20 Personal Egotrippi Favorites

Yes, you guessed it just right. I am planning to write a lot more about Egotrippi but first, here is a list of my favorite Egotrippi songs, a list that practically wrote itself.

Actually, I had already a picked a similar list of favorite Hollies songs before this and decided to do the same with Egotrippi. The Hollies list is coming up later. 

Given that there were eight Egotrippi studio albums and two compilations to pick from, many awesome songs had to be left out. There are no songs from the first album and there is only one song with lead vocals by Knipi – the competition was really tough. I couldn't decide which song was better than which so decided to put the songs in alphabetical order. I included a link to each song, YouTube or other.

1. Aprillipäivä 

Album: Vielä koittaa uusi aika (2006)

This is a very sad song even though some parts of the arrangement sound like a happy fanfare. The song was written by Mikki Kauste who also gives a heartbreaking yet peaceful lead vocal. The song structure is very good, allowing the song to grow and get more intense towards the end, ending with heavenly harmonies that sound like they could have been taken from Teenage Fanclub's repertoire (the Beach Boys could also be a relevant comparison...).

2. Elämä on kaunis

Album: Pilvien alla, maan päällä (2013)

Another song written by Mikki Kauste, this was originally written for the Finnish Idols semi-finalists to sing. The Egotrippi version is surely far superior. It is very beatlesque, and the vocal harmony work especially in the chorus is beyond all perfection and blissfulness. At one point I just kept listening to the harmonies in complete amazement over and over again. I think this is one of the most pleasant song Egotrippi ever has recorded, even though this version has also received some strangely negative feedback. Maybe the message of the song is too positive and optimistic, I wouldn't know.

3. Häälaulu 

Album: Maailmanloppua odotellessa (2008)

In this song written by Knipi the narrator is attending a wedding and in his mind gleefully criticizing everyone in sight, especially the newlywed couple – the marriage is surely bound to fail. The lyrics are probably not to be taken too seriously but the light-heartedness of the lyrics is also a perfect match for the happily sarcastic mood. The arrangement is fantastic: quite beatlesque, and it surely reminds of Jellyfish.

Also check out Irina Björklund's fantastic French-language chanson version of Häälaulu, Ton mariage.

4. Jos sä lähdet pois (If You Leave Me Now)

Album: Moulaa! B-puolia ja harvinaisuuksia (b-side compilation 2001)

I wanted to include one actual cover song (not written by anyone in the band) because this one is simply so great. This Chicago song was originally performed with Finnish lyrics by Pepe Willberg in 1977.

What can I say? I can't resist music like this. In this version there is plenty of energetic mid-tempo power pop melancholy and awesome jangly guitars. Also, rarely has Egotrippi performed music as syrupy as this, which explains a lot of my fascination towards the band's take on the song. Egotrippi was mostly not known for romantic songs at this point. This version was recorded for b-side purposes and probably not many have heard it.

5. Kauppatori

Album: Maailmanloppua odotellessa (2008)

Here we have another piano ballad written by Mikki Kauste. This slightly apocalyptical image of the future was inspired by current environmental issues and global warming. According to Kauste, this song is not at all political even though it practically brings the issue to our backyard. Political or not, the lyrics make it clear that our actions may someday result in some very concrete consequences. The situation begs the question: what kind of devastation does mankind have to face before we change our ways? What would convince you that something must be done before it is too late?

We once again hear some heavenly vocal harmonies. I enjoy the huge interval between the verse and the chorus. Mikki isn't afraid to use his falsetto.

6. Lennokki

Album: Helsinki-Hollola (2000)

It is kind of surprising that my #1 favorite Egotrippi song wasn't written by either of the band's main songwriters, Knipi or Mikki Kauste. Lennokki is always introduced as lead guitarist Skele's composition – it is the only one he has written for the band (that I know of). The lyrics are Mikki's handiwork and represent his poetic side at its best, truly serene and fascinating words, I think! The overall sound is big, and there is also a very emotional chorus and a dramatic guitar solo. Everything about this song is loveable. I just feel safe and peaceful listening to this.

7. Lydia

Album: Superego (1997)

Superego is certainly Egotrippi's funkiest album. Some of that funkiness is present even in this wistful song about lost love, or perhaps it is about unrequited love towards a woman who doesn't even exist. Despite being a rather sad song, the melody is also very uplifting. Lydia was released as a single and is favored by many fans but for some reason the band is unwilling to perform the song anymore.

8. Matkustaja 

Album: 20 Suosikkia (greatest hits, 2004)

Here we have Egotrippi's most popular and famous song. Originally left away from the album of the same name, Matkustaja was re-recorded for Egotrippi's greatest hits album 20 Suosikkia. The song indicated that Egotrippi had indeed taken a step from power pop towards folk rock. Matkustaja is very radio friendly and was played on Finnish radio more times than any other domestic song in 2004. When the song came out I went to buy the single – something I haven't done very many times... And I surely listened to it even though you could hear the song just anywhere and on almost any radio channel.

According to producer Lasse Kurki, Egotrippi was reluctant to include strings in their music at this time despite the fact that audiences surely embraced the end result. In fact, Matkustaja does sound fantastic also when performed live without the string arrangement. The acoustic version performed by composer Knipi on his tour with Matti Johannes Koivu makes me wonder if those certain small but extremely memorable melodic hooks sung by Mikki were even included in Knipi's original vision of the song.

9. Miten vaan

Album: Pilvien alla, maan päällä (2013)

This song was changed in many ways when Egotrippi created their own version. Originally Knipi gave this to Jonna Tervomaa and it was released on her second album Neljä seinää in considerably slower tempo. The Egotrippi version has a whole different structure, it is more energetic and while it preserves the bittersweetness of the theme (a nasty break-up) I find Knipi's vocal rendition and the overall ambiance mysteriously hypnotic and comforting. The hypnotic effect even increases towards the end. Something really magical was captured in this version!

10. Näkymätön

Album: Pilvien alla, maan päällä (2013)

Näkymätön is another song that was originally recorded by Jonna Tervomaa who also wrote the fantastic lyrics about feeling cut off from the outside world. The lyrics are really easy to relate to. Compared to the “original” version, Egotrippi's take is more grandiose. This song is a prime example of how some of Mikki's compositions end up sounding really dreamlike and in that way almost psychedelic – especially when they are arranged just right. Näkymätön is an incredible song, a true classic.

11. Onneton

Album: Matkustaja (2003)

Talk about hypnotic! This mostly acoustic song was recorded using only the things that could be found at producer Lasse Kurki's home. The result is lots of vocal echo, using a piano pedal and a Nick Drake vinyl box as percussion (!) and other cool things. This is another extremely bittersweet break-up song – maybe not even bittersweet, just plain bitter, as well as very dark and almost oppressive. A slower version of the song, released on the Matkustaja CD single (re-named Onnellinen, not to be confused with Mikki's solo song of the same name!), practically sounds like acoustic doom metal or something. Despite all, somehow I think Onneton is always really nice to listen to. Mikki's mesmerizing vocals are a huge part of the magic, and the arrangement surely is haunting!

12. Poika kalpea

Album: Alter Ego (1998)

Now, time for something lighter (maybe?). Even though Alter Ego was a relatively heavy album it had room for some tongue-in-cheek material as well. Poika kalpea is an extremely catchy, jangly song about a pale nerdy guy on the beach, accompanied by Beach Boys harmony vocals. Even though this sounds like a really happy song, the lyrics lead to a whole different conclusion. “Girls only smile at pretty guys – I could just blow up everything and go home!” I guess the tongue-in-cheek element here is quite superficial.

13. Rakkaani

Album: Vielä koittaa uusi aika (2006)

Many songs on Matkustaja album were really melancholic and sad, even though there surely were some happier moment as well. On the next album (Vielä koittaa uusi aika) Egotrippi decided to focus primarily on comforting sounds and themes. Rakkaani is a perfect example of this: a song about the beauty of a person offering emotional support to another person. I think the first comparison that comes to mind is surely You Still Believe in Me by the Beach Boys. These two songs share a similar melancholy while being extremely heartfelt and comforting.

14. Sininen 

Album: Matkustaja (2003)

This song was probably the first clear indication of Mikki Kauste's fascination towards the Slavic melancholy of schlager music. The arrangement sounds to me like a crossover between schlager and pop-rock. I think it does sound great even though producer Lasse Kurki has stated that this isn't the final mix he wanted to have released. Sininen is certainly one of Egotrippi's most dramatic songs, and I think Mikki's vocals are some of his best I have ever heard.

15. Sinä 

Album: Helsinki-Hollola (2000)

Representing the huge power pop guitar sounds of the Helsinki-Hollola album, Sinä is an absolutely exhilarating rocker written by Mikki Kauste. Sinä is a perfect opening song, clearly representing the sarcastic section of the album. I guess a lot of the fun emanates from the fact that we all know at least one person described in the lyrics – a really superficial person, that is. All in all, this is a superb song. The chord structure is amazing, the song structure is extremely well-built and there is, in fact, also clearly some melancholic schlager quality in the melody.

16. Suklaasydän

Album: Alter Ego (1998)

In my mind Egotrippi has never been very eager to write and sing wistful love songs but here we have one of the sort, written by Knipi. On the same album there were actually even a couple of other love songs as well, the most popular being Posteljooni (which I didn't pick for this list). Suklaasydän is my favorite because of the charming atmosphere. The song narrator mourns for lost love but is also happy to have collected such wonderful memories. This song is a real power ballad. You have to love the warm analogue sound the band was relying on at this time.

17. Toisinaan

Album: Matkustaja (2003)

When I first heard this as a sensitive teenager, I thought this was really scary. Toisinaan does sound ghostly and gloomy but also uplifting. If I had to choose Egotrippi's gloomiest song, this would probably be it. However, there is much more to this song than gloominess. Toisinaan captures nothing less than one of life's biggest philosophical dilemmas. When you think about it, not too many years before the release of this song these guys were singing about “Se on tosi jees”. I bet no one saw this song coming.

I seem to favor many of Egotrippi's darkest, saddest songs. I do, because they are so good and memorable. This is of course not to say that gloominess is superior to joyfulness. I guess when it comes to Egotrippi I appreciate the opposites. Besides, I remember once hearing someone say that joy is one of the deepest human emotions, and that sounds quite plausible to me.

18. Yksinäisyys 

Album: Vielä koittaa uusi aika (2006)

You might say I didn't fully discover the beauty of this song until year 2013 even though I heard it already back in 2006. Now Yksinäisyys has become a huge favorite that I love to listen to for instance right before going to sleep, to give a peaceful feeling. Yksinäisyys is one of Egotrippi's most uplifting and comforting songs and it might also give your soul some peace.

19. Ympyrä

Album: Superego (1997)

Ympyrä was released years before Yksinäisyys but the spirit is actually very similar: peaceful, soothing, and a bit melancholic. Ympyrä is probably everyone's favorite because it is simply a magical song. You can't really describe it, you have to hear it. The song has a very nice guitar solo and a beautiful cello arrangement at the end.

20. Älä koskaan ikinä 

Album: Matkustaja (2003)

This song is an obvious choice. Despite being partially very much influenced by a certain Procol Harum song, Älä koskaan ikinä is not only part of the Finnish pop classics repertoire but also still a really spellbinding song with its perfectly compressed power pop sound and catchy rhythm. The lyrics have been criticized for being silly but I think there is nothing wrong with being silly from time to time. It is indeed fascinating to think that even though the song sounds flowing and natural the recording process was extremely long and difficult.

Best of 2010 - Part One

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!

Marvellous! Perfect!

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.

Like the Summer Never Ended

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

The Sun That Never Goes Down

In order to include at least something relevant in this blog I should tell something about The Beach Boys and me.

Although everything I listen to is based very much on The Beatles, The Fab Four have never been as big for me as The Beach Boys. I surely love The Beatles, and I really don’t tend to compare bands like this because it’s basically impossible, but I have to make an exception when it comes to The Beach Boys. Although I’m not 100% sure (I never am when it comes to music) Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys might be the biggest and dearest thing that I’ve even encountered in my search of the most perfect pop music.

My dad has liked The Beach Boys ever since the 60s when he was just a young boy. Consequently, I heard that music several times in my childhood. It was that stuff that my dad called surf music. I remember thinking that it sounded pretty exciting. In the end of 2004 I started listening to some Beach Boys greatest hits CD and noticed that I really liked what I heard and ended up listening to those already quite familiar songs (e.g. I Get Around) dozens of times.

Something about rock’n’roll has always intrigued me. I remember when I was 8 years old I found some old cassette of 50s rock’n’roll and songs like Rock Around the Clock. I liked that music so much that I wanted everyone else to hear it, too. The Beach Boys’ music has lots of rock’n’roll in it, so it’s no wonder that I’m attracted to that stuff.
Finally, I heard about an album called Pet Sounds (1966). It was my huge favourite Lasse Kurki (from the awesome Finnish power pop band Lemonator) who praised it in Soundi rock magazine.. I didn’t need any more encouragement, I rushed into the nearest library, picked up the album and listened to it for the first time on December 2nd, 2004.

That album soon became everything to me, and it still is. It is a warm blanket, something to cry and laugh for, and stunningly beautiful melodies, harmonies and sounds, perhaps the most beautiful melodies ever. That album made me fall in love Brian Wilson’s beautiful voice. That fresh tone and wide vocal range have really affected my sense of vocal aesthetics. Brian is surely one of my favourite singers. These days anyone who sounds like Brian Wilson gets my attention…

In fact, I’ve even seen The Beach Boys live! It was of course just Mike Love and Bruce Johnston but the music was perfect, and it was performed beautifully. The year was 2006, and I saw that concert with my dad in Helsinki. Man! Those harmonies were seriously good. I wish I could see Brian Wilson on concert someday, too. He’d probably have those Wondermints guys with him, and I have to say that I love them.
Now, here are some of my favourite Beach Boys albums. Surfer Girl (1963) was the second full BB album I ever listened to. This music really sounds very different from that extremely sophisticated pop that Brian Wilson created in the mid-60s, but I like it just as much. On the other hand, you can already hear all that tremendous beauty of Brian Wilson and the harmonies in songs like Surfer Girl.

The thing that makes The Beach Boys my favourite band is not just Pet Sounds. It’s the pure, bare, sincere joy that these songs and melodies contain, and of course Brian Wilson’s melancholy, too (check out The Surfer Moon and In My Room - let alone Don’t Worry Baby on Shut Down Vol. 2! (1964)). Surfer Girl is a solid album with great songs. Also, surf instrumentals always make me happy. I’ve actually started listening to some instrumental surf bands/music, and I love that stuff. It’s energetic, happy and features guitars with metallic sounds (somehow this whole concept rings a bell…).
All Summer Long (1964) is another great album. I don’t think any of The Beach Boys’ 60s albums is bad, but some albums really are better that others. I Get Around, All Summer Long, Hushabye, and Wendy highlight the All Summer Long album. All the other songs are of course also good – apart from that one filler (Our Favorite Recording Sessions). It’s kinda weird how these amazing albums were basically always spiced up with that (humorous but) useless filler track… That was the policy of the record company. Well, those tracks actually make the great songs sound even better. Girls on the Beach, Do You Remember?, Little Honda.. This material is oh so very good.
The Beach Boys Today! and Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!!) (both 1965) are already showing some serious Pet Sounds vibes. Surf guitars are gone, and the music is seriously starting to sound like Phil Spector’s wall of sound. The b-side of Today! can even be seen equally as good as Pet Sounds, and it actually might be a bit more emotional and tender. Please Let Me Wonder, Kiss Me Baby, and those other songs.. Man! They will melt your heart (if they already haven’t).

Summer Days features some perfect pop pieces, too. Help Me, Rhonda appears in its chart-topping form. California Girls, Let Him Run Wild, the wonderful a cappella And Your Dreams Come True and my favourite You’re so Good to Me are just a couple of examples of the greatness of this album. Bonus track The Little Girl I Once Knew that originally only appeared as a single is also a perfect song.

I haven’t really listened to much of Smiley Smile (1967). Instead, I’ve given some serious attention to Brian Wilson’s SMiLE (2004). That is good stuff, one could say… 1967’s Wild Honey is very good with its soulfulness. Wild Honey, Aren’t You Glad, I Was Made to Love Her, Country Air, and Darling are very good songs with nice arrangements and Carl Wilson starting to take more lead vocal responsibility in the band.
1968’s Friends is also a nice record, quite strange of The Beach Boys, actually.. (Smiley Smile is certainly even more bizarre, though). Friends, Wake the World, Be Here in the Mornin’, and When a Man Needs a Woman are charming little songs, and they’re also basically the last chance to hear Brian Wilson in his youthful vocal glory. 20/20 (1969) contains some pretty good tunes, too.

Sunflower (1970) is fab. There’s again lots of soul and it really fits The Boys. On this album the sound of the band has really changed: it’s not the 60s anymore. Dennis Wilson shows his talent on Slip on Through and Gotta Know the Woman. Deirdre, Add Some Music to Your Day, and Our Sweet Love are also awesome.
What is also great about The Beach Boys is that there still is lots of music to discover! The 70s stuff isn’t probably nearly as perfect as the stuff from 1963 to 1970, but there must be some real gems. Also, this story ends now. I will congratulate anyone who reads this whole writing. It’s too long, again..
The Beach Boys Official Website