#7

Jesu
Silver EP
(Hydra Head)

I think Jesu might have been on my list last year, but at this point it really doesn’t matter. Justin Broadrick (he of Napalm Death, Godflesh, Final, etc. fame) has developed his shoegazer outfit into an absolute beast on this all too short EP. Normally, I wouldn’t give something like this so much credit but, like the Secret Machines’ shorty September 000, you have a cohesive statement made in an appropriate amount of time with all the excess trimmed. Nearly every time I hear the beginning of “Silver” the hair stand up on the back of my neck and my head bows in grace and acknowledgement of utter beauty and magnificence. That the simple pummeling drums and gigantically overdriven guitars create such a humbling experience is incredible. Importantly, that vastness doesn’t signify emptiness but the promise of possibility.