release - pale sketcher - jesu: pale sketches demixed

type: album
released: 24th august 2010
label: ghostly international
genre: dub, ambient, electronica

Pale Sketcher is Justin K. Broadrick's latest project, and it's ostensibly a vehicle for him to explore what he calls "the Jesu 'electronica' sound", wanting to keep it separate from their guitar-orientated beginnings. So here he single-handedly demixes – the idea that the guitar elements are taken away from the songs – every track from the 2007 Jesu compilation Pale Sketches.

There are two problems emerging from this choice of source material. Firstly, the only real contributor to seven years' worth of previously unreleased Jesu songs was Justin K. Broadrick. He wrote it, he programmed it, he produced it, and he performed it all alone. So to put it cruelly he's simply rehashing an assortment of unwanted songs. And what's more, they're not anywhere near being the most guitar-driven songs he's written. While there might be scope for separating the works of Jesu from his own electronic flights of fancy, there weren't many changes to make to the songs here – it was more or less electronica to begin with. The second problem is that the songs just aren't up to the quality of Jesu's earlier work. Where Godflesh's guitar was biting and savage, and early Jesu's atmospheric, the sounds on Pale Sketches are shallow.

The separation of this from Jesu could be a blessing in disguise for the latter, who may return to the swirling soundscapes of old, but there is also some potential on the electronic side. However, while the different versions of individual tracks are easily distinguishable from each other, both albums struggle to find any coherent identity. It all feels a bit too much like variations on a theme, and two albums worth is too much.

The main changes apart from the guitars are that the Pale Sketcher versions tend to have a greater feeling of space and peace. And even though Broadrick can more easily convey emotion through heavy guitar than computerised drum patters, there are times when the layered textures of Jesu feel tired compared to Pale Sketcher's smooth and balanced listening experience.

Don't Dream It (Mirage mix) abandons the dirge-like repetition of its older sibling for a mild euphoria, where the Gone version of Can I Go Now doesn't change much other than pitch-shifting the original, leaving it inorganic and soulless by comparison.

One of the things wrong with Pale Sketches Demixed is that Broadrick allows a small palette of fairly simplistic drum patterns to guide the flow of the album, meaning that the welcome first ambient minute of The Playgrounds are Empty (Slumber mix) sounds starkly beautiful. It also acts as an interlude between the two halves of the album, the latter being the more varied and interesting. Tiny Universe (Interstellar) is haunting and edgy in the most minimal way possible, while Supple Hope (2009 mix) meanders for about five minutes before peaking into relaxing, unintrusive synths that are played out on the following track.

The last song here is also the best, and while the original version of Plans That Fade wouldn't sound at all out of place on the demixed album, the Faded Dub version takes it much further and suggests better things to come from Pale Sketcher. At best it verges on soulful, thoughtful dubstep and sets a dark tone for the end of the album.

Jesu: Pale Sketches Demixed is undoubtedly an improvement on the source material, but Broadrick doesn't go anywhere near far enough in differing from the originals or creating much diversity within the album itself. Nevertheless, I'd be interested to hear a 'demixed' version of Godflesh's Streetcleaner, or a full band Jesu album.

Pale Sketcher - Can I Go Now (Gone Version)