Late 2020, the somber Seattle slayers of Sun Crow released their debut album, Quest For Oblivion. Though Ghost Cult missed the initial release, we’re happily taking advantage of the album’s re-release on Ripple Music. It’s no surprise the record topped doom charts, as it’s a perfect showcase of doom and gloom mastery.
Verbose guitars contrasted by cavernous vocals, Quest For Oblivion captures doom in its purest form. While the record only boasts eight tracks, it has an impressive seventy-minute runtime. The shortest song, “Nothing Behind”, also happens to be the punchiest. Conversely, the longest track “Fell Across the Sky” is a smokey, blistering journey through a psychoactive wasteland. From the bold entrance of “Collapse” to the morose snap of “End Over End” and “Hypersonic”, this album is without a single weak link.
Now, there is a fine line between despair and indiscernibility. It’s not uncommon for doom vocalists to stumble over that line and Sun Crow’s Charles Wilson is no exception. However, Wilson’s despondent chops have more than enough skill to make up for a few muddied lyrics. Feeling and affect is something Sun Crow clearly understands well. Each song exists within a torturous, dark and distorted reality, invoking the spellbinding ruination at the heart of doom. You don’t have to understand the words to understand the emotion. Point in case, the track “Fear”—The slow rise of guitars and tension followed by sound that will warp around you like vertigo, it’s a drowning sensation perfectly encapsulating it’s namesake.
Closer track “Titans” has been noted by fans as a standout, and for good reason. Slow and steady, it introduces a somber beauty into the madness and decay; poetry mixed with the screech of wraiths, poured over unforgettable riffs. It was an appropriate choice to call this album a quest, as it is undeniably a journey. It’s easily an instant classic and a must-hear for any doom metalheads.
Buy the album here: https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/album/quest-for-oblivion
9 / 10
LJ DEWITT