Resurrection is the second album from Jernlov, which was a little surprising since I had not heard of them until recently. Their first album, Crucified, was released to some underground acclaim but it never reached a wider audience or as wide as it deserved. So, Nordic Mission signed them for their sophomore release.
I couldn’t find a lot of background on Jernlov, but I was able to make some connections. The band sprung from another band, Heidre, that released an album of Christian hymns set to female-fronted metal in 2019. If you get a chance, the music they made is very soothing and sung in their native Norwegian. From that project, two of the musicians, Alf Petter and Zuriel, wanted to try something a little more extreme and started Jernlov. Without a dedicated black metal vocalist, they turned to some well known names to provide vocals for their debut album Crucified, which Resurrection follows suit.
My first reaction was that this is a standard black metal release, however with each subsequent listen I fell more in love with this record. It is a perfect blend of raw black metal fury with just enough melody to soften the bludgeoning to my skull. The keyboards, clean vocals, and melodic guitar lines act as accents to the intense metal taking it just over the line as melodic black metal. The melodic elements not only soften the beat down, but provides a haunting escape from the black metal textures.
Jernlov makes use of all of the standard black metal stylings: blast beats, tremolo guitar chords, intense raspy vocals, and ominous chord progressions. The various riffs and musical textures tend to be rather simple, but Jernlov are good at keeping their sound fresh. They make plenteous use of Antestor-inspired folk metal riffs and chord progressions. “Salvation” is a perfect example. It could have been a better produced bonus track to the album The Return of the Black Death. And the lyrics are straight up Psalm 51, which was also the lyrical basis for Antestor’s “Mercy Lord.”
Which leads me to the lyrics. The lyrics for the album are beautiful and honest lyrics dealing with sorrow and loss in a Godly way. They are boldly Christian with both prayer and proclamation as well as acknowledging the pain, suffering, and sorrow of living in this fallen world. “When You’re Gone” is particularly touching for me personally as my 5-year old daughter passed away a year ago. I could relate to every line of the song and it gave me some solace knowing someone else knew what I felt.
The rotation of vocalists through the songs gives a slightly different feel to each song. Most of the album is covered by black metal vocals (to whom they belong, I could not tell), but other vocal styles were used to good effect. “Though I am a Wicked Servant” sounded more like a blackened death metal with the use of deeper growls similar to Pantokrator or Symphony of Heaven. “Lost Direction” starts out straight-up thrash reminiscent of early Metallica. Gang vocals come in a little later giving a cool atmosphere before the song transforms into more of a melodic black metal tune.
As I mentioned earlier, the extra melodic elements are in there just enough to make it melodic, but are an essential part of Jernlov’s sound. “Faith” has clean female vocals that are cold and well-executed that matches perfectly with the underlying black metal riffs. “Fortapt” uses clean male vocals and synthesizer to create an epic atmosphere in the middle of the song. The keyboard in “Disciples in the North” is a calm and creepy little ditty before plunging back into the wall of sound.
The only gripe I have on the album is that many of the songs end rather abruptly. Sometimes this works well and makes musical sense, but others it felt that the song was unfinished. More thoughtful cadences to songs would definitely be a plus in the future.
All in all, I am quite impressed with the album that Jernlov has put forward. This is quality, wholesome, soul-affirming black metal. I am not a typical black metal listener, but this release grew on me, so even if you don’t like your metal black, seriously consider this release! If you like black metal, you should’ve already had this on pre-order. If not, there is still time.
Rating: 9.0/10
Written by Sean Bailey
Tracklist
1 – Resurrection
2 – Though I Am a Wicked Servant
3 – Lost Direction
4 – Disciples in the North
5 – Fortapt
6 – After You’re Gone
7 – Salvation
8 – Faith
9 – A King in Perpetuity
10 – The Final Prayer
Jernlov is:
Alf Petter – Guitars, Bass, Synths
Zuriel – Drums
Guests:
Ronny Hanielsen (Antestor, Luteøks)
Claudio Enzler (Sacrificium)
Eero Tertsunen (Renascent)
Release Date: June 23, 2023
Record Label: Nordic Mission
Discography:
Crucified (2020)
Resurrection (2023)
Social Media: Facebook / Bandcamp
Lyric video for ‘Resurrection’
Lyric video for ‘The Final Prayer’
