Nothing Halloweeny here; instead, "Ranarop: Call of the Sea Witch" is a Finnish album by Gjallarhorn. I first heard it when it was released on Finladia Records, and I think it eventually got released stateside.
It's very much in the vein of Steeleye Span, traditional (or traditionally inspired) music ramped up a bit. Gjallarhorn throws in the occasional didgeridoo (certainly not native to Finland!) as a background drone. The woman vocalist veers into keening once in a while, giving me shivers. There's something lonely and foggy and just plain unsettling about much of the music.
There's also a faint influence of Jefferson Airplane in the harmonies (and the icy pitch reminiscent of Grace Slick.) Fairport Convention initially thought of themselves as the British version of Jefferson Airplane, and I'd wager there are many other bands similarly influenced. I don't think the Airplane have received proper credit for their sound; maybe it's because most of us only know them from their '60s singles. And then there's the Starship thing to live down... But the way the voices of Grace Slick, Marty Balin and Paul Kantner interweaved was really groundbreaking work at the time. And it seems the echoes still resound, even in Finland.
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