Walker, Scott & Sunn O))) – “Soused” – [4AD]

Naysayer   1/27/2015   12-inch, A Library

After your initial disappointment with the Scott Walker and Sunn O))) collaboration, “Soused”, sit back, enjoy and relish in the beauty and power that is “Soused”. “What does this mean?” you may be asking yourself. Well, nothing can rarely ever be as great as might be imagined and that is the case of “Soused”. When the names Scott Walker and Sunn 0))) are put together for a collaborative effort, well the juices get flowing and hopes and desires run rampant. It’s just not possible to meet those hopes. Which is unfortunate in this case because many have, and many will, turn away from this album. So be it. More then for the open minded. Sunn O))) approached Walker in 2009 to collaborate. Walker got back to them several years later with the proposal for a project, having written songs with Sunn O))) in mind. Thus, it came about. 5 tracks. 3 LP sides. Scott Walker lyrics to decode and decipher over whiskey and smokes. Sunn O))) being Sunn O))) but then more. Simple incessant percussion. A horn honk here. A scraped metal sheet there. Grating electronics pop in and out, short, sweet and emotional. Dirge guitar. Dirge. Silence, then a sound. Scott Walker’s almost chant like recitation of his verse. Now this kind of dark I understand. Bump the Beaky.