No two persons ever hear a song exactly the same, but listening to a tune like 'In The Darkened River I Found The Silence Loom', there's no other possible reaction apart from remaining speechless. 'In The Darkened River I Found The Silence Loom' is not only one of those miracles that only talented musicians can create, but also the opening track of the new album by the drone, stoner, ambient duo Sunwølf from Leeds, UK.
I fall in and out of love with stoner, drone music. There are times when those tonalities are exactly what my mind requires. And there are also times when, after a while, there’s simply just too much. Matt Carrington and Dominic Deane, the two guys behind Sunwølf, have always had the power to turn my attention to this kind of music and they remain among my favuorite artists in the genre.
Beholden To Nothing And No One is the third full length album by the English duo, following Beyond The Sun and Midnight Moon through which Sunwølf demonstrated their ability to transform music into landscapes. Composed by two discs, the new album will be released on June 30th through their own label Ark Noise and it can be considered a sort of departure from the previous two records.
When I found Beholden To Nothing And No One in my inbox, I listened to it three times on repeat and I'm still stuck on it. The variety, the twists between metal and ambient elements and its intensity are definitely the strength of this beautifully executed album. Although Beholden To Nothing And No One captivated me from the first listen, it took me a while before entering into the album mood. Now I’m still in to it.
The fourteen movements of the album are all an engaging but not easy listening. My suggestion to approach this record is very simple. Breathe in, close your eyes and picture a beautiful land covered in warm pulsing smoke. You must enter this space slowly, while holding your breath. But don’t worry, you are not going to suffocate. Put on your headphones and breathe with your ears. The sound will slowly penetrate your cells until its rhythm becomes your heartbeat, and the bass becomes your step. Now that you are finally into the hugely dense of sound land of Sunwølf, breath out.
'In The Darkened River I Found The Silence Loom’ opens up the journey through Beholden To Nothing And No One and there’s no better way to start. Sublime guitars are accompanied by the mesmerizing voice of Tiffany Ström from Myyths, and the guest violin by Alex Hannan from Band of Hope Union contributes to make the atmosphere ethereal - there are four different vocalists across 6 tracks on the album. There’s a sort of melancholy in the song that is fully expressed in the following solemn ‘The Widows Oil’. Instrument-wise, the bass-heavy drone is delivered at a clear, somewhat steady pace, although extremely slow as is the norm for drone. It’s a great track.
The melancholic nihilism that permeate the first part of the album expresses its power with the following more metal sounding tracks. ‘Vultures Crown’ and ‘The Wake Of Leviathan’ are tragic opuses that, no matter how loud they become, never lose a hidden sadness behind them. Their power is incredible and it’s impossible to remain untouched by them. The lyrics and above all the way they are sang are strong and effective.
With the title track the album turns back to the more slow and doomy atmospheres. ‘Beholden To Nothing And No One’ is where you find yourself, in the dark lonely vast emptiness, recognizing its inescapability through the heaviness executed by droning sludge doom. What I like most of this track is the balance between crushing heavy power and melancholic solemn atmosphere that is really outstanding. The vibrant emotional tension of the title track expands in the following ‘Heathens Rest’ that closes the first chapter of the album. All the small nuances within these closing tracks help to stay attentive to the music if you're looking for substance rather than just background noise. Each sound is worthy of some attention. These two tracks together are impressive and have a depth that will leave you breathless. The notes will be your oxygen.
The 50 minutes of the first disc end here and ‘Twelve Sunne’ opens the second part of the record that reveals the more ambient side of the duo. The opening track is built on two levels: the music and the vocals. The time dimension here is the key element; I had the impression to be in the present while listening to something from the past and the mix is so perfect that at a certain point I didn't know where the time narrow was going.
The six movements of the second disc are ambient music but also a monument to slow-moving drone music. It's like turning the page compared to the first part: the sound changes completely. If you are in a wrong state of mind, this second part could turn to be monotonous; in the right state of mind, instead, it does about everything right. The 35 minutes of these six tracks represent a meticulous experimentation and a commitment to the physicality of sound. The outcome is a beautifully deep and intense soundtrack to your moments with yourselves and to the reflection of life's bleakest sides. I particularly like ‘Symptoms of Dearth’ and the closing ‘Of Darkness’ that works well as a gloss to the whole album. Its delicate piano music is soothing and it’s like a comfortable lullaby.
Beholden To Nothing And No One is one of those records that must be heard from the opening note till the last. Yes, the individual movements are excellent, but the album has the biggest impact by listening to it the entire thing.
I’m still playing it, it’s a brilliant album.
