Hailing from Norway, Grant The Sun are set to unleash a masterpiece of waveform weaving and instrumental magic this week. From start to finish, the album will take you on a journey that requires nothing but your ears, and maybe some really nice speakers if you fancy. But regardless, this is the kind gem that could cut well through any medium of audio quality, featuring the likes of Danne Bergstrand behind the mixing board, as well as Fredrik Thordendal (of Meshuggah fame) on the low-end of each track. Themed entirely around the concept of traveling underwater, we here at Everything Is Noise formally (and nautically) invite you to take a deep dive with us into a first look at Voyage as a part of today’s premiere!
Streaming along like the fair fins of a blue tang fish, the edge never wears off for even a second as the front end of the album alone submerges us into the previously unknown bliss of melodic-focused, riffy, layered guitars and grooves. Hitting somewhere between the styles of Cloudkicker, Devin Townsend, and hints of early Mastodon, this album will have you hooked, even if just for a catch and release. Tracks such as “Machina”, “Death Is Real”, and “Vertigo” will quickly pull you into a current that, before you know it, lands you more than halfway through the 8-track, heavy-as-a-heavy-thing scuba sesh. Just keep swimming; The latter portion only gets better…
Cited as their ‘greatest and most complete achievement to date‘, Grant The Sun proudly perform this new direction of writing with a finesse and atmospheric soundscape that will easily capture your brainwaves and bless them with audible pleasures, cool and smooth as an ocean breeze on a lightly windy Summer day. This ‘39-minute inventive and powerful musical experience, journeying through the realms of prog, metal and post-rock‘ packs plenty of punch in a fairly compact package. Complete with spoken word, vocal chants, and screams as added elements, the album sits as a poly-metric meditation; Wrapping up with the emotional numbers “Seadevil” and “Grant The Sun”, the entire span creates a landscape about as dramatic and breathtaking as that of the deep blue sea itself.
If you’ve ever wanted to know what it’s like to go deep sea diving without spending the money on the actual experience, go ahead, put this album on and close your eyes – you just might feel at least a strongly similar effect. As a first-time newcomer to Grant The Sun and hearing this, count me impressed. This is a name that truly knows how keep metal music interesting, while also ranged in the scope of sounds involved. The band reflects upon their work, summarizing the inspiration and conception of the album: ‘Every element of leads, layers, spoken words and vocals were added to enliven the voyage under water. The concept was the key element from writing to post-production‘.
Voyage sees release upon the Seven Seas (and then some) this Friday, June 9th, via Mas-Kina Records. If you know what’s best for your sea-going ears, you’ll make a swift sail over to the band’s Bandcamp page to make an immediate purchase as soon as it drops! Navigate your way to what’s next for Grant The Sun and keep up with all upcoming news via their Facebook page! It might actually be safe to swim today after all…
