Lantlos - Melting Sun
Out of pure embarrassment and shame, I almost passed on reviewing this record. I just never seem to get Lantlos right. If I were writing a review of my 2011 Agape review, I’d most likely give it the lowest possible score after chastising myself in haiku fashion.
Stupid cokehead.
Get off Neige’s nuts.
Listen to the shit more than twice.
The clueless douche I was just 2 years ago doesn’t even mention that “Bliss” is the greatest song ever recorded! Luckily with this follow-up, Markus “Herbst” Siegenhort has delivered something even I can’t screw up. Actually, I might want to rescind that statement on the probable chance that I fail to describe how amazingly fucking perfect Melting Sun is. Melting Sun is the musical equivalent to having your balls licked during orgasm. It causes the same floating effect as the “Mr. Nice Guy” weed in Half-Baked. It’s like smelling a Cold Stone Creamery for 40 minutes while watching Hulk and Thing fight in slow motion while Alexis Texas feeds you bacon wrapped in bacon with her ass. Juvenile humor aside, this LP is completely flawless and far too beautiful for the confines of my vocabulary to do justice. When I learned that Alcest’s Neige was no longer doing vocals, and that the band had removed all traces of Black Metal from their sound, I was momentarily skeptical. But that skepticism was buried and forgotten about halfway through opener “Azure Chimes.” Herbst’s clean vocals are fantastic, often made all the more mesmerizing by backing vocal harmonization, and the music… holy shit! It’s so good I’m pissed. Crushing heaviness and airy Shoegaze delight co-exist in a euphoric paradise where darkness is achieved through light and sadness by joy. Nowhere is this more evident than on the heart of the album: “Aquamarine Towers” and “Jade Fields.” Both tracks display an attention to detail in songcraft that emotional music so often lacks. Downtuned, distorted guitars carve the flesh while clean guitars caress the brain, as unforgettable melodic passages glide around sparse-yet-incredibly-addictive verses. I remember being a teenage musician, staying up all night, trying to fill the entire page with the perfect lyrics. Little did I know that “I’ve seen you / I’ve been through the sun” could comprise something a million times more effective in its abstract simplicity. Instrumental segue “Oneironaut” gently guides us into slow and soothing closer “Golden Mind.” This shimmering lullaby is like the cigarette after sex, or in this case, aural pleasures. I can’t say enough about how excellent this is. A benchmark for Post-Rock and the Album of the Year nominee I didn’t see coming. By following in Alcest’s Black Metal-shedding footsteps, Herbst has unequivocally surpassed his comrade for now. As much as I’ve enjoyed Shelter, it wilts in the glow of Melting Sun.
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