Somnuri - Somnuri album review

Whenever you hear the description ‘new American noise-rock trio’ your first question ought to be: are they as good as Unsane? The answer is always ‘no’, but in the case of Brooklyn’s Somnuri, you really shouldn’t hold that against them, or let it ruin your enjoyment – if that’s the word for 40 minutes of acid-washed, kick-to-the-groin noise rock – of their self-titled debut. Ignore, too, their stated intention to write about the struggles of living in New York – which presumably include the difficulties of finding somewhere to have your lumberjack beard trimmed or obtaining a reliable quinoa dealer – and concentrate on the pulverising dirge of their stripped-down, post-Mastodon riffs and red-lining, brute-force dynamics. Beyond the lengthy openers Same Skies is where things truly get threatening; all juddering tempo changes and caustic guitars set to truly spoil your day.