Albums•November 29, 2011•11,561 views

Jesu Conqueror

1. Conqueror 2. Old Year 3. Transfigure 4. Weightless & Horizontal 5. Medicine 6. Brighteyes 7. Mother Earth 8. Stanlow

2007 Hydra Head Records

Our score 6

1/24/2007

The beginning of a new year always reminds music fans of the endless possibilities that lay ahead. New artists will inevitably emerge and perennial favorites will hopefully remind us why we consider ourselves fans to begin with. Jesu's Conqueror is the first official release of 2007 to cross my desk and I couldn't imagine a better way to start the year. Since the release of their debut EP in 2004, Justin Broadrick and company have consistently been producing some of the most captivating and challenging music around. While their first album combined droning bass with delicate melody, their last release, Silver, saw the band hone their melodic tendencies much more precisely than their heavier ones. Conqueror fits into the band's progression well and is sure to build on the band's rapidly growing fan base, but there's definitely something missing for me. The first time I put in Jesu's self-titled album, I was both frustrated and delighted by songs that spent minutes of droning introduction building to the eventual introduction of a vocal line or melody. That element, along with the juxtaposition of ugly, harsh tones with lighter, prettier ones, were what made that album stick out to me and it has been an album that grows on me with every listen. With Conqueror, Jesu most of their atonal tendencies and allowed the shoegaze element hinted at on Silver to take over in the songwriting. I can't say that it doesn't work for them, but I can say that it's not a direction I'm particularly fond of. Would I love to see them cover Ride's "Vapour Trail" live Absolutely. Is it what I want their albums to sound like Not really. There are parts of this record that sound like 90's rock band Hum on morphine. "Mother Earth" actually seems to incorporate part of Cheap Trick's "Surrender" into the end. What the fuck As Jesu have changed, I've been right there with them, cheering their ability to set themselves apart and innovate. Conqueror is another logical step, but it's a definite step backwards in terms of complexity. This time around there is no real interplay between the light and the loud. Instead, the deep driving rhythms are only a base upon which the miles of echoing reverb are built. Even the lyrics here feel simplified, as exemplified in "Weightless & Horizontal" with the repetition of the line "Try not to lose yourself" for minutes. Like the album itself, it's not an altogether bad concept, there's just very little conflict or much to get excited about. Bottom Line: For the first time in their career, Jesu have released something I can't entirely get behind. As a fan of the group, I understand where they're coming from and how they got here, but that doesn't mean I have to be happy about it. Perhaps there's a certain novelty to a drawn-out, droning seven minute pop song with massive low end, but it's nowhere near as engaging as the band's earlier material. Conqueror has numerous breathtaking moments and crushing ones as well, but all too often the disc is just uninspired. By most standards, this is still a good record, but it falls a bit flat by comparison to their other output.

41 comments

Post Comment

oopsbrokemyhip_ 1/24/2007 3:28:45 PM

should have got a 7 based on the review...6 is too low

Jesu Conqueror

41 comments

Related Links

Jesu Album Reviews

Top News This Week