Iroha - Iroha (2011)

To start off, Iroha's work is very similar to that of Jesu's. This is no suprise however, because Andy Swan (originator of Iroha) has been firneds with Justin K. Broadrick (Jesu, Godflesh) since the age of 16. At this early age of 16, these two made experimental music under the moniker Final. They put out several releases on their own and at the time, had no clue that would eventually become experimental production legends.

Andy Swan was active in the dance music scene for some time, before finding his love for experimental guitar work from the 80's. His new project, Iroha, which also features Diarmuid Dalton of Jesu and Dominic Crane of Rumblefish, takes elements from all over, including shoegaze, pop, and industrial. The songs 'Last Day of Summer', 'Dreams', and 'Autumn Leaves', have a melancholic/shoegaze feel, while 'Eternal' goes the more industrial route. 'Eternal' is my favorite track on the album and sounds very much like a Jesu release. The last track, 'Iroha', features female vocalist Mio singing in Spanish and is unlike anything on the entire album.

The album also contains a bonus disc which contains remixes of the entire album, done by Justin K. Broadrick himself. The similarities to Jesu are even bigger with the addition of this bonus disc. On the Jesu remix of 'Last Day of Summer' there is little guitar work, and instead has hard-hitting beats that recall Jesu's Pale Sketcher project. The remixes on this bonus disc are created by Jesu (as mentioned), Transitional, and Black Galaxy.

One thing needs to be noted, and this is that Iroha definitely know how to create transcending music. This is music that one can get lost in and actually feel the effects of. Although Iroha is fairly new, the band members have been making music since they were teenagers (now in their 40's) and definitely have the skills to produce legendary music. Do yourself a favor and check out Iroha's self-titled album on Denovali Records.

Check out the Jesu remixes of 'Eternal' and 'Last Day of Summer' here: