Weekly Release Spotlight : Black Mountain
Posted on 1/21/2008
Black Mountain
Into The Future
[Jagjaguwar]
The guy with the long hair and the impressive 'stache turned on his black light, closed his dorm room door and said, "turn the bass up and just...space out." At that moment, I wanted to be anywhere but there. Fast forward three years later: I'm listening to Black Mountain's self-titled debut and doing exactly what I thought I never wanted to do, minus the facial hair and trippy lighting setup. My hand reaches toward the equalizer, turns that low end up, then my body relaxes, and there I am...spacing out. To this day, now engulfed by their sophomore effort In the Future, the only band with sludge slathered on their guitars and haze permeating their keyboards that I can let overtake me is Black Mountain.
So what does Black Mountain do to convince even the staunchest naysayers of stoner rock; I mean, Coldplay handpicked them for an arena tour around the states for blog's sake. If you haven't experienced them yet, they will surely topple your musical world of divisions and expectations as you know it. They do it by socking you in the jaw before you can dismiss them. In the Future doesn't wait to achieve the apex of aural nirvana – it smashes through with opener "Stormy High" like you've never heard an amp turned up to 11 before in your life. These five Canadians have discovered a cosmic, universal force where no matter who you are or what records you grew up with, you will listen to their music like your ears are just now properly working for the first time, lending you to give in to the awesome power of Black Mountain's magnitude and depth.
They do all this while still exhibiting respect for the listener needing to catch his/her breath, lightening their death grip on the dreamlike "Stay Free" or the short-and-sweet "Wild Wind." Naturally, however, the second paragraph hyperbole applies more so to the epic slow-burners "Tyrants" and "Bright Lights," both clocking in at way longer than your average rock song. While this and more are happening, the album's two knockouts still remain unmentioned: "Wucan" simmers and saunters with more flair than a Chotchky's vest and album closer "Night Walks" allows co-vocalist Amber Webber to shine, putting your ears to bed with her cautionary croon atop only a dissonant bed of organ and synth. Black Mountain's future is one where every song counts and no music lover goes unnourished - these 10 songs offer something for everyone, even if they're not breaking new genre ground.
Written by Chris Polley, Radio K DJ and volunteer.
Stream: Black Mountain - Tyrants
Black Mountain at the 7th Street Entry Monday, March 24th. ID/Doors 8pm.