Stinako (Finland) – Body (EP)

Back in April Stinako (Stina Koistinen) released the first of a trilogy of EPs called ‘Mind’, ‘Body’ and ‘Spirit’. We said of ‘Mind’ that it was bound to be influenced by the previously chronicled illness that she has suffered from and it is easy to read such allusions into it on every track.

So what of ‘Body’, which one might reasonably assume would be even more predisposed to refer and relate to that condition?

Well, in her words it “celebrates the physicality of existence, emphasising the importance of embracing and enjoying your body despite societal pressures and personal struggles. It acknowledges the challenges of living with illness or body image issues but also emphasises the resilience and capabilities of the human body. It also celebrates the joy of being alive. Body is a celebration of all bodily experiences from panic attacks to falling in love.”

In other words get on with your life and I’ll get on with mine, thank you.

Not being one to introduce the listener to concepts gently she launches straight into the fray with ‘Panic’ in which she’s crying on the dance floor (has there been a murder? Where’s Sophie?) and can’t breathe. Neither we nor she knows what he/she has done to her but it’s pretty serious because Sister Sledge are shrieking in the background.

But there’s something about the way she tells the story, to a dance beat that’s come straight from Ibiza and staccato piano chords that gravitate into a sexy little bridge and then later outro, that tells you she’s more than in control. Nothing to see here; move along.

I’ve never heard anything quite like this from Stinako. Her versatility is remarkable. It reminds me of when Fiona Apple went off script on ‘Hot butter’ from her ‘Idler wheel’ album.

And yes we are talking the same level of class.

‘Forgiveness’ is how I remember biology classes at school before we started dissecting mice and I changed streams to basket weaving. Rushing blood keeping her alive; skin; fat; bone and muscle. It’s a lyrical diagram. But the upshot is that for all the bodily functions – good, bad and ugly – if there was no love left she would be nothing but a shell.

Until now the structure has loosely followed that of ‘Panic’, with the same jackhammer techno backing and odd time signature (from Tapio Viitasaari, who seems to have become a regular collaborateur, comme on dit), albeit more fortissimo.

But then after a heavenly spoken bridge it explodes into the clubland stratosphere then rocks out for a while before it returns like a rondo to its opening statement.

It’s up and down like a rollercoaster. But then so is the notion of forgiveness.

I’m struggling to find the words to describe ‘Looking for a friend’. I haven’t heard the juxtaposition of styles employed here anywhere before.

The first half of it is a pop banger, right up there with her Finnish language single from a couple of years ago, ‘Pelasta mut’, in the big tune stakes. Everything about it is perfect pop with a terrifically formidable and purposeful vocal accompaniment and I’m hearing a chart topper and a Eurovision entry. It would probably win that, too.

Then in Part 2 it unaccountably turns into a scenario where a pissed up Keith Emerson has just lurched into the Rose and Crown, kicked the piano man off his stool and proceeded to bore everyone with some tuneless honky tonk.

Its two different songs welded into one.

For the first time ever I think Stina made a mistake here. Take the first half through to its natural conclusion, perhaps using a shorter piece of that piano bit as a novel bridge, then upping the tempo into an orgasmic finale and it’s a guaranteed hit. Period.

‘Superbody’ is the star of the show, as I reckon it should be. “Everybody has a body/some kind of superbody.” It’s just another way of saying “We are beautiful”, isn’t it, Christina?

So many styles are employed in this song it’s hard to keep up. Early doors she mimics the slightly childish vocal style of Das Body’s Ellie Linden and the song itself channels that band’s oddball soft rock propensity.

Then it passes via a gospel passage into something that might have come out of the mouth of Carly Rae Jepsen or Katy Perry. After that it gets really tasty, a modern prog extravaganza that Yes would have been proud of except that Jon Anderson could never generate the vocal power that Stina does, both up front and harmonising with herself.

It’s all rather sumptuous and confirms yet again that Stinako never ceases to come up with something fresh and new.

She could be a hit machine if she wanted to but she’s too erudite for that and will always seek a way to tantalise her audience. Long may that continue to be so.

Of all the artists I would like to see succeed over here, where a year from now we’ll all be bored stupid by an underwhelming foul mouthed Oasis reunion, which has attracted millions of people at hundreds of quid a time – that’s how low we’ve sunk – it’s Stina Koistinen. She has the level of quality that seems to have largely gone walkabout here.

8/10 (would be 9 if not for the ‘Looking for a friend’ debacle).

Find her on:

Website: https://www.stinakoistinen.com/