Mark Corcoran-Lettice discovers a challenging and provocative listen on SUMAC’s third full-length release
Thrill Jockey
Released: 21.09.18
The second release of the year from SUMAC, their third full-length follows on from their collaborative album with psychedelic guitar godhead Keiji Haino which saw the band pulling apart the idea of conventional song structure and arrangement. Instead, the four side-long pieces found here see the trio settling themselves loose from any typical understanding of sludge or extreme metal to pursue arrangements that work on a far more unsettling, almost subconscious level.
It’s a challenging and provocative listen, but one that proves hugely rewarding: the sharp trills and feedback tones of Ecstasy of Unbecoming are matched by the haunting organ epilogue of The Task in SUMAC’s ongoing quest to capture the sublime amidst the chaotic.
