Freecall Jupiter - The Dark Influence

Freecall Jupiter

The Dark Influence
​self-released; 2021

3.9 out of 5

By Jamie Funk

The Dark Influence is the debut album from Freecall Jupiter. The three members more or less recorded this album remotely over the last couple of years. Apparently, there was only one rehearsal before they started. Their music primarily falls into hard rock territory and blends elements from a number of different eras.

​I should also state the album is based on a short story and it’s actually very specific. Truth be told I never would have picked up on this if I didn’t read it but will leave it up to you how much you analyze the lyrics.

The album starts with “Divide” and it sounds like music you might hear at the beginning of Dune or some other sci-fi movie. It’s very cinematic and ambient and also sort of creates the bandwidth of scope they are trying to reach with these songs. 

“Living With The Strain” is where we come back down to earth and meet the band. The band comes out of the gate rocking hard but doesn't leave on their distortion pedals the whole time. They fit a lot into this song and flirt with elements of prog. I was also picking up a mix of ’80s and ’90s era hard rock. The vocalist sounds confident and has a good amount of range he showcases here and on a number of other songs.

The band continues with their cinematic and cosmic sounding vibe on “Freelancer.” It doesn't take too long for soundscape to fade out and the band starts to fade in. When the band rocks out they rock hard. That’s for sure. It’s very dynamic and pulls off softer parts as well which you hear at the end of the song.

“Raindrops” starts off as an atmospheric folk ballad of sorts. I was sort of expecting the song to rock out and it surely does. This song has more of an early ‘00s quality to me. The band showcases a lot of textures and colors in the song.

As the album progresses there aren’t any major changes in direction but there are some highlights. “Hydrogen & Gold” was a memorable song. The vocalist repeats certain melodies like a mantra which make it feel hypnotic and meditative. There’s some weird stuff happening to his vocals toward the end that was interesting in terms of production.

“Fail To Answer” is arguably the most epic song in an album full of epic songs. I also loved the bass line on this song and the way the palm muted guitars are introduced. The band sounds a bit like The Red Hot Chili Peppers on “Unit 22” and they have a send off with a positive sentiment on the closer “We’re Alright” which goes into an insane instrumental breakdown.

The recording quality is very good throughout. It’s dynamic, well balanced and crisp. This is an album where you can tell how much work the band put into it. The proof is in the pudding. If you’re looking for an intense and fairly epic sounding rock album this is worth your time to check out.

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