TY - JOUR AU - Pääkkölä, Anna-Elena PY - 2019/06/18 Y2 - 2024/03/29 TI - Nykysuomalaisia idylliäänimaisemia, symboleja ja kipupisteitä populaarimusiikissa: tapausesimerkkeinä Lauri Tähkä, Vesala ja Tiisu JF - Musiikki JA - mus VL - 49 IS - 1 SE - Artikkelit DO - UR - https://musiikki.journal.fi/article/view/83240 SP - AB - <p>This article discusses current articulations of Finnishness in three different Finnish popular music recordings published during years 2015–17. Three songs were<br>selected for close listening: Lauri Tähkä’s song ‘Minun Suomeni’ (2016; “My Finland”), Vesala’s ‘Tytöt ei soita kitaraa’ (2016, “Girls don’t play the guitar”),<br>and Tiisu’s “Suomalaisen suurin riesa on sisu” (2015; “The greatest plague of a Finn is sisu/chutzpah/stamina”).</p><p>These songs are discussed in the article from three different analytical angles: first, by a consideration of the sound recording using the so called “sound<br>box” (Moore 1993) and “sound stage” design analysis (Moylan 2012; Richardson 2012) combined with art history’s concept of the “idyllic landscape” (Palin<br>1999; Ollikainen 2014). Secondly, the songs are analyzed using Billig’s (1995) concept of “flagging” nationality. Thirdly, some attention is drawn to critical<br>issues, or “sore points”, regarding the notion of Finnishness. My analysis shows that the “idyllic landscapes” rely on either epic proportions (Tähkä), repetitive<br>flow (Vesala), or tight, rock-influenced staging (Tiisu). All three songs use similar “flagging” symbols, but relate to them in different ways: Tähkä’s song with<br>reverence, Vesala’s song with a critical ear, and Tiisu with a high level of irony. The songs also reveal “sore points” in Finnishness. Tähkä’s song mentions its opposition to far-right nationalism and xenophobia. Vesala’s song offers a feminist point of view while critiquing the concept of “nostalgia”. Tiisu’s song paints a<br>bleak picture of Finnish alcohol culture and violence, inadvertently taking part in deconstructing as well as reaffirming the “laddish” masculinity cultures.</p><p>This article is a part of the project “Depictions of Finnishness in Finnish Popular Music from 2000 to Current Times”, funded in part by The Finnish<br>Cultural Society.&nbsp;</p> ER -