Jess By The Lake - Human (2026)

Filling that Psychedelic Rock/Metal void left by bands like Jex Thoth, Sabbath Assembly and Jess and the Ancient Ones, we have Jasmin Lempinen returning with her sophomore release under the moniker Jess By The Lake. Delivering nine tracks and nearly 43-minutes of sultry, warm, and fuzzy music, this outfit unleashes a very organic and crafty release that is both playful and mysterious. For fans of more mellow and atmospheric Psychedelic music, this release is the perfect soundtrack for the upcoming fall and winter months.

Opening with the playful retroness of “Jaleihou”, get the warm and fuzzy guitars, a lively bass guitar line, alongside sultry vocals. The band’s style is not overly complex, but rather highly engaging and melodic, filled with engaging songwriting, as tracks like “Waderin Kind” and “Lovely Boy”, deliver twangy melodies. Other songs like the dreamy “Sister” and “Falling Under” while having a different pace, are still magical as the vocal melodies are haunting while the instrumentation leads the way with Jazzy passages.

As our favorite track, “How Could You Tell?” showcases Jasmin’s full range with very moody tempo changes and hypnotic passages filled with crafty details. We particularly love that Jess By The Lake has a very defined and consistent style that is cohesive and constant, not trying to be anybody else or incorporate elements that are not within their scope. Close second in our favorite tracks we have the playful “The Shame” and its very film noir-esque vibe, a song we can totally picture being in an older crime movie.

Closing with the fuzziness of “Holy Grove”, Jess By The Lake manages to continue its path with nine highly engaging songs that feature a range of different elements that masterfully showcase Jasmin’s vocal talents while keeping that mysterious and retro vibe from her past projects. Being huge fans of the genre, we have been looking for a while for a release like this as they seem to have dried up in the last few years, so make sure you don’t miss out if you like outfits like the ones we previously mentioned or Jess and the Ancient Ones.

Rating: 95/100