Twenty Ways Amazed

Oh... This one goes deep. Not only is this album extremely touching, it bears some truly special meaning for yours truly who personally finds Tim Rose, the man behind the title Fresh Mowed Lawn, greater and in many ways more important than most musical legends. Something about Rose’s songs appeals to me big time. I believe the simple explanation is melodies, and Rose’s phenomenal ability to come up with them (although I can’t deny the meaning of a sweet voice that delivers the melodies either…). Whatever the ultimate reason is, something about the music of The Sun Sawed in 1/2 (and Fresh Mowed Lawn) has been enchanting me ever since I found these titles.

Tim Rose, who had a few years earlier recorded tracks for The Sun Sawed in 1/2's latest album (I refuse to say “last”!) Bewilderbeest in Kyiv, Ukraine, now went to Austria and recorded the entire album in Vienna with the help of talented local musicians. The result is fresh and clear, although Rose hasn’t completely abandoned the dark shades of psychedelia. The general sound is in fact rather dark than bright, but I would preferably describe the album’s mood as atmospheric. Rose chants and the band plays through the album in the spirit of Wondermints and The High Llamas. The absolute sincerity and positive mood of Watching the World Turn Slowly/From This Day Forward gives some really strong loving vibes pretty similar to Brian Wilson’s Pet Sounds. I think it would be quite suitable to call this album Tim Rose’s Pet Sounds.

The Fresh Mowed Lawn album (2005) is not much about rock or electric guitars – I’m still not saying that there wouldn’t be any rock in Rose’s performance. Gently sweeping drums, acoustic guitars (and some electric ones too), flutes, lovely female background singers and charmingly dramatic piano playing make the sound of FML. There are also some trumpets and steel guitar that add a nice shade to a couple of songs. In the end of the album Rose even gives the floor to his son Luca.

Wish It All Away is a sort of personal favorite, although it is very difficult to pick faves from an album like this. Sometimes these songs make you feel like you’re looking straight into Rose’s heart – check Once Upon a Summer, The Rest of Your Life, or the title track. Fresh Mowed Lawn that probably gave a name this entire solo project (I guess Rose didn’t want to use his own name because of the other Tim Rose) is epic and has many parts. In the lyrics Rose paints a heavenly picture of lying on a fresh mowed lawn in the summer. Again, I have to refer to Pet Sounds. Rose’s lyrics are like a lovely poetry collection that deals with the ups and downs turning the hardships of life into comfort.

Now, for the first time (that I know of), Rose uses his own voice to perform complete songs on an album. His voice is considerably different from his Sun Sawed in 1/2 bandmate Doug who used to sing most of Rose’s songs. The change of lead vocalist changes the mood of the music, turning it more personal and, well… a lot less bubblegummy. More than butterscotch Rose sounds like Elvis Costello. In his solo material, Tim Rose doesn’t hold back and therefore he has to squeeze out some vocal parts. Part of the magic is definitely in the effort. Rose gives his best possible performance here.

Fresh Mowed Lawn doesn’t contain a second that wouldn’t have a meaning or that at least wouldn’t be entertaining. Tim Rose knows the secrets of melody, and that a good melody sounds even better when you use forceful vocal nuances, emotion and highlight the whole thing with a gorgeous arrangement.

Fresh Mowed Lawn at MySpace

Stockers! Release Debut EP

A young Finnish alt-rock band, Stockers! have released their first EP called Fuck Le Disco and it is available at Last.fm for free download. Stockers! was founded in Helsinki in 2007. The band has been playing gigs, recording original material and attracting potential listeners using modern channels (such as Facebook) ever since. The catch is that everyone in the band is less than 20 years old. Stockers! will however prove that age ain’t nothing but a number.

Despite the name, the EP is not completely disco rock-free. FLD makes use of modern rock influences. The first band that comes to my mind is Muse. Stockers! rely on catchy riffs and solid rock sound. Their music is melancholic but has other kinds of moods as well. Fuck Le Disco is definitely not bad for a band with all members still in their teens. This kind of activity requires enthusiasm, and with results this good I have to give credit to the boys.

Download Fuck Le Disco for free
Stockers! at MySpace

Tehosekoitin Back on Stage

This summer, one of the biggest names of Finnish 90s/2000s rock has been playing a six-gig series of reunion concerts, five years after the band broke up. Tehosekoitin returned for the first time in Helsinki on June 18th – I was there, of course. A few weeks later, I saw them again at Tammerfest. These gigs were my first and last time to see this awesome, legendary band live, and I wasn’t let down.

The two gigs were both good. The set lists were identical, I think, but there wasn’t after all a reason to alter them. The band played songs from all of their albums, except for the first, which was a bit disappointing. Still, I have to say that this band has a plenty of other good albums and songs as well.. But I would’ve loved to hear Syön sipsejä, or Ulkona.

There was some true rock’n roll fun going on the stage – and groovy dance moves! Otto sang really well and performed all his trademark maneuvers, including releasing his Marc Bolan-esque hair. That was a sight, I can tell… Otto didn’t seem to know what to say between songs during either of the gigs but he did talk, and so did the other guys. In my opinion, even thought it’s music, a gig, a band has to talk to the audience. If I were to find faults in the two gigs I witnessed, I would say I wasn’t completely pleased with the instrument solutions. I was expecting a more rocking sound but it was more keyboard-oriented and included only one electric guitar. However, the keys were really good so it didn’t matter that much. The gig at Tammerfest was a bit better soundwise. The band must have gotten their sound balanced by then.

You don’t often have the luxury of seeing your new favorite broken-up band live. I guess I got lucky - it was really cool. I wish other broken-up bands would do this as well.. Now there’s something more I’m going to blab about. As I was in the middle of this new craze a month or two ago, I of course had to find out some things about my favorites - the important being what these Tehosekoitin heroes have been doing since their old band disbanded. Levy-yhtiö’s forum revealed pretty much everything. Otto, in addition to releasing a poetry book, has been singing in a punk band called God Given Ass. I’m happy to know that Otto has continued with singing activities. He has surely made it to my gallery of favorite singers. Another thing Otto could do is sing on a solo album.

God Given Ass at MySpace

Checking out Tehosekoitin’s albums resulted in the band turning out to be more than just your average straightforward rock’n roll band - in many ways, actually. In addition to being energetic, Tehosekoitin is a true musical blender. Matti Mikkola’s knowledge led Tehosekoitin to record songs in a big variety of styles, everything from jazz to disco, punk to Motown-funk. After Tehosekoitin’s end, Mikkola founded a band called Saimaa.

Saimaa, named after Finland’s largest lake (a very national romantic name – although Mikkola’s Saimaa is not the only band with that name), might be the next big thing in Finland – at least in indie circles. Mikkola has convened a number of Finnish musicians to bring his latest vision to life. Some of the attributes that have been combined to Saimaa are symphonic/progressive rock, showtunes, and schlager. There are only a couple of samples of unfinished recordings at Saimaa’s MySpace but those clips sound really convincing. I’ve listened to them many times. The samples give evidence of big sounds and easy-going feel. Mikkola hasn’t lost his touch. On the contrary, he continues realizing his genius. I can’t wait hearing this music on a full-length album.

Saimaa at MySpace

The Swedish Mod-60s Returns

Remember when I advertised a Swedish 60s pop band called The Hep Stars last December? Soon after I wrote that, I found some statements about what the coolest Swedish 60s pop band actually was. There were surely many awesome Swedish pop bands in the 60s, and I even might blab more about some of them later… Anyway, according to my sources, the best pop band of 60s Sweden was Tages (pronounced “tah-guess”).

The story of Tages began in Gothenburg area. The guys showed some real talent at a young age and performed some covers and a lot of original material written mostly by bassist Göran Lagerberg. Their work resulted in national hits (Sleep Little Girl being the first) and, in time, legendary status as one of Sweden’s most memorable 60s pop groups as well as one of the most respected 60s bands from a non-English speaking country. Their greatest moment may have been their last psychedelic album Studio (1967). Tages were even considered to be Sweden’s answer to The Beatles. However, Tages never managed to break into international markets. The group broke up in 1968 and a new short-lived group Blond was founded.

I checked out YouTube for Tages and found quite a few songs. I would've liked to find more stuff from their later, more psychedelic period more but these songs are definitely not bad. They are actually very good (and you will find the single She's Having a Baby Now from 1967's Studio album here). Catchy songs, sweet melodies, and great harmonies added with the right attitude – perfect stuff for any 60s pop moment.

Sleep Little Girl
Every Raindrop Means a Lot
I Read You Like an Open Book
She’s Having a Baby Now
Get up an’ Get Goin’
True Fine Woman
I’ll Be Doggone
Understanding
Leaving Here
In My Dreams

Enchanted by Darkness, Once Again

Last weekend it was again time for Lumous Gothic Festival, Finland’s biggest festival that presents gothic and other types of dark music without incorporating any metal in its program. In my opinion, this is the most beautiful summer festival there is if you look at the people. The traditional historical black lace style is of course the most popular. One of the most popular styles nowadays is cybergoth – a style that utilizes futuristic outfits and huge collections of neon-colored hairpieces. However, there are practically no limitations to gothic style. Lumous doesn’t even try to be a meeting place only for goths. The festival organizers hope to reach different dark subcultures by offering a variety of performers – from industrial music and dark electronica to neo-folk.

The word lumous, according to my Finnish-English dictionary, means ‘enchantment’, ‘charm’, ‘bewitchment’, and ’spell’. I think there really is some kind of an enchantment at hand when it comes to gothic aesthetics. It’s the sublimity, the wildly adventurous, seductive punk-meets-graveyard dresscode.. And the thing with black eyeliner! I love it. I would probably put (lots of) it on everyday if I already didn’t look scary enough without any makeup..

Even though I still haven’t turned into the most eager gothic rock listener (there was a time when I listened to it quite a lot, though), I will definitely not miss a good nearby gothic festival or its performers. I attended Friday’s main concert at Klubi with a friend and friend’s friends. The performers were all interesting. The first one was called Grunt, a one-man Finnish band performing industrial noise –type of music. I’m not completely sure if it should be called music, since it really doesn’t sound like anything I would characterize as music. The experience was refreshing. For some reason, I always seem to like hearing stuff that doesn’t sound a bit like anything I tend to listen to… I can’t complain. The second act was Deviant UK, from The United Kingdom, a band that performed dark, electronic, and danceable music. It sounded good, excitingly dark, and occasionally the melodies were actually quite catchy. The gig was memorable not least thanks to their demonic-looking frontman who definitely had a plenty of charisma and energy.

The main attraction of the evening was Inkubus Sukkubus, the world’s most popular pagan rock band. The band’s music sounded to me like a mix of rock, dark pop melodies, and machine drum sounds. The band performed a nice set of songs from their 20-year-old career and some graphics presenting European pagan rituals and imagery. This band I will probably check out some time later.

The festival was again a big success. All of this year’s main concerts were sold out. I and my friend even managed to get to the national media… Ilta-Sanomat, one of Finland’s two main tabloid magazines captured us onto an internet video that dealt with the festival. Lumous is always a great experience for me – this year was the third time in a row.

Positivity, Positivity!

Before I go on to blab more about bands and music, I hereby post another music video. It is a song by Egotrippi, one of my favorite Finnish bands (which I previously discussed last October). The idea of posting this just happened to cross my mind... And since it's one of the most hilarious videos ever made, you might enjoy it even if you can't understand Finnish.

Egotrippi had been around for more than ten years before they really started to draw attention in Finland. Nowadays their albums sell well and they attract big live audiences. All in all, they are the most popular power pop band in Finland. Curiously, the band never really became popular with ultimately happy songs such as this (the song is from 1997). That says something about what kind of music Finns seem to like to hear.

And, by the way, Se on tosi jees means approximately "That's Very Cool" (In fact, "jees" means "yes", but a word-to-word translation "It's Very Yes" wouldn't sound that good..) . The song is very happy and it's about things like making the clouds disappear from the sky and not being worried.


Egotrippi at MySpace

Psychedelicious

It wasn’t an instant love affair, but I must admit - it’s getting more and more difficult for me to keep my ears off Flight of the Knife (2008), the latest album by Bryan Scary & The Shredding Tears. It was recommended “extremely highly” (or something like that…) by Bruce Brodeen, so I listened to a few soundclips. When I was finally able to find time to listen to the whole album properly, I felt like I had begun a new exciting journey.

Based on the photographs I’ve seen, Mr. Scary and his Tears’ live performance looks like a scene from an old horror movie – a pretty good reason to end up being characterized as a cinematic pop act. However, most of the people I know would probably understand the expression psychedelic rock better as a description of Scary’s psychedelicious pop-rock. You might hear echoes of Queen, ELO, XTC, and The Beatles (and I bet there are many other influences too) in the fascinating mix of psych-rock, melodic pop elements and lyrics that are practically science fiction. Personally, I have to admit that Scary’s sweet voice is also something that most certainly appeals to me (and will get me addicted to this album, I bet..).

Flight of the Knife utilizes a fairly traditional set of instruments – one of the highlights being Scary’s powerful piano work - although the experience definitely comes with many psychedelic effects, intriguing tempo changes, unpredictable song structures and other cool tricks. Thanks to those, listening to the album will certainly not get uninteresting. It is actually quite suitable to call Flight of the Knife an experience. Listening to the album is an audial adventure.

The songlist is awesome. Venus Ambassador, being good all the way, has an absolutely delicious melody part that is heard in the beginning, and then again in the end of the song. The wild rocking chorus of The Purple Rocket is another favorite moment – here you can really hear the psychedelic rock, not to mention the awesomeness of the ELO-influenced layered vocals. Imitation of the Sky rocks too: “This is the mourning of the Susie High” – Scary’s melodic genius is clear here. That phrase, along with numerous others, may actually get stuck in your head, and you'll love it. Also one of my favourites is Mama Waits - an obvious should-be hit single. It is extremely catchy, somewhat Sgt. Pepper-like, and one of the most traditionally-constructed songs on the album. The Zero Light is happy – uplifting, I’d say. The Curious Disappearance of the Sky-Ship Thunder-Man (what a title!) is a completely delicious ballad that won’t go unnoticed. Heaven on a Bird is another ballad, totally wonderful.

This album gives me an impression that Mr. Scary has found a way to realize his musical potential to the fullest. I believe it will be difficult for him to make an album even better than this one. Will he succeed anyway? Someday we’ll find out… If only his music got the attention it deserves, the world would be at least a bit better place.

Bryan Scary & The Shredding Tears at MySpace
Flight of The Knife site (listen to the album here)

[Hooray, my 100th post!]

The Best Day of Summer

As you might have guessed, I wasn't so much liberated from schoolwork after all.. Well, now I'm feeling a lot more free - no deadlines tomorrow.. In order to celebrate the current heatwave and the fact that I don't need to wear woolly socks, here is an awesome summer hit by my newest Finnish mega-favourite Tehosekoitin. This song was released in 1999 on the band's Freak Out! album. It is a song about the best day of the summer. The asphalt is really hot and the mood summery, even though the beautiful girl seems to be (curiously) missing..

Asfaltti polttaa is a perfect song for summer. The arrangement is excellent and has a lot of 60s/70s vibes. You just can't go wrong with those saxophones... This video was filmed at the Mediterranean. More about Tehosekoitin soon.

Sailing Away

My devotion towards the rock/hard rock band Styx started thanks to The Sun Sawed in 1/2, Messrs Rose and Bobenhouse, and a very, very nice song called Come Sail Away. I find it quite weird that I didn’t hear a word about this band until my favourite singer sang the song on YouTube. On the other hand, I had never heard of bands like Kansas or Foreigner either.. Except for that I most certainly was familiar with them as place names/words.

Styx ended up becoming a quite big thing for me. Their wonderful harmonies, great melodies and very grandiose style that reminds of The Who and Queen were sure to impress me big time. The band has several excellent singers – Mr. DeYoung not being my least favourite.. The guy sounds like Freddie Mercury who’s swallowed a chunk of bubblegum – and occasionally that seems to be roughly the definition of “How to become Melody Freak’s #1 favourite singing voice”.

And the songs! The harmonic and melodic quality of Lorelei and Light Up will surely brighten up any pop fan’s day – let alone the romantic ballad Babe, it’s gorgeous! Once again, we get to hear those Allman Brothers guitar sounds that we love – check out Mademoiselle (not unlike Queen!). For a rock’n roll girl like me Rock & Roll Feeling is a new theme song. Another cool song is Renegade – also provably partially performed by The Sun Sawed in 1/2 on a TV show in the early 90s.. The Grand Illusion and Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man) give you all the things a pop music fan searches for in a song – plus more. The most wonderful song, in my opinion, is The Best of Times. The title basically says it all.. Those harmonies, those melodies! On more than one occasion six minutes is not enough for a Styx song. I suppose there is a reason why this band is also considered progressive. However, when done properly, a two-minute intro won’t bother at all, and as a reward you’ll get some excellent melodies that you will never forget - definitely not a bad deal.

I was surprised that I didn’t seem to find a single familiar-sounding song in the band’s catalog. I tend to find at least one familiar song whenever I check out new (famous!) artists from the past. For a band this big it should be quite logical that there would be some familiar songs. For goodness’s sake, they have sold platinum with eight albums – and no one ever told me this band existed?

It took really long but eventually I found a Styx song I’d heard before. This is so silly.. The song is Boat on the River, and it has been performed in Finnish by schlager artist Riki Sorsa as Joki ('The River'). According to Wikipedia, it was actually performed already in the 80s by Taiska with different lyrics and name (Aamulla yksin). Can you believe that? To be honest, it’s not that strange.. Translated schlager has been a really popular concept in Finland in the past (and it still might be), although I don’t think there is a reason to translate music into Finnish. The original performance is the original, one and only. However, there is a possibility that someone might make a really good cover... Besides, almost everyone knows English these days – at least the young people.

Styx is still touring and even releasing new albums (the latest being from 2005). However, people seem to think it’s not the real Styx anymore. Original band members Dennis DeYoung and Chuck Panozzo, for instance, left the group in 1999. YouTube has many songs from the band’s 1996 Return to Paradise tour, a gig in hometown Chicago, with all living original members on stage. These are incredibly good-sounding live performances. Don’t hesitate to watch – it sounds perfect.

Lorelei
Come Sail Away
The Grand Illusion
The Best of Times
Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)
Renegade
Boat on the River
Show Me the Way

Official Styx website

Melody Freak’s Summer YouTube Jukebox

Now that I’ve been liberated from my yearly university entrance exam project (I never seem to get rid of entrance exams!) I’m able to write more often here. Even though I’m still not quite sure if this blog really is particularly useful, I will most certainly continue blabbing about my extremely subjective opinions/experiences. There are so many awesome music things yet to be told (and like a certain Mr. DeYoung once said, I can hardly wait..).

This time I’ll put here something a bit different. In order to brainwash people more effectively, I’ve been collecting videos from YouTube. Then I’ve linked them to my Facebook site so that my friends might notice them. I’ve had different hidden agendas but the most important has always been giving people music tips, spreading the word: “Why not listen to this? You may like it…” This is what I’m also going to do with you, blog reader!

So, if you’re bored or don’t have anything to do, consider watching some of my music video picks. You probably already know most of them but there is a chance you might find a nice new song to enjoy. I’d say all these songs have something to do with power pop (or jangle pop.. or at least pop). And they’re all from the 90s and 2000s.

Watching a nice video every now and then is a joy. Also, if you happen to have forgotten to take good music with you when you’re not home, you can check if there’s anything familiar on YouTube that would make you feel more comfortable - unless they have removed your favourite video due to some copyright problem. The thing with “The video you requested is not available in your country” - I don’t get it. What’s the point of music videos if music fans are not allowed to watch them?

The Videos
The Apples in Stereo: Energy
Tal Bachman: She’s So High
Brendan Benson: Metarie
Brendan Benson: Tiny Spark
Candy Butchers: You Belong to Me Now
The Churchills: Sometimes Your Best Isn’t Good Enough
Delays: Nearer Than Heaven
Gigolo Aunts: Mrs. Washington
Gigolo Aunts: Where I Find My Heaven
Hellogoodbye: Baby, It’s Fact
Locksley: Don’t Make Me Wait
Roger Joseph Manning Jr: Too Late For Us Now
The Mockers: The Emperor Strikes out Again
Lisa Mychols: Gonna Get That Boy
Nada Surf: Always Love
The New Pornographers: Sing Me Spanish Techno
Of Montreal: Requiem for O.M.M. 2
OK Go: You’re so Damn Hot
Rinaldi Sings: Come Fly With Me
Rooney: Popstars
The Rosenbergs: After All
Silver Sun: Last Day
Supergrass: Mansize Rooster
Toad the Wet Sprocket: Good Intentions

C’mon Now Baby, Baby C’mon!

I’ve finally managed to cure my SS1/2 addiction. It’s only temporary, I know, but it’s simply awesome to experience something new! You know it, it’s the feeling of discovering a new amazing band.

My new favourite Tehosekoitin comes from Finland, more specifically Lahti (originally). They were a big success in this country from mid-90s to early 2000s. At that time, especially in the late 90s, I was of course only 8-12 years old – way too young to understand the secrets of rock & roll. In the 90s I was listening to something completely different instead of bands that girls throw their panties at (I probably wouldn’t have had a clue why girls threw their underwear at some guys, but now I understand perfectly…). I was aware that there was a band called Tehosekoitin, they had several hit songs (some of which are still played on the radio), I even knew their lead singer was called Otto, and that he had long, curly, reddish hair. What I didn’t know/realize then: their music is fabulous!

I also remember year 2004 when the band broke up. However, I didn’t receive the critical stimulus until a week ago when I heard their song C’mon Baby Yeah for the second time in my life. Yes, it was the second time. The second time was important because it was a night I was spending at a club with my friends, and I thought the music wasn’t very good – too much dull 21st century disco rock. So, when C’mon Baby Yeah filled the air with its rock & roll feeling and incredibly catchy chorus the song became the best song of the evening. A few days later I decided to check out Tehosekoitin’s music. I was immediately faced with a whole variety of different styles (everything from punk to Finnish schlager!) but I liked the stuff. The songs I’d heard somewhere before (on the radio or somewhere else) sounded perfect. It was really nice to finally realize the absolute greatness of songs like Kaikki nuoret tyypit, Valonkantaja, Pillitä Elli pillitä, Hetken tie on kevyt – and Asfaltti polttaa, one of the most absolutely perfect summer songs I’ve ever heard, and it sounds just like The Rubettes.

Tehosekoitin started in the early 1990s as a punk band. Later their musical style was influenced by lots of styles (including psychedelic rock, blues, country, disco, jazz etc) and the songs occasionally had wind instruments and/or big string arrangements. The singing language was Finnish (except on their last album it was English). Most of their lyrics were written by lead singer Otto Grundström, and composing was Matti Mikkola’s job. The first album Rock’n Roll was released in 1994. Their breakthrough hit was C’mon Baby Yeah from their 1997 album Köyhät syntiset. The name Tehosekoitin means blender, since the band wanted a name that would represent speed and energy. The band will play half a dozen festival reunion gigs in Finland this summer. You know who will be there…

In 2002, Tehosekoitin released an album in English under the name The Screamin’ Stukas. The songs were new versions of their hits and other popular songs. The band also apparently toured The Brits and elsewhere in Europe but the success was minor. What a shame! I think they are a lot more interesting band than, say, The Rasmus. Also, the English album, A Lotta Rhythm, is really good. You can say that it’s their greatest hits in English.

I noticed there are no Screamin’ Stukas videos on YouTube (but lots in Finnish). There are, however, some copies of A Lotta Rhythm CD at Amazon, for example. I would be a lot happier if there were Screamin’ Stukas videos on YouTube or MySpace (and English-speaking people would understand the lyrics), but, on the other hand, there are a lot of people who listen to rock music sung in Japanese... I suppose Finnish language is just as exotic as Japanese.

Here are some Tehosekoitin hits and other cool songs, some of which come with music videos.

Asfaltti polttaa
C’mon Baby Yeah (a bit incomplete in the beginning – hear the song in its entirety here)
Kaikki nuoret tyypit
Lentää lentokoneetta
Maailma on sun
Valonkantaja
Hetken tie on kevyt
Syön sipsejä
Fiksu ja kypsä (awesome live TV performance)

The Winner Is… Norway!

The Eurovision Song Contest is over. Norway, represented by young Alexander Rybak took the first price and highest ESC score ever (387 points) with the song Fairytale. The song is really good, folk-influenced (I'd say it also sounds Slavic), melancholic, melodic, and soundwise dominated by violins and Rybak’s fairly sweet voice. What makes this victory special is that the winning song is actually good from beginning to end – something that is, in my opinion, nowadays not very common in this contest. Rybak is now getting really famous also outside Norway with his song topping download charts. In his home country, Rybak has already made Fairytale a hit with massive sales. The song is written by him, so you gotta give him a couple of extra points for that.

Finland made its way to the finals but Waldo’s People’s placement was 25th – the last. I think the placement was pretty justified. The song definitely wasn’t the best our country could provide but, on the other hand, this wasn’t the first time when Finns have been very wrong about what Europe might like to hear. Finland has so far collected several placements as the last – and only one victory. What did we hopefully learn this year? You don’t win with 90s Eurodance anymore and rapping will definitely not help. How could you make an impression with rhythmic talking instead of introducing a gorgeous melody that will sweetly caress your eardrums with melodic variation? (Something that I’ve been wondering ever since hip hop became very popular.) And, after all, I didn’t want Waldo’s People to represent Finland. My favourite was Vink!

After all, I am happy, and I hope all other Finns are as well, that a neighbouring country won. See and hear Norway’s winning song at YouTube. Rybak probably would have liked to play his violin for real, but in this contest all instrument except for vocals are playback. Also, these days there are hardly any Eurovision contestants without a proper dance choreography!

Rybak's winning song at YouTube

Music for Summer Dusk

This thing came to me pretty much out of the blue and I'm really happy I decided to check out what this music sounds like. It immediately turned out to be a really nice find.

Pinstripe 45's are a quite new group led by Chicago-based multi-instrumentalist Marshall Hanbury Jr. The music could be described as acoustic folk-pop. It is an interesting mixture of bittersweetness, darkness and light added with folky arrangements and frequent presence of harmony vocals. Hanbury's narrative, moment-capturing songs are, according to Pinstripe 45's MySpace, influenced by the likes of Donovan and Bob Dylan. I'd say Hanbury's style could also be compared to the melancholy of Jim Ellison or Jesse Valenzuela. Good melodies mix with sincerity and organic insrumentation in Pinstripe 45's music.

The group has a new digitally released EP out. It's called Studies in Timing and Coincidence (2008) – a very solid package of good songs, emotion and sounds of acoustic guitar, moderate percussion and viola. These songs (such as Waiting on Your Words and Follow Me Down Once Again) sound like an exploration of day turning into the night: they are atmospheric and generally quite dark but also joyous in their melodic quality. I'd say Pinstripe 45's is very suitable music for summer nights. I'm looking forward to hearing what Hanbury and his band come up with in the future.

Listen to Pinstripe 45s at MySpace. You'll hear the EP there, as well as a few other nice tracks.

Pinstripe 45's at MySpace

Rock & Soul

It’s time for some more juicy Finnish music! Personally, I think Finnish indie bands should be given a bit more attention. I have, for example, witnessed a few dozen gigs too many that were musically awesome but basically no one saw/heard them since no one was there.. I guess people don’t go to see bands that easily if they haven’t even heard of the band before. You gotta start somewhere when you get to know new music, though. I think live gigs are often a nice way to check out new bands.

The problem of unknownness may not be that serious when it comes to Damn Seagulls who have just released their third album Hunting Season. They have been in music magazines, received positive reviews, and people even go to see them live. Damn Seagulls are not the most familiar band to me yet, but I definitely intend to do something about that. Their music has been characterized as alternative rock – and soul rock, thanks to their second album Soul Politics that came out in 2007.

Damn Seagulls have a quite generous selection of music at Last.fm. There are two freely downloadable tracks from the new album, and you can stream every song on their first two albums. I haven’t listened to their first effort One Night at Sirdie’s much yet but I know it is soundwise their most garagey album. The second album Soul Politics shows a renewed band with soul. The album is melodic and lovely, it even includes those really cool wind instruments. I am going to listen to the album a lot more than I have so far. And at some point I will most certainly listen to the new album! (Right now I have about 50 albums waiting to be listened to..)


Hunting Season (2009)
two freely downloadable songs

Music video for Libertine





Soul Politics (2007)
stream here

Music video for Something About It
Music video for Human Torch




One Night at Sirdie’s (2004)
stream here






Damn Seagulls at MySpace
Damn Seagulls Website

The Band They Couldn't Hang

Yes, “The band they couldn’t hang” still seems to be the catchphrase of Finnish indie pop act Red Carpet even though they called it quits in the end of year 2007. I myself witnessed their lovely goodbye gig in Helsinki on November 28th. All in all, I saw the band about five times and it was always such a thrill to hear those beautiful melodies and harmonies.

During its existence, Red Carpet brought two fine pop albums to the world: Halfway (2003) and The Noise of Red Carpet (2005). I’ve especially concentrated on the latter, and it really is a solid album of melancholic, gentle, uplifting, and charming guitar pop. The band's music has been compared to Teenage Fanclub, Buffalo Springfield, CSNY and Simon & Garfunkel, for example.

Why I actually decided to write about Red Carpet was that I noticed they have quite many songs at Last.fm – and they’re free downloads! So, go there and hear the absolutely fabulous and gentle songs Blood Sweat and Tears, When You Sing, Golden Days, Reminder, and the amazing baroque pop beauty of Sigh. Sigh, indeed... And don’t forget to listen to the oh-so-lovely song about every 9-year-old boy’s favorite moment, My First Goal! All these songs are from The Noise of Red Carpet album.

Also go to their MySpace, you’ll find a couple of other tracks there, including a cover of Finnish electropop duo Viola’s Sad Eyed Disco Dancers, and a song from their farewell CD single The Band They Couldn't Hang (2007), a song called Death of a Band.

Red Carpet band members have continued making music in other projects. Veli Kauppinen has a project called Tolbiac, and Petri Nakari makes sweet pop tunes as The Wonderminers. It’s really great that such talented guys keep up the good work, even though Red Carpet is no longer among us.

Red Carpet at Last.fm (free downloads)
Red Carpet at MySpace
Tolbiac at MySpace
The Wonderminers at MySpace