hertta lussu ässä

hertta lussu ässä ~ s/t (de stijl 2011)

"Kuupuu (Jonna Karanka), Lau Nau (Laura Naukkarinen) and Islaja (Merja Kokkonen),  all together in one band - it's like the dreamiest Aquarius daydream come true! All three of these ladies have been responsible for some of the most mystical and beautiful recordings of the last few years, all of which have become permanent favorites with everyone here. Lau Nau, and Islaja's recent recordings have shown them moving toward a more direct approach in their songwriting, but this project really lets all of these ladies dig deep into their textured, experimental roots.

It's a bit like listening to a seance happening miles away. Distant and subtle rumblings, murmurs, and gently conjured spells. One of those records that you can't identify what instruments/electronics are being used, with many of the sound sources seeming to be drawn from nature. Hertta Lussu Ässä use their voices as another haunting instrument that glides in and out of these four long tracks. It has us thinking of the Jewelled Antler crew performing an Arvo Part piece, or Grouper and Hala Strana collaborating on the soundtrack to a pagan solstice ceremony. Completely breathtaking!" aquarius records

...y poco más puedo añadir a lo que nos cuenta aquarius. la emoción en estado puro. dicen que este nuevo disco de islaja, laura y jonna es como un sueño hecho realidad. jewelled antler interpretando una pieza de arvo part, o grouper y hala strana colaborando en la banda sonora de una ceremonia pagana. tan sólo añadiré que las risas, murmullos, susurros, palmas, flautas, maullidos y pianos, convierten a estas cuatro canciones nana en otro disco familiar y acogedor del que no quieres salir. y que jewelled antler y finlandia es lo mejor que le ha pasado a la música en los últimos diez años. alabados sean por siempre ^^

foto via jesse treece

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kuupuu

kuupuu ~ lumen tädhen (time~lag 2009)

"although finlander jonna karanka has been slowly leaking out little kuupuu jewels for six years now, somehow it’s taken just that long to materialize her first ‘proper’ album. maybe it has something to do with the time she’s devoted to her beautiful artwork, or her time spent in a highly impressive string of other bands, included Hertta Lussu Assa (with Islaja and Lau Nau), Anaksimandros, Avarus, and many others… but, you know, i always figured kuupuu music didn’t have much to do with ‘time’ anyway. it’s music from another reality, to put it bluntly. a beautiful place no doubt, but somehow totally other. you could call this music a lot of things, all without really saying much… post-everything? pre-birth folk? bedtime acid-art? naive avant-garde loop witchcraft? maybe something like a thousand memories & vague images folded into each other and spooled out infinitely like a sloppy film loop…now play backwards in slow motion… surreal might just be an understatement… " time~lag

foto: roraadear

listen, the snow is falling...

 

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(gracias toxinho)

kuupuu

kuupuu - unilintu (dekorder, lp 2007)

..y de nuevo Kuupuu. el año pasado el sello alemán Dekorder editaba 'Yökehrä', primer recopilatorio con demos y canciones inéditas, esparcidas en cdr's y cassettes, de la incansable Jonna Karanka (fotógrafa, pintora y componente de Hertta Lussu Assa junto a Islaja y Lau Nau). este año vuelve a hacer los mismo con 'Unilintu', segundo volumen que reúne el resto de canciones editadas entre el 2002 y el 2005. como ocurre con Es, Sala-Arhimo o Kemialliset Ystavat, siempre faltan las palabras a la hora de definir su música. un bellísimo folk sensual y pausado en el que Jonna utiliza su voz como un arma llena de recovecos, despejando el camino, eliminando barreras y dejando que los instrumentos planeen con total libertad. parte de su encanto es esa voz que parece irreal, y esa sencillez que desarma por su ingenuidad y despreocupación, llena de miniaturas juguetonas, de nanas asilvestradas e imaginativas, de pianos, pío píos, flautas desafinadas y campanillas de baratillo, de grabaciones de campo, de alegrías y contraluces, de superficies mullidas, de notas y melodías trenzadas una y otra vez con una disciplina indisciplinada, y un talento tan evidente que pone los pelos de punta. como dice Stephan Bauer, cada vez es más obvia la necesidad de que estas grabaciones no caigan en el olvido, y lo único que se echa de menos ahora es material nuevo de Kuupuu.

filed under: portadas que te alegran la vida y canciones por las cuales existe este blog

"...pieces like “Myrskylaulu” which was taken from the most recent cdr “Kulta Sulta” are pretty spooky. You hear some thunder in the background and Karanka´s double-tracked voice over a picked guitar melody, and the mood seems not as positive as on some of her other tracks. The same goes for the instantly following piano piece “Onnenkuelaa”. It´s a good thing that there are also tracks like the nature sound filled “Linnut”, the deeply meditative “Lintupolku” or the acapella track “Taivaankotiin” that are more soothing for the soul.

Overall, it´s impossible to say that either “Yökehrä” or “Unilintu” is the better of the two releases. Both LPs taken together can definitely considered classic releases from the Finnish underground that seems to have slown down a bit regarding the speed with which releases had been put out in 2005 and the first half of 2006. While listening to “Unilintu”, it becomes more and more obvious that those lo-fi cdr's and the cassette with Kuupuu tracks just had to be saved from being forgotten. The only thing that´s missing now is new material by Kuupuu. 9/10" foxy digitalis

linnut (mp3 sample)

myrskylaulu (mp3 sample)

lintupolku (mp3 sample)

piupiu (mp3 sample)

kuupuu

kuupuu - yokehra (dekorder, lp 2006)

recopilatorio de algunas canciones de sus primeras grabaciones: "Sateen Suutelemat" en Nidnod, "I Can Walk the Earth" en Foxglove y los 3 cdr's autoeditados. otra portada mágica de Jonna Karanka...

'Jonna Karanka aka Kuupuu is one of the main movers of the (deservedly) much hyped Finnish Psychedelic Free Folk scene. Originally hailing from Tampere she is known as a core member of Avarus, Anaksimandros, Kukkkiva Poliisi and Maniacs Dream. Additionally, she has recently started Hertta Lussu Ässä with Lau Nau and Islaja and has collaborated with Tomutonttu (aka Jan Anderzen of Kemialliset Ystävät) and Paavi (as Lussu ja Paavi).
"Yökehrä" is the first of two vinyl-only LP's on Dekorder compiling the best material from her first four CD-R and cassette releases, all of which immediately became sought after collector's items, fetching ridiculous prices on eBay.

This LP is a beautiful collection of haunting (sometimes spooky) home baked freeform folk songs, incorporating strange lo-fi loops, vocal drones and psychedelic cut-ups, made using weirdly tuned plucked and strummed strings, bells, clattery percussion, unidentifiable wind instruments, backwards tape loops and a ton of other noisemakers all played and recorded by herself; accompanied by her distinctive voice (often looped and layered) with vocals sung and whispered in her native Finnish language, making the whole atmosphere even more haunting and mysterious. Jonna Karanka creates an intimate space where the listener feels like sitting next to her in a small chamber or outside in the woods where Kuupuu sings a lullaby just for them.'

sounds like: 'late night lullabies for forest folk'