Tabula Rasa was a fantastic Finnish progressive rock band. The group was musically active between from 1972 until 1977. Formed in 1972 in either Tampere or Kangasala (my two research sources are contradictory with respect to their city/town of origin), Finland, Tabula Rasa was a major Finnish rock band of the decade. Despite a relatively short musical existence, the band managed to leave behind quite an impressive artistic legacy, having released two studio albums in 1975 and 1966.
Tabula Rasa band logo. Image source: www.blogspot.com
The name of the group was inspired from the eponymous Latin saying, claiming that human beings are born without mental content and, consequently, knowledge comes directly from gradual experiences in life (i.e. through empiricism if you will). ‘Tabula rasa‘ literally means ‘blank slate‘ in Latin.
The group was founded by three original members as follows: Heikki Silvennoinen (guitar), Asko Pakkanen (bass guitar), and Tapio Suominen (drums). Although boasting of an enchanting progressive rock sound (which could easily rival to the legendary English progressive rock bands of the 1970s) and following the trend of progressive rock music which was at its peak during the early to mid 1970s (the genre’s heyday, basically), the main inspiration behind the band might have been English classic rock supergroup Cream.
Either way, their music was a very interesting and fascinating mixture of progressive rock, classic rock, and hard rock. Their talent and technique enabled them to get signed under the label Love Records in their native Finland which, in turn, allowed them to release their first self-titled studio album in 1975. During the same year, they also released the single ‘Prinssi/Lähtö’ from it. Their namesake debut studio album issued in 1975 was rather well received yet the lyrics of the songs were controversial to some extent due to their political connotations.
The frontal cover artwork of the band’s first and eponymous debut studio album released in 1975 through Love Records. Image source: www.blogspot.com
One year later, in 1976, Tabula Rasa managed to release their second and last studio album entitled ‘Ekkedien Tanssi’. The lyrics for their songs were written by a non-member of the group, more specifically Finnish poet Mikko Alatalo. The vast majority of the songs were composed by guitarist Heikki Silvennoinen. A year after the release of their last studio album, they band disbanded. However, in 1977, the year of their disbandment, the band managed to release a final single titled ‘Rakastatko vielä kun on ilta’/’Yksin’.
Tabula Rasa – Ekkedien Tanssi (1976), frontal cover artwork. Image source: www.blogspot.com
Tabula Rasa – Ekkedien Tansi (1976), back cover artwork. Image source: www.blogspot.com
Below you can listen to a personal selection of favourite songs and live performances by them. My all time most favourite song from their discography remains ‘Uskollinen’, meaning ‘loyal’. I truly hope you’ll like them and that you’ll have a great time listening to them! All the best, much health, take care, stay safe, many blessings, and great peace your way! Thank you very much for your readership, time, and attention on The Rockpedia! I am very grateful for them! God bless you and keep on listening to progressive rock!
Documentation sources and external links:
- The Wikipedia page for the Latin expression which inspired the name of the band on www.wikipedia.org (in English)
- The band’s wikipedia page on www.wikipedia.org (in English)
- The band’s Discogs page on www.discogs.com
- The band’s Lastfm page on www.last.fm