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ESA KOTILAINEN

Progressive Electronic • Finland


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Esa Kotilainen picture
Esa Kotilainen biography
Born in 1946

Esa KOTILAINEN is one of the most notorious keyboard players coming from Finland. He notably made his reputation due to his envolvement in the bands WIGWAM and TASAVALLAN PRESIDENTTI. In 1977 he recorded a solo album for pure electronics. In itself the album alternates complex plastic electro-acoustic sounds with kosmische mantric synth waves. A remarkable effort which also includes subtle cryptical/mystical flavours and metaphors.

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ESA KOTILAINEN discography


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ESA KOTILAINEN top albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

3.90 | 10 ratings
Ajatuslapsi
1977
3.33 | 3 ratings
Esa Kotilainen & Nils-Aslak Valkeapää: Eanan, Eallima Eadni
1989
3.00 | 1 ratings
Aamu Joella
1995
3.00 | 1 ratings
Turpeisen Baari
2003
4.03 | 5 ratings
Turquoise Planet
2009
3.00 | 1 ratings
-51°C
2010
4.00 | 2 ratings
Soiva Tehdas
2011
2.09 | 3 ratings
Perhosniitty
2013
3.33 | 3 ratings
Ulappa
2015
4.00 | 2 ratings
Tellus
2019
3.95 | 2 ratings
Unisali
2021

ESA KOTILAINEN Live Albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

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ESA KOTILAINEN Boxset & Compilations (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

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ESA KOTILAINEN Reviews


Showing last 10 reviews only
 Unisali by KOTILAINEN,  ESA album cover Studio Album, 2021
3.95 | 2 ratings

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Unisali
Esa Kotilainen Progressive Electronic

Review by Matti
Prog Reviewer

4 stars Esa Kotilainen (b. 1946) is the most established Finnish synthesizer maestro. In recent years he has released synth- centred solo albums in a steadier pace than ever before, undoubtedly due to receiving an artist's pension in 2011. This new album has a reference to his debut Ajatuslapsi (1977), which was a groundbreaking work in the Finnish music scene: one could say it was the first Finnish ambient album, entirely realized by Kotilainen. That album's first side consists of a multi-part piece titled 'Unisalissa' (= In a Dream Hall), so Unisali can be seen as some sort of a sequel. However, this time he's accompanied by bassist Lauri Porra and drummer Anssi Nykänen, both top musicians of their instrument in Finland.

The 55-minute disc -- 'Himalaja' (10:47) is omitted on the vinyl version -- mostly consists of rather short tracks, many of them shorter than two minutes, but the whole progresses seamlessly. During listening it's difficult to be on the map of the individual tracks, and practically pointless too, unless you wish to follow the verbalized level of the musical journey instead of just listening to the music as music only. Here's some of the Finnish titles translated: 'Return to the Dream Hall', 'The Gate', 'The Guard', 'The Window', 'Dream of the Electric Bird', 'Electric Bird Garden'.

The continuation of the first five brief tracks is marvelous. The presence of the powerful rhythm section works extremely well together with Kotilainen's spacey and otherwordly synth soundscapes. You could think of the late 70's TANGERINE DREAM at their closest to progressive rock (albums such as Force Majeure) as one stylistic reference, but this album sounds completely timeless and original, not retro. Whereas Kotilainen's debut album was mostly atonal and minimalistic, this music incorporates melodies and rhythms effectively.

The sixth track titled 'Ystävä' (= Friend) is, against its title, almost hostile to the ears with the brutal and rather ugly synth wailing that goes on irritatingly over four minutes. After that the sonic journey continues with mysteriously suggestive tracks 'Luola' (= The Cave) and 'Lintuluonto' (= Bird Nature). Porra's bass is very enjoyable on the latter. Birdsong is used also on the beginning of the following relaxed and dreamy track. For some reason tracks 9 and 10 are marked separately even though they're practically of the very same piece. Not that it really matters in the end, but the album could have just as well been divided in only a few tracks since the whole is a pretty seamless continuation.

The two final tracks get more meditative within their 9-11 minute lengths, slightly in the way both Vangelis and Kitaro have occasionally been within their longer tracks. New Age flavoured 'Kohti linnunrataa' (= Towards the Galaxy) has nice crystalline synth sounds while 'Himalaja' is in my opinion a bit tiresome and over-extended with its improvisatory synth soloing.

All in all Unisali is a great, adventurous and warmly recommendable work of electronic music with bass and drums guesting, even though the few weaker moments (especially the unpleasant 'Ystävä') drop my rating to four stars.

 Tellus by KOTILAINEN,  ESA album cover Studio Album, 2019
4.00 | 2 ratings

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Tellus
Esa Kotilainen Progressive Electronic

Review by Matti
Prog Reviewer

4 stars Spacey electronic ambient from the Finnish maestro.

Sadly there are very few reviews here for the discography of Esa Kotilainen. At least a Finnish prog-oriented listener most likely knows him, both from his solo performances and albums (1977's seminal Ajatuslapsi and many electro/ambient albums released mostly in this Millenium) and from his memberships in Wigwam and Tasavallan Presidentti/ Jukka Tolonen's solo albums. Here in Finland Kotilainen is the most legendary figure in the electronic music. Admittedly the PA reviewing activity for electronic music artists in general -- apart from the biggest names such as Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze -- is very minimal, so I don't know how well known Kotilainen is abroad, but his music is universal and should appeal to friends of the genre all over the world.

Tellus contains five tracks, four of them between 10:00 and 14:13 in length. Esa Kotilainen and his vast arsenal of synthesizers is accompanied by Anssi Nykänen on drums (tracks 1-4), plus two guest appearances. The opening title track is the longest one. The steady, light drum pattern is gradually joined by various keyboards building the sonic landscape bigger and spacier. This is a marvelous, majestic piece full of gorgeous synth layers. It is also emotionally powerful like Vangelis (albums such as El Greco) but without the similar openly romantic touch. If you enjoy ambient-oriented electronic artists such as Steve Roach, Mergener/Weisser, Richard Burmer, Kevin Braheny, Constance Demby, etc., I bet you'll greatly enjoy this album.

The track titles lead the listener's mind to space. This music would sound excellent on a space documentary or on a space-themed movie, but it definitely stands on its own as a listening experience. The rhythmic patterns do not vary very much within the compositions and yet the pieces have a strong sense of dynamics and progression -- in a more economic form than on most music of Klaus Schulze.

'Spacetrash' is a collaboration with the prog keyboardist and producer Matti Kervinen. It has a trance-like repetitive pattern on the bottom, and plenty of delicate sonic variety on top of it. Some of the synth and mellotron (Memotron) sounds are very beautiful, occasionally reminding of the mid-70's Tangerine Dream. 'Blood Moon' features the bass of Lauri Porra. The keyboards are again used very diversely, giving the piece a distinctively progressive feel that the presence of both drums and bass are helping to create. The shortest track in the end is titled 'Plejades' (6:45). The very cinematic sense of space is lovely.

Tellus is a wonderful and highly recommendable album of spacey and cinematic electronic music.

 Turquoise Planet by KOTILAINEN,  ESA album cover Studio Album, 2009
4.03 | 5 ratings

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Turquoise Planet
Esa Kotilainen Progressive Electronic

Review by Matti
Prog Reviewer

4 stars I have found it quite hard to enjoy some of ESA KOTILAINEN's recent albums, but this is a happy exception. By the way, this Finnish keyboardist legend - who has played in Wigwam since Nuclear Nightclub (1975) and on the albums and gigs of dozens of other artists, in addition to his own distinctive one-man band discography starting from the seminal Ajatuslapsi (1977) - is again actual as his new album is arriving to shops. Turquoise Planet is the most enjoyable Progressive Electronic album I've heard for a long time. Inspired by the untouched nature of our blue-green planet, or more precisely, the arctic nature, it contains plenty of melodicism and - what's the most important - emotion to keep the listener charmed, and the multilayered sounds from his massive keyboard arsenal are pure joy to friends of VANGELIS, TANGERINE DREAM, J-M. JARRE, STEVE ROACH etc. In the liner notes Mr. Robert Moog is given special thanks "for inventing such a fabulous instrument".

The album includes seven tracks between 3½ and 11 minutes in length, all of them interesting. 'Jääpuikko' (= Icicle) is majestically slow, and in its brightness it paints icy images. Slightly reminiscent of "Antarctica" soundtrack by Vangelis. The 8½-minute title track sounds pretty orchestral. 'Sumuinen uni' (= Foggy dream) is also a slowish track. The melancholic accordeon sound arriving in the halfway is a nice addition into the otherwise quite Berlin school oriented sound. 'Korpi' (= Backwoods) begins with dryly experimental screechy sounds but for the latter half it returns to the more normal synth music expression.

To summarize, there's usually the steady, pulsative low level and the upper level with wailing notes and ghostly Moog decorations. This album is less pop-flavoured - and averagely notably slower - than the usual JARRE stuff but much more compact than the likes of KLAUS SCHULZE. He's not as romantic and soft as the latter-day VANGELIS, which may be a good thing to many listeners. He doesn't actually sound like any particular artist, but on the other hand this music wouldn't strike you as something very unexpected in the high quality nature documents on TV. I noticed that it makes a greater impression when listened with headphones after you've put yourself into bed for night-sleep, than with less concentrated listening in daytime. If you give it your full attention, it may lead you to fascinating inner movies.

 Turquoise Planet by KOTILAINEN,  ESA album cover Studio Album, 2009
4.03 | 5 ratings

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Turquoise Planet
Esa Kotilainen Progressive Electronic

Review by Anon-E-Mouse

4 stars Kotilainen is a veteran of the Finnish Prog music scene, whose contribution to many of credible artist's works span about four decades. A solo artist, he is much less adored and perhaps there is a reason for that.

Embracing rather minimalist approaches as a one-man band, he is prone to be held hostage to rather mid-Winter Arctic images, "The Big Sleep" I was fortunate to experience a number of times visiting friends living beyond the Arctic Circle. At =40C when the snow appears pink - for lack of Sun and your nose is on the verge of breaking off, observing the scene from a relative comfort of a "shelter" is an experience to remember. The stillness of that "Big Sleep".

It seems that Kotilainen had become captive of that scenery expressed in musical terms where one album would have been sufficient before boredom would set in.

This album is a pleasant relief, invoking early Tangerine Dream approaches of "cosmic" nature and fans of that period may find it interesting - albeit delivered by a single artist, lacking team effort. 3.5 rounded up.

 Perhosniitty by KOTILAINEN,  ESA album cover Studio Album, 2013
2.09 | 3 ratings

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Perhosniitty
Esa Kotilainen Progressive Electronic

Review by Matti
Prog Reviewer

2 stars Sigh... Esa Kotilainen has a unique history as one of the leading keyboard players in the Finnish popular music scene (he has played on dozens of artists' albums from Wigwam to Hector), and as a solo artist he's best remembered for his debut album Ajatuslapsi, which is very esoteric electronic progressive music. I haven't heard his later recordings which, if I understood, are also more or less experimental, inspired by factories or deep frost or whatever. Now, what do I get with his latest offering? Instrumental easy-listening music with a steady rhythm, starring an accordeon! Rather similar to some of Anssi Tikanmäki's music, but less powerful in imagery or melodies.

Tracks like 'Fossiili' are even irritating and monotonous. I wonder if an average accordeon-music listener will enjoy this either, because apart from a couple of nostalgic tunes, it's not exactly typical in that field at all. That is, not very danceable (perhaps a virtue in our context), but nothing special instead either, to grab the listener. Some close-to-the-nature kind of a person could use this album as a background music to some creative doings. Only few tracks are more enjoyable; 'Vuono Sininen' (Fjord Blue) has a nice laid back, by-the-lakeside atmosphere, and drummer Anssi Nykänen's contribution sounds good before the percussion-free, meditative section that gets a bit boring.

Here and there one hears interesting originality in handling the accordeon and adding some light moog or mellotron, but the compositions are rather half-baked. Overall, simply forget this one, even if you're among the seemingly few PA members who have found Kotilainen's former works fascinating.

 Ajatuslapsi by KOTILAINEN,  ESA album cover Studio Album, 1977
3.90 | 10 ratings

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Ajatuslapsi
Esa Kotilainen Progressive Electronic

Review by Guldbamsen
Special Collaborator Retired Admin

4 stars Spiritual Labyrinth

Music can be such a powerful thing. It can literally sweep you off your feet and catapult you into the most treacherous and bewildering of places, where you struggle to find heads or tales to anything. Reality suddenly looses all meaning - and meaning itself becomes something like a little red bunny speaking in Japanese with a voice like the roaring exhaust pipe of a racing red Yahama motorcycle. BRRRWWWUUOOOOWWWWNNN BRRUUOOOWWWWN - why don't you.

Take this record for instance: No matter how many times I listen to it, I fluctuate between zig zagging down to the great pyramid of Giza - roaming the endless yellow corridors of sand and whirling dust, and then swooping effortlessly up in a marvellous futuristic elevator, that kindly scoops me up like a contourless gulp of lard only to wuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiihhh straight up in the everlasting black infinity of space. I am completely helpless of course - there's really nothing much I can do about it, but that's the thing: it feels good to feel helpless and insignificant compared to the mighty empire of surrounding entities such as nature, space and beyond. Music can, if you're lucky, demonstrate this powerful and humbling experience, which both makes you tiny and frail, but also significantly larger than yourself and your doings - pointing you towards a greater understanding of all these red lines running through our solar system - connecting dots, people, incidents, stars and matter. I feel this bond intensely whenever I listen to Ajatuslapsi.

I've been thinking about the next natural thing to write about - in this my small but invigorating Finnish review excursion, and that is to highlight a shining beacon of electronic sound, that had a huge part in both Tasavallan Presidentti and Wigwam's success. Esa Kotilainen is the man's name, and he additionally played on Jukka Tolonen's solo albums, as well as cementing himself as one of the first Finnish musicians to master the terrifying robotic scope of the moog. It's not like you can hear where this man started - that he openly transcribed his input from those early days within Wigwam and TP, no no. Instead of capitalising on efforts of past and producing a melodic jazz rock dominated affair with heaps of swirling organs, he opted for a difficult to digest, labyrinthian, obscure and introvert sound to cover his debut album in.

I'll go ahead and start my musical translation by saying that this probably isn't for everyone, but to call it avant-garde is also kind of missing the plot by a considerable amount. The first cut Unilassa should be the perfect example of this methinks. It starts things off with some harmonic swirling organ winds that in time are transformed into a tiny whispering note, that now becomes the very ground on which a synthesizer commences its melodic four noted serenade. Things turn for the electronic and move towards the early Berlin School of sound, to which I'm reminded of both Tangerine Dream's Ricochet and Schulze's tantalizing Timewind. These are however only small hints - tiny fragmented scents of Germany, for what this piece does next is beyond any sort of musical comparison. It's here you get delivered the giant pyramid of Giza in all of its splendour - shining like a glistening sand ruby. The music incorporates a few Arabian scaled notes into the proceedings - done with such an impeccable touch that it almost transforms into an electronic styled fugue from the outskirts of the Egyptian desert. You then get snippets of organ and wonderfully shimmering string electronics that sound like the reflection of a white sun in a streaming river. Ending back in the north the piece shape-shifts and gives off a distinct folk vibe with the add on of the accordion and a Finnish instrument called a Kantale. It's beautiful and disturbing all at once. It deceives you in a good and entrancing way, and I personally feel as if I could sleep for a week after this sonic maze comes to an end.

The next couple of pieces all display Esa's imaginative take on music. He deliberately seeks the difficult and loose in music, but then again it never sounds forced or 'academic'. He knows what he wants, even if the music has a way of sneaking up on him in slow multiplying masquerades. I guess you could call this sonic shadow-boxing. He opens himself up to these panoramic inclinations and then develops the musical image en route. It sure sounds like that anyways...

Another little thing which I personally think is downright brilliant, is the manner in which bird tweets are glued onto the second track. They suddenly fill up the musical space like a huge natural being - only to be replaced by black ominous synth burps plodding, fluttering - sounding like a regular robot out of Mordor. Again, it shows a musician unafraid to jump from one extreme to the other, and in doing so he actually shapes the thing that makes him stand out from a hundred late 70s electronic artists.

All of these pieces could be considered as meditations on themes, orchestrated bewilderings - loosing yourself on purpose. To launch oneself into unknown sonic pastures with but a mad Finnish synthesizer guru at the helm. I've done it several times, and I would employ you to do the same, if you indeed are looking for that ever fleeting spiritual labyrinth made up of sound and images emerging from behind your eyelids. 4.5 stars with the chance of 5 in the near future.

Thanks to Philippe Blache for the artist addition. and to Quinino for the last updates

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