Jesu

Following up the breathtakingly sludgy doom of last year’s stunning self-titled debut album by Jesu, former Godflesh and Napalm Death member Justin K Broadrick moves even further away from the ruthless noise of his past with an oeuvre that feels like his most radical move yet. This EP finds Broadrick (along with bassist Diarmuid Dalton and sometime drummer Ted Parsons) working more in the vein of late ’80s/early ’90s 4AD and Creation acts, calling on the effects pedals for maximum overdrive. Silver’s four songs are all individually ardent creatures, searching for ways to explore and differentiate themselves. The title track has enough washing soundscapes to earn comparisons to the Cocteau Twins’ languid, heavenly aura, albeit with a much more punishing low-end. "Star” reveals an arguable fascination with Kevin Shields’ expensive taste in production, moving the sublime textures into the melodious sonic boom that graced My Bloody Valentine’s Isn’t Anything. "Wolves” has the same poignant disposition as last year’s album cut "Sun Day,” pressing the dirge until it’s drenched in tear-stained droning. "Dead Eyes,” on the other hand, revisits Broadrick’s attraction to the industrial beats he’s always employed and the electronic noise he tinkers with in his Final side project, though with much more fulfilled results that are nothing short of divine. Silver marks yet another accomplishment for this sonic surveyor, proving he can come from any musical angle he chooses and dominate with a precision unlike anyone else in his field.