Sunn O)))’s Beautiful Noise: Crushing Power Chords and Gorgeous Walls of Sound: Album Review

A persistent mechanical disturbance from the floor below—a cyclical, grinding wheeze reminiscent of a distant garbage truck—had rendered sleep impossible in my hotel room one recent night. The intermittent nature of the noise, revving and stopping at irregular intervals, made it uniquely aggravating, defeating even my attempts at masking it with white noise. Faced with a crucial need for rest before a demanding day, I arrived at a seemingly paradoxical remedy: I played an advance stream of the new self-titled album from the drone metal duo Sunn O))). Comprised of Seattle-based musicians Greg Anderson and Stephen O'Malley, the group has been crafting its monumental sound for over a quarter-century since forming in 1998. Their latest work, a vast landscape of sustained power chords and layered feedback, proved unexpectedly serene, lulling me into a deep sleep for the remainder of the night.

Labeling Sunn O)))’s output simply as "metal" feels insufficient. While their instrument of choice is the iconic Gibson electric guitar, their meticulously composed, hour-plus drones share more DNA with avant-garde classical music or the immersive fields of ambient jazz than with conventional rock. There are no drums, vocals, or discernible riffs; instead, the music unfolds through shifting tectonic plates of sound. The experience is akin to gazing at a Mark Rothko painting, where prolonged attention creates an illusion of movement within static color fields. As audio engineer and mastering specialist Emily Harris noted in a recent interview, "Sunn O)))’s genius lies in using extreme volume and density not for aggression, but to create a resonant physical space that the listener inhabits. It’s a bath of sound, not an assault." This lack of rhythmic attack allows the listener to surrender to the soundwaves, much like being adrift on a slow, powerful ocean current.

The duo’s artistic approach masterfully balances solemn ritual with profound musical ambition. Their legendary live performances see them shrouded in monk-like robes and dry ice fog, standing before walls of vintage amplifiers. This theatricality is underpinned by serious studio craft; the new album reportedly contains hundreds of guitar overdubs, building its colossal textures layer by layer. Their aesthetic was shaped by pioneering, slow-paced acts from the early ‘90s, such as Seattle's drone pioneers Earth and the British industrial-metal unit Godflesh. Both founders emerged from the hardcore punk scene of the late 1980s but have since collaborated across a vast spectrum of heavy music, from doom to death metal. Greg Anderson also co-founded the highly influential independent metal label Southern Lord Records in 1998, a platform that has been crucial for the extreme music underground.

It is intriguing that Sunn O)))’s cultural moment appears to be cresting now, decades into their career, following a major profile in The New York Times. The album is undoubtedly among their finest, but its resonance may also be a product of our times. In an era saturated with chaotic and abrasive noise—from relentless news cycles to literal mechanical irritations—there is a profound catharsis in choosing to replace it with a different kind of sound. Sunn O))) offers a controlled, beautiful, and overwhelming noise that does not demand confrontation but instead provides a vast, immersive space for mental escape. In doing so, they transform a tool of rock rebellion into a surprising medium for meditation and peace.