Finnish prog rock outfit Pennies By The Pound release their new 'Nothingside' album on April 7 via the Lilith label. A collection of 10 tracks primarily in prog rock territory, 'Nothingside' is a concept album that takes the band's music to a fantastic new realm beyond anything they've released before.

The Helsinki-based band worked with RIDE frontman Mark Gardener, who mastered this record at his OX4 Sound Studio in Oxford, and top national producer Rauli 'Rake' Eskolin, who boasts over a dozen No.1 records in Finland to his name.

Most recently, they shared 'Whispers Under The Willow Tree', a song about longing for the past and regret, which was preceded by the invigorating lead track 'Burning Wish' and 80s-inspired synth-laden single 'The End Times', a song about love gone astray and the consequences thereof, which saw the band depart from their trademark British-style progressive rock output for a one-off synth-pop adventure.

"This album is an abstract story about politics, failed love and the irredeemable bad choices one tends to make in life. I'm not too keen to open it up any further. I'm hoping that keeping it quite open-ended more people can try to fit what's inside their heads into the framework of the story. But, there's three people involved in it, who interact with each other at different times but at the same place - the village, which is the birthplace of all three. And due to circumstances and things happening in the outside world, the village isn't doing that great at the moment," says frontman Johannes Susitaival.

Formed in 2017 by Johannes Susitaival and Vesa Ranta, Pennies by the Pound later expanded with the addition of Tomi Laaksonen and Alexander Meaney. Having written for various bands, Johannes' exploration and passion for alternative and progressive rock led to Pennies' self-produced 'Bloodshed and the Blinding Sunlight' EP in 2018, followed by their critically-acclaimed debut album 'Heat Death of the Universe' in 2020.

As of April 7, the 'Nothingside' LP will be released everywhere digitally, including Apple Music, Spotify and Bandcamp, where the lead singles are already available.

CREDITS
Music & lyrics by Johannes Susitaival
Arranged by Pennies By The Pound and Rauli Eskolin
Johannes Susitaival - vocals, rhythm guitar, drums, keyboards
Vesa Ranta - lead guitar
Alexander Meaney - rhythm guitar
Tomi Laaksonen - bass guitar
Rauli Eskolin - additional keyboards
Produced, recorded and mixed by Rauli Eskolin
Mastered by Mark Gardener at OX4 Sound

"One of Finland’s best kept secrets... quite chameleonic. Best known for their British prog-rock stylings, the quartet try a new size on in this current single – synthpop... truly of the 80s, only with a vocal timbre and passion of Marillion" ~ The Spill Magazine

"Big and extravagant.... this is brilliant music for here and now, wherever that may be" ~ Big Takeover Magazine

"A trippy ride... Loads of flair and professionalism from the band" ~ Amplify Music Magazine

"Indeed a wonderful affair... Pennies By the Pound should be on everyone’s radar as a band to watch in future" ~ The Record Stache

Finnish indie outfit Pennies By The Pound are back with their new invigorating single 'The End Times', the second single from their upcoming concept album 'Nothingside', which is anticipated for release in early 2023 via the Lilith label.

Relative to the first single 'Burning Wish', which was beautiful expression of optimism and adventure channelled through a fantastic prism of British progressive rock, this song explores the opposite end of the spectrum of emotions conveyed on this sophomore album.

Pulsing with the rhythms and sounds of the neon-lit eighties, 'The End Times' takes the listener on a ride through the turbulent times we (as well as the protagonists of the story) are experiencing at present, keeping sight of the light at the end of the tunnel - even if it is an oncoming train.

"This song is something completely different than anything we've ever done before, almost alien to us in many ways. Most of the credit for that goes to our producer Mr. Eskolin, who was instrumental in making this song happen in the first place," says frontman Johannes Susitaival.

"If I've mentioned before about the influence of all sorts of 80s records on this album as a whole, this is definitely the climax of all that. If you check out the video, you'll especially know what I mean. The subject matter of the album as a whole is a bit heavy, so we tried to bring out some light-hearted fun for a change!"

As with previous releases, the Helsinki-based band worked with Ride frontman Mark Gardener, who mastered the track at his OX4 Sound Studioin Oxford, and top national producer Rauli 'Rake' Eskolin, who has had over a dozen No.1 records in Finland to his name in the past 20 years.

Pennies by the Pound was formed by Johannes Susitaival and Vesa Ranta around 2017, with the lineup expanded in the next few years by first Tomi Laaksonen and then Alexander Meaney, both musicians from previous related projects. Having written for a variety of bands, Johannes began exploring his passion for alternative and progressive rock, which led to Pennies' self-produced 'Bloodshed and the Blinding Sunlight' EP in 2018, followed by their debut album 'Heat Death of the Universe' in 2020. This new release takes them to yet another realm beyond that.

As of December 9, 'The End Times' will be released across digital stores and streaming platforms, including Apple Music, Spotify and Bandcamp, where you can also pre-order the full album directly from the band.

CREDITS
Music by Johannes Susitaival and Rauli Eskolin
Lyrics by Johannes Susitaival
Arranged by Pennies By The Pound and Rauli Eskolin
Johannes Susitaival - vocals, guitar, keyboards
Vesa Ranta - lead guitar
Tomi Laaksonen - bass
Alexander Meaney - guitar
Rauli Eskolin - programming, keyboards, guitar
Produced, recorded and mixed by Rauli Eskolin
Mastered by Mark Gardener at OX4 Sound

VIDEO CREDITS
Directed by Martin Brown with Pennies By The Pound
Edited by Martin Brown
Cameras by Martin Brown and Sam Gurung
Post-production by Sam Gurung
With assistance from Jayson Rohde
'The End Times' ISRC FI-LLH-22-00010
'Burning Wish' ISRC FI-LLH-22-00002

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Keep up with Mark Gardener / OX4 Sound
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Nordic prog-rockers Pennies by the Pound to release 'Nothingside' album with support from Mark Gardener & Rauli 'Rake' Eskolin

Nordic outfit Pennies by the Pound presents 'The End Times' single with gamesome video