Single reviewsThe Other Side Reviews

Tom Tikka & The Missing Hubcaps – Sweet Surrender (2024)

Tying together all elements of music from different genres to eras, generations, styles, themes, emotions and experiences, Tom Tikka is an enigmatic sage. Travelling from indie-pop to hard rock, from vintage funk to contemporary Americana, the Finland-based musician presents an eclectic, unique, experimental, diverse and obscure sound pushing the boundaries of…well, everything. We came across Tom Tikka a few years back as part of the Finnish band The Impersonators; today, we take a gander at Tikka’s solo project and his latest single ‘Sweet Surrender’.

While Tom Tikka has his modern-day tunes, ‘Sweet Surrender’ is a slam back to the 90s rock sound with suave sophistication. Filled with crashing drums, bold bass, powerful beats, and an insatiable searing guitar, ‘Sweet Surrender’ lifts your heart with each note. Interestingly, along with the hard-hitting rockiness of ‘Sweet Surrender’, a shimmer of upbeat pop and funk meld into the melody giving it an obscure edginess. It’s like light bouncing off a marble – you’re unsure where the light will take you but are eager to enjoy the strangeness.

Produced with Janne Saksa, ‘Sweet Surrender’ is evidence of sophisticated composition and production; however, a lingering lull of jovial innocence and fun-filled fancy can also be felt… no, not heard but felt. As with his previous material, Tikka’s track is more than just a listening experience, it’s an immersive flood of sound capturing your emotions in shots of kaleidoscopic music.

Joined by Nolen Chew Jr. of The Star Prairie Project, ‘Sweet Surrender’ is the result of brilliant minds at work. Tom Tikka explains:

“’Sweet Surrender’ is Nolen and my follow-up to ‘California Smile’. We wanted it to be completely different than its predecessor, more poppy, funkier…. It took a long time to record but we nailed it at the end. I love Nolen’s lyrics and musically speaking, I feel that ‘Sweet Surrender’ is one of my better ones…”


Find out more about Tom Tikka & The Missing Hubcaps on his official website, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Spotify.

This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator


Listen to more rock music on The Other Side Reviews Rock playlist: