Review: Jupiter - Interstellar Chronodive

Another day, another fine slab of fuzzy rock from Finland....this is becoming a regular occurrence (and that's no bad thing!). Jupiter are a three piece (Tuukka - guitar/vocals, Mikko - bass snd Valtteri - drums) from Kirkkonummi who play "heavy and dark rock n roll, imbued with velvet like psychedelia." I think you're doing yourselves a bit of a disservice there boys, there's a lot more going on in this album - some Sabbath like proto-doom, some prog, and some stoner rock can all be added to the mix.

Opener 'Stonetrooper' starts with a sultry noir-like bass line before the guitar starts on a laid back psych meander....it all leads you into a false sense of security because just before the 3 minute mark it all kicks off - the temp is stepped up and some riffs straight out of the Seventies heavy psych handbook are let loose and the track becomes a straight up rocker. Tuukka's voice was just made for these songs...powerful without sounding forced and carrying real authority. The influence of some of the greats can be heard...as mentioned the mighty Sabbath but the track also has a Led Zeppelin vibe to it.....and the solo is pretty special! 'Spirit Of The Leech' continues the same musical theme, but with the fuzz turned up a bit. 'Premonitions' is more of a stoner track, but with these guys, nothing is straightforward! There are touches of prog in the song structure and the tempo changes and that adds a different dimension. 'Dispersed Matter / Astral Portal' begins with a nice spacerock intro with some lovely psychedelic guitar. The vocal are what makes this track different; the verses are spoken like prose over some spacey wah wah guitar, with the chorus seeing the tempo increase and Tuukka once again loosing his larynx. 'In Flux' is a long, a tad over 14 minutes, heavy psychedelic workout. The first six minutes drive along at a pace, and then it comes to an aprupt halt to be replaced by some gentle psych guitar work soon to be joined by some jazzy drumming and the remainder of the track passes in Floyd-like reveries of atmosphere and haze...my favourite track on the album. 'Vantage Point' sees the album finish how it started...with another stormer with plenty of fuzz and power.

One of the things I've noticed in recent months is that bands are not restricting themselves to one particular 'genre'....this album is a case in point...Jupiter could have produced a very good straightforward stoner rock album, but they are more ambitious and so we have touches of prog, hint of doom and plenty of fuzzy psych. The level of the band's musicianship is exemplary and the album mixed thoughtfully, with no one instrument / vocals becoming the focus....the music is the focus and great music it is too!

'Interstellar Chronodive' is available as a digital download over at the band's bandcamp page but I believe a vinyl release will follow.