Albums

Elifantree & Tölöläb: Blood Moon

You are the most exquisite thing…”

As a result of a week in residence in Kallio-Kuninkala, Järvenpää Finland at Meidän Festivaali/Our Festival 2018, ”Blood Moon”, a collaborative album of Elifantree and Tölöläb came into existence.

The recording of ”Blood Moon” took place while a historical heat wave took Finland over in the late July 2018. The last bits were taped by the time of the lunar eclipse on Friday, 27th July. The group followed closely the development of the stellar Blood Moon -phenomenon by the Lake Tuusula.

Another linear analogy can be found in the structure of the album itself: the first track, ’Great Whales’ is in fact the first take of the session, while Queen Ant the two stars from Orion’s Belt on the bottom of the B-side, ’Alnitak’ and ’Mintaka’ together are the final quarter an hour of the last session, uncut.

This album connects with the universe mainly in two ways: through the astounding feeling of being under the sky, in space, in your body as a part of something virtually infinite, and through the dilemma of SOUL. The simultaneous lunar eclipse illustrated perfectly the feeling of looking at the world and following its moves. The soul moves freely in space and possibly connects with the stars behind the moon for instance: ”Into the body, out of body”.

Certainly, the trail of Elifantree & Tölöläb was blazed by the incredibly strong feeling of being close to homes of remarkable artists who resided in the Lake Tuusula area, Jean Sibelius among others. The music on the album is completely improvised and feeling connected with the alleged spirit of the area was extremely valuable for us in the process.

The substance and meaning of the SOUL was the theme of the festival and was the steam of our conversation and musical communication during our week of residence. Why, where and how do we connect with our soul, does it ever connect with other souls? Are we all part of the ONE? Will anything remain after the lights are turned off in the natural world?

Meriheini Luoto: Metsänpeitto 2

Metsänpeitto 2 is a sequel to Meriheini Luoto’s critically acclaimed debut album Metsänpeitto. It’s based on Finnish folklore about a belief that one can become lost in the forest to the point of being transported beyond the borders of this reality. It’s a binaural recording and recommended to listen with headphones.

Meriheini Luoto, violin, voice
Maija Holopainen, violin, voice
Noora Kauppila, voice, flutes, percussion
Minna Koskenlahti, percussion, flutes, voice
Tiina Louneva, violin, voice
Iida Savolainen, viola, violin, percussion, voice
Mirva Soininen, voice
Mirva Tarvainen, violin, voice

Produced by Taavi Oramo and Meriheini Luoto

Recorded and engineered by Kaj Mäki-Ullakko

Taavi oramo & Matleena Nyman: Brahms&Lindberg

Johannes Brahms: Clarinet Sonata No. 1

Johannes Brahms: Clarinet Sonata No. 2

Magnus Lindberg: Acequia Madre