finnish

Here’s the coolest lounge jazz album I’ve ever heard in a long time, from a little known sixties band The Stance Brothers. Teppo “Teddy Rok” Mäkynen the drummer of The Five Corners Quintet and its leader on stage and also sideman for Jukka Eskola and Timo Lassy is also an established producer.

I’ve first heard of Kuusumun’s name on a compilation called Jazzflora from 2004. Although the comp had lovely music from the likes of Hird, Five Corners Quintet & Kahuun, Profeetta’s brushed downtempo opener Kovin Lentäen Kotiin Kaipaanon had rendered me unable to listen to the remaining songs.

I mentioned the Finnish folk/nujazz band Korpi Ensemble on yesterday’s radioshow review, yet just to show you how much I love this song, I featured it once again, so make sure you listen to it. Vocalist Johanna Iivanainen’s singing is very emotional, but of the inspirational and lively kind rather than the melancholic.