Sunn O))) - Monoliths & Dimensions - guest review
Sunn O))) - Monoliths & Dimensions - guest review
Tracklist
01. Aghartha02. Big Church (Megszentségteleníthetetlenségeskedéseitekért)
03. Hunting & Gathering (Cydonia)
04. Alice
Guest review by
!J.O.O.E.! May 25, 2010
For the most part, the familiar down-tuned, sustained chords - of which, through a single stroke, one could probably watch the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy before seeing its progression - make a welcome return, as brown noise-inducing and perception challenging as ever, but this time serving as but a bed for the avant-garde nuances of instrumentation so typically foreign to the shores of drone. Garnished throughout the first three tracks are generous portions of jazz, brass and strings, affording an almost Elend-like classical quality to the usual, impenetrable dirges, accompanied by a vocal choir led by Jessika Kenney which conflicts in organised dichotomy with Attila Csihar's spoken passages. In fact, there are so many facets that identifying each would be a mammothian task in itself.
The bewildering array of classical elements, while being an undoubted source of its brilliance, also serve to occasionally hinder the overall effect when taken to frequent extremes: the adroit implementation of minimalism too often gives way to what is sometimes an effusive exercise in over-the-top gimmickry; Attila's croaks are too ever-present, and the haphazard splicing of chanting and brass occur far too frequently to give a truly organic and concise arrangement, sometimes to the point where one longs for the more simple constructs of White2. It's all great, but just a bit too much of a good thing; letting the boys breathe a little would have done wonders. With this is mind, the crux of the album is most certainly "Alice" (dedicated to the late Alice Coltrane - a jazz musician and composer), a beautifully considered and stark piece of audio artistry, encapsulating the dark, yet heavenly, ambient sound which Sunn O))) exemplify. Combined with a slowly rising crescendo of horn, trombone and soothing guitar it serves to medicate against the concrete slabs that are the three tracks prior.
Sunn O))) may not be everyone's cup of Earl Grey, but if you're ever going to appreciate them it'll most likely be through Monoliths & Dimensions and while it may not totally please drone purists (if there is such a thing, maybe it's just me) there are moments of a permeating presence and feel of unfettered genius throughout its walls of filmic majesty and muck that run even deeper than the staggering cover art by Richard Serra.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 8 |
| Songwriting: | 8 |
| Originality: | 9 |
| Production: | 8 |
Written by !J.O.O.E.! | May 25, 2010
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Comments
Comments:
18
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Posts: 711
Accurate review, I mostly agree with everything you said but who the hell is Jim ?
---- Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone.
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| !J.O.O.E.!
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Posts: 711 |
Posts: 711 Written by [user id=4365] on 26.05.2010 at 19:49 Ah ok, not really a Star Trek follower...
---- Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone.
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| !J.O.O.E.!
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Posts: 2955
Whoa. Awesome review. Needed a dictionary to fully understand (yeah.. I confess  ), but I guess I get it enough.Attila's voice does seem a high and low point in the album, his first appearence on ''Aghartha'' was a scary and good surprise... the problem is that he never shut up... I like to somehow reach a trance state while listening to Sunn O))), and it is pretty easy to achieve, but Attila's constant speaking keep dragging me back to consciousness... and I just can't enjoy Sunn O))) the same way in that ''counscious'' state... XD Still.. this was one of their best albums imo. Slightly better than Black One but still not enough to surpass White2.
----  ---- member of the true crusade against old school heavy metal, early 80s thrash, NWOBHM, traditional doom, first and second wave black metal, old school death metal, US power metal, 70s prog rock and atmospheric doomsludgestoner. o/
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| !J.O.O.E.!
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"...there are moments of a permeating presence and feel of unfettered genius throughout its walls of filmic majesty and muck that run even deeper than the staggering cover art by Richard Serra." Wow, I love reviews that almost require a dictionnary at hand to be read ^^ But I've been searching for these good moments you mention and coudn't pinpoint them within the looong tracks. Can you please mention the greatest moments and the time at which they appear so I can decide if I like this band?
---- Notre destinée n'est pas encore tracée....
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| !J.O.O.E.!
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Posts: 1295
I think I heard someone call Sunn O))) "kitchen appliance metal" in the forum. If so, props to them. If not, props to me.
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Posts: 15360 Written by wormdrink414 on 17.02.2011 at 06:03 there is a parody drone project mocking them. \\\Maytag
---- get the fuck off my lawn. Beer Bug Virus Spotify Playlist crafted by Nikarg and I. Feel free to tune in and add some pertinent metal tunes!
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Posts: 1295
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 Posts: 5989 |
Posts: 5989
Soooo I just watched Akira last night for about the 300th time and it's probably just me, but I noticed a strong similarity between the album cover here and the crater of Tokyo in the movie
---- I am the Magician and the Exorcist. I am the axle of the wheel, and the cube in the circle. “Come unto me” is a foolish word: for it is I that go. ~ II. VII
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| !J.O.O.E.!
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Posts: 5989 Written by [user id=4365] on 04.09.2014 at 01:09 Hmm, unable to load that image for some reason :??:
---- I am the Magician and the Exorcist. I am the axle of the wheel, and the cube in the circle. “Come unto me” is a foolish word: for it is I that go. ~ II. VII
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Posts: 18615
Nice. Thanks for that one. Maybe I will finally change my Serial Experiments Lain wallpaper for once. Oh who am I kidding? Of course I wont. 
---- Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29 Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
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| !J.O.O.E.!
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Posts: 5989 Written by [user id=4365] on 05.09.2014 at 14:04 I just opened it in a new tab. Yeah, definitely a more abstract similarity. I should really read the manga, I've heard there are some significant differences from the film
---- I am the Magician and the Exorcist. I am the axle of the wheel, and the cube in the circle. “Come unto me” is a foolish word: for it is I that go. ~ II. VII
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