Stygn Jerusalem

• 1Gud finns visst04:42
• 2Jeremia10:23
• 3Stygn05:37
• 4Hur kunde vi05:08
• 5Kärlek och sanning (Missa inte festen)04:37
• 6Törnrosa05:00
• 7Kanske Gud03:30
• 8Vår tid nu07:36
• 9Fariséerna04:24
• 10Pionjär (Sons of Thunder)07:10
• 11Här står jag06:07
• Total Runtime01:04:14

Info for Stygn

The legendary rock band Jerusalem from Sweden will release their tenth studio album "Stygn" ("Stitches") before Christmas. First, the album will be released in Swedish, but an English version is also planned later.

Jerusalem started in 1975 and is considered one of the first Christian rock bands. Since then, the band has toured the world and released many studio albums, live albums, and compilations, which have been considered legendary with great success in the US and chart toppers. The band''s founder and frontman Ulf Christiansson, who was previously ranked as Sweden''s best rock voice by Sweden Rock Magazine, has also released ten solo albums and in recent years band members and former band members such as Anders Mossberg, Peter Carlsohn and Danne Tibell have also released their own albums.

But now a long-awaited new studio album with Jerusalem is finished. Something that has been in demand since the band released their latest studio album, She in 2010. In addition, the band will follow up with an English version of the album later.

This time, several of the band''s former members participate, along with the current lineup. Something that raises the interest even more for die-hard fans as well as new listeners. In addition, they take a step towards their musically heavier roots, which are more about riff-based hard rock with 70s influences like on the album Warrior, than the slightly poppier U2-inspired sound found on records like Prophet and She.

We have really had a long journey with this album. Perhaps the longest we have had in the history of Jerusalem. But we are really excited and happy to finally release it. The whole band is very grateful for all the support from fans around the world who followed the journey, says the band''s singer and guitarist Ulf Christiansson and continues:

My son Philip, who has played with us since the Father 2 Son tour in 2014, is making his debut as a songwriter, guitarist and singer, so it feels inspiring to have new blood in the band, now that Philip is making an entrance in earnest.

In addition to Ulf and Philip Christiansson on vocals and guitar, Anders Mossberg on bass, Michael Ulvsgärd on drums and CJ Grimmark (Narnia, Rob Rock) on keyboards are part of the band. Grimmark has also mixed the album and Daniel Fossum has mastered.

In addition, former members Peter Carlsohn participate on bass, as well as former keyboardists Reidar I Paasche (f d Paulsen) and Danne Tibell.

Ulf Christiansson, lead vocals, guitar
Philip Christiansson, backing & lead vocals, guitar
Anders Mossberg, bass
CJ Grimmark, keyboards, guitar
Michael Ulvsgärd, drums
Featured former member:
Peter Carlsohn, bass
Reidar I Paasche, keyboards
Danne Tibell, keyboards

Jerusalem
It all began in 1975 with a fifteen year old transit bus, bought from a surplus stock at the Swedish Telecom. It was a miracle that they even got out of Gothenburg. The water leaked out of the bus very quickly. Sometimes on tours they had to stop in the middle of nowhere and the guys had to wade in swamps to get water for the bus. But that didn’t keep the enthusiasm away. Every second weekend they took all the equipment and went on tour. The mission was to tell young people about God. In clubs, discos, schools.

They had to face a heavy resistance doing this.

Playing hard rock and being a Christian was very controversial at the time. Hard rock was connected to drugs, aggression and Satanism. Furthermore the music was ear-splitting. Being the first Christian hard rock band in Europe, Jerusalem had to endure a lot of criticism. They weren’t welcome at all to some churches. Smoke-bombs, long hair and luxury equipment was more than some people could accept, even if Jerusalem radically proclaimed Jesus. Hard rock was considered devilish.

Jerusalem addressed the youth. Hard rock was a way of bringing faith in Jesus to them in their own language. The lyrics described their relation to God in an ordinary, but radical way. Ulf Christiansson wrote as much as he could, and at almost every concert he had a new song to present. Heavy music delivered a heavy message and between the songs Ulf preached. In that way the concerts were more than just concerts, they turned into revival meetings. Side by side, hard rockers and confirmands were rocking. But also old people who were touched by God in a new way.

“One night, an old lady came to us after a concert and wanted to beg our forgiveness. She said that she had turned terribly mad when we started playing. She wanted to grab her purse and leave. But then she saw Jesus walking from the stage down towards her. He sat down in front of her, turned around and said: Those are my guys. Tears were streaming down her eyes when she told us.”

As time went by, prejudice seemed to disappear. The band was conductive to that by not giving up. After three years of touring record companies began calling. “I had told God and the guys that we won’t knock on anyone’s door, but wait for a record company to call.” The Christian record company Prim did, but they didn’t believe in too much success. They were wrong. The record Jerusalem (Volume 1) became an instant hit among the audience. In just a few months the record sold 30 000 copies and kept on. Jerusalem reached far outside the church walls, drawing both believers and non-believers.

This album contains no booklet.