Sunn O))) re-issue White Albums

For twenty years, Sunn O))) have been challenging the way we think about music. From 1999’s The Grimmrobe Demos to 2015’s Kannon, core members Stephen O’Malley and Greg Anderson have forged connections between the worlds of Metal, Drone, Contemporary Composition, Jazz and Minimalism with startling results while remaining true to the eternal principles of volume, density and weight.

O’Malley and Anderson are reissuing the WHITE albums this summer, coinciding with Southern Lord’s 20th anniversary. For these reissues they took the original full length unedited premasters/final mixes to Matt  Colton at Alchemy Mastering in London for a complete high resolution 88K/24bit mastering and, crucially, cut the lacquers using Alchemy’s half-speed method on their Neumann SX 74 cutterhead. The outstanding results allow the original full length mixes to be pressed at high fidelity on the vinyl format. The new masters reveal a broader frequency response, the bottom end is deeper and more intense, low mids are lusher, high frequencies are smoother and the stereo image is vastly improved, seeming more three dimensional spatially and more dynamic.

The sound is clearer, sharper, more direct.

Stephen O’Malley & Greg Anderson originally conceived the two albums to be “acoustic” but the sessions at Fontanelle’s Magnetic Park studios in Portland Oregon quickly took a far different route toward the psychedelic and the electronic/synthetic, with trance and drone experiments.

WHITE1 was originally released in 2003 by Southern Lord as a CD and very limited 3-sided LP edition of 540 copies (in a white sleeve with a sticker, packaged in an embroidered pillowcase and containing a sleeping pill). The WHITE1 album was a great step forward into the experimental and highly collaborative area which SUNN O))) has metamorphosed via since. Together withguest artists Julian Cope, Joe Preston, Rex Ritter, Ulver and Runhild Gammelsaeter the concept of SUNN O))) was taken into different sonic areas.

WHITE2 was originally released in 2004 by Southern Lord as a CD and limited double LP edition of 1000 copies (in a tip on gatefold sleeve in various vinyl colours). The WHITE2 album was notably the first collaboration with the Hungarian  singer Attila Csihar.  With the WHITE albums SUNN O))) took another bold step in the experimental and highly collaborative path the group has traveled since. Together with Attila, WHITE2 featured  special guests Joe Preston, Rex Ritter & Dawn Smithson.

Southern Lord are offering each these reissues on 180g White vinyl, housed in Stoughton Printing old style gatefold tip-on sleeves. Each includes an A1 poster with classic portraits of the band from the period by Kerry O’Sullivan & Glynnis McDaris. T-shirts and other exclusive packages are also available. Limited to 1,000 copies, are made available exclusively via http://www.sunn.southernlord.com/products and http://www.sunn.bandcamp.com. Other vinyl colours will be available through all outlets later in July.

Photo by Kerry O’Sullivan

Thanks to Lauren Barley at Rarely Unable

Advertisements

KEN mode trail their new album with an intense video

KEN mode have announced their seventh full-length album “Loved” which will be released via Season Of Mist/New Damage Records on August 31st. As an early indication of the album, the band have shared the video for the opening track “Doesn’t Feel Pain Like He Should”.

The album represents yet another pivot point in the group’s sound, a departure from the indie/noise punk focused songs on their previous album, Success. Drawing from the noise and industrial sonics of the 80’s and 90’s, KEN mode has mixed in the decidedly more extreme tone and presence of death and black metal to their sound.

ABOUT THE BAND

Kill Everyone Now mode. KEN mode: an ethos legendary Black Flag frontman Henry Rollins would use to describe the band’s state of mind while taking the stage for the endless touring cycle of their genre-defying classic album ‘My War’. This proved to be the psychological foundation/attitude for the project brothers Jesse and Shane Matthewson would form in 1999 in their home of Winnipeg, MB, Canada that would see them produce a manic form of metal and hardcore infused with noise rock.

Cutting their teeth in the early 2000s with a pair of records – 2003’s Mongrel and 2006’s Reprisal – on Philadelphia’s Escape Artist Records, the group would find breakout underground notoriety with their JUNO award-winning album, 2011’s Kurt Ballou produced Venerable. This marked a decided shift for the band, embarking on an unrelenting touring schedule for the following 5 years. This included releasing two additional full-lengths 2013’s Matt Bayles produced Entrench and 2015’s Steve Albini produced Success (both JUNO nominated and highly critically acclaimed) and seeing them hit a multitude of major festivals and doing live sessions for institutions such as BBC Radio and Daytrotter.

With such a heavy schedule burnout was inevitable, and in 2016 the band took a step back to regroup: core members, Shane and Jesse, formed their own music business management services company, MKM Management Services – who now maintains a who’s who of Canadian metal, punk, and hardcore bands as its clientele; Jesse went to Thailand to study Muay Thai full time; while bassist Scott Hamilton released records with his other bands Adolyne and Greylight District and managed film programming at the Broadway Theatre at his home in Saskatoon. In 2017 the band began writing with a newfound focus and desire, in the most collaborative effort they have ever put together.

Pre-order link 

 

Early listen to Jesus Piece debut

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based metallic hardcore group Jesus Piece release their debut album, Only Self,  on the 24th of August through Southern Lord. The first single from Only Self, “Curse Of The Serpent,” is now streaming, as the label posts pre-orders for the album.

 

 

Chrch – Light Will Consume Us All

Sacramento, California based doom band Chrch has joined the Neurot Recordings family for the release of their forthcoming full-length, Light Will Consume Us All, due for release this spring.

About the signing the band remark: “We are very excited to be working with Neurot for our next record. To be able to share the continuation of our narrative with the world through them is thrilling. Neurosis is the apex of integrity in music to us and it’s an honor to work with like-minded individuals for this release.”

Standing at a crossroads of light and dark, Chrch create epic, lengthy songs, with a massive low end, and a supernatural vocal presence, in a perfect blend of height and depth. Chrch has been hard at work crafting their particular sound since 2013. There is no image or gimmick to uphold, only the humble glorification of their fundamental musical elements.

This purity and honesty comes across in a striking manner on the band’s debut Unanswered Hymns (Battleground Records, 2015), a sprawling roller coaster of an album. Long-form songs build and dismantle as the band reaches sonic heights and beautiful plateaus. Severe, sometimes unrelenting, guttural vocals contrast with melodic singing, just as massive guitar fuzz gives way to cleaner parts. Recorded, mixed, and mastered by Patrick Hills at Earthtone Studios in Rocklin, California, it exudes a warm, organic tone that draws the listener in with a sound influenced by traditional doom, psych rock, drone, and ambience.

Chrch teamed up with Fister to release a split 12” via Battleground Records/Crown And Throne LTD, earlier this year. Their track, “Temples,” displays the increasing subtlety and intensity of Chrch’s songwriting. Intricate melodies and composition build upon the band’s thunderous drums, strong vocals, and gargantuan riffs.

The band’s second full length, Light Will Consume Us All, carries with it the same quality of songwriting that caught the attention of fans worldwide on their debut. Building upon this unyielding foundation, Light Will Consume Us All also continues Chrch’s narrative, traversing life’s epic journey of loss, reclamation and, ultimately, finding hope within the darkness.

Minimalist, indulgent, or straightforward? The music of Chrch calls the listener to inhabit it, allowing enough room for its transmutation into anything one desires of it.

Chrch is:
Eva Rose – vocals
Chris Lemos – guitar, vocals
Ben Cathcart – bass
Adam Jennings – drums
Karl Cordtz – guitar, vocals

http://www.facebook.com/chrchdoomca

http://www.neurotrecordings.com

http://www.facebook.com/neurotrecordings

Nonsun – Black Snow Desert

Ukrainian band Nonsun have released a deluxe, revamped version of their acclaimed Black Snow Desert, the album is out now on multiple physical formats.

Initially digitally self-released in January 2016, Black Snow Desert received critical acclaim from a wide range of publications and diehard fans of the drone, post-rock, experimental, and doom scenes. Two years later, they have acquired the help of Belgian label Dunk!Records and American label Cimmerian Shade Recordings to release a revamped version of the album.

Mixed by Jannes van Rossom from Deaftone Studio and mastered by Tobias Stieler, the Black Snow Desert – 2018 Edition has been edited, remixed, remastered, and updated with new artwork by former Southern Lord art director Samantha Muljat (Earth, Goatsnake, Pelican, Today Is The Day).

The band say of Black Snow Desert, “It’s not an ordinary album. It’s a journey. A long and hard trip. With a heavy heart and longing spirit. But those patient and open-minded will eventually be rewarded. It’s the music from behind the wall of sleep. And it doesn’t matter on which side you are while listening to it.”

The band excels at living up to their disquieting moniker, carefully representing the sound of a world without light. Their seamless blend of sludge, drone, doom, stoner and post-metal crafts the soundtrack to despairing resignation.

From the yawning chasm of 15 minute plus album opener “No Pity For The Beast, No Shelter For The Innocent” to the swirling cacophonies of “Rest Of Tragedy,” the album is a challenging and richly layered listen focusing on themes of sadness and regret.

 

FACEBOOK

The album will be featured on Aural Delights 277 (22nd March)

 

 

Neolithic release new “Cult of Ignorance” EP

Following of their split release with Martyrdöd, Baltimore, Maryland-based crust/metal band Neolithic release their Cult Of Ignorance EP through Deep Six Records on March 16th.

The band draws much of their influence from d-beat hardcore and death metal, aiming to create their own sound of aggressive down-tuned pitch-black death/crust. The band’s lyrics touch on subjects of corruption, war, and death. The new band was only formed less than a year ago, in the Spring of 2017, by five Baltimore-area scene veterans, with vocalist Evan Harting (Putrisect), bassist Matt Mutolo (Putrisect), drummer Jon John Michaud (ex-Swarm Of The Lotus), and guitarists Mitchell Roemer (ex-Pulling Teeth, ex-Old Lines) and Dustin Thornton (ex-Ruiner). Influences from the early Earache catalogue artists like Bolt Thrower, Napalm Death, and Brutal Truth are in play brought together with a more modern, brutal, crusty groove.

The  7″ EP comprises three new tracks of the band’s brutalizing, bottom-heavy death riffage. Surging atop pillaging hardcore/punk beats, the volatile vocal attack ranging from scathing to guttural through the tracks “Blinded,” “Cult Of Ignorance,” and “Rapacity.” The EP was recorded by Kevin Bernsten at Developing Nations and mastered by Brad Boatright at AudioSiege.

Airplay will be forthcoming via Aural Delights on March 15th.

LINKS

https://neolithicmd.bandcamp.com

http://www.instagram.com/neolithicband

http://www.deepsixrecords.com

http://www.facebook.com/deepsixrecords

 

New Eagle Twin album – The Thundering Heard (Songs of Hoof and Horn)

Salt Lake City-based duo Eagle Twin   release their long-awaited third LP  The Thundering Heard (Songs Of Hoof And Horn) on March 30th via Southern Lord.

Eagle Twin’s sound resolves as a place where doom and blues collide. Gentry Densley’s dominating low-end vocal tone is like an instrument in itself, rumbling alongside towering riffs, and Tyler Smith’s powerful rhythmic propulsion. It is a compelling combination, particularly when you add melodious bluesy romp to the equation.

Equally interesting are the stories that shape Eagle Twin’s musical output, drawing upon folklore, and also strongly informed by recent happenings in the world. Observing our relationship to nature, and the band’s own surroundings in the dead salt seas of Utah are themes that feature frequently across their musical canon. The Thundering Heard continues where the previous album, The Feather Tipped The Serpent’s Scale ended. In the band’s own words…

“As the great snake grew giant fractal antlers of snakes and turned in upon itself creating a new world, the mountains rise, and the antlers stab through like trees across the landscape. The record begins with the hoofed and horned animals of our world running from mountains and forests on fire. Eerily harkening to the recent events in California and the massive devastation by fire across the land.”

 

Formed in 2007, Eagle Twin comprises of guitarist/vocalist Gentry Densley of post-hardcore/jazz icons Iceburn and Ascend (with Greg Anderson) and drummer Tyler Smith, formerly of Form Of Rocket. Following a cult split 7″ with Night Terror in 2009, the band joined with Southern Lord for the release of their debut LP, The Unkindness Of Crows. Eagle Twin have toured alongside Earth, Sunn O))), Pelican, The Accüsed, and more, including sets at South By Southwest, The Power Of The Riff, Roadburn (where they have played multiple times), Hellfest, Desert Fest and more. A split LP with Pombagira would follow in 2010, followed by their follow-up LP, The Feather Tipped The Serpent’s Scale, released in 2012.

The Thundering Heard was captured with old friend and fellow Utah native Andy Patterson (SubRosa, Ascend), the album recorded, engineered, and mastered by Patterson, and produced by Patterson and Eagle Twin. Artwork and etchings by Sri Whipple with a nod to Zdeněk Burian, photographs by Russel Albert Daniels, design by Alex Mata, and assistance by Aaron D.C. Edge.

Pre orders are now live physically and digitally.

This is an impressive album and you can hear tracks on the Aural Delights Show on 15th March and 5th April.