TALMUD BEACH is faraway in time.

fB // Bone Voyage Records // soundcloud // bandcamp

I first heard about these Finnish lads via Quintus Kannegeiser, a guy who's name is so cool you must trust his taste. I still don't know much about them because their fB page is in Finnish, and i'm too

 busy to translate. But who doesn't love a mystery, right? Going back to the

good old days, when you searched for a couple weeks to find a certain album? This is an album you would look for...and you should. 

Give them your money.

Going backwards because iTunes:

11. How Long -
Weird funky boogies, the kind T-Model Ford would approve of can get the night started off right. Interspersed between lines with slide guitar. Like this. A basement band playing on a cold night with its head in the attic. I raise my glass in cheer!

10. Aamulla rautatieasemalla -
A carl perkinsish instrumental, tight swinging, slightly english number, with some Finlandish sense of style and humor.

9. Drinkin' Kilju -
A short, taught, Ramones meet Steely Dan vibe that you'll love.

8. Pyramid Boogie -
It's exactly what it says it is, and sounds dirtier than you might expect.  I have no idea what they are really singing about, and I don't care. It's the international language.

7. Time On Highway 5 -
An atmospheric number that starts like a side two outtake from ZZ Top's Tejas, and evolves into a creepy top-button buttoned grad-school singer-songwriter slow burner that can't decide between early Simon and Garfunkel and John Lee Hooker. It does both.

6. Sweet Tissa
The sound of Helsinki, Mississippi.

5. The Wizard -
A sweet high-steppin' clap along gospel number with harmonica and slide. It gives respect to the elders, while gettin' down on it.

4. City Lights -
This is such a spot of three-minute perfection, without being perfect. It's blues-infected, big city southern-candy from the mountains and the lakes.

3. Klubilla -
A sweet beach-driving instrumental.

2. Sold My Hair -
I'll say one thing for these Finnish blues(pop) weirdos: their production is sharp, clean, and sparkling. Matching that with their solid love of deeper blues forms and world-wide pop smarts, with an almost nudge-winking bed-sit high-lonesome-approximating vocal, and you gotchyrself a horse that'll drink water.

1. Hobo Don't Mind A Little Rain -
Every band has a song that makes you say, "huh?" This is Talmud Beach's song. They chose to start the album out with it. But it such a great song, where the hell else would you put it? Well played, Finnish pop/blues/weirdos.

All those little reissue-labels around the country should just make their job easier and buy this now, because they'll fight to reissue this album in the future.