Description

KORKKIVIKA translates to “cork taint,” when the cork of bottled wine spoils the flavor. This Finnish band’s ten-song follow-up to last year’s debut EP ages a bit more unspoiled, with classic Finnish melodic punk somewhere between the loose ramble of LAMA and the retro rejuvenation of the BRIEFS, with the angular vocals pricking melody-driven punk and the occasional boot-storming punker anthem. Miikka Järvinen, the drummer of WASTED and vocalist of PAX AMERICANA, sings here. While the music is not as guitar-layered as WASTED or hardcore-leaning as PAX AMERICANA, it sits firmly in its ’77 lean, and is probably an easy template for grabbing a bottle and a couple friends for a drunken singalong if Finnish flows naturally. Lack of fluency might require a bit more reach, with the lyrics and song titles almost entirely in Finnish. The album title roughly translating to “idyll is broken” over a cover photo of an idyllic lake, matched with raw melodic guitar riffs, charging drumming, and warty shouts—at least I get the gist. Solid!