May Collective Collaborative Blog: Music Meant to be Played LOUDLY

For this month's collab post, the collective is turning it up to 11 and talking about their favorite songs to listen to on full-blast. Turn up your speakers, plug in your subwoofers, and listen to these songs the way they are supposed to be heard...LOUDLY!

​Parisa's Pick

Song: “Warrior Queen”
Artist: The Bug feat. Warrior Queen
Album: London Zoo
​This song defines “massive”. I’ve been listening to extreme metal my whole life, and I never would have guessed that the heaviest song I’d ever come across would be a dancehall track. Granted, The Bug takes dancehall into some pretty experimental and noisey territories, but the sheer weight of this song is insane. The low end of this song is Earth-shattering, coupled with Warrior Queen’s savage and ferocious delivery slathered on top and only leaving distant dub echoes of manipulated screams in the wake of it all. This song demands to be played on full-blast with subwoofers shaking the ground  in order to feel the full intensity intended. Bonus: check out this live video of The Bug and Warrior Queen performing this song inside of a mountain, with the sound exceeding 100db. ​

Noé´s Picks

In praise of larger than life songs

Song: "Bring The Sun / Toussaint L'Ouverture"
Artist: Swans
Album: To Be Kind
​What does the sun sound like? This is probably the question that renowned experimental rockers Swans asked themselves. The band is no stranger to epic, complex songs, but it seems that with this particular track they wanted to outdo everything they had done in their 13 album career. How can one translate the blazing hot flares and the blinding light emanated from this cosmic entity? Even though we might never replicate its immensity, the ensemble has come close. Really close. “Bring The Sun / Toussaint L’Ouverture” is one of the most massive sounds I’ve had the pleasure of hearing and one of my favorite tracks of all time.

The first half begins with a quiet and reverberating mellotron that is immediately obscured by an aural assault of amplified guitars. This introduction prepares you for what will come next: a conjuration to summon the sun itself. Michael Gira’s hypnotic vocals operate like some sort of ritualistic chant accompanied by the instrumentation that subtly escalates. Before you realize it, layers of drums, guitars and vocal harmonies transform the song into a supernova that grows and grows to no end. When listened at explosive volumes, the red giant consumes everything in its path.

And suddenly, it stops.

The second half, “Toussaint L’Ouverture”, is introduced by a gargantuan guitar chord, alike to the furious thunder strike of an ancient god. The mood changes from grandeur to eccentricity, displayed by sparkling strings and lush bass textures. Here, Swans’ talent as multi instrumentalists shines. Dozens of percussive instruments, bizarre guitar sounds and samples of saws, hammers and horses interact to create a completely alien journey. Here, volume allows the textured world crafted by the band to become real, vast and within reach.

In the piece’ s final moments, things escalate once more. The instrumentation becomes tenser as it progresses, while Michael Gira releases blood chilling and ferocious screams, only capable of being birthed by a deranged mind. And of course, to finish things off, a maelstrom of instrumented insanity overpowers everything in a way fitting of the best of climaxes. This 34-minute monolith is an auditory experience like no other. If you enjoy experimental music, please do yourself a favor. Crank up the volume to the biggest available setting to bring the Big Bang and its eerie aftermath into your living room.
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Song: "Hunting & Gathering (Cydonia)"
Artist: Sunn O)))
Album: Monoliths & Dimensions
Maximum volume yields maximum results. This is the motto of Sunn O))), seminal drone band that due to its repetitive song structures have often been compared to the boring sounds of refrigerators and fans. The thing is, the music crafted by this duo doesn't make much sense until the volume is brought to heights that turn the listening experience into a physical one. People that attend the group's live act often describe it as the loudest they've ever heard, so much that the amplified guitars make their entire bodies vibrate.

"Hunting & Gathering" is a great introductory cut to the band, as it showcases how imposing their composition and production can be. Its guitar chords are thick, distorted and immense, repeating themselves as they slowly pummel your eardrums. These are coupled with Attila Csihar´s (of Mayhem fame) deep growls, which give the track a very foreboding presence. The mix is decorated with subtle guitar strums and triumphant horns that evoke an epic alliance of ironclad knights, conquering uncharted lands and erecting civilizations whose buildings tower through the heavens.

The best part, however, is the climax in which a majestic vocal harmony engulfs everything with its presence. The champions have succeeded in their quest. Standing atop the citadel, they gather the commoners below them and chant in victory. Not even the gods can stop them now. With the few pieces they use to build this piece, the duo manages to output pure grandiosity, crowning themselves as masters of scale and atmosphere.

Sunn O))) is on the top of my list of acts to see live. Until I get the chance to catch one of their shows, I will have to remain content with annoying my neighbors each time I want to feel their staggering presence.

​

Song: "Earthmover"
Artist: Have A Nice Life
Album: Deathconsciousness
Deathconsciousness is one hell of an emotional album. Despite its 84 minute run time, it always manages to draw my attention thanks to its melancholic sound, which is equally beautiful and depressing. There could be no better closer to this journey than "Earthmover", a moody gem that without fail gives me goosebumps every time I listen to it.

The song sets the tone with distant guitar chords and the mellow singing of Dan Barrett. It quickly ramps up in intensity by adding distortion, while the duo depicts a vast army of golems. Even though the giants are very far away, they can be seen all over the flatlands. Their approach is imminent, which produces a combined feeling of hopelessness and awe. The song then goes tame again and fades into silence. Only a couple of seconds go by, but they are tense and ridden with anxiety.

I will have to quote Michael Keating´s review from RateYourMusic because there is no better way to say it:

“Four chords of a piano.
And then noise.
Beautiful, frenzied noise.”

The cacophony created by the guitars, drums and emotional piano scales to grand proportions that seize all attention. It is a shocking and intense performance, managing to stir all of the emotions buried deep beneath myself. Have A Nice Life are poetic alchemists whose clay creations are both harrowing and beautiful; lurking far away but feeling immediately close.

The gut-wrenching finale reaches its climax when Tim Macuga drops the bass guitar into the ground and its reverb escalates into infinity. In an interview, the musician mentioned that the song became so overwhelming that he couldn’t keep going, letting the instrument work its magic by itself. “Earthmover” is pure intensity and passion, concentrated so densely that every one of its movements packs a devastating punch. This begs for only one thing: colossal and unhinged loudness.

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Andrej's Picks

Song: “Conspiracy in Mind”
Artist: Communic
Album: Conspiracy in Mind
​When most think of metal music from the frostbitten lands of Norway, progressive power and heavy metal are not the first that come to mind. Yet, like much of the rock and jazz that comes from their countrymen, Communic put out a debut album that showcases the strong musical skill of the Norwegian trio across a variety of styles. In this case, those styles span the 80s and 90s eras of progressive metal, incorporating everything from ripping heavy metal shredders to thick, groove based numbers and long, soulful ballads. The opener of the album, “Conspiracy in Mind”, is the band’s take on Nevermore’s groove heavy guitarwork mixed with a few of those beautiful balladic moments. The mixture of head-banging riffs, souring choruses and solos, and interplay between the instrumentation is best enjoyed with repeated, LOUD listens.

Song: “Kill or Become”
Artist: Cannibal Corpse
Album: A Skeletal Domain
A death metal staple, still producing brutal new albums regularly alongside yearly touring, Cannibal Corpse’s music should only ever be played loudly. In fact, when they can control how you listen to their music, such as at their live shows, it is insanely fucking loud. So loud, in fact, that the last time I saw them live, I developed an extreme pain in my lower stomach near my crotch. After the show, I found out that this pain was from an inguinal hernia, which is when your intestines rips through your abdominal tissue. Sure, there is a chance I developed a minor hernia before the show doing something else entirely and it only became worse during the concert. But I have to suspect that the relentless hour of lead singer Corpsegrinder screaming at my face at 115 dB may have been the primary contributor to the medical issues I experience afterwards. Simply put, I cannot recommend Cannibal Corpse live in concert enough. But if you don’t have the chance to see them any time soon, you can crank up any one of their fantastic albums to an uncomfortable level and experience some of the fun at home.
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Song: “Painkiller”
Artist: Judas Priest
Album: Painkiller
The long and illustrious career of Judas Priest tracked, and in many cases, defined heavy metal in the 70s and 80s. However, even as the 80s saw Priest glowing in mainstream success, two poor outings near the end of the decade coupled with the public’s interest transitioning to things like grunge put the band in a precarious position. While many popular bands of the era chased these emerging styles, Priest tripled down on heavy metal and released an absolute behemoth of a record. A record so good, that many will say the opener, “Painkiller”, is the greatest heavy metal song of all time. Listening to it at the extremely loud volume T&E recommends, it’s easy to see why, as the entire song attacks you with aggressive, pounding drums, shredding and shrieking guitars melodically battling back and forth, and a soaring, face melting, civilization decimating vocal delivery unlike any other. To be clear, Painkiller is not Priest’s best album, but with songs like “Painkiller”, it is without question their heaviest, showing that these veterans could any point step-in and reclaim their thrones as heavy metal gods, should you dare question them.

Song: “Burden”
Artist: Rotten Sound
Album: Exit
Given the short, direct nature of grindcore, I will try to keep my write-up of “Burden” by Rotten Sound concise. This is Finnish people playing at extreme speeds at extreme volume and screaming. While this describes many grind bands, Rotten Sound do it extremely well, and “Burden” is an exemplary track from the fantastic Exit. But it is grindcore, so, to be clear, it needs to be super loud.
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Song: “Introitus/Consumed by Repugnance”
Artist: Defeated Sanity
Album: Chapters of Repugnance
Chapters of Repugnance is an album so good I’ve written about it for T&E previously on multiple occasions. It’s mixture of murky caveman slam, high speed brutal death metal, and flourishes of jazzy technical palate cleansers is unmatched, but by a handful of the truly great albums of the genre (which include this album’s follow-up). But what we’re talking about today is loud albums, and the intro to this album, “Introitus”, and its transition into the first real song, “Consumed by Repugnance”, are a wonderful example of dynamics in heavy metal. The one-two punch of these songs starts with the intro. Make no mistake, it’s heavy as fuck, with only the instrumentals at play here it still slams and grooves its way through different passages and motifs, giving you a small sample of what’s ahead. But what it does excellently is that it slowly increases in volume as it increases in heaviness. Instinctually you’re going to turn up the record when the song starts, and before you know it, you’re halfway through and the slams are already piping out of your speakers at a near overwhelming level. Then, the song ends, you don’t realize that you’ve signed up for the brutality that lies ahead, and the deep guttural opening of “Consumed by Repugnance” erupts, more than likely pushing you back into whatever you’re sitting on. Only now do you realize how brutal this is going to get – and the beautiful thing is that you’ve been slowly led into this insanity, little steps at a time, and now the full attack, at full volume no less, is already under way. ​
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Andrej's Honorable Mentions:

Song	Why It Should Be Played LOUDLY
“Dopesmoker” – Sleep (from Dopesmoker)	The riffs demand extreme volume; helps induce trance-like state
“Speed King” – Deep Purple (from Deep Purple in Rock)	Imagine how many amps the band went through playing this song live and how many teenagers blew out their speakers listening to it in the last 50 years. You have a responsibility to keep the tradition alive.
“Worship” – Bongripper (from Satan Worshipping Doom)	Neither Hailing Satan nor Worshipping Doom are done quietly
​“Schizopsychotic Eruption” – Beyond (from Fatal Power of Death)	The German cavegoblins who discovered amphetamines and then preceded to record this album had a very specific listening experience in mind
“Zombie Graveyard Rape Bonanza” – Gorerotted (from Only Tools and Corpses)	Lyrics are better heard at higher volume; bonanza’s are never quiet