Connected/Condemned – Jotnar

Jotnar , Spain’s purveyors of Melodic Death Metal have just unleashed their debut full length album titled ‘Connected/Condemned’ via Massacre Records, and what a breath of fresh air it turns out to be

The bands line up and vision has changed and evolved a lot since the release of the E.P. ‘ Giants ‘ back in 2012, perhaps the most notable change coming in the vocal department with the addition of Mario Infantes, who, without mincing words, simply nails it on this record. Matched with some really top drawer musicianship, and some pretty damn fine guest appearances , ‘Connected/Condemned’ is fast becoming one of my favourite albums of the year so far

Opening with the title track, proceedings kick off with a monster crushing guitar riff and seriously catchy vocal lines which had me hooked from the outset, Infantes capturing the balance of aggressive growl vocal against clean pretty much faultlessly. ‘Remaining Still’ follows, with its formidable chest punching drum sound against a very subtle synth backdrop, a track that continues to grow in stature with every subsequent listen

The Melodic Death Metal genre as a whole can be described as being saturated, especially in recent years, so how do you make your sound and product stand out from the crowd? Many possible answers I’m sure but in Jotnar’s case I have to say, it comes down to being able to put together a bunch of incredibly well written songs that just jump out at you and grab you by the scruff of the neck. The beautifully melodic ‘Missing Shadows’ is nothing short of world class, ‘Broken Esteem’ (featuring Bjorn Strid of Soilwork)is an incredibly strong composition, whilst album closer ‘The Portrait’ (featuring Jennie Nord of Ultimate Fate) is pure bone crushing Metal at its finest, mixed with sublime, soft and soulful moments

With ‘Connected/Condemned’, Jotnar have struck pure gold. When you consider it’s been a five year gap between the release of the aforementioned E.P. and this album, you start to get an inkling as to how much effort and hard slog has gone on behind the scenes to get to this stage, damn they even manage to pull off a Nelly Furtado cover!  Everything on this record is nigh faultless in my eyes, from the bands performance to the superb production sound and the artwork from Brit Russ Mills, this is an album to grace any collection

An album that redesigns and refines

Recommended Track – ‘Broken Esteem’

Track Listing ;

1. Connected/Condemned
2. Remaining Still
3. Missing Shadows
4. Broken Esteem (Feat. Björn “Speed” Strid)
5. Suicidal Angel
6. Live Together Die Alone
7. Starved Of Guidance
8. I, The Paradox
9. The Sentence
10. Invisible Trace
11. The Loneliness Legacy
12. Say It Right (Nelly Furtado Cover)
13. Envy World
14. The Portrait (Feat. Jennie Nord)

Jotnar line up ;

Mario Infantes – Vocals

Ben Melero – Guitars

Elhadji N’Diaye – Guitars

Octavio Santana – Bass

Jose Rodriguez – Drums

‘Connected/Condemned’ is out now via Massacre Records

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