Audiopile Review: A pair of new releases in from Ultraääni Records this week, the Finnish imprint keeping their undeniable hot streak alive. Largely made up of Finnish improv/jazz vets, plus the introduction of the fresh-faced hotshot drummer Veeti Hietala, Phardah further cement the Ultraääni signature of chaining improvisatory free jazz to white-hot psychedelia. From the outside, the Finnish jazz scene appears to be one of fluid collaboration, new groups spontaneously forming without any interest beyond capturing some fleeting magic, the members quickly moving on to the next adventure. Ultraääni’s ability to hear that spark and preserve the ephemeral alchemy has resulted in an impressive guide to the expansive scene in Finland, cataloguing groups like Fågelbörs, Solar Unity Ensemble and Lauritz Skeidsvolls Rapid Light before they dissipated. This could very well be the case for Phardah, though thankfully we have these two side-long pieces to commemorate their summit. On side A, ominously titled “Village of Skulls”, the quartet trace out a low vibration of hypno-bass rolls and droning guitar, slowly heating up until they plateau at a scorching desert guitar blues that slams headlong into blearing sax and a rhythm section bent on pushing it all towards oblivion, eventually disassembling into a skitter of drums and strangled strums. The flip side, “Touch of the Spheres”, rises from a pile of smoldering strings, horns and percussion, eventually locking into a groove that cycles toward an astral bliss out session that becomes the album’s revelatory centrepiece. Ultraääni’s become buy-on-sight for so many of you out there, but if you’ve yet to be pulled into their orbit, you could do no better than this right here. Edition of 500, silkscreened jackets, and sold out at the source.

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Free Jazz band with a psychedelic touch, Phardah, is set to release their debut album Humans and Beings on the 2nd of May, 2025. The band features veterans of the Finnish experimental music and Free Jazz scene: saxophonist Sami Pekkola, double bassist Eero Tikkanen, and electric guitarist Topias Tiheäsalo, along with the younger generation drummer Veeti Hietala. The album was recorded and mixed by Teemu Markkula, known from the band Death Hawks.

The album consists of two long pieces. Village of Skulls on the side A is built on a vigorous bass riff, eventually accelerating into a wild collective gallop. On the side B Touch of the Spheres transcends the gravity we know, guided by Tiheäsalo’s magnificent guitar work. The powerful energy assembled by the band ultimately releases into a gentle groove.

Phardah successfully balances between abstraction and clarity, shaping and coloring the collective soundscape while staying true to the themes of the tracks. The music is given ample space to ignite, burn and smolder. Markkula’s bold mixing makes the listening experience exceptionally rich.

The band was formed in the summer of 2023 when they played their first gig at the Odysseus Festivalon Lonna Island in Helsinki. Phardah’s performance received an enthusiastic reception and was mentioned in the English magazine The Wireas one of the highlights of the festival. In the liner notes of Humans and Beings, the band thanks past and present masters of Free Jazz.

The album is released jointly by the Finnish record labels Ultraääni and Dream Wobble.