NIMI MUUTETTU

Since this was the first prog related album I bought and liked, aside from some metal stuff, I thought it would be appropriate to start my reviewing career off with this one (actually I've already done one, but that was a long time ago and I wasn't registered). Absoluuttinen Nollapiste had been traveling from their weird progpoprock towards more straightforward songwriting with every album since Muovi Antaa Periksi (the notable exception being the Suljettu's magnum opus Suvannossa Ylpeä Ilme) and Nimi Muutettu is widely regarded as their "pop" masterpiece before returning to prog with Mahlanjuoksuttaja released last year.

The album opens with beautiful piano & flute interplay, which is a combination heard frequently on the following tracks along with a hint of hard rock here, some moody keyboards there and more traditional proggish rock sound in between. The album is very much dominated by Aki Lääkkölä's wonderful guitar and piano work and the guest starring flute adds a great flavor throughout the album. The thing that sadly gets lost on foreigners is Tommi Liimatta's lyrics, highly respected in the Finnish not-the-most- mainstream rock scene. With his original laconic voice he sings powerful or sometimes just funnily weird lines on topics such as giving artificial respiration to a lamb, childhood swimming trips, divorce, political revolution and mr. God Almighty himself.

If you are a Finnish prog fan and for some reason have not yet gotten to know this band, you definitely should do so, because this is an excellent album by any standards. If you are a foreigner and not afraid to try some more exotic stuff for a change, this could be a very fine album to try out.