Background
Very little is known about this first release from Katatonia. Below are the facts that are known about this EP (Extended Play).
Named by using a quote from Friedrich Nietzsche’s book, The Gay Science, Jhva Elohim Meth translated means God is Dead. Released from July 3rd to the 5th of 1992, there were only 500 copies ever made. 300 of them were blue-colored, 100 were transparent, and the last 100 were red-colored. The first 30 that were released came with photos and lyrics of the songs, creating an ever rarer release within an already rare release. Released just two days after the 5th of July was Jhva Elohim Meth...The Revivial, an EP edition that was released with more frequency than the original.
Songs
Prologue: Midwinter Gates: Like Dance of December Souls, Jhva Elohim Meth starts out with a soundscape. Coming in at 45 seconds, this opening is a very simple one: all there is for instrumentation is some soft & beautiful guitar, accompanied by some keyboard effects that give the feeling of a mystical winter. Put these two elements together, and you have something that sounds like the middle of winter (See, sometimes the names of songs mean something!).
Without God: No, you’re not seeing things. In fact, this is where the song came from in the first place, not Dance of December Souls. There really isn’t that much of a difference between the two versions. About the only things that are different from that version is some slight changes to the instrumentation & keyboard sounds, and the tone of the singing was altered just a hare. Other than those two things, the two songs are exactly the same.
Palace of Frost: Of the pinch of songs on this EP, Palace of Frost is my absolute favorite. It actually kinda of tragic that this song wasn’t placed on Dance of December Souls, because it really fits with that album’s overall tone & feeling. The instrumentation comes at you in a brutal & steady manner, the singing sounds like the howling winds of a winter storm, and the whole thing just sounds bleak and oppressive. Again, I love this song!
The Northern Silence: If Palace of Frost was a very oppressive song in terms of tone, then this song is the exact opposite. Going back in forth in terms of speed, The Northern Silence sounds like something you’d hear during the worst of winter’s fury. The guitars go from steady to fast in a matter of seconds, and the singing basically does the same thing. There are some moments when things sound peaceful, but then the song picks up again, and those moments are covered with a heavy blanket of snow & ice.
Epilogue: Crimson Tears: Just like Dance of December Souls, this release is concluded with a soundscape. Lasting much longer than Midwinter Gates (It plays for 1 minute & 57 seconds), Crimson Tears forgoes the guitar that the first song brought to the table, and instead decides to rely completely on the keyboard to convey it’s message. The noise that is most prevalent within this song is dripping water. It starts out slow, but it increases in intensity overtime. At times you also hear moaning wind, which will more than likely cause the hair on the back of your neck to stand up because it sounds so chilling.
Overall Impression & Rating
Jhva Elohim Meth sounds about the same as Dance of December Souls, but the overall feeling seems to be different. Maybe it’s because there’s only 5 songs, but there possibly seems to be a wider range of emotions, sense, and feelings. It’s really hard to tell, but I have a feeling that between this and Dance of December Souls, Katatonia had a shift in musical capabilities, causing them to change somehow. I don’t know, but maybe it’s me.
Jhva Elohim Meth gets a 7 to 7.5 out of 10.
See you all next week. Until then, stay Otaku!
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For more about the band itself, please click on “***” to read my review of Dance of December Souls
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