A brand new release from a Finnish veteran of abstract drone and ambient electronic music that sees gentle layering of hazes and clouds hover above poignant poetry, narrating a dystopian tale of the cosmos.
Perttu Leinonen, a native of Mäntsälä, has been an active participant in his regional electronic music circles for more than 3 decades, putting an album after the other of consistently experimental, honest, and left-field music. His latest release is Second Phase, a collection of electronic poetry pieces that lean more heavily on the poetry side of the scale, with each of the pieces featuring primarily a piece of touching poetry that deals with topics of life, growth, healing, and hope. Written by collaborators such as Llana Aryas and Wise Observer, with additional poetry from longtime friend Jarkko Sairanen. The lyrical pieces are set on top of vast, cosmic drones. While the pieces are mostly devoid of conventional melody or harmony, this does not stop them from being poignant and introspective in their own way, often sounding eerie and alien, inducing a menacing sense of agoraphobia, and often more sounding hypnotic and engulfing, a note that owes thanks to the fantastic production on this release, which sounds crisp and cohesive with all its rich layers of droning, which never once sound clunky or unfit.
Perttu Leinonen is an album of gorgeous, hypnotic music that’s rich, confrontational, thought-provoking, and definitely not for everyone. But if you’re one of the few who can truly grasp the value of this release, then you’re in for a healthy trip of wellness, and musical puzzlement.