Kjeld: U Jam?

Kjeld’s debut Skym is the kind of album that spurs you to research its creators. Doing so leads you to the details of their origin: They rep Friesland, a province of the Netherlands. The language of Skym‘s lyrics is Frisian — which our ears won’t distinguish from regular Dutch. The album’s vibe is linked to the region’s ancient culture, which, according to Decibel, claims the first peoples to move on from cave dwelling to construct their own shelters.

Great backstory. But it amounts to zilch cuz none of it is materially evident in Kjeld’s music. Even if it is — ie. we’re overlooking it — that music is more interesting than the fancy traditions of any cool place. And that’s why, even when no context is needed for us to connect with Kjeld’s jams, that we seek this band’s stats: Skym is flawless. For all its traditionalism of theme, it flaunts boldly modern sonics for Kjeld’s rhythm section and too-occasional solos; on the high end, it’s classic, chaotic squall. Their first service is to music, not philosophy. Picture a flag tied tautly to a stake but flapping wildly, raggedly in a whiteout. And the image it bears stains your memory, the black energy it represents flits about your mind like a shiny bat grazing your shoulder. U jam?

Kjeld’s first album Skym came out in March via Hammerheart. Get it here and here.