Lifeline

Justin Broadrick, former leader of the sadly defunct, industrial doom machine known as Godflesh, has never been one to rest on his laurels. Lifeline, his third release for Hydra Head Records, is a short but sweet offering with heaping piles of electronics. Like most of his projects, Broadrick’s voice is buried beneath a backdrop of melancholy and behind walls of despair. Like early Treponem Pal, the title track is magnificent in scope—and about as somber as they come. For the uninitiated, a well-focused listen to any Jesu release demands your intelligence and, more importantly, some musical fortitude. While “Storm Comin’ On” isn’t likely to break any Billboard records, it’ll easily make people turn their attention away from the drivel that incited Broadrick to write the way he does in the first place.