The Outsiders: Vol. 7
Not all of Stereogum's favorite sounds conform to what folks expect us to cover. In this space, resident Bananafish fetishist Brandon Stosuy focuses on bands, albums, singles, and villages in Sweden that may otherwise pass by unnoticed. This installment's eclectic virtual milk crate contains Los Siquicos Litoraleños, Hayvanlar Alemi, and Eleanoora Rosenholm.
I heard about the Argentinian band Los Siquicos Litoraleños while having a conversation sometime last week with Alan Bishop (Sun City Girls, Sublime Frequencies). He directed me to their MySpace and suggested I check out "Rancho Rocha" at YouTube. I return the favor.
When I contacted the band about hosting some tracks they responded: "Just 3 things: no problem, no problem, no problem ... that is to mean we always like people over there to download our mp3s and make comments about them." Get to it.
Los Siquicos Litoraleños - "Necesita Ecualizacion" (MP3)
Los Siquicos Litoraleños - "Tenemos las Semillas" (MP3)
Los Siquicos Litoraleños - "Full Lucita" (MP3)
If you snoop around YouTube and the previously linked MySpace, you'll turn up considerable gems. Another band Alan brought up is the Turkish psychedelic folk-tinged rock group Hayvanlar Alemi.
Hayvanlar Alemi - "MEGA Lambada" (MP3)
Hayvanlar Alemi - "Guarana Superpower" (MP3)
On "Guarana Superpower" it's especially clear why a Sun City Girl might dig them. The songs come from the Süper! demo, which you can download complete with artwork at the band's MySpace. At the same spot you'll also find the three-track demo SUMMER HITS 2007 for download (also with artwork). Here the guys are with a few geese (one for each member...).
Finally, changing it up some, there's this almost unbelievably high-quality video from the Finnish band Eleanoora Rosenholm for their song "Maailmanloppu."
Eleanoora isn't a solo female singer-songwriter, they're actually a seven-piece, fronted by Noora Tommila, who appears in the video. The group upped a translation of the song to a couple spots, so it seems legit (for those of us who don't know our Finnish and just have to trust that Lau Nau, Islaja, and Kemialliset Ystävät aren't talking shit). In English it's "End of the World":
With the Aurora I cycle along the forests edgeThe song's from Vainajan Muotokuva, which seems to be a suicide concept album (seriously, Nortt and Silencer fans). It's out on Fonal. You can hear more at MySpace and read the suicide note from one Eleanoora Rosenholm here. To head out on a happier note, take a look at some recent live footage.
a curving path leads to the shore
like a damsel from a fairytale, I lay down in the hay and enjoy myself
I pick a dried violet from the bank, I lay down my basket
the hot wind plays with my hair like the lover I just left
there is no sounds behind the forest, the sea is completely still
I feel peace in my chest, I see everything flash in to the
flames of the beginning of the annihilation
on my face I feel the burning atmosphere,
I hear the screams of death carried from the fringes of the bay
I can smell the horror, taste the fear and blood on my tongue
at last the end of the world came, the shell of the earth too generous melt
the firewalls of destruction burn away all that's useless with their kelvins
prayers of the suffering, ash, shrieks
flames bury the begging, the end of the world came at last,
humanity drowned in a stream of lava
on my bicycle, I cycle next to the boiling sea,
dead fish wash in to the shore
I ring the bell as a thank you for sweeping away all that's useless
I see a power plant collapse in the horizon, people fall with their prayers
I see a storm of flames in the skyline get carried away into a final wave of destruction
this long awaited excursion shall be the final, I leave behind a smile most gentle
once more I smell the violet and taste a cherry from my basket
at last the end of the world came, the shell of the earth too generous melt
the firewalls of destruction burn away all that's useless with their kelvins
prayers of the suffering, ash, shrieks
flames bury the begging, the end of the world came at last,
humanity drowned in a stream of lava
The song's "Musta Ruusu." Sorry, no translation this time.
Posted at 8:18 PM in MP3, The Outsiders, Video
Tags: Eleanoora Rosenholm | Hayvanlar Alemi | Los Siquicos Litoraleños
I like this column.
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Awesome that you've tapped into the Turkish rock scene with Hayvanlar Alemi! There are some pretty great things going on there right now, especially with Turkish groups like Replikas, Ayyuka, Dandadadan, Sakin, and Kim Ki O.
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This might be a bit too late, but as a Finnish native, I'd like to comment on Eleanoora Rosenholm. Firstly, I enjoy the fact that minor hits in Finland can be considered "Outsider" stuff in the rest of the world (Eleanoora Rosenholm's second album debuted at 17 in the Finnish charts). Secondly, the album "Vainajan muotokuva" isn't as much about suicide as it is about this strange, homicidal woman. The concept is also used on the second album ("Älä ysy kuolleilta, he sanoivat", "Don't ask the dead, they told me"). All in all, she's probably had hundreds of victims, like the video partly implies.
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