Review: Sumac - The Deal
By Eric Perzanowski, Staff Writer
[Profound Lore; 2015]
Rating: 6/10
Key Tracks: “Thorn in the Lion’s Paw,” “Blight’s End Angel”
Sumac is a new band featuring Aaron Turner, former vocalist and guitarist for Isis, Nick Yacyshyn of Baptists and Brian Cook of Russian Circles. The debut album, The Deal, walks a line between experimentation and familiarity, but a lot of the time, it falls into the familiar category.
According to Profound Lore Records, this band came to life as a result of Aaron Turner getting “the urge to create music that’s heavy and colossal,” much like his work in Isis and Old Man Gloom, while also being “a wholly new and different band unlike anything he has previously done before.” Sumac’s material showcases a sludgy, molasses-like trudging style that goes hand-in-hand with the massive, free-form structure of songs that span over 10 minutes.
One of the qualities of The Deal is that it demands active listenership. This style of music tends to be repetitive and lengthy, and lesser musicians will have the same repetition and lengthiness, but won’t put those qualities to use by creating things like tension or atmosphere, leading to a more passive listener. Even at times on this album when the material isn’t all that enticing, the progression of it all still beckons for attention.
At the start of the album, it seems as if the band is going towards a heavily gloomy and menacing atmosphere. “Thorn in the Lion’s Paw” begins with the repeated strike of a discordant piano chord that reverberates and abruptly stops. Some of this off-putting material seems as if the band is going for a more atmospheric route, which could lead to some very interesting results. However, too many of the following songs stray from said direction and go off in their own way.
Much of this record can definitely be traced to Isis (at least the bits and pieces I have heard from the band.) This familiarity isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If anything, it gives a desire to go and really check out some of Isis’ material (which presumably is even better and heavier.)
Overall, The Deal is definitely deserving of at least a few listens. As someone who doesn’t frequently check out Sumac's type of metal, it left me satisfied and serves as a gateway introduction to the greater bands of this style (probably influenced by Aaron Turner in one way or another.)
