sunn O))) CD

For nearly 30 years, SUNN O Stephen OMalley and Greg Anderson have pushed the boundaries of heavy music, straddling the worlds of the avantgarde and rock to forge a style instantly recognisable as their own. Now, SUNN O return with their first album of new material since 2019s acclaimed Pyroclasts. Their tenth album their debut for Sub Pop demonstrates the duos mastery of time and space, light and dark, and their willingness to evolve their unmistakable sound into bold new forms.The eponymously titled SUNN O was tracked at Bear Creek Studios, Woodinville, Washington with Brad Wood HuM, Tar, Sunny Day Real Estate, Liz Phair. This location proved crucial to the recording process. The vast tracking room had big windows looking out on trees, says OMalley. We could go hiking and be out in the woods, spend time outdoors. That became a big part of it.SUNN O have long welcomed collaborators into their selfcontained world past work has featured, Attila Csihar Mayhem, composer Hildur Gunadttir, multiinstrumentalist Steve Moore, polymath Mark Deutrom, Silkworms Tim Midyett and legendary singersongwriter Scott Walker. But on this album OMalley and Anderson found fresh possibilities in the primal territory of the duo format, performing all the instrumentation themselves. Whats been happening with our performances over the last couple years with the two of us and no other collaborators has been really fresh and exciting, says Anderson.The compositions on SUNN O are expansive and panoramic yet finely detailed, reflecting the arboreal setting in which they were recorded. Amidst howling feedback and glacial crunch, one finds surprisingly delicate moments a field recording of water trickles beneath, piano interludes lend a hushed, solemn feel. All while the duo attains fresh heights of telepathic intensity as they shape music that breathes the bracing, earthy air of the Pacific Northwest.Framing the album visually are two paintings by the late American artist Mark Rothko. Liner notes are by awardwinning British writer Robert Macfarlane, famed for his works concerning landscape and the relationship between humanity and nature. Through the work of the band, Macfarlane, and Rothko, sound, word and visual combine into a fully immersive experience that is undeniably, completely SUNN O.