The last time we heard from Ohio's Valley of the Sun was with the release of the 2022 album "The Chariot" an album that saw the band working with Ripple Music, for that album the band recorded as a quartet but for their latest album, "Quintessence", the band have trimmed down to a trio with guitarist/vocalist Ryan Ferrier and bassist/keyboardist/guitarist Chris Sweeney remaining from the "The Chariot"" line up but this time being joined by Johnny Kathman on drums and additional guitar.
Opener "Terra Luna Sol" exemplifies how much the new trio format suits Valley of the Sun, the band sound tighter, sharper and more engaged with each other here, maybe its because as a trio they have to work that much harder, we don't know, but the band sound harder, grittier and rockier, something that also rolls over into the vocals which sound a little more angsty and angry. Next track "Graviton" finds the band hitting into a groove that has a grungy doomic feel, the band blending quiet/loud/quiet dynamics with thrumming dank riffage to create a groove that hits hard backs off and then comes back to hit even harder, Ferrier adding the cherry on the cake with a vocal that possesses a soulful edginess. "Where's This Place?" eases things down just a notch, the song boasting a weird off-kilter slurred groove made even more weird and off-kilter thanks to its drawled out, almost Appalachian, vocal tones, the song also features some very nice guitar contributions from guest Pete Koretzky. Up next is "The Late Heavy Bombardment" a swaggering, chugging hard/stoner rock workout in possession of more hooks than a fisherman's bait-box, a guaranteed live favourite in the making. "Red Shift", a serene and quite beautiful instrumental, is a song made for moments of quiet reflection or gazing into the eyes of someone you really care for while "Palus Somni" in contrast is raucous and ripping one minute, laid back and languid the next, a mood swing set to music. Palm-muted refrains and vocal crooning vie with impassioned howls militaristic drum tattoo's and grizzled bass motifs on the excellent "Theia" whereas "I'll See Them Burn" is a vitriolic rant set to a backdrop of punkish fury that sees producer John Naclerio throwing his weight in on second guitar. We get a moment to catch our breaths with the loose and languid "Aurora" before the hammer goes down and we are thrust into the maelstrom of groove that is final track "Quintessence" a mix of stoner fuzziness, doomic dankness and grunge like undulation driven by thunderous drumming and decorated with powerful clean vocals.
In a recent interview (here) the band spoke about not fully understanding the alt-metal/grunge references that were being regularly thrown their way in early reviews but admitting they have since come to understand why those references were made. Listening to "Quintessence" it is hard NOT to hear shades of Soundgarden, Pearl Jam and Alice In Chains in Valley of the Sun's music but it is also not hard to hear essences from right across the rock music spectrum with proto-doom, stoner/desert rock, post-metal and even a little quirky folkishness all getting a look in on this peach of an album.
Check it out .....
No comments:
Post a Comment