Cast your mind back to 1999, Sun O))) were just starting out and providing titanic sonic vibrations that represented the framework of what makes a brilliant doom song – think along the lines of OM and Earth, with the riffs stripped back and the atmosphere ramped all the way up to 11. Since then, Greg Anderson and Stephen O’Malley have gone on to build a reputation for being louder than anyone else, shaking the very foundations of churches and clubs alike with volume and reverb, causing physical illness in those that dare to listen sans ear plugs (most recently recalled is the incident at Temples, whereby people were literally climbing over each other to escape and empty their guts outside, while Sunn O))) quite literally brought the roof down – and its asbestos coating). Their reputation has somehow managed to push them into the territory of a gimmick, with people forgetting the duo’s ability to create gloomy sonic doom soundscapes that transport the listener to claustrophobic confines with icy winds howling all around them. When you focus on how loud and how “quirky” Sunn O))) are you forget what an absolute beast of an album ‘Monoliths and Dimensions’ was, you forget the fact that they have black metal legend Attila Csihar providing vocals, you forget that they’ve teamed up and created incredible music with the likes of Boris, Ulver and Scott Walker. The release of their first full length album in six years, ‘Kannon’, is about to remind you of all of that.
Plenty of other reviews have featured ceaseless whinging and hand wringing over the fact that Kannon’s three tracks barely scratch the 30 minute mark – but isn’t it quality, not quantity? And there’s certainly plenty of quality to be had here. Immersed in stunning and invigorating washes of drone, ‘Kannon’ is a spiritual journey steeped in intensity. The production quality is so pristine that you can hear every chord and every note as it breaks through to the foreground with perfect clarity. Each track possesses the ability to both hypnotise and thrill the listener.
What’s most noticeable is how much more structure each song has – there’s genuine song formation and riffs – albeit not something you’ll be tapping your feet along to, but enough for it to be a progression from the pairing’s usual creations of monumental walls of noise. This could be something to do with both Anderson and O’Malley striving to seek a middle ground in the two very different paths they’ve chosen to wander – Anderson has rebooted blues rock troupe Goatsnake and turbocharged Southern Lord with a roster full of hardcore acts, while O’Malley has chosen to score music for arthouse cinema and take part in improvisational musical projects. Whatever the reasoning behind Sunn O)))’s shift in dimension, it’s a welcome one. For those criticising, you’re missing the entire point of what the band are really about.
(8/10 Angela Davey)
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