Lapua-Uusi-Guinea

The name Lapua-Uusi-Guinea is a portmanteau of the rural Finnish town of Lapua and the island nation of Papua New Guinea. The contemporary folk sextet sings and plays original compositions as well as trad arrangements, both firmly rooted in traditional Finnish and Scandinavian dance rhythms spiced up with pop flavours as well as discrete influences from e.g. jazz, West African & British isles’ musics. Lapua-Uusi-Guinea is prepared to offer its audience a festivity full of beauty, energy, longing and pure joy of dancing. The arrangements of traditional melodies as well as the band’s own tunes have been written by the pianist and bandleader Santeri Kaipiainen.

Lapua-Uusi-Guinea’s sophomore album Taklax/Remix was released in October 2023. It consists fully of the band’s reimagined arrangements of fiddle tunes played by the legendary Finnish-Swedish fiddler Johan Erik Taklax (1856–1948). The arrangements collide Ostrobothnian spelman tradition with influences from western and southern Africa, Baroque music, Celtic and Iberian traditions, Scandinavian jazz, tango nuevo, rock and Erik Satie.

Debut album “Virittää” was released in 2021 through the label Eclipse Music. The first print was sold out, the album peaked at #14 in Roots Music Report’s world music list, and the tracks received radio airplay around Europe as well as in the United States.

• Anna Kinnunen – fiddle, lead vocals
• Oona Yliperttula – fiddle, vocals
• Santeri Kaipiainen – piano, vocals
• Jenna Hiipakka – accordion, vocals
• Aapo Nieminen – guitar
• Veli-Matti Silanterä – double bass

“While the instrumental arrangements are the core of their sound, vocal parts show up in about half the tracks, and are superbly done, whether solo or lushly harmonized. Virittää is highly recommended for fans of sophisticated acoustic music, especially those with an interest in Nordic folk.”

–Jon Davis, Exposé

“Virittää contains beautiful pieces of music interspersed with faster numbers. The music can descend into melancholy and then strike the dance nerve. We hear polskas, hambos and marches, but here there is a very light touch of jazz and pop as well.”

–Timo Kangas, Lira

“The piano has equal footing with violins and accordion, and its bright addition lifts the tunes yet a notch higher. Different instruments are equally given enough space, which has a positive effect on the whole soundscape.”

–Antti Janka-Murros, Kansanmusiikki