Sunn O))), "Monoliths and Dimensions"

I can see where a lot of the praise is coming from with this one, i.e. Sunn O))) break with formula and add strings and angelic choirs to their already dense sound, but any album that begins with drudgery like "Aghartha" will dampen my enthusiasm to some degree. It's not such a horrible track, but the vocals are downright risible at times, and what's more, appear annoyingly upfront in the mix.

From then on, things get a lot better. Sunn O))) are becoming more and more similar to black metal with each new album, and that type of evolution can only be a good thing. The standout track is certainly "Big Church" -- if they were looking to record a track that would defy you to avoid using any and all cliched descriptions (floating to the heavens on an angelic cloud of noise-cum-spirituality, etc.), then they succeeded beyond all expectations.