Audiopile Review: Double shot from the Finnish spiritual/free jazz imprint Ultraääni, who continue to shine a light on their home country’s vibrant and ever-expanding scene, this time issuing a pair of up-and-coming outfits who are both making their debuts here. First up is the newest ensemble from Lauritz Lyster Skeidsvoll, who, admittedly, isn’t totally new to the imprint, contributing to last year’s outstanding modal jazz LP Dance To Summon, an album by his brother, pianist and composer Isaac Skeidsvoll. With Laurtiz on sax, he’s joined by his brother, bassist Georgia Wartel Collins, and drummer Rino Sivathas. The quartet, much in the same vein as Dance To Summon, strike a middle ground between untethered free jazz and spiritual atonement. The four lengthy tracks here tend to launch quickly into melodic divinity, with references to the emotional phrasing of giants like Pharoah Sanders, Alice Coltrane and Archie Shepp. Eventually the quartet bounce off one another like overheated molecules, dissociating into an improvisational netherworld before eventually reforming back into familiar melody and a satisfying resolution. It’s an incredibly striking debut that belies their youth, sounding more like old souls convening for yet another glimpse at the sublime. The second debut to be offered up by Ultraääni this week is from Solar Unity Ensemble, which, despite their moniker, is actually a duo made up of multi-instrumentalists Roope Niemelä and Henri Ijäs. With a plethora of instrumentation at their disposal, the duo offer a far more restrained vision than Skeidsvoll’s wilder terrain, the duo hovering at a low-level placidity that reaches across the continents, falling more in line with International Anthem/Chicago improv scene (think Asher Gamedze or Dezron Douglas’ recent efforts) than anything we’ve heard from Finland in recent years. Cyclical guitar lines wind their way through bubbling percussion and windswept synths, or a slow breath of flute flutters gently across chimes while a sweet lament of saxophone offers a guiding hand. Unmissable contemporary jazz from Ultraääni, both landing in very limited quantities. Hand numbered editions of 500 housed in the usual silkscreened jackets. These will not last long.

Limited number of 400 hosted in silk printed cover. Solar Unity Ensemble’s Upstream explores the elusive nature of music, capturing moments of free improvisation that point beyond the notes themselves. Blending acoustic and electric sounds, the album invites listeners to experience the fluidity and impermanence of sound, reflecting the journey toward the creative source. The album opens with the track “Emergence,” followed by “Mantra,” both on side A. As the needle flips to side B, the journey continues with “Passing Nimbus” and “Shallow Water.” The album deepens with “Didn’t Know We Were Lost,” transitioning into “Mitha pt. 1,” and reaching a climactic moment with “Impact,” before resolving with “Didn’t Know We Were Found.”

The album is a collaborative effort between Roope Niemelä, who plays guitar, keyboard, double bass, electric bass, flute, clarinet, trumpet, violin, alto saxophone, piano, accordion, and percussion, and Henri Ijäs, who contributes on soprano and tenor saxophone, piano, and percussion. The recording sessions spanned several years, taking place in Jyväskylä, Sastamala, and Tampere between 2019 and 2023.

Ijäs and Niemelä jointly mixed the tracks, with the vinyl mastering handled by Ilkka Harjula, while Jarno Alho provided the digital master. The vinyl was manufactured at Puristamo in Helsinki, Finland, with the record covers screen printed at Kalasataman Seripaja, also in Helsinki. The front cover artwork, titled “Quasar 3C273” (cyanotype, 2024), was created by Sami Sänpäkkilä, with cover design by Arsi Keva and photography by Antti Kujala.