ALBUM REVIEW: Life Metal – Sunn O)))

SUNN O))) have, without question, gone further than any band of this nature have any right to. They are perhaps one of the most musically alienating bands to ever flirt with mainstream appeal, each album they’ve produced acts as an unapologetic and unflinching meditation. To those who remain uninitiated, it’s difficult to describe this avant-garde institution in any way which is likely to attract new fans. Ultimately, their music comprises of rumbling drone with an unnerving willingness to dip into more sinister and emotive realms.

While SUNN O))) have long been a curiosity, it was the release of Monoliths & Dimensions which acted as a pivotal turning point in the group’s back catalogue; they proved there was longevity in their art, and the ability to experiment was in their grasp. While previous works White1, which allowed for the exploration of such territories, and the decidedly more malevolent Black One, famed for employing influence from extreme metal as well as dark ambient, were significant artistically, it was here where the band made their name on a greater platform. From here the band would release a number of collaborations – perhaps most significantly, with the late Scott Walker, in 2014 with the release of Soused; a haunting and fitting finale for the legend, and a crowning achievement for a band who appear inherently limited. The sole tarnish on an otherwise exquisite career 2015’s Kannon. After the 6 years which followed their finest work, the band returned with a lazy and unforgettable effort. SUNN O))) have since been fairly silent. Four years later, the band intend to release a duology of new music in 2019; the first of these is Life Metal.

Life Metal is noticeably more rich in colour and texture than any point on Kannon, and it is a very welcome change to their sound. Drone isn’t entirely difficult at the heart of it, but doing something special with the art form is what points to genius. SUNN O))) have influenced countless tedious knock-offs, and Kannon was the first time the band began to sound like one. Life Metal, however, shows the band traversing frontiers they were previously yet to delve into; this is, without question, the most psychedelic and uplifting work in the band’s back catalogue. One may wonder how a band with seemingly so little tricks have managed to do this. Historically, psychedelic music is often technically astounding and unwilling to sit on a repeating motif, quite the opposite of a band like SUNN O)))’s previous works. The band have made subtle, meaningful changes to their sound to indulge this new realm. Firstly, the guitar tone previously used, often starkly monochrome in execution, has been traded for a less punishing one. Gregg Anderson and Stephen O’Malley, the two men behind the project, seem to have opted for a moodier tone, calling upon PINK FLOYD at their weightiest and BLACK SABBATH at their most cosmic.

Furthermore, and perhaps most significantly, the group have opted to not include a performance from their long-time live-vocalist for the first time since White1’s release in 2003. Attila Csihar, perhaps best-known for his long-time tenure of MAYHEM, has appeared on every album since and remained a staple of the live show. However, perhaps in line with the band’s new inspiriting music, the group have opted to leave him out. Initially, this is likely to disappoint fans – Attila’s operatic shrieks have become as much a part of SUNN O))) as anything else – but upon listening to Life Metal, it makes total sense and shows the band making wise decisions, free from restraints set upon themselves. This album may not boast the musical indulgences of previous works such as of Monoliths & Dimensions, or their 2014 collaboration with ULVER, and yet, the band have produced some of their most engaging work to date. Troubled Air, an epic on any other album while being markedly the shortest song here, shows the band at their most compelling. The textures swathe in their diversity, while the unmistakable rumbling guitar-tone never releases its often suffocating chokehold. As the song begins to build to a crescendo, high-end lead work bleeds into the mix, making for a well-rounded aural levitation.

The sole example where the band don’t try new emotive tricks is Aurora, but this is made up for by the sheer sonic weight of the composition. An unrelenting 19-minute rite of passage, the song continually strides with an unwavering will for crushing heaviness. If the whole album were formed in this mould, it would likely grow tiresome, but to have just one of the four tracks do so is refreshing in itself. It’s a necessary component for an album which explores almost everything SUNN O))) do so well. The crowning achievement of Life Metal, however, is certainly the 25+ minute closer, Novae. Second, only to White1’s My Wall for the longest song in their catalogue, the track is surrealist in composition and unforgiving in performance. This could easily soundtrack the infamous, horrifying final 20 minutes of 2001: A Space Odyssey – it’s simply that unnerving. While the first half continues Aurora’s rumbling bellow, the second seamlessly fades into a meditative trance; the perfect exit for SUNN O)))’s first steps into a brave new world.

Rather than sounding like an experiment in heaviness, Life Metal, musically, instead feels more necessary in its delivery than SUNN O))) have ever sounded. The band have managed to perform a style of music often dismissed for its simplicity with a remarkable degree of class and elegance. Pyroclasts is due for later this year (said to be a more subdued effort), and on this form, you would be a fool to bet against SUNN O))) releasing two of their finest albums in a single year. A triumphant return to form.

Rating: 9/10

Life Metal is set for release on April 26th via Southern Lord. 

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