Jess and the Ancient Ones

Vertigo

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Genre: Psychedelic Rock.
Released: 21/05/2021
Via Svart Records

Album Review: Jess And The Ancient Ones – Vertigo

Finnish rockers Jess and the Ancient Ones return with their fifth studio album ‘Vertigo’. The band will be hoping to strike gold once again just as they did with the 2017 release of ‘The Horse and Other Weird Tales’, and with the reception towards the singles released for the new album, the band may very well be on course to top it. So without any more delay, here are my thoughts of Jess and the Ancient ones’ ‘Vertigo’.

The album starts a little ominous. ‘Burning of the Velvet Fires’ has a unique charm to it. The instrumental is extremely atmospheric which compliments Jess’s vocal delivery nicely. I found myself being hooked by the Organ esc synth that could be heard predominantly throughout the track. It’s an extremely unusual instrument to have in a rock track however it added a nice breath of fresh air to an oversaturated genre. Unfortunately, the album takes a bit of a downward spiral as ‘World Paranormal’ comes across as quite generic and bland. Nothing draws you into the song and I feel that it is an extremely week entry into the album.

‘Talking Board’ is a slight improvement on its predecessor but nothing special. The song has a nice bounce to it which may appeal to fans quite a bit however, I found the melody of this track to be extremely repetitive and once again, quite generic. Thankfully, ‘Love Zombi’ does a better job of getting you engaged in the music. Arguably the best track on the record, the song is a nice blend of subtle and imaginative. The band have done a great job with this track and it’s clear to see why it’s the most popular of the singles to have been released. 

Quite surprisingly, the single ‘Summer Tripping Man’ really didn’t hit the mark for me. I found myself constantly growing tired of the track as, at times, the track clashes with itself in quite an unpleasant way. It’s almost as if the instrumental and the vocals were intended for different songs at times. This is certainly a skip from me. ‘Born To Kill’ is without a doubt the dark horse of the entire album. In contrast to the previous track, I found this song to be very enjoyable and it was the track I most looked forward to hearing again on repeat listens. 

Approaching the end of quite the polarising album and you are greeted with ‘What’s on Your Mind’. An energetic track that does a good job of getting the listener to bop along to its groovy bassline. Some intriguing riffs allow the song to be memorable and Jess’s vocals seem to shine a lot more during this track than they have throughout the entire album. Finally, you are met with ‘Strange Earth Illusion’. A goliath of a song coming in at 11:34! I am always sceptical of tracks this length and unfortunately, I was right to be with this one. The song drags and feels like it never ends at times. I constantly became disinterested in this song and it was hard to stay focused for more than 4 minutes, let alone 11.

Overall, Jess and the Ancient Ones have released an interesting album. There are tracks I enjoyed scattered throughout a lot of unmemorable songs that I have no intention of listening to again. If you’re a fan of the band then I’d recommend the album however, go into it with an open mind.