This Empty Flow

The Scandinavian experimental outfit This Empty Flow failed to match the commercial reach of its dream pop and space rock counterparts despite matching them in charm and sonic allure, never earning acclaim on the level of Mogwai or Sigur Rós. The trio formed in Turku, Finland, during 1994 when Jori Sjöroos on vocals and guitar, Niko Sirkiä on keyboards, and Aku-Tuomas Mattila on bass began shaping a soft indie style and committing several demo tapes to tape at home. The following year they mailed one of those tapes to the Italian label Avantgarde Music, which led to a contract signed in April, and by September the group had entered the studio to record its debut. Magenta Skycode emerged in 1996 from those sessions, with album producer Jukka Sillanpää stepping in as the primary guitarist even as internal tensions mounted. Sirkiä departed before the year closed to pursue solo work, leaving the band without a clear musical course. Through 1997 This Empty Flow had staged only two shows, both within Finland, yet a change in lineup restored a measure of optimism. Hanna Kalske joined on keyboards, and the refreshed ensemble devoted the ensuing eighteen months to rehearsal and tracking for a follow-up release. The rough-cut EP Three Empty Boys appeared in 1999 on Mattila’s Plastic Passion imprint, followed a year later by the outtakes collection Useless and Empty Songs on Muovi 111. That EP highlighted the group’s punk-tinged atmosphere through its selection of remixes and demos and was pressed in a limited run of exactly 111 copies. The unit nevertheless remained unstable, as Mattila resumed activity with his prior band Sad Parade, Sjöroos focused on Fun-Tourist, and Sirkiä committed himself to Niko Skorpio & A\\H. In late 2000 the Italian distributor Eibon Records reached out and convinced the members to assemble a retrospective of rare and unreleased tracks. Nowafter surfaced in 2001, arguably the clearest document of the band’s refined beauty, after which the name This Empty Flow largely faded from view.