Mychols is a talented singer, musician and songwriter. I haven’t encountered too many women as talented as her – especially not in the field of power pop! Seriously, sometimes I feel like women are almost non-existent in the power pop scene. With this thought in mind, it becomes obvious that Lisa Mychols is a real gem and a musician of high standards. She is an inspiration.

In the early 90s Mychols recorded a Christmas album with Darian Sahanaja and Nick Walusko, the guys that would soon be releasing music as Wondermints. This classic Christmas CD is of course called Lost Winter’s Dream, released in 1991, rereleased in 2002. This album is definitely a strong candidate for the category “coolest psychedelic Christmas music”. Mychols and her Wondermints friends give their Christmas tunes a firm 60s treatment with some interesting edge. Lost Winter’s Dream avoids clichés and is therefore a fresh breeze of Christmas spirit. I played this CD during last year's pre-Christmas party season... It was wonderful and I bet everyone else enjoyed it too. The album made a nice addition to many Christmas moments.

Mychols has later played a part in many projects. I am sure that I don’t even know about all of them. To mention a couple of things, Mychols played drums and sang background vocals on Receiver’s album and also provided backing vocals for The Sun Sawed in 1/2’s 1997 album Fizzy Lift. In the late 90s Mychols founded a band called The Masticators with some talented L.A. musicians – including Robbie Rist, our trusted powerpopster. The Masticators released one album (Masticate!, 2000) before breaking up. The album is of course excellent. Gee, I really should start listening to it again right now..

Then there is Sweet Sinsations (2004), the second solo album by Lisa Mychols. Sweet Sinsations became a big thing for me last fall, such a huge source of energy and melodic cheer. The album is awesome all the way and also contains cool variation. Living Doll is a great opening rocker. Later other fabulous tracks such as Oh To Be in Love, Cycles Per Second, and Las Brisas Sun offer some completely different moods. Other favorites include Gonna Get That Boy, Take a Ride, Fun Fair/Old Memories... It is a neverending demonstration of energy and sweetness, an album that will surely get your spirits up. The same year as Sweet Sinsations an EP called In This City was released but it has not been around much.. One shopping link I tried took me to Japan's Amazon.

Nushu is a project that features Lisa Mychols and Hillary Burton. As everyone probably already know (or at least should know) a new album by Nushu has just been released. It is called Hula. I can't wait to get it. Just check out the video for Another Rainy Weekend. Something as fresh and energetic as this is exactly what makes a perfect summer soundtrack. Nushu's first album Nevermind Lullabye came out in 2007... To be honest, I didn't even remember this album existed. I think I will get it too.

And guess what, it seems that Lisa is even working on another solo album. That is very exciting. Well, no more blabbering, I'll just go and listen to some great music by Lisa Mychols! I recommend you do the same. Just let pure melodic rocking sweetness take you over!

Lisa Mychols at MySpace
Lisa Mychols Website
Nushu at MySpace
Nushu Website
The Masticators at MySpace

Another Hard Rock Favorite?

2010-07-13T15:39:00.003+03:00

Now that I seem to have learned the basics of late 70s hard rock, I think it is time to move on to other bands of the same era and style. Therefore I have been wondering which band I am going to fall in love next. It is going to be a real challenge to impress me after Styx – I highly doubt any band is going to have nearly as wonderful vocalists as Dennis DeYoung and Tommy Shaw... I test-listened to several bands already last summer and soon discovered Foreigner and the band's self-titled debut album. Lou Gramm's vocals, cool harmonies and melodies caught my attention pretty easily. I think I will discuss that in detail later...

So, what is going to be my next favourite 70s(/80s) rock/hard rock(/progressive rock) band? There surely are many to choose from. It may be Foreigner, Kansas, Asia, Boston or even REO Speedwagon. I have also given some thought to bands like Black Sabbath, Kiss, and Blue Öyster Cult. We'll see what happens... Also feel free to give me a hint! I tend to give a chance to almost any band that people recommend to me.

More about the Next Mania

2010-07-13T15:02:00.007+03:00

So, I started blabbering about Styx... Again. Well, that is what happens when you really love a certain band's music. Styx has, in fact, become the best-represented band in my CD collection right after the Beach Boys who have probably more than 15 albums there... Here are the four other Styx albums that have been the soundtrack of my life on many, many occasions.

Cornerstone (1979)

Gimme the Lights! On Cornerstone Styx took a step towards a lighter direction. I tend to think about this album as “Styx pop moment” because there really is not all that much rock (with the exceptions of Borrowed Time and Eddie). Instead, there are great pop melodies and lighter sounds. The harmonies in Why Me remind of the Beach Boys, Lights and Never Say Never have even more incredible harmonies, Boat on the River includes some more mandolin sounds - plus accordion! Power ballads Babe and First Time are some of Dennis DeYoung's most tender songs ever. I adore his power ballads. All in all, this is a fabulous album – just the type to make a girl like me get slightly addicted...

Paradise Theatre (1981)

Then comes an ever more addicting one... And again quite a pop album. Rockin' the Paradise, as well as the amazing Half-Penny, Two Penny, do rock but this theatre is still mostly about pop. Nothing Ever Goes as Planned is sort of a developed version of Why Me: it deals with the same subject and contains cool baroque elements and, all in all, fabulous rhythms. A political theme carries the album forward making the listener pay attention to both the misery and hope of modern society. When it comes to vocal harmonies, songs like The Best of Times and Lonely People may be some of the most ear-melting political songs you are ever going to hear... Some of the songs take an ordinary person's perspective while maintaining the connection to the big social issues.

Even without thinking much about the theme, Paradise Theatre is simply musically so enjoyable that I never hesitate to choose it from my mp3 player or whatever means I am currently using to listen to music. I call this album my favorite Styx album. Other people love it too: it was the first Styx album to go #1. Oh, and did I mention that the Styx harmonies were at their very best on this album?

Kilroy Was Here (1983)

Another concept album, anyone? Well, you don't make great music just by picking an interesting theme... Still, even if you don't pay any attention to lyrics, this album does sound like a fluent line of songs that support each other. This is true of probably any Styx album. Kilroy makes no exception to the Styx concept of making catchy songs with fabulous singing and harmonies, arrangements that serve the songs just right...

Don't Let It End is one of the highpoints here: such a lovely semi-ballad with lots of sweetness and dash of bittersweetness. There are also a plenty of fun non-ballads – I use the word “fun” for a reason. Many instrumentations and even the general feel of this album have such a happy, playful quality which is not all that often heard on a Styx album. Just check out Cold War, High Time, and even Heavy Metal Poisoning. In the latter half of the album there are some more songs in which the mood is a bit more serious. Tommy Shaw does a lovely job on Just Get Through This Night and with Dennis joining him in the vocal section in another ballad, Haven't We Been Here Before, the result is just plain gorgeous.

This album was even made into a theatrical play – I guess you could call that a musical play. Dennis DeYoung's ambitions didn't meet with those of the other band members which resulted in severe conflict. Styx split up but returned seven years later with a new album. During the break Dennis DeYoung and Tommy Shaw embarked on solo careers. Dennis continued developing his ambitions in the sector of musical plays.

Edge of the Century (1990)

This was the first Styx album after a long break. Also the first Styx album for ages not to feature Tommy Shaw. Here, Tommy was replaced by Glen Burtnik who makes quite a good job filling Tommy's role. For a while I actually thought he was Tommy.. Still, Burtnik's songs don't tend to sound like Styx. It is quite OK, though. Dennis DeYoung performs three power ballads, such as Love at First Sight, one of his loveliest pieces ever. Back to Chicago is also fabulous. Here, like in many other Styx songs, Dennis sounds like Freddie Mercury – only better, in my opinion! Edge of the Century is a nice album that shows that Styx has gone through some changes during the years but also that the band is literally Not Dead Yet. For a fan this album is no disappointment.

So. I still have the first four Styx albums to check out, as well as the newest releases, including Brave New World (1999), the last Styx album featuring Dennis DeYoung. After that album Dennis practically got fired from the band, which of course was not even the first time.. The sad part is, it looks like the other guys are not going to take Dennis back this time – it has already been 10 years. Or maybe they are? I cannot be sure. I already listened to Cyclorama to determine how Lawrence Gowan has been able to step into Dennis' shoes. Gowan does resemble Dennis vocally. All in all, he sounds great singing his new songs that he has written for Styx. Despite Gowan's obvious talent, Styx is not Styx without Dennis DeYoung. Therefore I highly recommend taking Dennis back. I believe there is enough room for both DeYoung and Gowan in Styx – no need to throw anyone out to get Dennis back.

The Next Mania

2010-07-13T00:06:00.007+03:00

The Beatlemania I had earlier this year subsided after three weeks. My affection towards the Beatles seems to come in short but intense periods. I do love the Fab Four all the time but don't spend much time listening to their music. So, for one reason or another, I was again drawn to Styx, this extremely successful hard rock band from the 70s that I had never heard of until that Come Sail Away cover version by the Sun Sawed in 1/2 (I was also very familiar with a Finnish translated version of The Boat on the River, but I didn’t know it was a Styx song until I actually found out about the band).

I already spent a considerable amount of time last summer listening to this band... And, to be honest, some other 70s rock/hard rock bands too. During the past year and a few months on top of that, I have grown quite attached to Styx. Those magnificently catchy melodies, distinctive synth sounds, powerful hard rock guitars, fabulous baroque elements, impeccable songwriting... Not to mention one of the most gorgeous, amazing voices ever: Dennis DeYoung. Plus his friends Tommy Shaw, James “JY” Young, Chuck and John Panozzo – a batch of great guys who created some of the most stunning vocal harmonies ever.

Because I am such a Styxmaniac and this band has made a huge impact on me in many ways I decided to tell some thoughts concerning eight of the band's albums that I have listened to very much. Here you go.

Equinox (1975)

Lorelei, let's live together... Yeah, why not? Equinox is a very nice album that invites you to join the celebration. Tommy Shaw has not yet joined the band but everything is already very, very much like the Tommy Shaw era. Dennis takes care of almost all of the the lead vocals and the harmonies are staggering. I enjoy everything on this album: Mother Dear, Midnight Ride, Suite Madam Blue... It all makes a fabulous mix of energy and mystique. The album cover depicts a flaming iceberg. Yeah...

Crystal Ball (1976)

A great album that starts with Dennis' energetic keyboards, then later focuses on darker moods and atmospheres. Listen to Tommy Shaw's first appearances on bouncy Mademoiselle and melancholic Crystal Ball, as well as Dennis DeYoung mesmerizing you with Put Me on, obviously, and Clair De Lune/Ballerina, a song that borrows its first part from classical composer Claude Debussy.

The Grand Illusion (1977)

Now begin the masterpieces. Oh, what miracles you can do with a simple organ sound... I still keep wondering the amazingness of Superstars – that magical feel! A bit like Crystal Ball, this album also begins with happier, energetic songs such as The Grand Illusion and Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man), then turns into more melancholic on the latter half (Man in the Wilderness, Castle Walls). And oh yes, Come Sail Away is here. That one is serious stuff.. Serious. When I heard it for the first time I couldn't believe my ears. I still sometimes feel that way. This album is one of my three favourites from Styx, along with with Cornerstone (1979) and Paradise Theatre (1981).

Pieces of Eight (1978)

Money, money, money.. That is what Styx made with this music. Lots of it. Pieces of Eight is another strong bunch of songs. During this long top-selling period the band didn't seem to know how to pick anything but absolute high quality songs to their albums – that is why it is so easy to love Styx. Then, about the songs... Dennis DeYoung is getting in the spirit of power ballads, one of his greatest assets. Check out I'm OK and Pieces of Eight, the title track (Those harmonies in Pieces of Eight... They will melt your heart!). There is also Sing for the Day, an example of the band's lighter sound that features a mandolin and some quite intriguing synth sounds from DeYoung. Tommy Shaw is great on this album. He performs lead vocals to Blue Collar Man (Long Nights) and Renegade, two catchy rockers.

The other four albums coming tomorrow!

Back Again

2010-07-13T00:02:00.001+03:00

Recently, I have noticed that I don't write blog posts anymore. It is not that I have suddenly become much busier than before, it is mostly just laziness and lack of confidence. I also sometimes think that no one reads this blog which is definitely not true. One thing is for sure: I miss blogging. I used to be happier when I was more active with this blog.

Musically speaking I am still very, very active. I hope to improve my habits and go back to the way things were when I used to write something several times a week. Writing is great therapy – a perfect way to blab as much as you like without having to pour everything on other people. If you decide to read my thoughts, it's your own decision to make. And if someone does read this stuff, it's really awesome. I'd say everyone wins. Life is great... Really!

From now on, I plan to write at least one post per day – perhaps a cool video if I am too busy to blab. If I am traveling or something, I can write more posts beforehand or afterwards. The next story is about what happened earlier this year. It is kind of old news but it is still quite current too.

Old News and New News

2010-04-10T01:39:00.014+03:00

My goodness… The same thing happened again. I remained silent for more than a month. And I promised I was going to write something during that time (didn't I..)! Oh no. You should never promise anything – especially if you’re not going to keep the promise. Well… There are reasons to my being silent. For starters, my life has undergone a major change during the last month or so. That is big enough a reason alone? Thanks, everyone, for your understanding…

Now comes the news section. It is going to contain some very old news and some very new news. Because I enjoy lists, this news section is going to be a list. How long a list? My guess is about 10 news items. (Edit: Ended up being only three..)

1. Gigs, gigs – powerpop from Finland LIVE!

[Picture from IPO, not taken by me]
Just a couple of hours ago, I witnessed two gigs by two Finnish bands. The first one was Ben’s Diapers, a very powerpop-oriented rock/country band from Turku. This was the third time I saw them, and I loved every second. In fact, I was utterly happy during the entire set. Everything the band played was awesome, not to mention the harmonies – and melodies! You don’t really hear stuff that melodic too often where I come from… I think I will get my hands on the latest album by Ben’s Diapers: Up in the Mountains, Deep in the Sea.

Hi-Lo & In Between also performed stuff from their new album, The Lonely Bird. I believe it was also the third time I saw then play live. The band’s organic Americana/folk/bluegrass was again a hit. The audience liked what they heard and so did I. Acoustic guitar, double bass, drums, violin/mandolin and good songwriting made a winning combination.

Ben’s Diapers at MySpace
Hi-Lo & In Between at MySpace

2. Three-week Beatlemania

This is very, very old news but I still find it very important. It all began sometime in early February, or maybe late January. A Hard Day’s Night was shown on TV, and the next day they showed a Beatles documentary – one that has John, Paul, George, and Ringo as narrators. The next day I felt like I had to start listening to the Beatles again. That is exactly what I did. By the end of the week I noticed I was in the middle of the most intense Beatlemania I had ever experienced in my life. This was something special. Believe me, my relationship with the Beatles has been anything but free of prejudice and doubt. It seems like this has changed now. After all, it is not such an unexpected thing for me to fall in love with the Beatles having filled my life with extremely Beatles-influenced music during many, many years…

Accidentally, there was also a two-day Tampere Beatles Happening in town in the end of that same week this B-mania started. I attended one concert that had Jan Britten Owen, the Urban Crow and the Overtures as performers. They all played Beatles songs, although especially the Overtures also focused on other 60s music, a lot of stuff from the British Invasion, of course. The Urban Crow was a Finnish band that featured Jiri Nikkinen, the most famous Beatles fan in Finland, as guest vocalist. The guy sings really, really well. Check him out if you like… He has been in a band called Clifters, making Beatles covers as well as other oldies covers and writing original material. The band may still be around – I remember seeing them live many years ago at a Finnish country music festival (there has been one, really!).

Tampere Beatles Happening blog (in Finnish)
Jan Britten Owen at MySpace
The Overtures website
The Urban Crow website

This evening was probably one of the best of the whole new decade. The music was so good. I was out of my mind due to all the fabulous 60s and Beatles songs and danced like a maniac. The best party, with the average age of participants being about 60 years, I have ever attended!

During this Beatlemania I listened mostly to Abbey Road, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (which turned out to be a lot better that I had thought!), Beatles for Sale, and Please Please Me - and of course also Rubber Soul, Revolver, and my favorite: Magical Mystery Tour (though its position as my favorite Beatles album has been challenged by both Abbey Road and Sgt. Pepper!). I am now officially in love with Abbey Road and Sgt. Pepper. Such awesome albums… Larger than life, period.

3. Swinging and Searching

Largely related to my new Beatles enthusiasm I also felt the urge to check out other Merseybeat/beat bands. That is how I became musically acquainted with the Searchers and the Swinging Blue Jeans. Now, they are both among my favourite bands. I really enjoy having these bands in my life... There are so many great songs to listen to! Also, while listening to a two-disc Searchers anthology, a fairly recent purchase of mine, I finally also noticed that this is actually the same band that later appeared in powerpop context. I remember hearing Hearts in Her Eyes before on some powerpop collection.

The Searchers website

The Swinging Blue Jeans website

The Geek Is Back

2010-03-03T00:52:00.003+02:00

I have returned… Finally! I wasn’t really gone but still didn’t write anything for (more than) a month. I certainly wrote all the time in my head but that’s not much of a consolation for people who visited this blog and found a quite dead-looking site. Sorry, folks. I’m really sorry.

I have noticed one curious thing: I hardly listen to any power pop these days! Believe me, there have been times when there was nothing else I would rather listen to… I still do love PP but I have had other things in mind – such as the Beatles! Well, that’s pretty power pop now that I think about it.

To be honest, I’ve been thinking about turning this blog into an Oldies Blog, or something like that... I nowadays spend so much time listening to old stuff that I basically have no idea what is happening in the world of new releases. I was quite surprised to quickly find out that I own five albums that were released in 2009. That’s a lot more than zero.

So, I will write some more soon and blab about what’s been going on. Music is more important to me than ever and I have really just begun to realize how much it means to me.

BTW, this blog has gotten older again. Congrats to the two-year-old!

The Posies Live = Euphoria!

2010-02-11T12:32:00.000+02:00

To see the Posies full-band gig again... To see a new Posies album was another thing that seemed unlikely to me mainly because it took quite a few years for it to be released. Well, obviously I hadn't been following the news too carefully because everyone else seemed to know about the album before me. So, the news came, the album was released and I went running to the record store. Blood/Candy is a superb album, definitely an improvement after the 2005 album Every Kind of Light. Soon it was time for a new Posies gig! I chose Turku due to the possibility of also seeing some friends there. The same day (October 26th) Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow even played an acoustic set in 8raita record store, which I of course went to see. It was magnificent – those gorgeous vocal harmonies can be heard so much easier without all the other instruments.

The last time the Posies visited Finland was in autumn 2007, if I remember correctly, but Jon and Ken didn't bring their rhythm section with them that time. The first time I saw the entire nowadays version of the Posies was in November 2005. At that time I hadn't seen a lot of gigs (by any band) yet, and the Posies definitely gave me some real shock therapy! I still remember it as the craziest, wildest, loveliest, as well as loudest gig I have ever seen. Excellent work, guys! That is how I would summarize that show now.

This time Jon and Ken were a bit more calm... But they rocked and rolled nevertheless! Jon, Ken, Darius (Minwalla), and Matt (Harris) played a solid show presenting almost every possible Posies classic, including some excellent rarities, and most of the songs on the new album. As always, lots of incomplete cover versions were also played. This time the band seemed to get kicks out of The Who's material.. Gosh, they could play excellent the Who tribute gigs anytime!

I tend to enjoy Jon Auer's voice a bit more than Ken Stringfellow's but that composition always gets reversed in live situations. Ken's voice is better suited for hard-rocking live performances and his presence is also more energetic. Jon Auer surely is charming as well and his angelic voice and intriguing stage personality could never go unnoticed. Together Jon and Ken are invincible.

Thank you so much guys and welcome back anytime!

Acoustic live in 8raita (filmed by me):

She's Coming Down Again!

So Caroline

The Posies at MySpace

The Posies website

Humppa – The New Punk?

2010-01-26T21:24:00.007+02:00

Again, it is time for European countries (and some non-European ones, too) to choose a representative to Eurovision Song Contest. I saw two of the three shows that introduced Finland’s candidates. The last round, which I saw, was mostly surprisingly good stuff. I also finally heard Hulluna humpasta by Eläkeläiset, a song that now seems to be really popular. The performance was indeed great fun. A song about humppa, sauna and booze is something quite Finnish, definitely original and even controversial.

Eläkeläiset (meaning 'the Retired') have been around for 17 years but during most of that time they have been sort of an indie favourite of young people. Eläkeläiset play humppa music in humorous style and make humppa versions of popular songs. Humppa is considered to be a Finnish dance music form and it is mostly popular among middle-aged and elderly people. I believe humppa originates from somewhere else than Finland but I am really not much of an expert. A description for humppa might be a fast-paced version of polka.

Another strong candidate for ESC has been Kuunkuiskaajat ('Moonwhispers'), a duo formed by of Susan Aho and Johanna Virtanen both of whom are also members of Värttinä, a very famous Finnish ethno music group. Aho and Virtanen’s song is quite catchy and resembles last year’s winner Alexander Rybak’s style, although it is more Finno-Ugric than Slavic.

Which one would you choose?

Eläkeläiset: Hulluna humpasta
Kuunkuiskaajat: Työlki ellää

Psychedelia, Jazz, Country… All in One

2010-01-13T18:46:00.004+02:00

To be honest, it is extremely easy to make me listen to new bands, especially if you happen to be Markus Nordenstreng, alias Latebird (or any other musical person I look up to). At his annual New Year Bash at Telakka Latebird performed two Grateful Dead songs with his friends. I was there and listened carefully. Then, Latebird asked if there were any Deadheads present and encouraged others to check out the band as well. That is what I have been doing for some time now - not long, just a few days. But I really like this band already.

Grateful Dead is certainly a band that requires quite a lot of listening and research if you wish to know it thoroughly. A greatest hits album may not tell the whole truth… What makes Grateful Dead so interesting is the great variety of musical styles. When you have a band that performs psychedelic rock, blues, folk, country, jazz, and reggae, what else do you really need? Well… A straightforward, extremely catchy three-chord, three-minute song every now and then might work. But there are plenty of other bands that can do that. I think when you find yourself listening to 10-minute songs and enjoying every second, it must be a very good sign.

While Grateful Dead may not be musically the most compact or catchiness-pursuing band in the world, it also must be said that this obviously has never been the band’s goal. Grateful Dead is said to be the godfather of jam bands. There is a great deal of jamming in the band's music, indeed. I have never heard of a band that would have released this many live albums. On the other hand, if you are tired of 10-minute jamming songs or psychedelia, then just move to stuff like Friend of the Devil – suddenly the band turns into Flying Burrito Brothers. One of the first Grateful Dead songs that really grabbed my attention was The Music Never Stopped from 1975. It is easy-going, yet energetic and happy, melodic and harmonic. That is quite a lot already… Add saxophone magic and I’m taken.

Incredible creativity, incredible expertise of combining many different styles, magnificent improvisational skills... That requires talent, talent, talent, and a plenty of love towards music. That’s the way it should be. Don’t be surprised if I end up writing more about this band in the future. Now, I have a lot to do...

Grateful Dead - Official Website

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T15:56:00.000+02:00

Midas Touch

2009-12-27T01:03:00.016+02:00

Macaulay and Macleod – who are they? I didn't really know until I decided to buy a 2CD compilation called Buttercups & Rainbows: The Songs of Macauley & Macleod. I listened to the music and was thrilled. That was also when I learned that Tony Macaulay and John Macleod were, in fact, a British equivalent to the American bubblegum music industry – a winning songwriting team who scored many hit singles in the UK between 1965 and 1973.

The purpose of these songs was of course to get them to the charts and make as much money as possible but Macaulay, Macleod, the artists and musicians inrefutably created something truly wonderful in the process. The result was timelessness captured in dozens of beautiful pop songs – these two CDs contain fifty of them. It really seems that Macaulay and Macleod turned their ideas into gold in more than just one way. Their songs were golden even when the singles failed to chart.

This set is packed with awesome pop warmth. It is soulful, it is happy, it is sparkling… Just listen to the incredibly catchy melodies, excellent background vocals and superb string and horn arrangements and you’ll soon feel like celebrating. One of the most famous songs here is of course Build Me up Buttercup by the Foundations. You will probably also recognize Smile a Little Smile for Me, the great song by the Flying Machine. Besides these bands there are also numerous others and to me they were mostly new. Marmalade was familiar but I really had never heard of such bands as the Paper Dolls, Pickettywitch or Jefferson. Well, now I know and I couldn’t be happier!

I love the evil 60s/70s bubblegum music empire, no matter if it is UK or US. And it doesn’t bother me at all that those people are, in fact, taking my money.

Listen to some stuff from this compilation (YouTube):
The Foundations: Build Me up Buttercup
Pickettywitch: Same Old Feeling
The Paper Dolls: Something Here In My Heart
Marmalade: Baby Make It Soon
The Flying Machine: Marie Take a Chance
Jefferson: Baby Take Me in Your Arms
The Committee: Sleep Tight Honey
Tina Tott: Take Away the Emptiness Too

Free Stuff from Locksley

2009-12-23T22:36:00.002+02:00

A couple of days ago I noticed Locksley is giving out free music in EP form. This three-song EP is part of a MySpace campagne called “Wendy’s Fresh Faces”. Well, Locksley are definitely fresh (and beatlesque!) and I did enjoy their debut album Don’t Make Me Wait. The sophomore album Be In Love (cover on the left) has already been released in Japan and a US release will follow on January 26th. I will surely check this one out too.

This free EP contains two songs from the first album and one song from the new album (Darling, It’s True). A quick look at the band’s MySpace revealed that there definitely isn’t shortage of video material or streamable music there. Something to do for the holidays, perhaps...

Grab the EP (click the “free music download here!” banner on the right)
Locksley on MySpace

Opening Heaven’s Doors Again

2009-12-23T04:51:00.006+02:00

I really want to mention this release. It has been too many years since there was a new album by Wondermints but that it about to change - sort of. A new CD has already been released both in the UK and US. This release is called Kaleidoscopin’ - Exploring Prisms Of the Past. It is a collection of rarities: demos, covers, songs from various compilations, etc. The CD comes with cool photo material and liner notes written by the band. I’m looking forward to get the CD. Didn’t find it in my mailbox yet but I’m hoping to get it for Christmas…

Wondermints and their wondrous psychedelic pop have influenced me very much. Their jangly, dreamy, melodic music has made a huge impression on me and guided me to the right direction in my search for the loveliest pop music. I found out about Wondermints in 2004 when I was listening to Brian Wilson’s SMiLE. Soon Wondermints became a very dear thing for me. I think they held the position of my #1 favorite band for some time… I listened to all their albums, including the cover album The Wonderful World of the Wondermints – loved that one too and slowly started discovering the original versions of those songs (many of which were new to me). The first album (Wondermints, 1995) is of course my favorite, pure greatness from beginning to end.

These Wondermints guys should really get back together. I bet they have some new material in their drawers already… It’s been years after all. I have heard they have had some problems with logistics – which is of course no reason to quit! Playing with Brian Wilson’s band must be extremely rewarding, but dear Wondermintitos, why not record a new album sometime? I know, there have been lots of interesting side projects and stuff but pop fans all over the world would be absolutely thrilled if you decided to record a new Wondermints album.

What if I ask nicely? Please…

Wondermints at MySpace

Light in Darkness

2009-12-23T03:18:00.007+02:00

Some time ago I reported about a debut EP (Studies in Timing and Coincidence, 2008) by a band called Pinstripe 45's. Now this group has finished their debut album – it is called Through the Darkened Window. The result is a peaceful, melancholic singer-songwriter release with lovely, organic sound policy of acoustic guitars, piano and strings.

In contrast to the EP, on this debut full-length bandleader Marshall Hanbury Jr. expresses himself a bit more freely, letting his voice to be heard more directly. Expressed suitably in the theme of the album, this time Hanbury places himself behind a window that is darker and clearer at the same time. Now the influences behind this music are also revealed somewhat differently – more clearly, in fact. Bob Dylan is of course still strongly present. Another name that comes to mind is James Blunt. Hanbury definitely bears some vocal similarity to the British singer.

Bob Dylan’s folky influence also seems to lead Pinstripe 45’s to present some slightly country-tingled expression on the album. Hanbury’s interest towards country-ish rendering can be sensed in his vocals in some places. Due to this country/folk aspect an artist such as Langhorne Slim might also be a relevant comparison. Fans of the Byrds’ early material will most likely enjoy the jangliness of Because She Waits and Even When You Cry.

The voice of Hanbury and his songs is sincere, melancholic and carries both desperation and beauty. If I were to describe Hanbury’s vocal style with one word that word would certainly be bittersweet. No matter how you would like to describe him, one thing is for sure: many songs on this album contain a hook that will make them quite easy to remember.

The music of Pinstripe 45’s will probably paint different pictures to the minds of different listeners. I think this music could suit as a soundtrack for any tranquil, wistful moment. The hopefulness that lies in the melancholy can however make listeners see a bright landscape in their minds rather than a darkening one. Now, with the debut album released, it is to time for the band to keep discovering new approaches to its expression. Through the Darkened Window describes a dark period in life. The next thing I would like to see is obviously what kind of an effect a nice flash of sunlight would have in the world of Pinstripe 45’s.

Pinstripe 45’s on MySpace
Through the Darkened Window last.fm page