On Saturday January 26 at Belly in Helsinki, America’s coolest collides with Finland’s finest! Them Bird Things, comprising some of Helsinki’s most beloved musicians, take to the stage to debut some of the greatest rock ‘n’ roll tunes these jaded ears have heard in ages. Them Bird Things will play not one, but count ‘em, two sets with entirely different feels... Le Milles Garage Club at Belly Uudenmaankatu 16-20, Helsinki Doors open at 8 p.m. and stay open until 4 a.m. Tickets, including coat check, are €7 DJs: yours truly and the Puffin Sisters Love, Will Shade, chief cook & bottle-washer P.S. Check out their history below! Our saga begins a long, long time ago in a country far, far away... Before there was any British Invasion, all rock 'n' roll gushed from the primordial ooze of America. This is the story of a group from that era and how their songs collided with the land of suicide princesses, razor blades and midnight sun. In the summer of 1955, 12-year-old Mike Brassard entered a movie theatre in Northfield, Vermont to watch a movie called "Blackboard Jungle." As the opening credits rolled, the youth was flabbergasted to experience the first wholly authentic slice of rock 'n' roll this planet has ever known: "Rock Around The Clock" by Bill Haley & The Comets. Brassard left the theatre in a daze and pedaled his bike furiously around town, looking for empty soda bottles that he could return for deposit money so he could purchase another movie ticket to hear the revelatory tune again. Within a week, Brassard took up the guitar and set to penning all originals. Brassard’s best friend, Steve Blodgett, began playing rhythm guitar and writing with their new band, Mike & The Throbs, in 1960. Two years later, the group morphed into Mike & The Ravens, an act focused on the songwriting talents of the duo. The Ravens, a legendary pre-Beatles garage unit, signed to Empire Records in Plattsburgh, NY. The quintet played at Rollerland and other exotic venues like The Saxony and released three 45s - all originals - between April '62 & January '63. The group disbanded when rhythm guitarist Stephen Blodgett, bassist Brian Lyford and drummer Peter Young broke into the Stowe Community Church and played a rock 'n' roll LP over the steeple carillion system at midnight, a feat for which the threesome went to jail. Throughout the remainder of the '60s, Blodgett and Brassard recorded 45s for RCA Victor, Compass Records and Decca. Blodgett continued writing throughout the '70s and '80s, eventually compiling a back catalog that numbers in the hundreds. Meanwhile, one generation removed and an ocean away, Salla Kiehelä began playing Farfisa organ with Helsinki fave raves Branded Women. Their debut album, "Velvet Hours – Stolen Moments," took top honors at the Femma Awards, with the band being named Best New Comers of 2005. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to last and by 2006 the band was on its last legs. Across The Pond, American producer/raconteur/journalist Will Shade (who has also worked with überbeat myths The Monks and psychedelic luminaries like The Yardbirds and Electric Prunes) had reconvened Mike & The Ravens for their first full length album, reuniting the band for the first time in 45 years at one of their old stomping grounds, The Saxony in Rouses Point, NY. In the interim, Shade had discovered the music of Branded Women. Serendipity! Summer 2006: Kiehelä was brought together with Brassard and Blodgett by Shade. She left her remote northern country, fated to find the ruins of Rollerland and The Saxony, where she lost her heart to the amazing songs these guys had written - all of which were unreleased and gathering dust in a drawer for the last four decades... Summer 2007: Kiehelä returned to The Saxony, where she sang backing vocals on the new Mike & The Ravens album, "Balderdash! The Saxony Sessions." There was no doubt a new era had begun in her life. Upon returning to Finland, she decided to form a band with and around Brassard and Blodgett. The woman abandoned her customary role as organ player, wielding a lead singer's microphone, garnering comparisons with Marianne Faithfull and Suzanne Vega. Knocked out by the quality of the songs and Kiehelä’s voice, Finland's finest guitarist Timo Vikkula (think Shadowplay, Kauko Röyhkä etc.) volunteered his services as did Kevin front-man Ville Särmä, who took the drummer's chair in the new group. Kiehelä’s childhood pal, Esa Jussila, was drafted in on bass and the foursome set about capturing the magic of Brassard and Blodgett’s material, some of which were unreleased gems from the ‘60s as well as new tunes specifically penned for the group, dubbed Them Bird Things. Them Bird Things is that rarest of species: 100 years of authentic and unsullied American songwriting as performed by some of Finland's most beloved musicians. See them soon! For more info, check out www.myspace.com/thembirdthings