Jesus Piece erupted onto the scene with 2018’s debut album ‘Only Self’, a claustrophobic and unsettling gut punch, blending dizzying beatdown rhythmic shifts, death metal riffing and incorporating elements of industrial and noise into their metallic hardcore soundscapes. Garnering a lot of attention with their enigmatic style, ‘Only Self’ proved a landmark opening statement that arguably helped to shift the focus of hardcore as a whole to a much darker and experimental place, pushing against genre boundaries. Now half a decade later in 2023, with a lot of their contemporaries following their lead, Jesus Piece finally unveil second album …So Unknown.
Visceral opening track ‘In Constraints’ immediately establishes that Jesus Piece don’t hold back from the get go. Aaron Heard’s distorted, guttural and unhinged roars bellow forth as the shockwave from the pummelling instrumental brings the album to life. Swaying from dissonant palm muted chords on top of angular, choppy rhythms, to death metal-esque tremolo picking and punishing breakdowns, allowing for brief breaks in the instrumentals for moments to breathe in between the brutality. Jesus Piece play somewhat with genre expectations and experimentation while continuing to suffocate the listener with their undiluted onslaught.
Tracks like ‘FTBS (Fuck The Bull Shit)’ feels like a straight up hardcore pit anthem, with punchy staccato riffs, two step rhythms and a big ‘FUCK THE BULL SHIT’ gang chant chorus, before somehow devolving into a heavy NOLA sludge influenced breakdown to end the track. On the other hand, ‘Silver Lining’, whilst just as confrontational on the surface with an unnerving atmosphere, lyrically this song is about the joy Heard has found in fatherhood and the strong emotional bond he shares with his child. Subverting listener expectations comes in many forms throughout, whether they be atmospheric or rhythmic expectations of the songwriting, or even lyrical expectations on occasion, ‘…So Unknown’ is in a constant state of metamorphosis.
“Subverting listener expectations comes in many forms throughout, whether they be atmospheric or rhythmic expectations of the songwriting, or even lyrical expectations on occasion, ‘…So Unknown’ is in a constant state of metamorphosis.”
Lyrically ‘…So Unknown’ is a coalescence of thoughts and experiences for the band over the past five years, not necessarily sticking to or exploring a singular lyrical theme other than pondering the world at its darkest. Mostly the song titles are straight forward representations of what to expect, like second track ‘Fear Of Failure’, lyrically feeling reflective of being unable to make mistakes when you feel isolated. Songs like second single ‘Gates of Horn’ are a little more cryptic, the former reflective of being unable to distinguish nightmares from reality, only knowing what is really true through old literary visual adage of ‘Gates of horn and ivory’ leading to ‘true dreams’.
David Updike and John DiStefano balance the usage of the guitars between lead atmospherics and a strong rhythmic lock, employing their tension and release style riffs in spades. They explore various facets of guitar atmospherics, making heavy use of note bends, pinch harmonics, natural harmonics and even Gojira-esque pick scrapes. The rhythm section is of the utmost importance here, Anthony Marinaro’s Bass acts as the perfect melodic and rhythmic bridge between the guitars and Luis Aponte’s phenomenal drum work, adding weight to the heft of the guitar chords and the punch and precision timing of the drums.
The strong bond between musicians is on perfect display on lead single ‘An Offering To The Night’. Dynamic and dizzying triplet rhythms, the guitars, bass and drums are in perfect rhythmic synchronisation, lending to the songs overwhelming feel. There isn’t a lot of room to breathe until the perfectly timed bridge leaving just the drums and bass playing an industrial style bridge that feels reminiscent of Code Orange. Just when you think you can tell where the song is going they switch up the rhythmic energy and throw in surprises.
“Dynamic and dizzying triplet rhythms, the guitars, bass and drums are in perfect rhythmic synchronisation, lending to the songs overwhelming feel.”
‘…So Unknown’ is a significantly more polished experience when compared to its predecessor. Randy LeBouef is credited with co-producing and mixing, everything sounds very clean and sharp, there feels like there is a bit more room to breathe in the mix for the most part as opposed to the claustrophobic, heavily compressed and slightly muddy sound of ‘Only Self’. Details are much easier to pick out, you can hear the differences between the lush lead guitar tones and thick, distorted rhythm guitars on each track or between the lead and backing vocals. The drums have a lot more presence instead of getting lost in the mix. It adds credence when, for example, ‘Stolen Life’ kicks into a high pass filtered bridge with nothing but guitars and a break beat as it slowly opens up and seamlessly flows to the explosive reintroduction of the instrumentals.
Jesus Piece have taken what was established on the debut album and finely sharpened it, spending the time since their debut release honing their craft, blending elements of various genres into their metallic hardcore skeleton in a more subtle and fluid manor. ‘…So Unknown’ is absolutely stuffed to the brim with catchy hooks, constantly evolving soundscapes and cataclysmic breakdowns, Jesus Piece are still uniquely themselves and the ten tracks on offer over the twenty-seven minute run time are unyielding in their ferocity.