“A Finnish electro-folk-pop duo specialised in writing timeless songs with female vocal harmonies that sound as they came from the head of Zeus.”
Finnish indie pop stalwarts Jessika Rapo and Henry Ojala teamed up to form the shambly, synthy duo Burning Hearts in 2006. Burning Hearts’ debut full-length, Aboa Sleeping, was released on Shelflife in early 2009. Aboa Sleeping received a warm welcome and made it to the top albums of 2009 on many music blogs. Rapo and Ojala followed up the album’s release with a passel of live shows in Hamburg, Berlin, Stockholm and New York City.
After releasing two singles in 2010, Night Animal (featuring A Peasant’s Dream Jori Hulkkonen remix) and a cover of Arthur Russell’s The Letter, the duo decamped to the Finnish countryside in Ostrobothnia and recorded a four song EP, Into the Wilderness, which was issued by Shelflife in June of 2011. The video for title track “Into the Wilderness”, based on a documentary about Alaskan grizzly bears, spread quickly over the blogosphere receiving a most warming welcome. The song was featured as mp3 and video of the day on spinner.com, and received several reviews giving praise to the EP. In July Burning Hearts was signed by Finnish Solina Records who, together with Shelflife (US) released the album together. Bone Voyage Recordings licensed the album in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
The second full-length album, Extinctions, was released in February 2012. All nine songs were written and recorded in the Ostrobothnian environment proven to be inspiring. If Aboa Sleeping was a collection of early songs that were not intended to end up on an album, Extinctions was written as a consequence of many tragical stories that in a way or another touched the band. Quite a few of the songs are dedicated to persons or creatures that no longer exist. Even if human tragedies inpired the writing and death is present in nearly all the songs, the sound remains vivid and full of hope.
Now they are back with the new album Battlefields, out on May 19th 2017. Let´s hope Burning Hearts gets the attention it deserves. Jessica and Henry have done the hard yards and gifted us with expertly crafted pop gems, now its the turn of purveyors of independent pop music to repay the favour.
Love to Extinctions:
VICE 10/10 (Best album of the month): “The arrangements are impeccable and the melodies and harmonies are impressing. Hell, even the lyrics are good.”
Allmusic.com 4/5: “Despite the heaviness in the words, the bulk of the album’s music is surprisingly sunny and bright; full of lightly jangling guitars, smooth toned synths, and Rapo’s wonderfully sweet vocals.”
The Fader.com: “I can’t help but picture the whole record staged under a small, warm waterfall, something South Pacific with magically varying water pressure from song to song.”
Upsala Nya Tidning 4/5: “Det är en fascinerande, nygammal mix av elektropop, folklore och 80-talistisk new wave som Burning hearts levererar. Pop och passion i ganska så oemotståndlig blandning.”
Gaffa.se 4/6: ”Sångerskan Jessika Rapos sångstil doftar Stereolab över ett flödande och snyggt popackompanjemang av kristallklara gitarrer och ena stunden isande, andra stunden blomstrande synthmattor.”
reviews in Finnish:
Soundi 5/5: “Kaksikon popteoksissa on käsityöhenkistä lämpöä ja yksityiskohtien tajua. Rytmitaustat ovat vaihtelevia, synalinjat herkullisen melodisia ja helisevät kitarakuviot hyvällä maulla sinne tänne ripoteltu.”
Rumba 4/5: “Extinctions ei haikaile opportunistisesti tanssilattialla soitetuksi tulemisesta ja siitä hohkaava lämpö on syntikkapopille harvinaista.”
Sue 9/10: “Sydämeni on tulessa. Haluaisin kirjoittaa, että Burning Heartsin kakkosalbumi on vuoden kotimainen levy, mutta en uskalla, koska nyt eletään vasta helmikuuta.”
Nuorgam 80: “…jos kuuntelija malttaa keskittyä, levyn maailma aukeaa varovaisesti ja paljastaa jotain hyvää ja kaunista.”
Desibeli.net 4/5: “…kevyesti tanssittavat rytmit, hyräilemään viekoittelevat melodiat ja viimeisen päälle hiotut soundit saavat myhäilemään suomalaisen indiemusiikin puolesta.”
Vertigo 5/5: “Ainoa ongelma muodostuukin siitä, että on mahdotonta päättää mikä kaikista hienoista biiseistä olisi se paras. Onneksi ei tarvitse.”
Nyt-liite: “Femma-gaalassa myös Nyt-liite antaa kunniamaininnan nousussa olevalle, hienolle artistille. Tänä vuonna se on turkulainen kitarapopbändi Burning Hearts.”
