From Finnish soul rock/pop outfit Tears Apart comes an album that sounds decades out of its heyday, but somehow precisely what’s necessary for today. ‘Love’ is a collection of songs that draw on the everyday, the nuances and the depths of life itself in ways that are quaint and opulent all at once. The music is never too audacious in scope or innovation, it simply hits all the right notes while staying through to the classical elements that it relies on. The songs oscillate from empowering and powerful tunes to ones that reveal the more painful and heart wrenching aspects of love.
There’s a soulfulness that’s exuded throughout the record. From the delectably melodic harmonies on the vocals to the sheer emotion that’s oozed out on every lick of the guitar and every slap on those drums, each bit of the arrangement has love embedded within it and delivered through it.
The story of Tears Apart starts all the way back in the Clayland studio in Turku in the early 2000s. There, songwriter/producer Jani Lankinen and singer Lotta Svartsjö first encountered each other. With their self titled debut album releasing in 2014, eight years have passed since the outfit have been crafting and performing songs that are all about creative expression and reflection of life and all its splendour.
Highlights on the record to me come on ‘Stronger’, ‘Lost’, and ‘Sea of Sin’. For anyone who wants to hear something heartwarming and full blooded, Tears Apart’s brand of soul rock is just the right injection you’re looking for.