Tiikeri: Tee Se Itse 7” (self-released) I fell in love with Turku, Finland’s Tiikeri when they released their first album, Punk Rock Pamaus!!! in 2023, and now they’re back with a new 4-song EP, Tee Se Itse, on their own Tiikeri Records. While Tiikeri’s members are active in the hardcore scene, their music takes inspiration from the more melodic side of 70s punk, both Finnish groups like Koroosio and Vaavi and UK bands like the Boys and the Buzzcocks. Tiikeri’s songs are well-constructed and melodic enough that one might classify them as power-pop, but their target audience seems to be middle-aged punk record collectors rather than casual listeners just looking for a melody they can hum and/or a rhythm they can tap their toe to. Falling so firmly in that “middle-aged record collector” demographic, it’s hard for me to imagine what Tiikeri’s music might sound like from outside it, but I just love it. I can’t understand many of the lyrics so this may be a projection, but it sounds like Tiikeri writes love songs to punk rock itself. When I listen to their music, I’m brought back to a time when punk rock was the only thing that made me feel understood, when screaming along to Screeching Weasel or the Buzzcocks or whatever band I was obsessing about at the moment was just about the most pleasure I could feel. I still listen to a ton of music (perhaps I’m always searching for that feeling), but very little of it hits me in the same as those classics. Tiikeri is an exception. The gem of these four songs is “Rokenrollia” with its chiming, Nerves / Flaming Groovies-style guitar hook that’s so classic-sounding it should appeal to anyone who loves Tom Petty or Blondie, but we punks get to keep it for ourselves. I’m sure there are plenty of people who would listen to 20 seconds of Tiikeri’s music and dismiss it as pop-punk, or be flummoxed by their cutesy imagery, but this speaks to me in some deep way that I can’t even understand, much less explain. Check it out and see if you’re in the same camp, and if you’re not, I sincerely hope you can find some music you love as much as I love this.