Viimeinen näytös/Eilisen jälkeen double feature

After finally mastering the hangover caused by last Friday's release party I think I'm finally up to the job of reviewing a couple of records that have recently come into my possession. These are the Finnish goth/post-punk band Varjo's swansong, "Viimeinen näytös," and a collection of Finnish post-punk from the 80s titled "Eilisen jälkeen," both released by Stupido Records.

Varjo - Viimeinen näytös

1. Maalaa
2. Joku sytytti kynttilän
3. Nyt mun silmät näkee enemmän
4. Soluttautujat
5. Velka
6. Kadonneet
7. Sairaalassa
8. Hissi
9. Susan
10. Viimeinen näytös
11. Olet ehkä kuollut

Before I dive into Varjo's album some things need to be cleared up: Varjo was a band founded in 1994 in Heinola, Finland. Its founding members were lead singer/guitarist Antti Lautala and lead guitarist Henry Walden. Their first release was the EP titled "Ensinäytös," which translates into English roughly as "The First Act" or "The First Show." Thus it's only appropriate that their last album (due to the unfortunate death of Henry Walden which I touched upon in a post last year) be titled "Viimeinen näytös," or "The Final Act" or "The Last Show" appropriately.

"Viimeinen näytös" is made up of songs that Varjo had been rehearsing before Henry Walden's sudden death. Some of the songs even feature post-humous guitarwork by Walden, as they'd apparently already recorded some material before his passing. Most of the songs should be familiar to those who have seen Varjo (now performing under the title Silent Scream) perform within the last two years and they are by and large extremely solid as far as compositions and lyrics are concerned. However, as a minor disappointment to those who have heard any of these songs performed live, they are somewhat lacking in energy on the record.

I know this should be easy to brush up to the fact that you can hardly get the same energy on a record as into a live performance, but this theory doesn't hold water when you consider that Varjo's masterpiece "Paratiisissa" featured some extremely energetic and tight songs and the songs on "Viimeinen näytös" sound somewhat sluggish in comparison.

This minor quibble doesn't detract from the general excellence of the songs on the album. However, the album's finalé, "Olet ehkä kuollut" sounds like a retread of "Vaellamme rakkauden soilla" from Varjo's previous album "Muistijälkiä," and not even a very good retread at that. Still, the album is extremely listenable when taken on its own terms.

The final verdict:
Band: Varjo
Album: Viimeinen näytös
What?: An extremely good swansong for one of the best bands to come out of the Finnish goth scene in ages. Not the best album Varjo's ever done, but by far not the worst.
Verdict: Four stars out of five.

Eilisen jälkeen compilation

1. Ratsia - Eilisen jälkeen
2. Musta Paraati - Romanssi
3. Belaboris - Kuolleet peilit
4. Silmät - Haudattu
5. Syyskuu - Susi
6. Musta Paraati - Johtaja
7. Geisha - Kesä
8. Aprés Demain - Arpakuutio
9. Kolme Seisoo Vinossa - Peilisali
10. Kuudes Tunti - Kuuntele ääniä
11. Musta Paraati - Myrsky nousee
12. Ret Marut - Beatnik
13. Psyyke - Temppeli
14. Hexenhaus - Ikiyö
15. Kuolleet Kukat - Kasoittain tuhkaa
16. Hiljaa - Kuume
17. Päät - Rikoksen rytmi
18. Alaston Lounas - Taivaskatto
19. Burundin - Aavikon laiva
20. Liikkuvat Lapset - Sinut haluan
21. Jumalainen näytelmä - Ilo
22. Tiistai - Ansassa

Pros: We Finns really knew how to make music in the 80s, eh?
Cons: Apparently the people making this compilation ran out of ideas and decided to just stick in more Musta Paraati. Not slagging on the band, it's awesome, but three songs feels a bit too much especially since it would've left more room for other bands.
So, yeah: All in all an excellent compilation.
Verdict: Four stars out of five. Get it.