Jesu Jesu
Hydra Head Records HH666-79 January 25th, 2005
By Jason Jordan
No, it hasnt taken me a year to digest this. After witnessing Jesu frequent several best-of lists, I had to see what all the hoopla was about. So I did. And now I know that much of the buzz surrounding Jesu is warranted, as its a fine slice of drone/doom, but I doubt it wouldve claimed a spot on my year-end list even if I had heard it before 2005 closed shop. Still, its both an immense and tasteful record.
I suppose music-guru J.K. Broadrick will always be known for his stints in pioneering bands such as Napalm Death and Godflesh, though hes reestablishing himself once again with Jesu. While he doesnt monopolize all the duties performed, he handles quite a few of them. And? And, ahem, that fact is more impressive when one considers that the disc runs for about seventy-five minutes total, which lowered the boom on my review queue. Lately Ive been reviewing ten-minute full-lengths, and I cringed when I saw the length of Jesu just because I thought itd wreak havoc by occupying all of my time. Surprisingly it didnt, and tangents aside, the album pans out nicely. There are eight tracks, and besides the runt (We All Faulter), they all expire after eight, nine, ten, or eleven minutes. However, despite this being a beast in the time department, much of this LP is serene. I also noticed quite a bit of meandering going on, although it never seems directionless or even purposeless because Broadrick and crew always have a destination, or proper checkpoint, in mind.
Now, this project doesnt contain the overall heaviness of Broadricks former involvements, of course, but Jesu is not bereft of heaviness as Walk on Water and especially Man/Woman are wont to prove. While the former didnt sway me as much as other songs I like neither the awkward lyrics nor the wispy vocals the latter is cataclysmic in delivery, and Jesu abandon many of the traits they use prior. For instance, the vocal pitch drops considerably, the meaty crunch descends to ubiquity, and when the tempo darts upward at 5:55, Im awestruck every time I hear it. For me, that moment is the albums climax and unfortunately, in spite of serving as an apt conclusion, the cluster known as Guardian Angel bears the brunt of following an outstanding track.
I do indeed notice resemblance between Jesu and many doom-core purveyors (Neurosis, Isis, Pelican, et al), but the aforementioned center on drone and industrial more than their peers do. At any rate, Godflesh aficionados should take a stab at this, as well as anyone into praiseworthy drone/doom/industrial. I wasnt satisfied by all of Jesu, though it allegedly downed steroids before being rushed to the production plant. Cause, yknow, some parts are unnaturally strong.
8/10
Official Jesu Website
Official Hydra Head Records Website
Hydra Head Records HH666-79 January 25th, 2005
By Jason Jordan
No, it hasnt taken me a year to digest this. After witnessing Jesu frequent several best-of lists, I had to see what all the hoopla was about. So I did. And now I know that much of the buzz surrounding Jesu is warranted, as its a fine slice of drone/doom, but I doubt it wouldve claimed a spot on my year-end list even if I had heard it before 2005 closed shop. Still, its both an immense and tasteful record.
I suppose music-guru J.K. Broadrick will always be known for his stints in pioneering bands such as Napalm Death and Godflesh, though hes reestablishing himself once again with Jesu. While he doesnt monopolize all the duties performed, he handles quite a few of them. And? And, ahem, that fact is more impressive when one considers that the disc runs for about seventy-five minutes total, which lowered the boom on my review queue. Lately Ive been reviewing ten-minute full-lengths, and I cringed when I saw the length of Jesu just because I thought itd wreak havoc by occupying all of my time. Surprisingly it didnt, and tangents aside, the album pans out nicely. There are eight tracks, and besides the runt (We All Faulter), they all expire after eight, nine, ten, or eleven minutes. However, despite this being a beast in the time department, much of this LP is serene. I also noticed quite a bit of meandering going on, although it never seems directionless or even purposeless because Broadrick and crew always have a destination, or proper checkpoint, in mind.
Now, this project doesnt contain the overall heaviness of Broadricks former involvements, of course, but Jesu is not bereft of heaviness as Walk on Water and especially Man/Woman are wont to prove. While the former didnt sway me as much as other songs I like neither the awkward lyrics nor the wispy vocals the latter is cataclysmic in delivery, and Jesu abandon many of the traits they use prior. For instance, the vocal pitch drops considerably, the meaty crunch descends to ubiquity, and when the tempo darts upward at 5:55, Im awestruck every time I hear it. For me, that moment is the albums climax and unfortunately, in spite of serving as an apt conclusion, the cluster known as Guardian Angel bears the brunt of following an outstanding track.
I do indeed notice resemblance between Jesu and many doom-core purveyors (Neurosis, Isis, Pelican, et al), but the aforementioned center on drone and industrial more than their peers do. At any rate, Godflesh aficionados should take a stab at this, as well as anyone into praiseworthy drone/doom/industrial. I wasnt satisfied by all of Jesu, though it allegedly downed steroids before being rushed to the production plant. Cause, yknow, some parts are unnaturally strong.
8/10
Official Jesu Website
Official Hydra Head Records Website
