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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
Monoliths & Dimensions
Universal acclaim
Based on 16 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 58 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Southern Lord
Release Date: 26 May 2009
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Rock, Metal
Summary
The metal band worked with composer Eyvind Kang on its seventh album, which features Australian guitar player Oren Ambarchi, vocalists Attila Csihar, Jessika Kenney, Earth's Dylan Carlson, and trombonists Julian Priester and Stuart Dempster as guest artists.
Also On The Web: Official Artist Site (Southern Lord Recordings)
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Drowned In Sound
For anyone interested in music that works both as art and an intensely new exciting experience--this is easily the best album that has come out this year.
Read Full Review >The Guardian
The most compelling--and important--avant garde record since "Love's Secret Domain" by Coil.
Read Full Review >No Ripcord
Monoliths & Dimensions, present O’Malley and Anderson’s sonic murk as something to delve into, their inescapable walls of low-end suddenly beaming with purpose and a million and one instruments.
Read Full Review >All Music Guide
Monoliths and Dimensions succeeds because it is the sound of a new music formed from the ashen forge of drone, rock, and black metal.
Read Full Review >Tiny Mix Tapes
It seems to have brought a band who had so long mired itself in total darkness into the cleansing light of day, and in both cases, the results are awe-inspiring.
Read Full Review >Pitchfork
Per Sunn O)))'s long-standing dogma, "Maximum volume [still] yields maximum results." But this time, there's enough musical range and temperance to usher even the most resolute naysayer into this intricate wonderland.
Read Full Review >cokemachineglow
When you get past the initial impressions of both "Silent Shout" (2006) and Monoliths & Dimensions, you find something not only stellar but surprisingly different from one’s initial impression.
Read Full Review >Dusted Magazine
Monoliths and Dimensions is a bold step forward and bodes well for Sunn 0)))’s future relevance as not just musicians, but honest-to-god composers.
Read Full Review >Prefix Magazine
With the explorations of additional instrumentation as well being more comfortable with silences and with echo, SunnO))) approach the freedom and abandon of the spirit-travelers alluded to in the titles and approaches on this, the band's best record yet.
Read Full Review >Mojo
Beautifully arranged, its four pieces amplifiy Sunn O)))'s signature drone rumble. [Jun 2009, p.96]
Delusions of Adequacy
Hopefully those that came to SunnO))) through "Black One" will find much to love here. If they don’t they will be seriously missing out as Monoliths & Dimensions is devastatingly epic.
Read Full Review >The New York Times
Words are secondary for Sunn O))), a k a Greg Anderson on bass and Stephen O’Malley on guitar, who long ago made thunderous resonant sounds their stock in trade. What’s striking about this new release is its wealth of additional textures: woodwinds, brass, strings, male and female choirs.
Read Full Review >PopMatters
With nearly three dozen guest musicians chipping in, the aptly titled Monoliths and Dimensions is far and away the band’s most ambitious project to date, but typically, the many guest contributions are so subtly performed and arranged, not to mention entirely in keeping with O’Malley’s and Anderson’s collective vision, that we hardly notice.
Read Full Review >Uncut
Their seventh LP is a(nother) case of "none more black," but 'Big Church'--in which a Viennese women's choir provides the counter to crushing, sustained chords are striking departures from Sunn)))'s awesome canon. [Jun 2009, p.103]
Spin
Well known as purveyors of viscous guitar sludge, the duo of Stephen O'Malley and Greg Anderson expand their ambitions and make some startling jazz-ensemble noises on their seventh album.
Read Full Review >Under The Radar
The more Sunn O))) neglect their Earth-worshipping roots in favor of this sort of robe-wearing, avant-garde composer thing, the more interesting it gets.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 6.3 (out of 10) based on 58 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Mick gave it a1:
This is an absolute dirge. Seems so many music websites are afraid of the big white elephant in the corner of the room (that being Pitchfork) that they'll fall over themselves to endorse anything they like. This is, in short, crap.
Sean gave it a9:
Why are people complaining about this album? You dont need to have a Ph. D in music theory to understand that this is not a traditional style of music, nor is it an attempt to blow you away with explosive creativity. Yes, the notes seem to 'drone' on for ages. No, Sunn 0))))) is not trying to impress a specific crowd of metal heads who worship satan. This album may not meet the criteria for what you consider 'music'. This is art - and art doesn't care if you like it. The artists in this band take their work seriously, and have obviously made an impression on people. Again, you are not required to like art. If you are looking for something a little more palatable - something you can dance to - I recommend the newest release from the Arctic Monkeys. If, on the other hand, you are willing to let someone try another method for stimulating your ears and your mind, give this record another listen.
Steve R. gave it a9:
It was a great album. The first track is a bit weak, but everything else on the album is amazing.
John M. gave it a7:
This is a very good record, but that is not why I am here. I am here because I am tired of people without anything constructive to say about this, or any other record, going on to make personal attacks about those who enjoy it. There are a myriad tastes in the world, and people listen to music for many different reasons. Just because you do not have an appreciation for something like this does not mean that everyone else who does is pretentious or a hipster, or "one of those loser metal types that think you're so dark and messed up that chanting about satan is cool." Those of us who do enjoy aberrant styles of music do not do so to be hip, and to criticize a record because you believe that that is why people rate it highly is a red herring. Please keep your comments confined to the music itself, that is what is meant to be reviewed on a site like this. Thank you.
hubcap gave it a5:
People who like this sort of thing will find that this is the sort of thing that they like. Other people will wonder what the fuss is about.
Patrick F. gave it a9:
Not my favorite Sunn release, but it's really good. I'm not sure why the people who are reviewing it so poorly expected to like it in the first place. If you previously didn't understand or like drone, this album probably won't be one to change your mind, awesome as it is. Reading these reviews is an exercise in frustration; it's like a bunch of people, fully aware of their dislike for modern art, walking into the MoMA and loudly complaining about how awful and artless everything is. But to even these people, I suggest dropping your 'musical virtuosity' shields for once and letting the visceral effect of this album smother you. Maybe it'll do you some good. It's not suitable for every mood or situation, but when the mood does fit, it is fantastic.
Keith gave it a10:
Fortunately, not more of the same - the introduction of more instruments into the album while not overloading the songs brings to the sound its appropriate atmosphere. And yes, one feels the power of the Sunn O))) when he blasts it from powerful speakers. "Alice" might be their most graceful and beautiful track yet.
