#Saariselka

[nofatclips]

Ceres by Saariselka

[vanesserz]

Ice sculptures inside Kakslauttanen’s Igloo Hotel, Finland

[bonomovesinmysteriousways]

Ice sculptures inside Kakslauttanen’s Igloo Hotel, Finland

[shannaroooooo]

Ice sculptures inside Kakslauttanen’s Igloo Hotel, Finland

[satatttvision]

Ice sculptures inside Kakslauttanen’s Igloo Hotel, Finland

[mutant-distraction]

House Aurora over Finland

Credit: Juan Carlos Casado

Location: Saariselka, Lapland, Finland

[mendelpalace]

Portals: The KLF's Chill Out (A New Dimension)

A 'mixtape' from A Strangely Isolated Place, which serves as a reinterpretation of The KLF's Chill Out. The original album's concept and timing remain, but with all new music from various artists and field recordings. A more in-depth description (a long with other mixtapes) can be found on the ASIP blog.

‘Tracklist’

For the best experience, I would suggest listening without looking at the track list first. If you knew what was coming in the original album, would it have been as fun?! Tracks are listed below in (very) rough order in which they first play. Most of the time 4/5 tracks are playing at the same time. Many tracks are used multiple times at different points in the mix. Plus there are other small samples used that were changed from existence and not listed below.

…

…

Ourson - Calm Mountain Night Bartosz Kruczyński - Pastoral Sequences Ourson - Mountain, Bird, Boo Chris Watson - El Divisadero Saariselka - Ceres Markus Guentner - Sparks Oneohtrix Point Never - Immanence The Chi Factory - Part One Fedor Tau Steppe Kargiraa Markus Guentner - Express Yourself Bochum Welt - Canyon Drive Ernest Hood - Gloaming Boards of Canada - Dave (I’m a real traditionalist) Ernest Hood - From The Bluff Tongues of Light - Healing Side Priori - 2see Klimek - Milk and Honey Akis - The Powers of Pi Boreal Massif - Weather In August Heavenly Music Corporation - Cloudless Light Boreal Network - Cumulonimbus Ex-Terrestrial - Water Walk The KLF - Snub TV interview Bartosz Kruczyński - V Perishing Thirst - Boshing So High 808 State - In Yer Face (Bicep Remix) Leo Anibaldi - Universal Boards of Canada - Ready Let’s Go Boreal Network - Viewers Like You Stranger On The Shore - Acker Bilk Boards of Canada - Apparatus

[oceanasky]

This chapter goes along with my "For You, I'll Do Anything" square.

Night Two

Back when they’d travelled together, the Doctor hardly ever seemed to sleep. Although, at the time, he’d insisted it was because of his “superior physiology,” Rose had wondered if he’d been afraid of what he might dream. Even in Pete’s World, the Doctor tended to stay up late and wake up early, although he told her it was because he was keen to pack as much into his one remaining life as he possibly could. 

So, when she woke up to find he was still sleeping, curled up against her, Rose smiled. It had been a long night. She wasn’t quite sure how much time she’d spent napping on the ship, but she’d held out ‘til after midnight. Knowing him, the Doctor had kept working until he could barely keep his eyes open. And, since she knew he’d want to get started fixing the ship as soon as he was awake, Rose decided she’d go get all the remaining materials that he’d asked for before Zeni had her perception filter malfunction. 

Rose started to get out of bed, tensing for a moment as he moved, afraid she’d woken him up, but he just rolled over with a mumble–it sounded like gibberish to her, although she smiled as she realised it was probably some alien language he knew. Once Rose was out of bed, it didn’t take long to get dressed. She carefully closed the door behind her as she left their cabin.

The sun wasn’t up yet, the winter sunrise in Lapland hours later than she was used to in London, but the sky was starting to get lighter. Rose could see her breath in the cold morning air. She shivered, shoving her hands deeper into her pockets. Despite the cold, as she looked around at the cabins and snow covered landscape, Rose had to admit Saariselka was stunningly pretty.

She set off after the aluminium cans first. It wasn’t particularly early, so there were several other guests on their way to the restaurant as well. The building was all rustic chic, with light-coloured wood panelling and reindeer antlers affixed to the chandelier at the front. “Can I have a seat over by the bar?” Rose asked, to the hostess’ nod. 

The hostess walked her over to a table that gave Rose a good view of the well-stocked bar. She perused the menu, grateful to see there were plenty of beverages on it that would come in cans. If she went around the back after getting some breakfast, she could nick several from the bin. 

She’d just tracked down some tea and decided against trying the herring at the buffet, instead scooping up a generous helping of bacon and eggs to go with her toast. Then she sat back down. As soon as she took a bite, the Doctor slid into the seat across from hers. He was dressed in a dark green sweater her mum had bought for him over the holiday. His hair was still mussed from sleep. 

“I woke up and you were gone,” he said, absently tapping the table with his fingers. And, although his tone was light, the look in his eyes was worried. 

Rose leaned over to her hand on his. “Sorry. I hoped I’d be back before you woke up. I wanted to get the rest of the materials you needed.” 

He raised an eyebrow. “Got peckish, did you?” 

Rose grinned. “One thing I learned from travelling with you is to eat whenever you can. Never know when you’ll have to run. Besides, it would look a bit suspicious if I poked around in the bins instead of going inside. Now at least I can pretend to be looking for something.” 

“Good plan.” He patted his pocket. “And I found some lubricant.”  A hotel guest walking by their table shot him a dirty look as she heard that last sentence, pulling her child’s hand as they walked away. The Doctor’s cheeks turned pink. “Not that kind of…oh, never mind.” 

Rose couldn’t help but laugh at his expression. For all that he was brilliant, he could say all manner of daft things without realising how they’d sound to anyone else. She patted his hand again. “Bet they think we’re going to have a very different sort of day than we are.” 

The look he gave her was full of heat. “Well, maybe not a completely different sort of day. Not if I can get Zeni’s transportation sorted out, that is. Speaking of,” he said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the sonic screwdriver below the table, “suppose I should run a scan, see if there’s any trace of what shorted out her communicator.” 

Rose nodded. “Oh, did I tell you about Jake’s latest date?” she asked before launching into a story about their Torchwood colleague’s most recent dating escapade so nobody would notice the sound of the sonic. The Doctor gave her an easy smile as he ran the scan, then squeezed her hand when he’d finished.

Then she caught sight of someone walking by the window and went very still. 

~*~ 

As soon as Rose’s hand tightened on his, the Doctor sat up in his chair. He fought the urge to turn around. “What is it?” he asked, keeping his voice low. 

“It’s the same man from yesterday. The shifty one. He saw me with Zeni.” 

“Has he noticed you, do you think?” 

Rose shook her head. 

The Doctor looked down at the sonic, thinking. From his scan, it was clear Zeni’s perception filter had gotten ‘help’ shorting out. And he wasn’t familiar with the tech that had caused the malfunction. That was the trouble with a brand new universe–he’d told Rose once that parallel worlds were like a gingerbread house, full of traps you didn’t see until it was too late. And yet, given the choice between his life with Rose in this strange new world and living on his own in his home universe, he had to admit he’d choose the gingerbread house every time. 

“What do you think is going on?” Rose asked, voice low. 

“I don’t know. And I really hate not knowing. Should we ask him, do you think?” 

Rose’s hand tightened on his. “No. He hasn’t seen you yet. I’ll follow him while you go help Zeni. Maybe it’s nothing; he could look shifty because he’s stepping out on his partner or about to cheat on his diet. But, if it is something, then you need to help Zeni get away.” 

“Rose….” 

She gave him a look he knew well. It meant he was about to lose whatever argument they were having. “I’m trained for this. Torchwood, remember? And I know you could do it too, but I can’t help Zeni get home. She needs you.” 

“And I need you,” he reminded her, threading his fingers through hers. This was supposed to be simple; answering a distress call, just the two of them, just like old times. He hadn’t wanted to get Torchwood or UNIT involved for once; he’d just wanted to help someone fix their spaceship and then have a romantic weekend with his wife. Splitting up like characters in a horror movie? That wasn’t supposed to happen. 

“Recon only, Sarge,” Rose swore, saluting him with her free hand. Then she lowered her voice again. “Remember the dimension cannon? You should know by now I’d do anything to get back to you,” she said before smiling at him with her tongue between her teeth. “Besides, we still haven’t tried out that bed.” 

“I’ll hold you to that.” 

“Promise?” Rose asked, smiling wider. 

“Oh, yes.” 

Trying not to draw attention to themselves, Rose finished up her food before they left the table. When they passed by the buffet, the Doctor grabbed some sausages and toast as well, reflecting that Rose was right about it being a good idea to eat whenever the opportunity came up. They walked out hand-in-hand. As soon as they were out the door, he tugged her to the side of the building, heading for the bins. 

Luckily, the recyclables were separated already. It was the work of a moment to get the amount of aluminium he needed. He safely stowed them in the pockets of his coat. Then he heard a noise and, suddenly, Rose was kissing him. 

~*~ 

As soon as the back door of the restaurant had opened, Rose had acted reflexively and launched herself at the Doctor, kissing him for all she was worth. She buried her hands in his hair, making it even messier than it had been before. And, as surprised as the Doctor was by the sudden kiss, he was clearly willing to follow her lead, opening his mouth under hers almost instantly, pulling her closer with an arm around her waist. 

The staff member had to cough for a second time before Rose and the Doctor broke apart. “This area is off limits to guests,” the young man said, sounding torn between annoyance and laughter. He had a full bin bag at his feet. 

“Sorry. Won’t happen again,” Rose promised breathlessly, grabbing onto the Doctor’s hand and pulling him away with her. He had that glazed look she loved, the one that told her she’d succeeded in kissing him senseless. It didn’t happen often–he almost never stopped thinking with that Time Lord mind of his–but she’d figured out a few ways that always seemed to do it. 

They left the restaurant area, heading back to their cabin through the trees when the Doctor laughed. “You know, if you wanted a genetic transfer so you’d have some alien DNA on you to confuse any sensors the man might have, all you had to do was ask,” he said with an exaggerated wink. 

Rose rolled her eyes. “Ta. And I still can’t believe you kissed Martha and told her it was a ‘genetic transfer’ that meant nothing. King of mixed bloody signals, you are.” 

He frowned. “A kiss seemed like the best option at the time, considering the Judoon and the hospital full of people running out of air. Do you think it would have been better if I’d licked her face?” 

Rose gave him a look. “Licking her face would’ve been confusing in an entirely different way.  Still, don’t think you’d have survived without Martha, so maybe a kiss was the right option. I just hope other you gives her one hell of an apology.” 

“Yeah,” the Doctor said, tugging at his earlobe. Rose rolled her eyes again. She loved the man with all her heart, but Martha had made the right choice, leaving when she did. He hadn’t treated Martha well at all. And the fact that the Doctor had been acting like that because he’d been grieving losing her at Canary Wharf…well, Rose wished she could apologise to Martha too. And thank her. Because, without Martha, without Donna, the Doctor wouldn’t be here. 

Rose swung their hands together as they trudged through the snow. For the moment, they were just newlyweds, walking through a snowy forest together on a glamorous mini-break. Which they were, of course, although her husband was planning to spend the day fixing a spaceship with a gorgeous bird-like alien at the same time Rose followed someone who might be dangerous. Just like old times: danger, exotic locations, aliens. 

And Rose wouldn’t have it any other way. Especially because, unlike old times, there was the promise of sex later. 

~*~

They were nearly to their cabin when Rose spoke up again. “Can you fix the ship by tonight, do you think?” 

“Well,” he drawled, “I am a genius.” 

“I dunno, I remember what you did to the toaster last week,” she teased. 

“I made it more efficient!” 

“You made it launch the toast across the room.” 

“Exactly!  No need to get up again to fetch the toast.” 

“Good job my mum wasn’t there. Would’ve scared her half to death.” 

“Nah, Jackie’s made of sterner stuff than that,” he said easily, then came to a halt in the snow with mounting horror as he realised the words that had just come out of his mouth. “Don’t tell her I said that.” 

Rose grinned. “Don’t worry…I’ll save it for her birthday.” 

He tugged her against his side and she laughed. “Anyway, now that I have the aluminium–” 

“--and lubricant,” Rose supplied brightly, patting at his pocket, but mostly just patting his bum.

“Yes, that too,” he said, raising an eyebrow as he looked down at her, trying for a stern expression that quickly became a grin when she patted his bum again. “I’ll be able to fix the ship the rest of the way, as long as whatever took out her perception filter stays well clear.” 

“And I’ll keep an eye on things here. Make sure nobody follows you.” 

“You’ll call if you get into trouble?” 

Rose raised her eyebrows. “Ta very much. Trained agent, remember? What are you planning to do if I call?” 

“For you, I’ll do anything.” He’d loved Rose so much, he hadn’t regenerated after that Dalek had shot him when they’d found each other again–that choice was why this version of him existed at all, why he’d been able to save all of reality with Donna. And, although he hadn’t thought it was possible, he loved Rose even more now than he had back then. What would he do for her? Wrong question. What wouldn’t he do for her? 

She looked up at him, eyes shining. “I’ll call if I need to,” she promised. Then she stood up on tiptoe and pressed a kiss against his cheek. “But I won’t need to.”

(The rest of the chapter is available at the Ao3 link above)

[noloveforned]

i'm in north carolina this weekend for the merge 35 festival so i thought i'd pre-record a special merge records show to air tonight from 8-11pm. hint- since i pre-recorded it, you also might be able to find it over at mixcloud or the podcast feed already!

as always, you can also catch up with last week's show on mixcloud at your leisure.

no love for ned on wlur – july 19th, 2024 from 8-10pm

artist // track // album // label connie lovatt featuring bill callahan // kid // coconut mirror // enchanté kim deal // coast // nobody loves you more // 4ad the lovely basement // wait a minute // lazy travellers // no aloha ambient noise // test tube babies // i was there at the texas chainsaw massacre ep // last laugh marcy's band // dance like a robot // (bandcamp mp3) // (unreleased) toyland // night flight over palestine // toyland ep // austudy lone justice // teenage kicks // teenage kicks 7” // afar tough age // warm hair // i get the feeling central // mint the buoys // check mate // lustre // arcadia apollo ghosts // fake nurse // amethyst ep // you've changed the sylvia platters // severance // vivian elixir // grey lodge quivers // oyster cuts // oyster cuts // merge saariselka // song to the siren // (bandcamp mp3) // (unreleased) ulaan janthina // ghost lights // the sea surrounding // worstward amirtha kidambi's elder ones // third space // new monuments // we jazz ruth goller featuring frank rosaly // i have for you - simple truth // skyllumina // international anthem frank strozier // the crystal ball // spiritual jazz volume sixteen- riverside, etcetera compilation // jazzman harry beckett // scarlet mine // flare up // philips azar lawrence // people moving // people moving // prestige økse featuring billy woods // amager // økse // backwoodz studios missy elliott featuring method man // bring the pain // under construction // elektra foxy // get off // get off // dash pat thomas // gye wani // ghana special two- electronic highlife and afro sounds in the diaspora, 1980-1993 compilation // soundway mourning [a] blkstar // junee // ancient/future cassette // don giovanni 2m8o // green // 2m8o cassette // under the gun rob and jay // brother // with love from rob and jay // shelflife research vessel // still can't // going tomorrow cassette // small craft advisory red sleeping beauty featuring cristina quesada and andreas jonsson // canciones de verano // canciones de verano digital single // (self-released) elowin's tree // flashback // the doll ep // (self-released) my light shines for you // detective // my light shines for you 7" ep // cloudberry delightful little nothings // over us // delightful little nothings 7" ep // candy floss

[junk-drop]

📍 Saariselkä

Northern Lights Village

[staceybombacey]

Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort - Saariselka, Finland

[nofatclips]

An extended version of Horizons by Saariselka, live at Land and Sea in Oakland

[bluecatsbookbug]

Finland, you will be missed. 2019 💙

[thesunlounge]

Saariselka - Into the Wind (from The Ground Our Sky, Temporary Residence Ltd. 2019)

[doomandgloomfromthetomb]

Saariselka - The Ground Our Sky

An absolutely perfect collab between Marielle Jakobsons (Fender Rhodes, organ, synthesizers) and Chuck Johnson (pedal steel guitar and treatments) that delivers on the promise of their recent Longform Editions contribution -- and then some! The Ground Our Sky is a spacial/glacial trip, with Jakobsons’ Terry Riley-esque keyboards melding magnificently with Johnson’s solar flare pedal steel. Mostly instrumental, but the two vocal pieces are great, too — Jakobsons’ goth-y turn on “Into The Wind” makes me think of Kendra Smith, while “The Void” is a gorgeous slo-mo pop song that suggests that sometimes when you stare into the abyss, the abyss smiles back. 

[dustedmagazine]

Listed: Saariselka

The Oakland-based duo Saariselka sees composers Marielle Jakobsons and Chuck Johnson teaming up to make beautifully pastoral ambient Americana, which Dusted’s Ian Mathers described in a review of their debut album The Ground Our Sky as having “Jakobsons’ Fender Rhodes and synthesizers melding and bending with Johnson’s pedal steel until they seem like opposite sides of the same ribbon.” Just as both halves of the duo aren’t strangers to Dusted in general, they’re also not strangers to our Listed format, with Jakobsons contributing back in 2016. Now at the end of 2019 they’re back with a list of composers who treat sound as material, something close to their hearts as listeners of The Ground Our Sky can attest.

Composers who treat sound as material.

How do we feel sound? Besides shaping the emotional realm, composers can approach the materiality of sound itself in a lot of different ways. From recorded objects or musique concréte, instruments extended through technology, architecture and spatial installations, conceptual art, or the physics of sound and tuning.

Éliane Radigue—Occam Ocean Volume 2 (Chuck)

My first encounters with Éliane Radigue’s electronic music inspired me many years ago to dive deeply into electronics, modular synthesis, and the potential of long-duration sounds. When you enter her sonic world, sounds that may seem on the surface to be static reveal continuous change and movement. When I learned that she had shifted into composing for acoustic instruments I had a hard time imagining how her aesthetic would translate. Then I heard cellist Charles Curtis perform Radigue’s piece for solo cello, Naldjorlak, and it suddenly made sense. Sounds I had never heard before came out of his instrument, as if the inherent instability and alive-ness of the wood and strings had been called out of dormancy.

Pauline Oliveros (Marielle)—“A Woman Sees How the World Goes with No Eyes” / “A Love Song”

Chuck and I were both at Mills College studying with Pauline Oliveros at different times. Personally her embodiment of sound, her broad definition of “composition” helped me release a lot of baggage around my traditional conservatory training and what it meant to be a composer (it doesn’t mean you need to write notes on a page!). She was a pioneer and an activist, always pushing boundaries and comfort.

Catherine Christer Hennix—“The Well-tuned Marimba” (Chuck)

My interest in just intonation—methods of tuning that are based on the mathematics of natural harmonics rather than the equal steps of Western tuning—led me to Hennix. Of all the minimalists of her generation, Hennix may be the most mathematical in approach (she has taught mathematics and computer science at MIT and SUNY) but her music for re-tuned, electrified instruments has an organic and chaotic quality.

Morton Feldman—“Palais de Mari” (Marielle)

What if a composition exists on its own, as its own entity, with its own shape, in its own dimension, until you perform or listen to it? Our action itself pulls the compositional form of the work into this time and space, into our experience.

Arvo Pärt—Fratres for Eight Cellos (Chuck)

Although most of Arvo Pärt’s music is beautifully melodic and composed for acoustic instruments, his harmonic language—which he calls tintinnabuli—is inspired by the clangorous and resonant sound of bells. The results are deeply moving and celestial, but inside the harmonies of his classic works are blocks of sound that follow rigid compositional rules. And nothing has more of a “block of sound,” concrete quality than Pärt’s music performed by eight cellos!