After several years of global chaos and now with a war at the doorstep of their Finnish homeland, Eldanka are back with a new album, entitled Joldanka Patrol, that is clearly on par with their brilliant 2018 album Rusty Treasures. A splendid sounding follow-up album, Joldanka Patrol is a nevertheless a solid step forward for Eldanka as well as for the entire instrumental rock idiom. Musically, highlights abound - from the Spanish-tinged groove of “Descanso”, to the Spy-Surf blast of the title track “Joldanka Patrol”, to the melodic, Finnish flair of tracks such as “Cosy Mementos” and “Necropolis Sidewalk”, to the Sci-fi flavors of “Le Parc” and the classical gas of “The Bog (Cantus Articus)”. Fans of Euro-flavored surf-rock will love the CD / LP cover art with its colorful ocean scenery and characteristic Finnish sense of humor.

On Joldanka Patrol, Eldanka features the same line-up that played on the Rusty Treasures album, including the band’s main composer Mika Jämsä (lead guitar), Rasmus Tammik (rhythm guitar), Mauri Haapamäki (bass guitar) and Janne Torvikoski (drums). Although most of the tracks are Eldanka originals written by Mika Jämsä, the two covers here include a daring take of a track from the 1985 Tangerine Dream album Le Parc, entitled “L.A. Streethawk” and a cover of Finnish classical composer Einojuhani Rautavaara called “The Bog”, taken from his 18-minute composition “Cantus Articus”. On their 3rd album, one of the best instrumental rock bands to ever come out of Europe, Eldanka takes the modern ‘surf-rock’ guitar instrumental genre to new heights. Music fans lucky enough to have heard the first two Eldanka albums—Twangin’ Tritones and Rusty Treasures—will find much to likewise appreciate on Joldanka Patrol.