Release Date July 24th, 2026
Format CD/LP
Genre Psychedelic Folk Rock
Origin Norway
Jordsjø emerged from Oslo’s psychedelic and progressive underground in 2015 through a series of cassette releases that gradually brought the band attention beyond Norway. In the studio, Jordsjø consists of Håkon Oftung and Kristian Frøland. Oftung handles vocals, guitars, keyboards, and flute, with connections to Black Magic, Tusmørke, The Chronicles Of Father Robin, Wobbler, Zenon, and Flight. Frøland handles drums and percussion and has worked alongside Oftung since childhood. Jordsjø has performed live as a five-member band for the past eight years. “Pestkrønikene” marks the band’s tenth anniversary and ninth release, issued by Dying Victims Productions. The album features artwork by Kristian Valbo and appearances from Jon Henriksen, Kristian Valbo, Andreas Prestmo, and Lars Fredrik Frøislie.
“Pestkrønikene” developed from unused studio material created between 2020 and 2025, later reshaped into an album centred on war, political collapse, fallen rulers, religious sects, and the arrival of a new dawn. Kristian Frøland produced and mixed it, building an analog sound from dry percussion, warm keyboards, restrained guitars, and prominent flute passages. The production rejects modern sheen and places the music near the earthier side of 1970s progressive rock. Deep Purple, Rush, Ashbury, Gentle Giant, Høst, and Landberk provide useful reference points, although Jordsjø leans further into spectral folk melodies and Scandinavian melancholy.
Running for around thirty-six minutes, the album presents compact compositions packed with small details that emerge after repeated plays. Heavy rock riffs frequently meet pastoral melodies and strange keyboard colours, forming an isolated, nocturnal atmosphere. Several passages linger beyond what their central ideas justify, and the subdued pacing occasionally drains momentum. The guest musicians add depth without reducing the album to a parade of cameos. “Pestkrønikene” is imaginative progressive rock with an authentic underground pulse, capable songwriting, and enough friction to prevent its antique surface from becoming decoration.
|7.0
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