jesu s/t picture disc

For those of you (unlike me - ha!) who weren't lucky enough to pick up a copy of jesu's double picture disc version of their self titled debut full length, you may be surprised when you finally hear it.
It was purposely made to sound cleaner; and JKB has some remastered the original version to the one now available on their bandcamp page (http://jesu.bandcamp.com) now, and also as a digital download for $7.
The most stunning difference is on the track "We All Faulter" which, on it's state on this new remix is an almost ghost-like dub version of what you are probably used to.
Outstanding.
The whole thing is stripped down and bare; making an already rather introspective recording seem even more inwardly focused than before.

Coming soon and sounding great

Mr Broadrick is a busy man.

When Attention Just Isn't Enough

My goodness. I'm in danger of becoming a living, breathing, Justin broadrick fanpage.
Out now on Hydra Head Industries the Disconnected LP (and the Vultures Descend 12") from Greymachine.
Featuring current and ex-jesu members Justin Broadrick, Diarmuid Dalton and Dave Cochran, with Aaron Turner from Isis, this CD is not what I was expecting at all. Being as old and cynical as I am, I'd seen the promotional material from Hydra Head and thought they were trying to hard to give a late eighties industrial feel to it, a bit of Godflesh Spin.
As it turns out, on listening to the album, this was completely justified.
I expected some form of mix of Justin's more ethereal stuff (Sun Down/Sun Rise) and the more reflective passages of Isis, for some reason, and instead, it's a total late Eighties/early Nineties sludge bludgeon. A sludgeon if you like.
Think Love, Hate (Slugbaiting), and I'm really, really reminded of the version of Pulp from the 1989 Godflesh Peel Session that had Kevin Martin on saxophone.
This is material I would love to see played live.
A very interesting debut, looking forward to hearing more from Greymachine.
Get over to Avalanche Inc's Greymachine page and have a listen to Vultures Descend.

Simply Stunning

jesu return with the long awaited long player "Infinity", and it's a bit of a surprise.
Every bit as ethereal and beautiful as anything JKB has ever released, the hour and a half here sees a solo Justin playing all instruments and visit some quite aggressive places with the music. Some bits chug along in a (dare I say it) industrial style (think Swans) and the digital drums give it the feel of older, more harsh jesu releases; Heart Ache springs to mind immediately (check out the double kick pattern around 25 minutes in).
For me, personally, as a JKB obsessive, this is the kind of territory I've been waiting for him to revisit since before the release of Heart Ache.
Whilst it's still quite heavy, it still retains that organic, uplifting, downright hopeful feel that characterises jesu, especially the stuff that Justin produces alone.
The vocals are harsh, again Swans-esque, moving from the more familiar clean jesu vocals to a snarling, shouting mode.
A worthy addition to a varied and complex discography...up there as a contender for release of the year.

(I didn't mention the G-word once)
GET A COPY OR BE SQUARE AS.

jesu News

In the pipeline from JKB....

Live at ATP Festival 'Fans Strike Back' 08 May 2009 to 10 May 2009, Butlins Holiday Centre, Minehead, England
Live at ATP / PRIMAVERA Festival , Barcelona, Spain From 28th To 30th May
'Opiate Sun' EP Caldo Verde July 2009. CD & Vinyl
'Infinity' LP- Avalanche Recordings June 2009. One song LP. CD, Vinyl & digital Download.
'Heart Ache' - 2xCD Hydra Head Version (2nd CD Bonus Unreleased EP from 2003) Sept 09
ENVY/jesu - Split LP (Hydra Head CD Version) Inc. Unconfirmed Bonus Mix

New (old) jesu

new in the post this morning:

 

jesu - Why Are We Not Perfect? CDEP from Hydrahead (together with an amazingly tight t-shirt). This is basically the three tracks from the jesu/Eluvium split LP, with two new remixes.  My jesu collection is coming along pretty well now:

 

Missing are the CD version of Conqueror (I just never got around to buying it yet), the Hydrahead version of the Eluvium split, the split with Envy, the split with Battle of Mice, and the Daymare version of Why Are We Not Perfect? I'd like to have hold of all of these before next April, because I doubt I'm going to be able to afford to bid for out of print vinyl on ebay after that...unless I get a promotion in work or something!

jesu update

Long time readers of Thee Claw will be aware that jesu are a firm favourite of at least 66% of the people here.
You'l have no doubt read me lamenting how long I've been waiting for the vinyl version of Heart Ache to be released.

Well, finally, some good news, and a little bit of extra news:

The Heart Ache vinyl is finally available to buy from Justin's Avalanche Records webstore, as is the vinyl version of Pale Sketches.
From Justin's blog:

The long awaited vinyl versions of 'Heart Ache' and 'Pale Sketches' from Jesu and the exclusive 'Afar' picture disc only from Final are available to buy now, shipping begins 22nd August '08. Both the Jesu vinyls are limited to 1000 copies each and the Final is limited to 500 copies. All are pressed on heavyweight 180grm vinyl. Please visit the Avalanche Store HERE
and scan down the Avalanche Recordings catalogue until you reach the items.
The 'Pale Sketches' CD edition is now sold out.

As I've stated before, Heart Ache remains one of my favourite releases by any artist, ever, and this week I have been listening constantly to Pale Sketches on CD (this comprises of eight tracks that Justin has had knocking around since the end of Godflesh up to 2007) and Lifeline (Which is the EP featuring some really trippy shoegazy stuff, and an appearance from ex-Swans heroine Jarboe on one track).
I realised, whilst ordering the Heart Ache and Pale Sketches vinyl that I do't have Lifeline on vinyl, and headed over to Hydra Head records to order a copy for myself, and was greeted with the news that pre-orders are being taking for the new Why Are We Not Perfect? EP, along with other goodies that you can order only as part of the pre-order package in true Hydra Head fashion. Think I'll pass on the jesu tote bag though. (check out the ultra-trippy Why Are We Not Perfect? microsite here.)

He's a busy little beaver, Mr Broadrick, also available from Daymare Recordings (who will also be releasing a version of Why Are We Not Perfect? - I know, it's getting a bit confusing now isn't it?) is the split EP with Envy featuring two tracks clocking in at 14 minutes and 18 minutes...unfortunately their website is in Japanese, so now I'm looking for a record store in Europe that's carrying it, because knowing my luck I'll end up ordering 19 crates of Pocari Sweat by accident.

There is also(!) a split EP with Battle of Mice due out soon, which has an amazing sleeve image prepared for it.
It's an exciting, yet expensive, time to be a fan of jesu.
I can't wait for the next tour.

Give Us A Clue

I remember buying Heart Ache by Jesu way back in 2004 when it was released, and I was starting a course about 10 days after it's release where I knew I'd have to travel for an hour or so by train everyday, and I actually put off listening to the CD for that long because I wanted to be able to digest the whole thing in my own time.
Every morning for two weeks I'd travel on the train listening to it, and I wasn't disappointed; I've often said to anyone who will give me half a chance to bore them to death that if I were to be told I was going deaf and I could listen to one piece of music before it happened, I'd pick the first song "Heart Ache" from this CD.
As a (long time) Godflesh fan, this EP was a breath of fresh air; a move away from the more organic sounds that had come into the later releases, this had Justin playing all the instruments himself and the return of a drum machine.

Originally released on Dry Run Records (who later vanished, I believe) Justin has been promising for ages that it's coming out on wax on his own Avalanche Recordings, but for one reason or another it's been getting put back later and later.
Anyway, there seems to be some light at the end of the tunnel, here's the latest from his blog:

Jesu - 'Pale sketches', Jesu - 'Heart Ache' and Final - 'Afar' vinyl editions on Avalanche Recordings are all being pressed/manufactured now, yes we know they should be available by now but due to initial pressing problems we had to move to another manufacturer, thankyou for your patience. Pre orders will begin in late June, shipping will then begin early July.

I'm taking bets on which release will come first by the way, this, or Domkirke* by sunnO))).

*that's the proper spelling, SJW and I were there when it was recorded. Don't know where they've got this "Dømkirke" business from.

Thee Birth of Thee Claw

Or... the day that we decided this was what we wanted to do with our lives.

It came, quite fittingly, on 06/06/06, the first time that we had been to the Star and Garter in Manchester, and surprisingly, it was at a jesu show.
I don't know what has made me think of this; maybe it's because that was a really hot, sunny, lazy day, just like today.
Anyway, here's a copy of the post I did on my old blog back then, before we realised that Thee Claw would take us all over the globe and get us into some amazing situations and scary scrapes.
Enjoy.

silver's just another gold... when you're bitter and you're old


Had a fucking boss time on Tuesday, St Satan's day.
Met StevO))) early on, and Little M took us to Manchester (via St Helens, but that's another story).
Doing Irish impressions all the way there (I met your man when he was six yors of age, and he invented the forst loighter to born down the forst church in Christendom, then I met his auld feller, qaure lookin bloke he was, so.)
It was a glorious day, and we arrived in Manchester about six, due to the nighmare of trying to navigate using the worst map ever made (I liked it though, it had an inverted pentagram on it), and the fact that it's all a one way system with fucking roads off roundabouts closed off and a fucking motorway right through the middle.
So anyway - we get there and I'm like "That looks like it but it can't be. I don't think it's been open for years that place".
But no, lo and behold - the Star and Garter.
So - Little M drops us off, and we scooted off into the Manchester sun.
(the sun will become an almost as important character in the tale that follows as either me or StevO))), in fact; it was all the Sun's fault).
We walk past the venue, and I'm inspecting the windows for any sort of flyers because I am convinced this is a joke, when StevO))) says;
"Is that what I think it is?"
I look up, not quite sure what to expect (It is the 06/06/06 after all) and see the skinniest, creakiest, smacked up prossy you'll ever see in your life.
So, like the pilgrims in an unholy land that we are, we decide to walk past and "have a blimp".
We're only smack (pardon the pun) bang in the middle of the red light district.
(It wasn't her who snobbed us by the way Ste, it was the one when we left the gig, who decided we must be gay and told us to go to Canal Street because we asked her for directions instead of asking her for the chance to contract AIDS.)
So, as Ste's pointed out the first boozer was sidestepped (this is a trick I learned a long time ago going away to watch Everton - you never go in the first boozer in a foreign city, I just do it automatically now)
So, like the beginning of a joke, Two Scousers walk into an Irish pub in Manchester....
... and the rest goes down as legend.
I haven't drank Guinness for years, (and I don't think I'll need to drink it ever again)
It was like lemo on this day of St Satan.
We walked around for a bit after that because the alehouse only had some stockbrokers in it and it seemed to be made for giants and we were becming more and more comedy Scouse as the ale flowed.
By the time we found our next pub we were in full flow.
Everyone who deserved it (and probably some who don't) were taking a pure ripping (that's scouse for having the piss taken out of them) and the pub had Napalm Death and Iron Monkey on the jukebox.
Our apple cart had arrived, and we were well and truly in the fucker.

So we arrived at the venue, and like I say, we were on top form.
Witty, urbane and well dressed, we took over the alehouse like only we could.
First, we positioned ourselves at the bar, when these two quick witted and sharp tongued lads from Liverpool were soon the attention of every lady, and the envy of every man.
At least that's what we thought; in reality we were sat by the bogs in a boozer that had been shut for ten years and had been burgled just to put this gig on before being knocked down in the morning to make way for a car park.
We tried to bully the promoter to give us a ticket or a stamp so we could go back to the Napalm Death pub, but I think we were the first people who'd talked to him for 5 years and he shit himself a bit, saying that when the doors opened at 730 we could get a ticket then.
"But it's quarter to eight lad what are you on about?"
Anyway - Atavist went on a bit, and a funny thing happened when everyone was too polite to buy any merch.
Not us though.
"Two of them, one of them, and one of those, and two vinyl, wack. Cheers Ace"
(Comedy scouse in the house)
Jesu were absolutely amazing.
The lack of lights meant that I had to use the flash to take photos, and as such they aren't as good as I'd normally like, but I didn't go to take pictures.
A sweltering night in a dark, tiny venue with less than a hundred people there, right at the front, watching my favourite band, as nights out go, this was probably the best thing for a long time.
Only moan I have is that they didn't play "Star", but fuck it, they played "Friends are Evil".


photos here
Saw loads more prossys on the way out, came home pissed and skint, but what a night.
We'll have to do it again soon.