Dutch atmospheric progressive heavy rockers Iron Jinn will release their second full-length later this year — in September, if the scheduled release show is anything to go by — and the 17:55 “The Futurist” serves as the substantial welcome to/from the new incarnation of the band. Well, partially new incarnation, anyhow. Guitarist/vocalists Wout Kemkens and Oeds Beydals are still at the front, while bassist Gerben Bielderman and drummer Bob Hogenelst lock in intricate but fluid movement. The difference is that where they were a four-piece on their 2023 self-titled debut (review here), now they’ve been joined full-time by keyboardist Jarno van Es, who also appeared with them on 2024’s Live at Roadburn (review here).

It’s not the craziest change in the universe, like now they’re samba or something, but even the floaty notes peppered into the introduction of “The Futurist,” which was recorded by the esteemed Pieter Kloos, demonstrate that indeed the dynamic has shifted. The guitars have more room to breathe, and the band as a whole can occupy a song differently, whether they’re into the incantations of a verse or the chase that ensues a few minutes thereafter, like King Crimson charging in pursuit of Pink Floyd. They mark the occasion by coining the term “reich and roll,” which I’m not going to use and sounds like the kind of thing where no one asked the question, “Is minimalist US composer Steve Reich everybody’s first association with this word?,” but in sound they remain in a kind of swirling darkprog. There’s no cultish posturing, but the world is still a bit tilted sideways, aesthetically speaking.

And yes, “The Futurist” does have its minimal stretch, some drone later on, but it’s by no means inactive, even then. Rhythmic tension is persistent and among the proggier elements in the construction is that Iron Jinn manage to keep the energy level up while riding an evolving, winding groove as they pass through the midsection, not only to not getting lost, but conveying that the song actually needs this time to build itself up in this way. So, of course, they’re right about that. Plus that solo has some sunny island vibes and, well, summer’s coming.

In all seriousness, I had a hard morning yesterday after a largely sleepless night. To give the full background would take too long and derail the post, so I won’t, but suffice it to say, it was in that long instrumental stretch in the middle of “The Futurist,” in an unexpected flash of power-noodling and jazz-bouncing from one measure to the next, building and receding, that I found comfort. It wasn’t necessarily where I’d expect, but with Kemkens and Beydals leading the way to and through the 13-minute mark en route to the eventual verse return, I couldn’t help but smile. That seems like such a simple thing and yet it’s absolute fucking magic.

Art affects life, and engagement with creativity, passive or active, is an almost universal positive. If there is a central thesis of this shitheel blog, let it be that.

I haven’t heard the rest of Iron Jinn‘s apparently-70-minutes-long sophomore record yet, but the story in my mind is already of evolution, of exploring new spaces, and actively building on the atmospheres and accomplishments in craft of the first album. If maybe you’re not the kind of person who’s generally inclined to dig into an 18-minute single just for its own sake — I know it seems unfathomable, but those people do exist — the band do have a crescendo in their pocket all the while for the final moments as “The Futurist” sweeps into its cold finish, and if you’re the type who can just go with a journey, for sure this is one to go with. Vibrant even at its darkest.

As always, I hope you enjoy:

Iron Jinn, “The Futurist” lyric video

Iron Jinn releases the first single of their upcoming album and simultaneously coins ‘Reich & Roll’ as their new genre. On the 19th of September Iron Jinn present their new album at Doornroosje, Nijmegen. They invited the legendary kraut duo zZz as a special guest.

Iron Jinn release show w/ zZz tickets: https://www.doornroosje.nl/event/iron-jinn/

In the 18-minute epos ‘The Futurist’ you hear jazzy McCoy Tyner chords and riffs like molochs roll into a Steve Reich-ian minimal music jam, where guitars, cellos and keys subtly build a cathedral of sound; brick by brick. A lot of bands are psychedelic in sound, but Iron Jinn excels in mind-bending ideas. A distorted banjo is used to churn out rapid rolls like machine gun fire, while the voices of singers Wout Kemkens and Oeds Beydals reverberate their words about a world where technology is seen as salvation and models and data as messiahs. A reality where people are expected to adapt to the systems instead of the other way around. Later in the song Kemkens croons and echoes the words of Oppenheimer and Plato and just a few moments later (in the closing seconds of the track) you hear the most balls out version of Iron Jinn yet. This band is all about contrasts and it really shows in ‘The Futurist’. Yes, if you want to be hard as a rock you also have to be sweet as silk.

New album

Iron Jinn’s upcoming studio album (september 2026) is their first as a fivepiece. Within the new compositions, seven pieces in 70 minutes, the band places a strong emphasis on dynamics and musical interplay. Unlike their debut album (2023), an ambitious studio project as a trio, this new studio album was refined and deepened on stages through Europe. It introduces new colors in the form of two adventurous players: bassist Gerben Bielderman and keys player Jarno van Es, the latter debuted with Iron Jinn on Roadburn and luckily never left. The album recordings – under the helm of Pieter Kloos (Motorpsycho/The Devil’ Blood/DOOL) – took place in a former dance studio, quite fitting since the band plays more light-footed than on Iron Jinn’s former heavy, sometimes doomy, studio work.

Iron Jinn are:
Wout Kemkens – guitar/vocals
Oeds Beydals – guitar/vocals
Gerben Bielderman – bass
Bob Hogenelst – drums
Jarno van Es – keys

[Band photo by Louise te Poele.]

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Tags: Amsterdam, Iron Jinn, Iron Jinn The Futurist, The Futurist, The Netherlands

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 30th, 2026 at 7:01 am and is filed under audiObelisk. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.