Turtle Skull - Monoliths

Angry Metal Guy 60

I know it’s shocking, but I must confess that I do love me some atmospheric music. I’m that weirdo who listens to ambient albums even if they’re not soundtracks to video games.¹ I’m that freak who will lay in bed letting my mind wander to the swells and ebbs of post-rock, and that motherfucker who drools over atmoblack just for music that sounds like its covers. Just fuckin’ gimme. A few months back, I heard of Art as Catharsis’ new record, Turtle Skull‘s Monoliths. Metal is bursting with monoliths across all creeds and styles: Until Death Overtakes Me‘s funereal slogger Symphony III – Monolith, Cattle Decapitation‘s gory blaster Monolith of Inhumanity, or bands like In Mourning, Sylosis, Verheerer, Amebix, and today’s topic Turtle Skull taking the name, and just to name a few. How many monoliths are there in the world? Certainly not as many as there are metal albums and bands about them.

While other monoliths stagnate in dark and gloomy dimensions, Australian quintet Turtle Skull prefers to rely on bright and sunny desert safaris with their unique brand of metal, dubbed “flower doom.” While I’m getting some serious Midsommar vibes, these Aussies have concocted a surprisingly bright yet extremely open-ended affair that encompasses a psychedelic journey with a foundation of bone-rattling stoner riffs, thunderous percussion, harmonious indie rock vocals, and flourishes of new-age instrumentation. Its ambitious and open-ended purpose is, in their words, to “accompany your journey, in any form you choose” in an Aboriginal meditation on “the intimate connection we share with the Earth.” While initial listens are let down by its bloated runtime, repeated visits grant Monoliths an organic quality that few records can achieve.

Monoliths by Turtle Skull

What’s strange about Monoliths is that its mood shifts with each listen. For instance, my first listen was tedious, as the repeated riffs and chant-like vocals grew wearisome; however, subsequent listens found my eardrums entranced in the warm tones. In many ways, Turtle Skull succeeds in channeling the organic prog-rock qualities of The Contortionist‘s Language while being the better version of Intronaut‘s Habitual Levitations: propelled by layers of clean vocals paired with progressive metal riffs, at the risk of monotony. The fuzzy riffs, killer solos, and three-pronged haunting vocals in tracks like opener “Leaves,” “Heartless Machine,” and “Halcyon” recall psychedelic jammers King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and desert rockers Yawning Man. The meandering passages of “Rabbit,” “Why Do You Ask?,” and closer “The Clock Strikes Forever” channel Oceanic-era Isis or Radiance of Shadows-era Nadja. Avoiding influence worship the band streamlines elements into a style that is simply Turtle Skull, eschewing highlights in favor of a consistent atmosphere that remains unchanging through its mammoth runtime. The most “accessible” is single “Apple of Your Eye,” which feels like fuzzed-out Bon Iver, utilizing indie rock chord progressions and soaring vocals to achieve the emotional climax of the album. In this way, Monoliths feels very much like a drone album, be that what it may.

Because Turtle Skull is ultimately reliant on the listener’s mindset approaching it, its unwavering consistency is a two-edged sword. In some ways, I wish that Monoliths had approachable highlights: I wish that each singer had his moment to shine instead of consistently engaging in lush harmonies; I wish that the riffs were a bit more energetic; I wish that the drums weren’t quite so loud in the mix. However, Monoliths is exactly as Turtle Skull intended. Open-ended and comparable to drone because of its inaccessibility, it nevertheless feels completely controlled and impeccably written. Ultimately, Monoliths‘ quality depends on how you feel about atmosphere and repetition: is it monotonous and nauseating, or hypnotic and enveloping?

Trying to describe Turtle Skull‘s brand of “flower doom” is a new age smoothie recipe in its own right: just start up your solar-powered rainbow blender, throw in King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard‘s jammage, Yawning Man‘s sun-bleached environs, some upbeat Kikagaku Moyo, a rockin’ shot of Pink Floyd, the density of Electric Wizard, and a glug of Nadja, post-metal, and LSD and you’d be getting close. It’s an undeniably beautiful album, but one that encircles it in a thick shell² of fuzz and abstract songwriting. Its greatest sin is easily its runtime, as attention is prone to waning throughout its fifty-six minute march, but everything else is up to interpretation. As it is a sunny drug-fueled romp through lush forests and vast deserts, I’d say it’s one worth interpreting.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Art As Catharsis
Websites: turtleskullmusic.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/turtleskull
Releases Worldwide: August 28th, 2020

The post Turtle Skull – Monoliths Review appeared first on Angry Metal Guy.