So how should a diligent reviewer categorise this three track vinyl EP from Finland’s Olimpia Splendid? Is it a parody of the low budget just above the ground musical style that continually avoids any accusation of the pursuit of success? Or is it a fine example of the gleeful do or don’t die post punk ethic?
Perhaps none of the above and that’s because the line was never less clearly drawn. Percussion on these three songs never escapes minimalism whilst the guitars would just about bear comparison with the results of a recalcitrant child’s third lesson and then there’s the almost random girlish vocals thrown in without any obvious purpose to consider. Nonetheless, this EP works and it does not take long before the relentless “KL” does a masterful act of lo-fi hypnotism on you as do the proto psych beat influences that pepper “Jukka-Pekka”. It’s like a trip you might actually want to go on.
Even the oddly named “Cheeseballs” seems to roll along with its own sense of undefined purpose even though I know in my heart of hearts that it is more of the same. As those screams and guttural noises escape the confines of your speakers, you begin to wonder if Olimpia Splendid are nothing other than a spear to throw at the corporate heart of Michael Bublé.
The force is strong in Olimpia Splendid.