Sunn O))) & Ulver — Terrestrials
Sunn’s Stephen O’Malley and Ulver’s Daniel O’Sullivan have been producing fertile collusions as half of Aethenor over the past nine years, while both groups have firm roots in the murky mulch of death- and black- metal. More recently Sunn O))) and Ulver have transcended these roots to create orchestral works of epic grandeur, most notably on their last full length, critically acclaimed releases: Sunn’s 'Monoliths & Dimensions' and Ulver’s 'Messe I.X-VI.X'. Both albums had traces of blackened guitar and loping, doomed tempos, but were primarily concerned with expanding their sound into something much more cosmic, more experimental, and, arguably more potent. And, the three tracks making up ‘Terrestrials’ (described on their press sheet as ‘movements’ to acknowledge this more mature, composerly bent) feels very much like a coda to such releases.
The two groups got together in Ulver’s native Oslo over five years’ ago where their joint improvisations were first captured. Since then, the recordings were gradually embellished with horns and strings as they settled on a solar theme, using a quest for light instead of the more generic darkness as their narrative. Consequently, anyone expecting to be confronted with brutal, ugly noise or distorted, evil machinations will be disappointed. ‘Terrestrials’ is more like a slow burning incense stick that gradually fills a temple interior with its delicately curling vapours becoming increasingly illuminated.
The suitably-titled opener, 'Let there be light', starts with sustained notes of coarse strings and shimmering organ to paint the emergent psychedelic dawn. Horns soar plaintively around this sense of unfurling, reminiscent of the palette used on 'Alice' from 'Monoliths & Dimensions'. Simmering guitars cast a shadowy layer, injecting a sense of foreboding until all sounds thin in preparation for the big, slow percussive splashes joined by long, grand finale-style chords on horns and bass. Like 'Also Sprach Zarathustra' in '2001: A Space Odyssey', the awesome imagery it evokes is that of a solar body proudly emerging from an eclipse.
'Western horn', the second movement, brings things back to Earth as a deep wind cuts across a hot, arid desert of trembling, distorted guitar, while smaller sounds wail intermittently as if from distant nomadic settlements. It's a powerful, cinematic, wide-panning shot of a bleak and mysterious natural environment hiding ancient powers.
The concluding 14 minutes are what the previous two tracks seem to have been leading to all along. 'Eternal Return' stirs with similarly expansive peels on guitar, bass, strings and organ to form a lamentative, cavernous chamber music. After seven minutes a hymn-like theme emerges, replete with reverent vocals singing Biblical lyrics that were first previewed on this site back in 2005 in an interview with Ulver (see http://musiquemachine.com/articles/articles_template.php?id=66) and the magnificent combination reminds of the splendid live sets from Ulver's 2010 tour. A thunderous denoument follows as bass notes plunge and strings scratch an Eastern wake to the atavistic proceedings.
But it's all over too quickly. The strength of the considered textures and tones has successfully passed on its highly evocative short story, but left its listeners' interest piqued, looking for further chapters. Let's hope these two powerfully progressive groups join forces again to continue the questing tale.