Kaustinen, a cluster of villages on the slow-winding River Perho in the western Finnish region of Ostrobothnia, has long been famous for its fiddlers. But, largely as a result of the innovative influence and success of Kaustinen band JPP (the acronym derives from “Järvelän Pikkupelimannit”) and the teaching by that band's Mauno Järvelä of all the kids in the area who want to learn, the standard of playing, tune writing and arranging has increased even further, and rapidly, over the past few years.

Frigg is at the crest of this new wave, full of fresh ideas and taking the next leap forward for Finnish fiddle music.

In Ostrobothnia it's common for a surname to be the same as the family's address; the Järveläs come from the village of Järvelä, the scatter of farmhouses a bow-throw up river from Kaustinen. In Frigg are three members of the family's fourth generation of famous fiddlers: Mauno's daughter Alina, son Esko and nephew Antti. Their grandfather Johannes Järvelä and great-grandfather Antti Järvelä were both legendary master players.

You won't find the family names of the four other band members on the gravestones outside Kaustinen's big yellow and white wooden church, though. Two are from other parts of Finland, and the name Frigg (the Norse goddess of love and fertility) reflects the fact that in this band Finnish fiddling meets Norwegian. Playing both ordinary and Hardanger fiddle are brothers Gjermund and Einar Olav Larsen, from Verdal in the central Norwegian region of Trøndelag. They have played as a duo since childhood, three times winning the group category at Norway's national traditional music competition, the Landskappleik, in which in 2002 at the age of twenty-one Gjermund became the youngest ever winner of the solo fiddle category; he won it again in 2005.

With their galvanic live shows, and the 2005 second album, Oasis building on the buzz caused by the 2002 debut album Frigg, the band have been catching ears on both sides of the Atlantic. For example, during the recent US tour an appearance on Garrison Keillor's famous public radio show “A Prairie Home Companion” had the studio audience baying for an encore. That's the way it's turning out wherever they play.

-- by Andrew Cronshaw

• “Oasis is a stunning album. With three members of the Järvelä family in the band, quality is guaranteed and the Larsens, from the heart of the Norwegian tradition, bring wonderful Hardanger fiddle playing especially in the beautiful ‘Toastmasters March’. There’s a breathless bluegrass-style Swedish polka, a tip of the hat to Quebecoise brilliance in ‘Tepeq’ (inspired by the sounds of Ingrian shepherd music), and a deeply moving version of the traditional ‘Peltoniemen Hintriikin Surumarssi’ (a folk musician’s funeral march). The latter features a chamber orchestra led by one of Finland’s top violinists and conductors, Pekka Kuusisto. There’s a dobro in there, nyckelharpa and Estonian bagpipes -- a real mixture lovingly crafted together with a wicked twinkle in the eye. Not to mention space for everyone on the dance floor.” — Fiona Talkington, Songlines (Top of the World selection for February 2006)
• “Obviously with so much budding musical and composing talent, the next generation of Nordic folk music looks promising.” — www.worldmusiccentral.org
• “...Frigg banishes the darkness with a series of bright, smiling instrumentals.” -- Michael Toland, High Bias (www.highbias.com)
• “...one of the most exciting recordings to come out of the flourishing Nordic folk-music scene in recent memory.” — Sue Thompson, Acoustic Guitar