When someone mentions bluegrass in Finland, I think of Jussi Syren. I still recall the day about 20 years ago that I crossed paths with Jussi and his band at the time (The Lake Country Boys) at a bluegrass festival in Torsaker, Sweden. We hit it off immediately and jammed together until the wee hours of the morning. I was very impressed by the young man from Finland who had built his own mandolin, had an impressive understanding of bluegrass music, and had composed a number of hard-driving original songs. I could see that he and his band were going places.

Jussi Syren and the Groundbreakers formed in 1995 and have now become one of the most active touring and recording bluegrass groups in Europe. "Sea of Changes" is their third album release. While especially popular in their native Finland, their recordings have built them a good reputation in the worldwide bluegrass community. Tours have taken them to the U.S., Denmark, Sweden and Holland.

Jussi Syren sings lead and plays mandolin. The Groundbreakers include J.P. Putkonen (guitar), Tauri Oksala (banjo) and Kari Hella (bass). Guests include Mika Railo (bass, one track), Marko Vanhatalo (resonator guitar, two tracks), and Jimmy Sunnerbrandt (fiddle, three tracks).

Jussi Syren and the Groundbreakers prefer their bluegrass with an edginess that gets your spine tingling. Their music is raw, pure and intense. A bluesy, nothing-left-to-lose approach gives us a high-octane mix of originals and covers. Five songs are drawn from Roger Ferris, Dennis William Wilson, Charlie Daniels, Carl Perkins and Jesse Colin Young. "Darkness, Darkness" is a favorite that packs a supreme wallop in the drive department.

The core of The Groundbreakers' repertoire is original material, written mainly by Jussi Syren. Six songs on this album are from Jussi, while Tauri Oksala penned "Haulin' the Logs."  "Highways and Gravel Roads" tells the band's story of life on the road. "The Legend of Larry Thorne" is about a Finnish WWII and Vietnam War hero who was reported missing in action in 1965. His remains were found in 1999 and buried in Arlington, Virginia. In the early 1900s, the men of the Syren Family were steel-driving men, and Jussi pays tribute to them in "Life of a Steel Driving Man." The Groundbreakers' third album closes with a music video of  this song.

Besides bluegrass, Jussi Syren also occasionally plays guitar and sings rockabilly music with "Jussi Syren Rockabilly Revival," (with Mika Railo on bass and Juha Kursi on drums). As Jussi Syren and The Groundbreakers spread their name and music even further abroad, we certainly aren't "Fin-ished" hearing about them. (Joe Ross)

JUSSI SYREN and the GROUNDBREAKERS - Sea of Changes
Bluelight Records BLR-331122
E-MAIL bluelight.records@co.inet.fi
SONGS - Sea of Changes, Some Old Side Road, Hauling' the Logs, Highways And Gravel Roads, Man Made Of Glass, Simple Man, Stranger In A Strange Land, The Legend Of Larry Thorne, Restless, Coal Mining Country, Darkness, Darkness, Life Of A Steel Driving Man, Video:Life Of A Steel Driving Man
Playing Time - 35:56