Paavoharju Yön mustia kukkia

PAAVOHARJU YÖN MUSTIA KUKKIA CD – TRACKLIST

1 Unohtaa
2 Haihtuu
3 Pyhään aukiopaikkaan
4 Maailma jota ei ole
5 Unen poika
6 Taas pyörteisiin eksyn
7 Yön mustia kukkia
8 Marian kierto
9 Rasia
10 Jää
11 Fosforihohteinen luuranko
12 Solmu ajassa
13 13

In early winter of 2021, Lauri Ainala discovered a graveyard of glass negatives beneath the abandoned and dilapidated building known as the Solmu house. Erosion had already done its job, and many of the glass plates that were nearly a hundred years old had been wiped clean. In some of the pictures, time had painted ghostly and tattered shadows of the figures, beckoning forth others who had already been buried once before. Inspired by these pictures, new music began to emerge, which from the beginning felt like a continuation of Paavoharju’s first two albums in terms of style, soundscapes, and atmosphere. Yön mustia kukkia sprouted from the decayed edges of the glass negatives, giving birth to the third part of the trilogy recorded for Fonal Records.

Anniina Saksa, who has been singing in the live lineup of Paavoharju in recent years, channels ethereal worlds and serves as the driving force behind the new album. Saksa has also written most of the lyrics on the album that wonderfully capture the spirit of the glass negatives. Joining in are Toni Kähkönen, Joose Keskitalo, and Johannes Pitkänen, the prides of Savonlinna, also known from the previous Paavoharju albums “Yhä hämärää” and “Laulu laakson kukista”.

The dialogue between the new and the old takes place on many levels. Ainala discovered recordings that were thought to be destroyed twenty years ago: sensitive poems spoken by Jenni Yaber and Mimosa Virtanen’s virtuosic singing. Expanding the sound palette and serving as a unifying element are Teemu Eerola’s violin parts. Although the material for the album was recorded in different parts of Finland, it was threaded together in Savonlinna, on Ainala’s old desktop computer and over 20-year-old software such as ModPlug Tracker and Cool Edit. Some of the album’s hum and buzzing are formed from glass negatives transformed into sound.

The album art was created by visual artist Sini Kosonen. She captured details revealed by the glass negatives through various magnifying and distorting lenses, creating a melancholic, and ghostly atmosphere fitting the album. In addition to Ainala, Rautavaara and Olli Aarni serve as producers. The album’s title, “Yön mustia kukkia” (trl. Black Flowers of the Night), and most of the lyrics for the title track were conceived by Ainala’s eight-year-old daughter, Leppä.

PAAVOHARJU: YÖN MUSTIA KUKKIA – CREDITS

Lauri Ainala – production, arrangement, samples, rhythms, hisses, ambiences, composition
Anniina Saksa – vocals, lyrics, composition, keyboards, arrangement
Rautavaara – synthesizers, arrangement, composition, samples, guitar
Johannes Pitkänen – composition & piano (1, 6), composition & guitar, vocals & bass (7)
Teemu Eerola – violin (2, 4, 7, 9, 12)
Joose Keskitalo – composition, lyrics, vocals & guitar (5), flute (3, 5, 6, 9),
clarinet (5, 6, 9), electric guitar (10)
Toni Kähkönen – vocals (4, 5)
Jenni Yaber – poems (1, 4, 9, 11, 12), vocals (in the interlude of 9, 13)
Mimosa Virtanen – vocals (1, 7, 8, 12)
Päivi Saksa – vocals at the beginning of track 3
Sini Kosonen – Album covers
Leppä Ainala – Album title, lyrics in the song “Yön mustia kukkia”
In the songs “Unen poika” (5) and “Marian kierto” (8), as a guest producer, Olli Aarni

Paavoharju last performed in their hometown Savonlinna in 2005. They now celebrate the release of the album “Yön mustia kukkia” and the associated exhibition “Solmu ajassa” at the Riihisaari – Savonlinna museum. They’ll present new songs with a fresh lineup at House of Olaf on September 16, 2023. This special performance is one-of-a-kind, as there won’t be more shows.