(August 2010) Under the radar of most, well under mine anyway, a small record label from Finland has been dishing up its own brand of synth pop since 2007 on 7″ plates. Out of Range Records is an artist run label, with Kimmo Karjalainen aka Huminoida at the helm. A self confessed “control freak” Karjalainen decided to start up his own imprint “instead of releasing the material under some other really small label.” Out of Range Records was born.
To date Out of Range has released three 7″s by Huminoida, the latest amiably entitled Huminoida Loves You. The EP opens with “Obsessions.” A driving analogue line accompanies vocals with some darker shades entering as the chorus descends. The track has a modern synth pop feel to it, clean production with good synth hooks and catchy lyrics. The B-side introduces “Bygone Wars,” with brash dark dusty synthlines trudging through the speakers. The track is peppered with historic samples, from Hitler to the dawn on the atomic bomb and beyond. The 7″ comes to a close with the sombre piano of “Whiter Noise.” A slow and melancholic work to end the latest Huminoida chapter.
The latest EP builds on Huminoida’s past releases, but doesn’t explore some of the depths of his sound. His debut Self-Titled 7″ is really a one tracker, with the B-side being purposely scrapped and marred. The track from the EP, “Self Titled” is a dark broody instrumental piece, reminiscent of Tangerine Dream or a dark Vangelis piece. Likewise, the A/B 7″ brings dark synth works together with more minimal pop pieces. Karjalainen is a diverse artist, with elements of industrial, EBM, synth pop and darkwave coming together to form his sound. His first trio of releases illustrate this. The Autumn sees the Finn’s first album, a much bigger canvas for his music to take hold.
All releases above are out now on Out of Range.
