UNIRYTMEJÄ

This debut album by hungry young Finns includes a few compositions by different bandmembers, and a couple of tracks credited for the whole group, that sound very much like being based around some improvisation sessions. Most of the tracks are completely instrumental, only the first one has some lyrics and a couple of the later tracks feature some wordless singing.

Highlights of the album include the second track Sydämen suljettu yrttitarha, which is a long, sort of mirage-era-camelish instrumental jam travelling through many moods and landscapes. Very good performance by the keyboardist Hannu Kuosmanen, whose composition the song is. Another standout track and my personal favorite is Poliisien kesäkoti, an upbeat, almost funny soundtrack to an inner sleeve childlike drawing of a summer home to policemen (the song title in English). Again some strong camelish melodies, it just comes to an end too soon, being only three and a half minutes long.

With a few more songs of that standard the album could be a great one, but rest of the tracks seem to lack some character these two have. Vesikävelijät valtaavat altaat and Häiritsevä kaktus are fine compositions, the latter especially having some very good moments, but both drag on a bit too long, while the opening track Alue, containing some English lyrics despite its Finnish title, feels a bit out of place with it's quirky grooves and to my ears somehow unpleasant vocal delivery. The free form tracks resemble some of the Absoluuttinen Nollapiste's improvisation stuff found on their single b-sides.

A good and promising start from this young band, but I believe they're up to bigger things in the future. After seeing a couple of great gigs I'm pretty sure they are.