Reviews:
From Zac Keiller of Foxy Digitalis:
Jerusalem is the moniker of one James Kreager. James also operates Arctantic Design; a small design project with a unique style. It would be best to look at his “Dear Friend, Dear Self” EP as an introduction to both Arctantic, and his musical capabilities. I am fortunate to report that both are of the highest caliber. The fact that this EP has been years in the making, most likely due to the handmade packaging and poster, only reinforces the passion that is apparent in the making of this release. And the passion is infectious!
To get an idea of the package, imagine amongst a pile of rubble you find an old piece of tile that seems slightly out of place. Upon closer inspection you find that it is covered with tiny handwritten text. Looking even closer, within this ancient slab of brick there is hidden treasure in the form of a partially destroyed CD. You rush home, immediately placing your new broken prize into the stereo. When it seems like all is lost and the disc fails to work, the speakers suddenly erupt with the distant stabbing piano and high pitched drones of “Changing Everything with Silence”. Where did this music come from?
DFDS is a rare gem that delivers in both the design and the content. Tracks such as “Changing Everything with Silence” and “Flashes of Life before your Eyes”, with their monstrous glacial guitars, continually building and crashing with a cinematic edge, have the ability to transcend the listener’s surroundings with a direct route into the universe of the music. There is further variety displayed on the tracks “Solitude” and “The Mighty Mississippi” that feature more simplicity with introspective, melancholic strummed guitar melodies. “Sunlight” closes the EP with a simple keyboard melody overlaid with fretless bass and cello and a recurring motif as if the sun is rising in front of you.
If I had one qualm it would be that some of the digital percussion and use of ring modulator are perhaps slightly too prominent, but this is minor and soon forgotten. Kreager makes a smart move in economizing his music. Nothing is overplayed or boring, and it left me wanting a lot more. So if the timeline of this EP was anything to go by, I expect and eagerly await Jerusalem’s next work in say, ten years or so. 8/10 -- Zac Keiller (17 December, 2008)
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