Review & Full Album Premiere: Sonolith, III
Las Vegas instrumentalists Sonolith self-release their mostly-self-recorded new LP, III, tomorrow, Oct. 4. It is the third release from the sans-vocal outfit, and somewhat counterintuitive to the title, their second full-length behind 2019’s Fire Thunder Wanderlust, but it follows behind 2021’s Voidscapes EP (review here) and is the first offering from the four-piece incarnation of the band, comprised of guitarists Alex Lidey and Ben Dubler, bassist Adam Sage and drummer Ian Henneforth.
Fleshed out atmospherically through a series of three short mood-setting pieces, the first of which is the album intro “Sine Misericordia,” the album gets fairly dark and metal-adjacent by the time they’re doing the guitar-as-keyboard (unless that’s just a keyboard; could be) in “Divide et Impera” or nailing that slowdown in closer “Dweller on the Threshold” before a final sample rounds out, but by and large it is a celebration of heavy dynamics and methods, full in the knowledge of from whence it comes and executed without pretense in homage to heavy ideology itself. Unless a given listener for some reason has a predisposition against songs without vocals, Sonolith make it easy to get on board.
Of course, Karma to Burn are a touchstone for the niche Sonolith occupy, but the mood and purported storyline across III is darker than the West Virginian forebears ever were and the evocations of titles like “Under the Torturer’s Attention” and “To Brave the Desert of Despair” distinguish Sonolith even from where they were three years ago. Picking up from “Sine Misericordia,” “Under the Torturer’s Attention” has a doomier lumber as it unfolds, and as the interlude “Effugium” follows, a background drone and some noise wrought over a sub-20-second break, it aids in the shift into “Midnight Flight,” which is both faster and reveals something of a heavy desert gothism, a surprisingly fun bounce emerging in the bassline as it follows the relatively careening guitar line into the song’s midsection. “Midnight Flight” becomes the entry point to a stretch of four cuts that does a lot to craft the personality of III as a whole.
That’s a succession which,
on vinyl, is likely split between album-centerpiece “To Brave the Desert of Despair” and the seven-minute “Legion,” which is the longest inclusion of the bunch. Both establish a foreboding rumble early and build off that, each in its own direction, with the former upping the tempo late and the latter shifting after four minutes in to a stop and rebuild around a stark figure of guitar that’s smoothly brought to a full, all-in nod that’s eventually brought around to the progression from the first half — one hesitates to call these parts verses and choruses, but Sonolith are by no means hookless — to give a sense of completion and make “Legion” a highlight before giving over to the aforementioned “Divide et Impera,” which is more upbeat, sure, but still plenty grim to suit the LP’s narrative.
The story — one of escaping a torturer and finding actual and metaphorical liberation; an analog perhaps for being able to get away from the cruel voices in one’s own head — is telegraphed in the sense of movement throughout the tracks, with the names of the songs intermittently laying out the time and place, whether it’s “Midnight Flight” or closer “Dweller on the Threshold.” The finale follows the creaking-ship penultimate interlude “Seas of Fate,” and is by no means hopeless in mood, but neither does it resound or shimmer in a way that would undercut the brooding of the songs before it. If the character formerly in the grip of this obscure torment has managed to get away, there’s pretty clearly some processing to do in the aftermath of that escape. Off to therapy, then.
How much one does or doesn’t engage with III on a narrative level will ultimately be up to the person hearing it, but even at a more superficial level of engagement — that is, if you listen without following the progression of story to the final bit of dialog that follows “Dweller on the Threshold” as an ending — the songs hold up, expanding on what Sonolith were doing on the spacier Voidscapes and finding new, more individualized expression. Growth in craft as well as lineup. It’s still self-produced, so don’t expect any grandiose largesse in terms of sound, but there’s something appropriate to the plot in the band’s ability to create a claustrophobic feel, and that encourages appreciating III for the depth of purpose brought to it through the arrangements within and between the songs.
The album streams in its entirety below, followed by more background, courtesy of the PR wire.
Please enjoy:
Wizards of riffage cruising the stars in search of the heaviest groove in the universe, Sonolith return from their sojourn to the dark edges of space to deliver their new full-length, “III”.
IN THE BAND’S OWN WORDS:
“Sonolith’s third release was envisioned and summoned into being over the course of two years, burning the candle from both ends while working day jobs, performing live shows, writing, and recording. Sonolith became a four piece with the addition of our second guitarist, allowing for live performance of the densely layered, cinematic, and kinetic instrumental compositions that the band’s come to be known for. ‘III’ tells a story in sound and symbolism of a fraught journey undertaken to escape the persecution of a psychotic tormentor, through the high peaks and low troughs, towards eventually obtaining freedom and spiritual emancipation.”
Tracklist:
1. Sine Misericordia (0:41)
2. Under The Torturer’s Attention (5:33)
3. Effugium (0:18)
4. Midnight Flight (3:36)
5. To Brave the Desert of Despair (6:48)
6. Legion (7:25)
7. Divide Et Impera (5:18)
8. Seas of Fate (0:31)
9. Dweller on the Threshold (6:31)
Written, performed, recorded, and produced by Sonolith at Sonolith Sound Studios in Las Vegas, NV. Drums recorded by Cody Leavitt at Asteroid M Records. Mixed and mastered by Adam Sage & Sonolith. We would like to sincerely thank all of the fans, friends, and family that have supported Sonolith over the years. You know who you are, we know who you are.
Sonolith is:
Ian Henneforth: Drums
Adam Sage: Bass/Sound Engineering
Alex Lidey: Rhythm & Lead Guitars/Artwork/Video
Ben Dubler: Lead & Rhythm Guitars
