Free Carmen is:
Veeti Mäkinen – vocals, guitar,
Onni Leminen – guitar,
Roope Kaunisharju – bass,
Ukko Vuorela – drums
A lazy Sunday while the world outside appears in turmoil appears an ideal time to settle down and do a review. This one was released on December 21st 2025, so has been out a few weeks now and is available currently on all major platforms.
Before returning for my review of this winter solstice release I will share the press review with you:
“Across a focused three-year creative process, Free Carmen wrote, refined, and shaped a body of work that evolved into a double album concept, titled ‘Solstice’. The material was recorded at E-Studio in 2024 and later mixed in London in spring 2025 by Grammy-nominated engineer Mikko Gordon (The Smile, IDLES, Arcade Fire, Pete Townshend). The first half of the project, ‘Solstice I’, marked the band’s debut album — a journey through the shifting cycles of light and darkness. The songs unfold like passing seasons: from clarity and brightness toward darker atmospheres. The upcoming companion release, ‘Solstice II’ satisfyingly completes an outstanding creative arc, and appropriately, it will arrive exactly six months after ‘Solstice I’. Reflecting the theme, both albums are tied to natural milestones: ‘Solstice I’ — released on the summer solstice (June 21st, 2025) and ‘Solstice II’ released on winter solstice, December 21st, 2025.
‘Solstice II’ continues where ‘Solstice I’ left off, with the sequencing now moving from dark to light, which is the opposite direction from ‘Solstice I’. ‘Solstice I’ begins at the summer solstice, when the day is at its longest, and as the album progresses, it gets darker as the days get shorter toward the winter solstice.
‘Solstice II’ starts at the winter solstice, when the day is at its shortest, and moves toward summer. The final track of ‘Solstice II’ (‘Found the Sun’) meets the first track of ‘Solstice I’ (Shine) — creating a full circle.
With patient craftsmanship, emotional honesty, and music performed as a living organism rather than a polished artifact, Free Carmen have quite literally, and excitedly, designed a body of work that can be listened to at any point. They have embraced the imperfect, human elements, and it gives their music depth, grit, and weight.
When it comes to the creative origin of “From the Rain,” lead vocalist Veeti Mäkinen reveals how “I wrote it while I was in the army, where I accidentally skipped dinner because I was so deep in the creative zone. This should not be possible as everyone goes together everywhere in the army. I was in the barracks working on the track, completely absorbed, and didn’t even hear when they called us to go and eat. That’s when the song came together.”
My review: I’m not sure if I am at a disadvantage here as I have not actually heard the first album. I guess these are loosely concept albums and the front covers are interesting graphically with the heads replaced by sun or moon. But, on to the music,
The album has eight songs and runs to just under half an hour.
“Sky Wears Blue” opens the album in an alt-rock, slow build style. It was kind of late night listening with some layered instrumentalisation and a drifting type of vocal that fused into a nice acoustic style section late in the song.
“Sail Away” is a 10CC style ballad, the clue in the title – you gently sail your way through the number, drifting along to a gentle melody. A soft melody with acoustic backing.
“Couldn’t Reign My Head” brings that slow rhythm and drum heartbeat into the album. The song is very much in the lane for this album, it was where I was pleased with the guitar break and the track retained that slightly dreamy quality that is a feature of the album.
“II” is an instrumental. It is quite an uplifting instrumental, again I liked the drum sound which I may have had a little higher in the mix. Musically it closes down the opening half of the album and provides a bridge to the change of direction the next track brings.
“Indifferent” adds a little uplift and a dose of a more funky feeling into the sound, which was welcome. I liked this one, it has a more commercial feel and sets out on a lighter step.
“From the Rain” retains that slightly lighter harmony. It is one that brings out a lovely guitar tone, a touch of the rain rather than a downpour!
“The Water” is a wistful number, moving toward an older folk sound in feel. It fits into this generally dreamy atmospheric feel to an album that provides this late evening listening feel. It’s mood music, unwinding from the day.
“Found the Sun” ties up the album with the guitar picking its way through a gentle lane. It has that sense of walking through a little lane and finding the sun poking through the trees. It follows the lane of the album and ties it up fine.
In summary, Solstice II is a carefully performed, cohesive listen that leans heavily into atmosphere, restraint, and mood rather than big sonic statements. Across its eight tracks, Free Carmen demonstrates strong musicianship and assured vocals, favouring subtle shifts and gentle textures that reward patient, late-evening listening. It’s an album that unfolds quietly, designed more for immersion than interruption, and works best when taken as a single, uninterrupted journey. If you’re curating a reflective moment or a calm-down soundtrack, this is very much one for the #HeadphonesOnLightsLow crowd.
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You can stream music from Free Carmen here.
By Stevie Ritson