Monoliths & Dimensions

Monoliths & Dimensions
Studio album by Sunn O)))
Released May 18, 2009
Recorded 2007–2009
Genre
Length 53:40
Label Southern Lord
SUNN100
Producer Mell Dettmer, Randall Dunn
Sunn O))) chronology
Dømkirke
(2008)
Monoliths & Dimensions
(2009)
Soused
(2014)

Monoliths & Dimensions is the sixth studio album by the avant-garde drone doom band Sunn O))). The album was created and recorded over a period of two years and features the collaborations of composer Eyvind Kang, Australian guitar player Oren Ambarchi, Hungarian vocalist Attila Csihar, Dylan Carlson from the drone band Earth, and trombonists Julian Priester and Stuart Dempster. Also present is an upright bass trio; French and English horns; harp and flute duo; piano, brass, reed, and string ensembles; and a Viennese woman's choir led by Persian vocalist Jessika Kenney.[1]

However, the band said, "The album is not Sunn O))) with strings or metal-meets-orchestra material." The band took an approach concentrating on more of allusion toward the timbre of feedback and the instruments involved, so the piece is really illusory, beautiful and not entirely linear, stating, "[The end product is] the most musical piece we’ve done, and also the heaviest, [most] powerful, and most abstract set of chords we’ve laid to tape."[2]

When speaking at the launch of Monoliths & Dimensions Stephen O'Malley told Alex Templeton-Ward that the album was "like a prism ……our music is the white light going in, a lot of the colour comes out the other side through the amazing arrangements and personalities of the guest performers and core collaborators… I think the main topic of this album is elaboration, expansion and prismatic detail. The source of that detail is inherent in the sounds of the guitars and the notes of those arrangements."[3]

The final song, titled "Alice", is a dedication to the late Alice Coltrane.[4]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic88/100[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[6]
Drowned in Sound[7]
Mojo[8]
MusicOMH[9]
Pitchfork Media8.5/10[10]
Rock-A-Rolla(favorable)[11]
Rock Sound[12]
Spin[13]
Terrorizer(favorable)[14]
Tiny Mix Tapes[15]

Initial critical response to Monoliths & Dimensions was very positive. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 88, based on 16 reviews.[5]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Anderson and O'Malley. 

No. Title Length
1. "Aghartha"   17:34
2. "Big Church [Megszentségteleníthetetlenségeskedéseitekért]"   9:43
3. "Hunting & Gathering (Cydonia)"   10:02
4. "Alice"   16:20
Total length:
53:40

Production

Personnel

Release history

Region Date Label
Europe May 18, 2009 Southern Lord
North America May 26, 2009 Southern Lord
Asia and Australia TBA Southern Lord

References

  1. Sunn O))) to release a new album on May, 2009
  2. "Sunn O))) Reveals New Album "Monoloths And Dimensions" Details". metalunderground.com. Metal Underground. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  3. Compared with the Sunn livemusic.fm. 2010-10-28. Retrieved on 2010-10-29.
  4. "Interview: Greg Anderson, Sunn O)))". 2 July 2009. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
  5. 1 2 "Monoliths & Dimension Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  6. Jurek, Thom. Monoliths & Dimensions review allmusic.com. Retrieved on 2009-12-18.
  7. Doran, John. Monoliths and Dimensions review drownedinsound.com. 2009-05-21. Retrieved on 2009-12-18.
  8. Mojo magazine, issue #187, p.98. Monoliths and Dimensions review by Manish Agarawal.
  9. Shepherd, Sam. Monoliths and Dimensions review musicomh.com. Retrieved on 2009-12-18.
  10. Currin, Grayson. Monoliths & Dimensions review pitchfork.com. 2009-05-29. Retrieved on 2009-12-18.
  11. Rock-A-Rolla issue #20 May/June 2009
  12. Gardner, Neil (June 2009). "Sunn O))) – Monoliths and Dimensions." Rock Sound (123): 87.
  13. Beta, Andy. Monoliths & Dimensions review spin.com. 2009-05-11. Retrieved on 2009-12-18.
  14. Terrorizer Issue #183 May 2009
  15. Mangoon. Monoliths & Dimensions review tinymixtapes.com. Retrieved on 2009-12-18.

External links

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