Linnuissa - Ensimmäinen (2018)

Linnuissa (@linnuissa) is Joni Judén (aka @celestial-trax) and Karri Luhtala. The two grew up as next-door neighbours in 90's Finland before both moving away, to London and Rome, respectively. After various cities, continents, thousands of miles and almost 20 years, the pair were reunited in the winter of 2018, in a garage in their hometown of Hyvinkää, Finland.

In their debut EP, 'Ensimmäinen' [TRAE001], the duo slowly build static motifs and explore extended chord harmonies around each other. There are moments of minimal stillness, mixed in with bursts of noise and gated chords. At the heart of the project is a celebration of astral and transcendent jazz, as well as music and expression as meditation. Anchoring the project’s the ethos, is the disconnection Judén and Luhtala feel (and bonded over), in a world that has become obsessed with convenience and technology but is losing its ancient connection with the universe. The music is raw, unpolished, and ideas taking their time to develop. The end result is uncompromised expression: music with a very human heart beating throughout it.

The name of the project Linnuissa (in/inside birds), as well as the track titles, are derivative of Judén’s return to the country of his birth and his process of reconnecting with the language; they serve as poetry and as testament to the beauty and dexterity of the Finnish language.

Luhtala plays a 1970's Fender Rhodes, a piano and an old Russian Moog-clone. Judén plays additional electronics & synths, and makes noise. The first Linnuissa project will be released on April 30th 2018 from Joni Judén’s new label: True Aether.

All music is improvised on the spot with no further editing. Recorded in Hyvinkää, Finland, February 2018.