Daughters of the Sun: Ghost With Chains Review
81/100
Daughters of the Sun are a band that can be described in many different ways, but each seems to come back to some form of “psychedelic.” On their latest LP Ghost With Chains, the band mix in their usual exuberant world influenced drumming and spaced out vocals with a more inwards gaze, often sending the listener down a rabbit hole of beeps and twitches. They shed any pretense of traditional pop songwriting structure while enveloping the listener in the tranquil vibes and a spirit of ragged discontent, making Ghost With Chains a great album to lose yourself inside of.
The songs are range from the pulsing drone of album opener “Hexagram” to the nearly euphoric, hypnotic pop bliss of “Moontan.” The last song on Side A, “Truth Given (Dub),” is a warped track that sifts through ambient noise, which makes the breezy, sublime Side B opener “Endless” seem even more charming. The band does an excellent job of mixing up their sound, being dissonant and distant on one track before unleashing a pop gem on the next. While nothing on Ghost with Chains would be mistaken for Top 40 by any stretch of the imagination, when the band step forward from the haze, they do show a knack for creating some pretty great melodies. The band comes closest to bringing together these disparate sounds on the long, winding track “Bell of the Barrier,” which features both spectrum’s of the band’s sound before returning back to earth to wrap up the album with the relatively mellow title cut.
Daughters of the Sun aren’t shooting for the soft middle of the music listening public, so this record shouldn’t be judged based on those assumptions. The seven tracks on Ghost With Chains are experimental in a way that challenges the listener, but centered enough to not lose the listener on the bands wild, celestial journey. If you are willing and able check out and make the trip, it is quite the experience.
-Josh
Buy the record from Not Not Fun HERE
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