There are some truly wondrous styles both in and outside of metal that will never cease to amaze me. When I first got into metal I never once dared to think that there would be a sound, much less one with a thriving scene, that could take the longevity and the heaviness of doom and put it to shame. Drone is a phenomenal like none other as it blurs the very line between music and sound. I’ve only listened to a handful of bands from the style where it merges with metal with Canyon of the Skull being the only act that I actively enjoy from that territory, but I really wanted to change that tonight with any act. And I figured what better act than the modern legends of Sunn O))) who I’ve been putting off for far too long, and it’s with this record that I realize the depths of my foolishness.

Meditation through music is something that I can’t get enough of, but the vast majority of the time I lean on more accessible and psychedelic acts like Elder, Zaum, and My Sleeping Karma to bring me to such a nirvana, and I knew I was in for a completely different kind going into this album. It wouldn’t be far off to call each and every Sunn O))) release a piece of material that can be as terrifying as it is stunning to behold which is an exceedingly difficult pair to balance. But, it’s with “Life Metal” that these guys have created a sound that’s simply all-encompassing. For the entirety of this record, it’s near impossible to remained too focused as to what is occurring as Sunn O))) effortlessly weaves a hallucinatory sound that constantly prods the mind and expands the imagination as this near-70 minute album stretches into infinity itself in a magnificent display of colorful gas. “Life Metal” truly brings together everything that’s ever made the realm of drone such an interesting style to begin with and making it so much heavier but also feeling as though it’s the brightest album sonically that Sunn O))) has made to date. But, like many works like this, it’s the sheer length of the songs that astound me and even though they’re par for the course with drone, I still can’t get over how masterfully Sunn O))) carved out “Life Metal” to be a lumbering beast that’s equal parts bewildering and intimidating. They’ve been known for that for years across their many releases, yes, but it’s with “Life Metal” that I finally get it. I can hear what many others have tried to convey to me before, and it’s in this fog-drenched record that greatness has formed.

I’ve tried many times in the last few years to sit down and listen to what Sunn O))) has to offer, but it’s never really clicked before and it didn’t feel right at the time. I couldn’t tell you what changed for me but today was the most opportune time to hear “Life Metal”, and I wouldn’t have it any other way as now I can see a glimpse into the massive presence and power that Sunn O))) has become synonymous with. This will surely be hailed as one of the most unorthodox yet oddly enthralling records that we will get from drone all year, and it’s only fitting it’s from these modern masters.

LISTEN to “Life Metal” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Sunn O))) on Facebook here.