Thou are a sludge/doom band from the US and this is their sixth album.
Following on from 2018’s immense Magus, Umbilical contains 49 minutes of new music from the very well-regarded Thou. Umbilical takes a different route to heaviness than its predecessor, but is no less effective in achieving its goals.
On Umbilical Thou continue their sludgy doom style, only this time they have embraced their punk and grunge influences to a greater extent. To this end, these new songs are more on the shorter side for the band, are more direct, and more aggressive. Abrasive sludge and malevolent doom still exist as a core part of Thou though, so despair not, as the band’s winning streak for producing compelling, high quality releases is maintained.
Umbilical is raw and harsh. The songs are unforgiving and devastatingly heavy. They are the outward manifestation of a lethal introspective fury, an expression of sonic violence reflecting a deep inner disdain. Atmosphere, nuance, and melody have all been reined in, (although not completely), making way for an increased emphasis on crushing riffs and murderously intense vocals. Like anything though, it’s not quite as simple as that, as Umbilical is certainly not a one-dimensional affair. There’s no denying that in general Umbilical is Thou at their most scathing, yet across its running time there’s also more than enough ideas and sounds to hold the listener’s interest.
Thou have delivered an album of compelling texture and intimate savagery. Umbilical goes for the throat with a precision caustic assault, and the results are punishing.
Essential listening for fans of bands such as Body Void, Burning Witch, Come to Grief, Eyehategod, Indian, Iron Monkey, Lord Mantis, Primitive Man, and Zao.
Wonderbox Metal 