TYHJYYTEEN, SYVYYTEEN

Two years before the eponymous debut album released by Love Records, FINNFOREST from Kuopio, Finland made a single via small Dynamiitti label. The unspectacular vocals - in Finnish, naturally - are by Aaro Mustonen. He soon left the band, which, under the firm guidance of guitarist Pekka Tegelman, continued with instrumental, atmospheric and airy Fusion on their albums.

'Tyhjyyteen syvyyteen' (= Into the void, into the depth) is a fast-tempo rocker with lots of vintage organ work by Jukka Rissanen. Listening to this [proto-]proggy but very brief song one can hardly avoid thinking of WIGWAM as the central pioneers of Finnish prog, but I'm not saying the composition would sound very much like Wigwam - no Pembroke nor Gustavson. In a way it sounds like it was done few years earlier; there's also a little scent of psychedelia. A pretty good track even if not a priceless classic.

'Sanomaton kirkkaus' (= Unspeakable brightness) is a mellow and relaxed mid-tempo song with quite romantic and esoteric lyrics. The comfortable sound resembles PROCOL HARUM with its organ and piano and simple electric guitar notes. If this was a Wigwam song, it surely would be by Jim Pembroke instead of Jukka Gustavson. Both songs can be heard on the "Love Proge 2" two-disc Various Artists compilation.

Finnforest found their own style later on, to the great pleasure of many Fusion-minded prog listeners in and out of Finland, but it's interesting to wonder how they would have succeeded (in the artistic sense, hardly in the commercial sense) with this vocal oriented style. Most certainly they wouldn' have been as unique anyhow.