Rating: 9.0/10
A black metal album that isn't really a black metal album, San Francisco group Deafheaven's sophomore effort Sunbather ended up being one of the most polarizing and unique releases of 2013. Many people are immediately turned off by the label 'black metal,' not subsribing to the screamed vocals or lengthy track times you'll find throughout the genre. At first, I was one of those people. My knowledge of metal in general is minimal, as I have no clue as to the nuances that separate subgenres and for a long time didn't understand the appeal. Then, I decided to go in with an open mind based on all of the positive reviews from critics and fans alike. Clearly, something was remarkable about this record, whose soft pink cover and stylish lettering didn't exactly scream "metal." It actually ended up the highest-rated original release of 2013 on Metacritic, excluding reissues, box sets, and a Wonder Years album whose score was skewed as it only had four critic reviews total. It also landed in the top ten of year-end lists at Pitchfork, Stereogum, and SPIN, among others. Clearly, there was something presumably excellent that I was missing out on, so I tried something I'd never seriously done before; listening to a black-metal album.
From the moment "Dream House" started, I knew something was special about Sunbather. Yes, the screams are there, but they are pretty much buried in the mix, and actually add to the music (but more on that later). What is so different about this so-called black metal album is that it's just as much post-rock and shoegaze as it is metal. On the surface, Sunbather presents a wall of furious guitars, thundering and lightning-quick drums, and snarled vocals. However, as each song progresses you are greeted with a wave of emotions, including one not typical of a black metal record; happiness. While whether the album is truly metal has been debated by self-nominated "true metalheads," there's no denying that Sunbather is one of the year's most cathartic pieces of music. Fury, grief, melancholy, loss, happiness, tranquility, anxiety, and everythhing in between are represented here. This is because so much emphasis is put on the instrumentals, particularly on the chord progressions of the guitars, which climb summits and sink into valleys time and time again throughout the blissful journey that is Sunbather.
