While initially I thought that Luminous Night was a weak follow up to 2007’s Shelter from the Ash, it is obvious from repeated listening sessions that this album is a much more complicated and layered work than Ben Chasny’s previous album. The rich musical tapestry that his group has created here sounds timeless; that inimitable mix of rock, traditional and atmospheric music that sets Chasny and his companions apart from other bands.
Luminous Night feels like a soundtrack more than a traditional album; the scope of feelings and range of the music covered on the album mirror that of a particularly convoluted film. The instrumental “Actaeon’s Fall (Against the Hounds)” that opens the album has a bright, fantastic vibe and it could easily serve as a theme song to one of Jodorowsky’s movies; Ben Chasny’s music has that same sense of wonder and the same revelatory nature as a film like The Holy Mountain.
After the bright introduction, each song becomes progressively darker in mood and content. This gloom combined with the medical theme running through the album (“Anesthesia,” “Cover Your Wounds with the Sky,” etc.) may point to something serious in Chasny’s personal life but whatever that is, he has channelled it into something powerful. During “Ursa Minor” he sings: “This hospital’s no place to say goodbye;” these words combined with Ben’s beautiful acoustic guitar playing makes for a heavy, cathartic moment. The song then disintegrates into recordings of the full band bursting through the walls and the sound of life support machines, creating a deeply emotional and upsetting experience.
Yet, no matter how dark it gets there is always a glimmer of hope shining through. “River of Heaven” recalls Coil’s “Five Minutes After Death” but without the savageness of a murder lurking in the background. Eyvind Kang’s viola lifts this song into a truly spiritual place, riding on the rhythm like a hawk rides on the wind (or like a spirit escaping the body). The hope remains only a glimmer though as the album closes with “Enemies Before the Light,” finishing in a boiling mass of violence. I cannot help but feel that if this was a soundtrack, then this film most certainly does not have a happy ending.
A sad ending is not a bad ending by any means and Luminous Night again shows that Ben Chasny is still operating not just at full strength after over a decade of Six Organs of Admittance. When compared to the massive early years retrospective, RTZ, that came out earlier this year, it is clear hear how Chasny has developed Six Organs. His work over the last few years has come strongly together to make what I feel is one of the most interesting and exciting repertoires in rock music.
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