JORDSJØ released their first tape in 2015. With the fourth tape, 2017’s Jord, the band got a wider audience outside their native Norway and subsequently released full-lengths on such labels as Karisma, Pancromatic, and Apollon. The band works as a duo in the studio, but for the last eight years, they have played live as a quintet.
JORDSJØ are led by multi-instrumentalist Håkon Oftung, who has been a part of Oslo’s psychedelic, progressive, and heavy rock undergrounds for many years, and has played in Black Magic, Tusmørke, The Chronicles of Father Robin, Wobbler, Zenon, and labelmates FLIGHT to mention but a few. He’s joined by longtime companion and childhood friend Kristian Frøland, who plays drums and percussion, and also produced and mixed Pestkrønikene.
Pestkrønikene is a part of JORDSJØ’s 10-year anniversary, and their ninth release overall. The record started out as a compilation of studio outtakes from 2020-2025, but then took on a form of its own, with the songs linked together thematically. Lyrically, those themes reflect war, upheaval, the fall of kings and the rise of a new dawn, and cults and sects. Sonically, Pestkrønikene encapsulates the JORDSJØ experience as well as extends beyond it. Mythical and magickal, the album honors the band’s background in hard rock and heavy metal, and combines this with their own analog and organic blend of progressive / psychedelic folk rock.
To say that band and record, both in general, blend ‘70s heavy rock like Deep Purple, Rush, and Ashbury with the progressive landscapes of Gentle Giant, Høst, and Landberk somewhat undersells JORDSJØ’s particular headspace. The soothingly otherworldly atmosphere sounds incredibly era-authentic but, more so, exists in a parallel universe worth revisiting over and over again; truly, new details and vistas open up with each spin, even with the soundfield being lushly Spartan. To make that anniversary all the sweeter, JORDSJØ are here joined by a few amazing guests: Jon Henriksen from Black Magic, Kristian Valbo from Obliteration / Aura Noir, and Andreas Prestmo and Lars Fredrik Frøislie from Wobbler. Sonic alchemy, Pestkrønikene is.
Succinct yet deceptively expansive at just 36 minutes, Pestkrønikene is a generous feast of fantastical, extra-dimensional exploration. While not “heavy” in the usual DYING VICTIMS sense, JORDSJØ honor the old ways – handmade, honest, even heroic.
