Customer Reviews

Country Falls (With Bonus DVD)

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Lead singer Reeta-Leehna Korhola's whispery, hypnotic voice lends to the otherworldly feel of this inventive fusion of rock and funk touched with a hint of new age.

The 12 tracks on Country Falls are fresh and innovative yet steeped in the raw essence of a timeless rock and roll sound. The dynamic instrumentation keeps the album exciting and varied: the tunes are catchy and lend themselves to repeated play. The lyrics seem simplistic, but I was more captivated by the cool, sweeping sounds that these talented musicians from Iceland delivered with each mesmerizing note. Some songs are reminiscent of 70's funk and progressive rock, some with 80's new wave, and others seem influenced by the legendary rock sounds of Santana. Overall collection is distinctly modern and would probably appeal to fans of Coldplay and Radiohead.

The composer and producer of Husky, Marko Nyberg, strives to create music that is atmospheric and sublime and he succeeds in this quite well. Five members make up this Helsinki based band when they play live, but like Porcupine Tree's Steve Wilson, Marko is the creative heart and soul of Husky Rescue. This creative control lends to a remarkably cohesive album that stands out from the current crop of music getting radio play. It may not grab you at first listen in spite the many hooks, but after a few spins this playful album will find a home on your regular playlist.

The bonus DVD with its artsy videos is a nice extra, but you'll be playing the CD album much more.
4.5 stars.

Tired of the same old thing? Husky Rescue to the rescue! This album is full of melodic masterpieces and atypically hooky infectious grooves. If you're like me and can't stand the 30 second previews at these online stores, go to www.mintyfresh.com and download a free Husky Rescue MP3 to get the full effect.

Lying on your back in the grass of a barren countryside during sunset, daydreaming and watching the clouds float by: this is the mood of Husky Rescue. I first heard the song "New Light of Tomorrow" on one of Hed Kandi's Winter Chill compilations, and had to hear more of Husky Rescue. Although "New Light" is still my favorite song on Country Falls, this whole album provided a broader atmospheric experience.

The group's intent was to reflect life in Helsinki, where winters are harsh; the album, in turn, was designed to invoke feelings of warmth. "Sun" and "summer" are reoccuring words throughout the album, accompanied by peace-conjuring images. The vocals remind me of Belle and Sebastian or Air; the twangy guitar strums and lofty keyboard sounds, accompanied by bits of electronica, often resemble artists like Goldfrapp or even Pink Floyd ("Gasoline Girl" carries the sounds of something you'd find of Dark Side on the Moon).

The upbeat "Summertime Cowboy" depicts romantic and heroic cowboy images. "Sleep Tight Tiger" is a lullaby. "Mean Street" sounds like background music for a detective thriller, where you're on the verge of danger; perhaps forbidden love. "The Good Man" encompasses a gathered-around-the-fire sort of storytelling.

Country Falls has repeated-play capacity: since both the vocals and the songs are varied, it won't become monotonous. I think that Husky Rescue accomplish what many arists in the "chill" and "downtempo" genres try to go for but don't quite capture the mood: these guys do it.

Husky Rescue is a five-member group from Finland, the brainchild of Marko Nyberg. Given his place of origin, Nyberg clearly knows a thing or two about Arctic winds and winter chills, explaining the frosty vibe of the debut album "Country Falls." Each song conjures up winter-like images, and the music blends Air-borne electronica with 60's folk pop. The disc's true standout is the surreal "New Light of Tomorrow," highlighted by crisp acoustic guitars and dreamy male vocals. When I heard this song on a Hed Kandi "Winter Chill" compilation, I took a mental note to watch out for this band when they drop their CD. Also, singer Reeta-Leena Korhola lends her pipes for the cute "Summertime Cowboy" and the downtempo "City Lights." The mellow grooves are strong enough to gloss over many of the simplistic lyrics, but deep lyrical content isn't what "Country Falls" strives for. Music of this nature should provide a soothing and calming effect, and at least on that level, Husky Rescue gets it indisputably right.

and check out this album! Every song on Country Falls sounds different, which makes for an enjoyable and interesting listening experience. I love that the Cd comes with the bonus DVD. The video for "Summertime Cowboy" is pure kitsch! One of the best new albums I've heard in a long time!

Very musical, with flowing instrumentation, great hooks, and some really unique arrangements. Check this one out if you're tired of the same old garbage. Great to hear some real music in this genre for a change instead of repetitive beats and tired gimmicks.

Just when you feel you could catch a chill in the frozen climes of the current music scene, a saviour pads into view. Husky Rescue is here, carrying the revivifying (and intoxicating) liquor of musical invention and pure, untainted melodicism in their capacious sleigh. As clear as icewater, as dazzling as the Aurora Borealis, as jolting as a splash in the face from a Finnish lake; the music of Husky Rescue is more than capable of refreshing even the most jaded palate. Helsinki's all-round musical magus Marko Nyberg and sensual vocalist Reeta-Leena Korhola lead the Husky Rescue charge. Other members include Mikka Colliander on guitar, Ville Riippa on keyboards and Anssi Sopanen on drums. Touched by the chilly majesty of their homeland, and much more besides, the band describes their influences as being 'the magical moment' and mood in movies. David Lynch, Lars von Trier, Wim Wenders, Lukas Moodysson, Russ Meyer, Scandinavian architecture, Erik Satie, the airy lushness of French impressionism and Philip Glass, the sound of Arvo Part, warm and honest country music and a lot of other things in pop culture such as graphic design and photography. Each Husky Rescue song is a self-contained mini-movie aiming for its own unique emotional impact. When asked to describe their work, Nyberg's metaphors are unusual but entirely appropriate: David Lynch meets the night-less night in Lapland, he suggests, or perhaps Bambi meets big bad wolf and they become friends. If you can read that and not be intrigued, you are an iceberg, my friend.

Husky Rescue's debut, COUNTRY FALLS, is a fresh breath of Finnish air. Alternately dreamy and funky, they manage to blend Old West cinematic soundscapes with electronics. For instance, the opener, "Sweet Little Kitten," takes the best bits of Thorazine-inspired country music and folds it into a heady concoction. "Summertime Cowboy" and "Sunset Drive" are much more upbeat, but those are in the minority here. More common are tracks like "New Light of Tomorrow" and "My World," which float in an icy haze. The use of lap steel guitar (both played and sampled) adds an aching beauty to the proceedings. "Gasoline Girl" throws some rock music growl to shake things up, but "Rainbow Flows" and "Sleep Tight Tiger" nearly drift off into the ether entirely. But the noir sensibilities of "Mean Street" and the slow build of "The Good Man" help bring things back to earth. And the simplicity of "The Man Who Flew Away" caps the album nicely. A beauty of an album.

Think of cold, smooth ice. And imagine a warm, shimmering light appearing just under it.

That's what comes to mind with Husky Rescue's exquisite debut album, "Country Falls." The Finnish group reflects their chilly Helsinki winters with equally chilly pop, but filled with sunny warmth, as if on the first day of spring. Basically imagine Sigur Ros playing folk-pop.

It opens with a gentle stretch of shimmering synth, and a mellow little folkpop tune. "Sweet little kitten on the porch sleeps in the sun/The sunbeams climb up on the wall," Reeta-Leehna Korhola sings in a slightly breathless, wispy voice. "Small girls with sun warm hands cuddle bring him milk/then run after make castles in the snow/Jokers juggle in the air rainbow colored fountains of sugar waters flow..."

They dip into psychedelic pop in the kitschy, colorful "Summertime Cowboy," with all those whipcracks and jangling bells. But then they're back to the icy, sparkling sound of the first song -- ambient balladry, glitchy experimental tunes melting into creepy ballads, and little mellow guitar tunes that are smothered in shimmering, sparkling synth.

This edition also comes with an extra DVD, which contains three music videos. "New Light of Tomorrow" is a spare, eerie video, with a young man having a vision of a spacesuited angel, while "Summertime Cowboy" is a kooky, neon playground. And "City Lights" is a shifting video of a young woman carried away by a love song on the car radio (come on, we've all done it), who has a dream of herself dancing in green fire.

Husky Rescue is the brainchild of Marko Nyberg, who apparently wanted to make expansive, warm music to counter the cold up in Helsinki. So he collected around twenty musicians to make the right sound for "Country Falls" -- and the result is so cohesive in sound, it almost sounds like a concept album.

Almost every song is based on a little guitar melody. Sometimes Husky Rescue dip into catchy electric riffs and solid drums (like in the poppy "Summertime Cowboy"), but usually they stick to gentler, folkier material with the odd droning riff here and there, and the occasional burst of murky drumming..

And they're all wrapped in delicate layers of shimmering synth, which sound like a soundtrack for the Northern Lights. Sometimes they're glitchy, gurgly or tinkly, and sometimes they're epic sweeps of sound. And they're interspersed with devilish little laughs, robot voices and ambient sweeps of exquisite sound.

Really, that would be enough to recommend this album in itself. But it's topped with vocals from two artists: Korhola's pretty, slightly breathless voice, and Nyberg's slightly stilted, distant voice. Both of them sing songs of warmth, hope, "cotton clouds," lullabies to a "tiger," and the sweet plea, "Would you treat me right if I am kind/Would you like me more if I can smile/Would you set on tears if I start to cry/Would you take me there last one more time?"

"Country Falls" is an exquisite mixture of folk-pop and electronica, and it sounds like the end of winter when the spring sun starts to shine. Absolutely astounding.

Think of cold, smooth ice. And imagine a warm, shimmering light appearing just under it.

That's what comes to mind with Husky Rescue's exquisite debut album, "Country Falls." The Finnish group reflects their chilly Helsinki winters with equally chilly pop, but filled with sunny warmth, as if on the first day of spring. Basically imagine Sigur Ros playing folk-pop.

It opens with a gentle stretch of shimmering synth, and a mellow little folkpop tune. "Sweet little kitten on the porch sleeps in the sun/The sunbeams climb up on the wall," Reeta-Leehna Korhola sings in a slightly breathless, wispy voice. "Small girls with sun warm hands cuddle bring him milk/then run after make castles in the snow/Jokers juggle in the air rainbow colored fountains of sugar waters flow..."

They dip into psychedelic pop in the kitschy, colorful "Summertime Cowboy," with all those whipcracks and jangling bells. But then they're back to the icy, sparkling sound of the first song -- ambient balladry, glitchy experimental tunes melting into creepy ballads, and little mellow guitar tunes that are smothered in shimmering, sparkling synth.

This edition also comes with an extra DVD, which contains three music videos. "New Light of Tomorrow" is a spare, eerie video, with a young man having a vision of a spacesuited angel, while "Summertime Cowboy" is a kooky, neon playground. And "City Lights" is a shifting video of a young woman carried away by a love song on the car radio (come on, we've all done it), who has a dream of herself dancing in green fire.

Husky Rescue is the brainchild of Marko Nyberg, who apparently wanted to make expansive, warm music to counter the cold up in Helsinki. So he collected around twenty musicians to make the right sound for "Country Falls" -- and the result is so cohesive in sound, it almost sounds like a concept album.

Almost every song is based on a little guitar melody. Sometimes Husky Rescue dip into catchy electric riffs and solid drums (like in the poppy "Summertime Cowboy"), but usually they stick to gentler, folkier material with the odd droning riff here and there, and the occasional burst of murky drumming..

And they're all wrapped in delicate layers of shimmering synth, which sound like a soundtrack for the Northern Lights. Sometimes they're glitchy, gurgly or tinkly, and sometimes they're epic sweeps of sound. And they're interspersed with devilish little laughs, robot voices and ambient sweeps of exquisite sound.

Really, that would be enough to recommend this album in itself. But it's topped with vocals from two artists: Korhola's pretty, slightly breathless voice, and Nyberg's slightly stilted, distant voice. Both of them sing songs of warmth, hope, "cotton clouds," lullabies to a "tiger," and the sweet plea, "Would you treat me right if I am kind/Would you like me more if I can smile/Would you set on tears if I start to cry/Would you take me there last one more time?"

"Country Falls" is an exquisite mixture of folk-pop and electronica, and it sounds like the end of winter when the spring sun starts to shine. Absolutely astounding.