Pekka Pohjola's Visitation turns 45 years old

[Kcrimso]

Pekka Pohjola's best album (in my humble opinion) Visitation, which will be 45 years old this July, deserves its own thread. I wrote a review of the album: https://pienemmatpurot.com/review-pe...sitation-1979/

What do you think are Pohjola's strongest solo albums?

[Rarebird]

Visitation might be my favorite as well, perhaps also because it was my first Pekka Pohjola CD (had Keesojen Letho on vinyl under a different title with the names of Mike & Sally Oldfield before that of Pekka Pohjola (before that I knew the album, because someone taped it for me)), which I bought during a vacation in Finland. It reminds me on that beautiful country and the cover reminds me on a place we visited. Try to remember is probably my favorite song as well. I'm also very fond of Pewit, but actually, did Pekka Pohjola ever make a bad album?
Pekka Pohjola is one of those musicians that died to early and whom I would have loved to have made more albums.

[Kcrimso]

I'm also very fond of Pewit, but actually, did Pekka Pohjola ever make a bad album?

No I don't think he ever did a bad album. However I am not too fond of Space Waltz and his symphony Sinfonia no. 1 it quite underwhelming. And as I wrote on my Visitation review I think The Group's only studio album is pretty bland affair.

[Rarebird]

I think Space Waltz has it's moments.

[Kcrimso]

I think Space Waltz has it's moments.

It has. But less than other Pohjola albums.

[Rarebird]

It was my second Pekka Pohjola CD. Bought it in Cologne. Love the guitar-solo on Risto

And how about Jokamies?

[Conti]

I rank Visitation and his second solo album (sorry, cannot spell it) as his best. But honestly all albums I know from him are at least very good.

[zeprogmeister]

That's a good one. I do like a few others better like Keesojen Lehto and Space Waltz.

[Kcrimso]

And how about Jokamies?

I like it. It is different kind of Pohjola album. More electronic, bit cold and very atmospheric.

[Rarebird]

I like it. It is different kind of Pohjola album. More electronic, bit cold and very atmospheric.

I like Jokamies as well, but I've never heard a Pekka Pohjola album I didn't like and I think I have them all, exept for an official version of his symphony no. 1.

[Kcrimso]

I like Jokamies as well, but I've never heard a Pekka Pohjola album I didn't like and I think I have them all, exept for an official version of his symphony no. 1.

I just recently bought the new vinyl reissue of Symphony no. 1 very cheaply.

[Rarebird]

I just recently bought the new vinyl reissue of Symphony no. 1 very cheaply.

Now if it would be released on CD.

[Dunamis]

Now if it would be released on CD.

It came out on CD the same time as the LP (which I bought) on Svart.

[Rarebird]

I have to look if I can still find it.

[AdventAlan]

Greetings,

I love all of Pekka's output, though it's really hard to pick a favorite album. That being said, I always recommend Visitation as the best starting point for those who are new to his music. It's definitely a classic.

Cheers,


Alan

[Progbear]

My one gripe about Visitation, it's only 32 minutes long! I wish there were more of it!

That said, it packs a lot of punch into those 32 minutes. It's a good mix of Pohjola's classical and jazzy tendencies, more so than any of his albums, and it's my personal favorite of all of his albums. Second is probably Harakka Bialoipokku, which is just a great, solid album.

My least favorite would be Jokamies, but I'll kind of let it slide since it's functional music. Not one I generally grab for my PP fix, though. Next least would probably be Urban Tango, and that's mainly just because of the horrible vocals on "Urban Caravan" (what was he thinking letting that guy "sing"?). I actually really like Space Waltz which seems to be really unpopular. I mean, I get it, it's really DX7-y. But it has some great tune-age on there, "American Carousel" and "Risto" especially. Can we get a version with the 80s mixed out of it? I was listening recently and thinking, "you know, if this were all pianos and organs instead of that bloody DX7, people would be crowing about how great it was."

In general, I don't think he's ever released a bad album—not even Jokamies, which is definitely lackluster compared to his usual standard, but I'd hesitate to actually call it "bad." Mind you, I still have yet to hear The Group album, but I guess that's technically not "a solo" album.

[Kcrimso]

Mind you, I still have yet to hear The Group album, but I guess that's technically not "a solo" album.

The Group album has lots of fans. I am not one of them.

[Rarebird]

I have the Group album as double CD, I have Kätkävaaran Lohikäärme, I have some CDRs with rarities and I have Yesterdays games by Pekka Pohjola by the Espoo Big Band. I also have the Pekka album by Verniri Pohjola.

[Scrotum Scissor]

He had reportedly acquired a significantly larger production budget for the recording of this, making for a bit of divide in its reception.

There are those who perceive a synchronicity of sorts in the upping of audio facilities with an alleged slickness in the material itself, but I don't hear it. "Strange Awakening" and "Image of a Passing Smile" are among his finest tunes ever, and those bass quints towards the end of "Dancing In the Dark" are unforgettable.

Still, the sound -does- sometimes preface sterilities or clinical limitations of frightful 80s studio glitch, if luckily never exactly matching Gyra/Mezzoforte/Sky/Vollenweider/Kenny G sonorities. But then again, lo-fi most probably wouldn't have saved the latter bunch.

[Yehuda Kotton]

Definitely one of his top 3 albums.
I prefer the oldfield album and Harakka Bialoipokku

[Progbear]

I have the Group album as double CD, I have Kätkävaaran Lohikäärme, I have some CDRs with rarities and I have Yesterdays games by Pekka Pohjola by the Espoo Big Band. I also have the Pekka album by Verniri Pohjola.

The closest to a "rarity" I have is Where Do We Begin? by the at-the-time inaccurately-named Made in Sweden (since two Finns and a Pole were in the five-piece lineup). It's worth it for the PP composition "43 Sec. of Arc Per Century," which is not his greatest, but it's good enough and recognizably in his compositional style.

[Rarebird]

The closest to a "rarity" I have is Where Do We Begin? by the at-the-time inaccurately-named Made in Sweden (since two Finns and a Pole were in the five-piece lineup). It's worth it for the PP composition "43 Sec. of Arc Per Century," which is not his greatest, but it's good enough and recognizably in his compositional style.

I have that one as well. It reminds me a bit on Keesojen Letho, probably because it's the same line-up, without the singer and with Mike and Sally Oldfield and Pierre Moerlen I think.

[AdventAlan]

Greetings,

Some other albums that are directly associated with Pekka:

• https://www.discogs.com/release/6559...-Pekka-Pohjola
• https://www.discogs.com/master/543832-Uni-Sono-Unisono

I seem to recall a fairly recent performance of another of his compositions (one I don't think I'd heard before) in Finland, but can't remember the details.

Also, for the record, I love Space Waltz.

Cheers,


Alan

[Rarebird]

Greetings,

Some other albums that are directly associated with Pekka:

• https://www.discogs.com/release/6559...-Pekka-Pohjola
• https://www.discogs.com/master/543832-Uni-Sono-Unisono

I seem to recall a fairly recent performance of another of his compositions (one I don't think I'd heard before) in Finland, but can't remember the details.

Also, for the record, I love Space Waltz.

Cheers,


Alan

The first one I own, the second one is new for me. Need to look for it.

[Dunamis]

I seem to recall a fairly recent performance of another of his compositions (one I don't think I'd heard before) in Finland, but can't remember the details.

Maybe you have in mind Vesa Aaltonen Prog Band's CD Studio Live - they are doing two Pekka's tracks fromVisitation, The Sighting and Vapour Trails, plus one from The Group album (Gado-Gado).

Yes, Unisono is a fairly good album, I have the Svart reissue LP from 2016