LLNN – Unmaker (Review)

This is the third album from Danish post-metallers LLNN.

Having not caught up with the band since 2016’s very enjoyable Loss, it seemed like a great time to check out what LLNN are up to with their latest release.

LLNN play an engaging mix of synth-fuelled sludge, hardcore, doom, industrial, and post-metal. It’s crushingly heavy and infused with a gloomy apocalyptic atmosphere. That simple description, however, does not do Unmaker justice.

It’s also MASSIVE SOUNDING. HUGE!

Yes, the band have a powerful sound that infuses heavily atmospheric cinematic sci-fi influences with crushing post-metal sludge ones, resulting in a journey into the abyss that you are definitely going to want to take. The album really does have a massive, (MASSIVE!), sound, and you can almost feel the oppressive atmosphere weighing down on you as the colossal songs unfold.

The coordination between drums and bass is bolstered by the tar-thick guitars and enhanced by menacing and atmospheric synths. The songs are nightmarish soundscapes of menacing darkness; LLNN certainly know how to craft songs that bleed malevolent atmosphere, while still retaining a harsh aggression that’s highly compelling.

At once claustrophobic and expansive, these songs sound like very little else out there. Yes you can compare aspects of the band’s sound to bands like Amenra, Godflesh, The Body, Neurosis, Year of No Light, Botch, etc., but the way that LLNN combine their influences into songs that feel like the end days are nigh…well, it’s striking to the point of jaw-dropping. To say that LLNN make a very strong first impression is an understatement. Once you get past that though, what remains is a collection of well-written songs that keep drawing you back to their dark swallowing embrace.

Unmaker is the sound of civilisations ending. As a herald of the end of days this album works perfectly. It’s a crushing display of songwriting skill and atmospheric mastery. Unmaker is a nightmare given form, and I can’t recommend it enough. Experience the end with LLNN.