Record Reviews

VARIOUS ARTISTS ~ ETEENPAIN! – COMPLETE 1966-1970 SVART 075 (Barcode: 6430050669331) ~ FINLAND ~ Special Products Recorded: 1966 - 1970 Released: 2016 This fabulous Box Set presents a reissue of the complete output by the independent / underground Finnish record label Eteenpain!Find albums on this label (Eng. Forward!), founded in 1966 by musicologist / author Pekka GronowFind albums by this artist and singer / songwriter M. A. NumminenFind albums by this artist (a.k.a. Mauri Antero NumminenFind albums by this artist) in order to present mainly the eclectic and prolific recordings by Numminen, but also many other recordings. In addition to all the releases this collection was expanded to include also unreleased material from the label´s vaults. Eteenpain! was one of the first independent European record labels and its releasing policy was definitely most eclectic and plainly "wild" in every respect. As a result the music including in this Box Set includes a completely nutty mixture styles and genres, including Folk, Pop, Rock, Blues, Jazz, Avant-Garde Rock, comedy, parody and even songs in Esperanto language. Such wonderful diversity and openness characterized of course the 1960s and could have happened only then, with complete disregard of public opinion or commercial considerations. By the end of the 1960s the label slowly run out of steam as a result in the changes in the local music industry and social structure / cultural climate. By 1970 the label owners called it quits and the recording archives were passed to the other legendary Finnish record label LoveFind albums on this label Records (also founded in 1966), which occasionally used some of it in their releases. Following Love Records bankruptcy in 1979 the archives returned back to Numminen. This Box Set is a wonderful document of an era long gone, where Avant-Garde / underground Culture was flourishing and was able to find dedicated support, which enabled its creative output to be published, which today is of course implausible. There are certain parallels between Eteenpain! and the New York ESPFind albums on this label record label founded in 1963 by Bernard StollmanFind albums by this artist, however as much as Stollman´s openness and vision were of course extraordinary, especially in America, his label was relatively more "conservative" in the choice of material in comparison to the wonderful weirdness that characterized what Gronow and Numminen were doing. Overall this Box Set is a superb document, not only of the music but more importantly of the Cultural climate of the late 1960s in Finland and beyond. Kudos are due to SvartFind albums on this label Records for undertaking this mammoth project and their dedication to preserve Culture.

Updated: 25/08/2020Posted: 25/08/2020

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