Band:	Bongripper
Album:	Empty
Style:	Instrumental, Drone doom metal, Sludge metal
Release date:	April 2024

01. Nothing
02. Remains
03. Forever
04. Empty

Of all the various bands with ‘bong’ in their name, Bongripper are the one that have managed to record music that sounds as filthy as dirty bong water. Despite its name, Empty is full to the brim with yet more dense, devastating distortion.

Kicking off their career with an 80-minute single-song album in The Great Barrier Reefer really set the tone for Bongripper's discography, which has subsequently been filled by lengthy albums comprised of lengthy songs. Such tracks are typically trudging, punishing, and seemingly crying out for some chilling harsh vocals, yet their discography is (almost exclusively) instrumental-only. Despite lacking this dimension, their songwriting has been versatile enough to remain compelling nearly two decades later.

That is perhaps aided by Bongripper having slowed down their output in recent years; five records between 2006 and 2010 have been followed by three albums in the subsequent 14 years. These longer writing periods may allow for more refined consolidation of their songwriting ideas, and Empty does consolidate on 2018’s Terminal. Bongripper’s current sound lurks somewhere within the overlap of sludge, stoner and doom metal, but unlike some other bands in this vein (think Shrinebuilder), Bongripper opt for a crushing, achingly slow, almost droning vision of doom, in some ways reminiscent of a slower, sludgier Sleep. On top of that, there are clear post-rock/post-metal influences to be heard in portions of certain songs, which help shape the evolution of the tracks to avoid the excess of repetition that can sometimes hinder similar bands like Eremit. Collectively, it’s a fairly distinctive and well-rounded songwriting style that is once more used to good effect on Empty.

The album’s opening song, “Nothing”, clocks in at 20 minutes, and is in no hurry to get going; it’s already 4 minutes into the song by the time the churning guitar distortion is first accompanied by drums. Although the guitar tone is closer to sludge, hints of stoner can also be detected in the first main riff of the song, a plodding yet groovy fuzz monster that stomps along. Still, Bongripper soon introduce a lighter tremolo guitar line to make it clear that the album’s sonic palette is not entirely monochrome; furthermore, while the percussion is largely plodding and pounding, Daniel O’Connor throws some unexpected flourishes into his stickwork to keep things somewhat fresh. “Nothing” takes listeners on quite the long, convoluted journey, but the payoff in the closing minutes, as a patient build culminates in a pounding climax of sludge doom that features both janky pick scrapes and atmospheric guitar leads, really brings everything together nicely.

Empty is arranged with two positively miniature 10-minute songs sandwiched between two 20-minute leviathans bookending the record. Those two middle tracks are perhaps slightly less wide-ranging in scope than “Nothing”, but they have their own subtle complexities. “Remains” weaves some stoner metal textures and post-rock elements around its trudging stoner drone doom core, while “Forever” shifts focus significantly, bringing lighter post-metal dynamics and bluesy guitar leads towards the center of its sound. As much as Bongripper very much know how to lock into a gruelling yet satisfying sludgy trudge, these extra flavours and dynamics do a good job of broadening the album’s scope and charm.

The closing title track initially displays this range further, dedicating its first few minutes to an atmospheric sludge sound, before ditching the lighter flavours and dragging listeners right down into the mire. However, in contrast to the opener “Nothing”, it ultimately involves into a rather single-minded experience; the motifs gradually evolve, but the final two-thirds of the song really stick to the slow, heavy mindset, hypnotizing listeners through attrition before finally collapsing. While the evolution across “Nothing” works well, the allure of “Empty” and its overwhelming approach should not be discounted.

As seasoned veterans, Bongripper have a good handle on how to fluctuate between the different niches within their sound (whether it be droning distortion, funeral-esque crawling, atmospheric levity, or pure murky heaviness) and sustain interest across a long, demanding album such as Empty. It perhaps isn’t quite as impressive in its execution as Terminal, and I’d struggle to point out too many specific highlights within it, but as a record to experience and revel within its entirety, it ticks pretty much all the boxes that Bongripper fans will be hoping for.