Album Details

• Artist: Siinai
• Album: Olympic Games
• Label: Splendour
• Year of Release: 2012
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: patchen on 2012-02-13

A sort of Finnish supergroup, Siinai deliver hypnotic, Krautrock-based drone that has bite and sweep;. Their debut, "Olympic Games," draws its inspiration from, you guessed it, the Olympics. But this is no ode to sport or marbled athletic muscle; it is an often mesmerizing, occasionally noisy set that, if it reminds you of the Olympics at all, it will be in terms of its epic feel.

The record starts off with "Anthem 1&2," a mostly ambient synth piece until the end , when it explodes into soaring, guitar-driven shoegaze, while "Anthem 3" is  a more consistently monotone piece with subtle chant feel to the drone.   These are contrasted with "Marathon," a pulsating guitar and synth track with echoes of "Low" era Bowie ambient, and the beautiful "Victory," a nice spare combination of acoustic and electronic melody.

The closer, "Finish Line," is the most propulsive, optimistic, and warm piece, a summing up as well as a celebration.          

Siinai's "Olympic Games" is a confident, sweeping set of ambient tracks that occasionally employ driving guitars to take these climbing songs to even higher peaks. This Finnish band was inspired by an event that celebrates the body as well as the loftier goals of sports. Their music is expressed in ways that suggest they plan on making music in the future that will be similarly eventful.

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