22-Pistepirkko – Drops & Kicks (2005)

22-Pistepirkko is one of the most legendary Finnish bands. This trio is from a small village of Utajärvi in northern Finland. Their sound is a unique blend of garage rock, psychedelia and alternative rock. The guys in the band are quite shy and very very strange. If you ever saw them live while they were active, you know what I'm talking about. It really does feel like they just came from their remote cottage in Utajärvi straight on stage, even though in reality they've lived in Helsinki for quite some time. The band is known for their energetic performances. Asko, the keyboard player has been known to stage dive every now and then. Drops & Kicks is one of the last studio albums from the band. It features more heavy garage sounds than it's couple of predecessors that were more electronically influenced.



P-K, the lead singer has a unique sounding nasal voice and his English isn't that good, but the songs have attitude above all else. Sometimes the lyrics are quite funny, possibly because the original message was lost in translation. Saying all this, 22-Pistepirkko is one of the most skilful rock bands Finland has ever had, because they have courage to be different. The music sounds like them and no-one else. The band has gained some cult following outside of Finland, but I feel like they could've been even bigger had they been a bit more skilled in promoting themselves.

The album starts with the song Mr. Twister. This song starts really lo-fi with P-K's trademark vocals, but when the song reaches the chorus, it becomes clear that this is not just a band who's playing in their garage. Rat King is probably the biggest hit on this album. It's a great garage rock song with quite aggressive verse that turns into a powerful rock chorus. I Know shows the folkier side of the band with some acoustic guitars. The band had this kind of sound on their albums in the early 90s. Space Riding brings back buzzing overdriven guitars and tough rock attitude. I love how the song grows with lo-fi guitars. Sister May has some electronic influences on top of melancholic acoustic instrumentation, a sound familiar from their previous album Rally of Love. Not So Good at School is a fantastic upbeat rock song. The tempo is high and attitude rowdy. X-(Wo)Men is a slow and quiet acoustic song where the drummer of the band, Espe sings with his whispering vocals. Stay has a fantastic lo-fi sound, but the song itself is perhaps not the best one the band has written. I Got Burned on the other hand shows just how catchy rock n' roll songs the band can make. This kind of sound is timeless as it sounds like it could've been released in any decade since the 60s to today. Hello Sunshine has a fantastic shamanistic groove with bluesy acoustic guitars. It sounds like a scene in the camp fire with some psychedelic spices. One Man Down features buzzing lo-fi guitars that remind me of Guided by Voices. Soul Free has funky guitars and soulful groove, but it's definitely not a soul song. It's psychedelia with funky instrumentation. Second Thoughts shows some of the best acoustic guitars from the band. There's something very 90s about this song. We Ought brings back the lo-fi garage guitars that sound just as crummy as you could possibly expect. The album ends with a country ballad I Left My Baby that could be a scene from a modern indie western film.

If you want to get a view into the weird cool of 22-Pistepirkko, I suggest watching this music video for Rat King. It's mainly just the band playing in a dark room, but it shows the kind of energy the band has on stage and the attitude they have to playing. The video is very cool by the way it's shot.

22-Pistepirkko had their last ever gig a couple of years ago. I do kind of regret I didn't travel to Helsinki to see them, but I have seen them live so many times that it probably doesn't matter. Their music will definitely live on and I'll continue to listen to them. They are a great example of what you can achieve by being yourself and not thinking about what you're expected to do.

Listen to the album on Spotify.