4 out of 5

Label: Turgid Vermin

Produced by: Matthew Bower

Of the many things I can say I appreciate about Skullflower, on a – perhaps – shallow level, there’s releasing something called ‘Purity’ on a label called Turgid Vermin; there’s the way this particular album makes much, much noise out of its guitar and sundry background effects, and yet is ultimately quite soothing; and there’s that cover art, which is kind of sedate and pretty, in a ‘nature erodes’ way, but then also… kind of What The Heck Is That? haunting.

These juxtapositions drive me batty (in a good way) with Matthew Bower’s work, but especially across SF’s decades long run, which can really play both to the light and dark side of musical moods at the same time.

Purity is quite gorgeous, though, mostly any way you slice it, as long as you’re down with droning distorted squall. The production vibes with Sunroof!’s glitteriness, where the wall of music is delivered with fuzzy edges, but each piece is also cleanly inserted, making your ear kind of scurry around to decide on a focus (which I love – makes repeated listens rewarding, as you find new bits and pieces). Opener ‘Clarity’ is closest to the Sunroof! vibe, kind of building and building on a psychedelic prayer cycle; the religious vibe of that – which I’m equating more to a ‘hopeful’ lilt found in the sounds; a positive lean of the chord progressions and tone – carries on throughout the album in slightly different ways, though the remaining tracks are more drone-based. Ursa focuses on static as its base and is appropriately spacey: a cosmic awakening; Sirius has like a harpsichord backing, and is the most uplifting track here, suggestive of post-awakening – wandering through the cosmos with understanding achieved.

I’ve skipped over the very reverbed Rune. For some reason, I kept getting restless during this track – I suppose it’s the one I find to evolve the least during its 15-minute runtime, focusing on its mesmeric hiss as some flute (or whatever) lightly floats into the background. But it does feel like it just goes on for a bit too long without change. This seems like a good place for the song in the narrative I’m applying to the album – a bit of brashness, and then Rune’s long night of contemplation – but it’s the only bit where my immersion in Bower’s majesty wavers.