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Various: Pohjalla 12” (Love Records, 1978)
My staff pick this week is a record I picked up while Scarecrow was on tour in Finland. It’s always great to find records in their country of origin, and this was part of a big haul I picked up at a small record fair our friends Markku and Kerttu took us to while we were in Turku. I knew basically nothing about Pohjalla (which I believe translates to something like “from the bottom”) before I picked it up, only that it was a compilation of 70s Finnish punk, but when I got home and listened to the stack I bought on tour, I had a hard time taking this off the turntable to make way for the next record.
Pohjalla came out in 1978 on Love Records, perhaps the most important Finnish record label of the 1970s, releasing much of the country’s best rock and prog from that decade. While Love Records released several important early Finnish punk records, they went bankrupt in 1979 just as the scene was taking off. After Love Records’ dissolution, founder Atte Blom started the better-known (among punks at least) label Johanna, which absorbed Love Records’ roster and went on to release a slew of classic records until Johanna, in turn, went bankrupt in 1984.
I haven’t been able to find much information about Pohjalla, but I know it was meant to be a sampler of some of the best new Finnish punk bands of the time, and that all the bands involved recorded tracks especially for the compilation. While I’m not sure since all the credits are in Finnish, it sounds like the bands recorded at the same studio, giving the LP a very uniform sound. Compilations can be spotty, but this one is consistent, with the only real outlier being Se’s track “Peilit,” and even that is a welcome change of pace, coming three quarters of the way through the record.
Pohjalla starts with a track from a group called 1978 with the track “Elektroninen Xtaasi.” Given this is the only track 1978 released and the songwriting credits feature many of the same names as the other tracks on the record, I’m guessing this was a pickup group that formed in the studio to record this song. I also wonder if it was always planned to be included, since the song isn’t listed on the back of the jacket, only on the record’s center label. That really threw me for a loop… it’s hard enough keeping track of what song you’re listening to on a compilation record in a very unfamiliar language without curveballs like that coming at you.
While the other four bands on Pohjalla contribute multiple tracks, the songs are all mixed together. I can’t think of many other compilations that do that, but it works here since the bands and the recordings are so similar. The sequencing works really well, and honestly it sounds more like a cohesive album than a lot of records by single artists.
Now for the bands. Problems? contribute four tracks of intense, rootsy punk. While their songs are upbeat and energetic, there’s an old rock and roll / rockabilly feel to the guitar and bass paying that makes me think of the Rezillos or the Lurkers. I particularly like the big chorus on “Roitsikka Oot.” Sehr Schnell also contributes four tracks and has sound that’s similarly influenced by 70s UK punk and old rock and roll, with highlights being the wild fuzz guitar solo on the album-closing track “Värinää” and the staccato groove on “Juho Vanha Natsi.” Next up is Pelle Miljoona & N.U.S., who also contribute four tracks and share the 77 UK and roots rock influences of their comp-mates, though their rougher guitar sound and loose and wild vocal approach help their contributions stand out. Speaking of standing out, Se is the odd band out with only two contributions. It seems like they’re more of an eclectic new wave band than straightforward punk, but I love the tense, post-punk-ish intro to their track “Ei Asfaltti Liiku” and the wild prog/psych break that comes in the middle of the otherwise Elton John-ish “Peilit.”
So yeah, that’s Pohjalla. I’m sure my band-by-band run-through was too boring to read, but your takeaway should be that this is an excellent 70s punk comp that scores particularly high in the consistency and replay-ability departments. And better yet, all the bands (except 1978) have other records to explore. Actually, Puke N Vomit just released a compilation from Problems? that we have in stock, so if this tickles your fancy, that might be a great way to dive to the next level.