Album review: Black Mountain, 'Wilderness Heart'
3.5 stars (out of 4)
Making no attempts to disguise their unabashed love for ‘60s and ‘70s stoner rock, the Vancouver quintet has delivered three retro-obsessed albums in a row. Those obsessive about such things will need more than two hands to count the vintage reference points on “Wilderness Heart” (Jagjaguwar): A shot of Led Zeppelin III-style blues-rock swagger in “The Hair Song,” a blast of Deep Purple-sized organ in “Old Fangs,” the Black Sabbath chug of “Let Spirits Ride.”
But Black Mountain brings more to the mix than just their record collections. Previous albums saw the band go for a murkier, more spaced-out vibe, but this time it’s more about concision and songs. Producers Randall Dunn (who has worked with Sunn O))) and Boris) and D. Sardy (Oasis, Rolling Stones) allow more light, more beauty to filter into the band’s musical shadows (check out the shimmering “The Space of Your Mind” and the haunting “Buried by the Blues” and “Sadie”). Jeremy Schmidt’s keyboard playing, particularly his Mellotron, brings an orchestral dimension. And Amber Webber steps up even more as a vocalist next to primary singer Stephen McBean. Thanks in large measure to their interplay, the songs brim with soulful conviction, a refuge from troubled times, “away from the static and the noise, away from the bombs and the wars.”
greg@gregkot.com