Ascension is jesu’s fourth full length album, the last being 2009’s one song 40+ minute Infinity experiment. But it also marks the sixteenth jesu release since 2004 (ten EPs, one single, and one compilation). That’s an average of two releases every year. Added to this, JKB’s other projects – Final, Greymachine, Pale Sketcher to name a few – plus remixes and other collaborations, the man is no lazy bastard. But what does this prolificacy mean to the quality of the material he churns out? With Ascension it means nothing. The album is a self contained unit; an audio book to open, listen through, then close. No “singles”, not a great deal of diversity, and initially not much distinction between the songs at all. But I stress the words “not much”. There still is a bit. Ascension is an album that does not want to fit in anywhere. It is insular, one of the most insular rock albums I’ve heard. Maybe even autistic. Autistic? Well listen to the album and see if that makes sense.
It took me a while to first check out jesu, considering I’ve been a fan of Godflesh since I was a teen. The first jesu album I heard was the Silver EP (2006). The title track was the first thing to hit me, but it did not do so immediately. It was only after several listens that the track’s stirring, heavy-laden beauty was revealed. I became fascinated with the song, and still am. Next came the two albums, Jesu (2004) & Conqueror (2007). The latter’s more refined, lighter feel made it more accessible but after the weeks and months of listening to both albums the former, self-titled album began to bear down over it’s more superficial cousin and buckled it’s knees. Jesu conquered Conqueror. Then I found jesu’s first release, Heart Ache (2004) (later re-released in 2010 with an extra four songs from the original recording sessions). I adore Heart Ache, because it’s fucking brilliant. Since then I’ve felt jesu releases to be wavering between interesting (Pale Sketches, 2007), patchy (Lifeline, 2007), exciting (the first half of Infinity), to downright bland (the Battle of Mice split EP, 2008).
So now comes Ascension. Admittedly, I did not anticipate this release as I did with previous jesu efforts. Since Silver I’ve felt somewhat of a gradual decline in quality of output. But with Ascension all previous efforts seem irrelevant. It’s as if this album doesn’t care about the other albums. It’s a loner and has no need for comparisons. It is its own self. It is this reaction I’m having that makes the album compelling and motivates me to try and take fifty minute breaks here and there to immerse myself in the album, attentive and contemplative. It’s as if there’s something there that I’ve yet to find, but at the same rate not sure if there is anything there, nevermind me finding it.
At first it’s a hazy, somewhat uncomplex journey. The songs flow into each other – to the untrained “jesu” ear, one song might seem indistinguishable from the next. But, as with all good albums, it takes a few listens for it to bloom. It’s after the fouth or fifth listen that you detect a certain pattern; the longer songs (‘Fools’, ‘Broken Home’, ‘December’) take till their halfway point to break and to show what they have in their arsenal. JKB’s vocals are so floaty that you can’t hear what he’s saying most of the time. This I believe is on purpose, not because he’s not the most accomplished singer in the world, but because you’re simply not meant to hear it clearly. This is one of the elements that builds the overriding feel of the album; breezy, unclear, intangible. I can see fans of My Bloody Valentine digging this album.
‘Birth Day’ and ‘Small Wonder’ were given to us months before the album. ‘Birth Day’ is quite similar to the ‘Christmas’ single from 2010, but maybe not as good. ‘Small Wonder’ is stronger but is maybe a bit too long for what it is. ‘Sedatives’ might be an outlier (might be) as it seems almost chirpy compared to its siblings. But maybe its just a period of relief for a depressed being than the character of an upbeat entity.There are moments of beauty in the album – three minutes into ‘Black Lies’, three and a half minutes into ‘Small Wonder’, and three and a half minutes and thereafter of ‘December’, but the real beauty is left till the end: ‘King of Kings’ and ‘Ascension’. Just as ‘Stanlow’ was the highlight of Conqueror JKB has left his ace or rather his king, the King of Kings, to be his final chapter. The title track closer is more of an epilogue; it’s short and stripped of weight but is an almost precious reflection, it’s just sweet strumming of guitars and a delicate synth at the end. If there is to be a ‘best of jesu’ compilation down the road, I would not nominate any from Ascension except the final two numbers.
There are certainly soundscapes that will recall those of Conqueror but yet it feels different and separate from that album and any other. For those who may have feared something dull after 2008’s lifeless split EPs, the second half of Infinity or most of Opiate Sun, relax and look forward to another jesu journey. It’s not always invigorating, in fact it’s rarely invigorating, “invigorating” is the wrong word to critique jesu, but it is consistent and compelling. It will take a few spins and it may never hit the levels of bliss that ‘Silver’ or ‘Friends Are Evil’ can, but Ascension is a meditative and complete album. JKB’s jesu has life and direction still. And he’s more than welcome to take longer breaks between releases.
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