SUUNS

SUUNS are gonna shine some more: Montreal psyche-hikers SUUNS return with their fifth long-player (and first for Joyful Noise Recordings), ‘The Witness’. With Max Henry departed the prevailing trio (Ben Shemie, Joe Yarmush, and Liam O'Neill) continue with a familiar discontinued retinue, despatching tonal traces and dispersing alchem-entrails.

I’ll follow the SUUNS: Composed with the idea of a static narrative, a comforting journey in sound and spirit applying a common sonic textural thread that filters, streams and (dis)embodies the means of its production and embeds the active listener. The passive need not apply.

Set the controls to the heart of the SUUNS: Pulsing, pulsating, propulsive electronics, (vo)coded echoes, a rocksteady rhythm and fluctuating freeform jazzy-breath vox-vexations. A trip down (and up) reverie lane.

Who loves the SUUNS: Opening with ‘Third Stream’ a seven-minute prog-rock, sensory fugue shock, as a slow motorik groove compels, impels and purposively propels the vocals creating a dreamlike state of blissful hip-gnosis. Heavy themes so delicately thrown.

SUUNS have got their hat … on ‘C-Thru’, like kosmische contemporaries Clinic, SUUNS (augmented by Shemie’s disarming drawling) deploy seemingly distant, dissonant, dispassionate directives calmingly coated and cloaked in an exact contrast. Apposites attract/opposites distract.

Always the SUUNS: the jazz-pizzazz of ‘Clarity’ situates the group with il-luminaries Silver Apples: equally applying a warm resonance of oscillating reassurance to the feelings evoked and emotions captured and aroused by the melange of (h)ushered anon-sense lyrics, floorshow boat-floating ambience and sturm and tranquillity.

SUUNS arise: the (dis)closing ‘The Trilogy’ is a prog-epilogue phasing-phantasy, as warped waves wash over, the sprawling story reaches its apogee. Ultra-vivid sense-prompts are spiel-reeled off like a gnomic trip-stream of consciousness: ‘a million years have guided this flame … and burnt my eyes … mesmerised … engrained in my retina’ and the outer-visions of a ‘future without fire’.

To fully appreciate this album it must be experienced from beginning to end, no skipping, full attention demanded, the destination can wait, this is all about the journey.