Sunn O))) at Serralves: A Cosmic Drone Metal Journey in Porto

Sunn O))) at Serralves: A Cosmic Drone Metal Journey in Porto

Last Friday, July 10, American drone metal pioneers Sunn O))) performed at Fundação Serralves in Porto as part of the European tour supporting their self-titled new album, released in April this year.
Seven years after their previous release, they once again delivered overwhelming sonic weight.

Sunn O))) (full gallery below)

Doors opened and a sea of black gradually filled the iconic Tennis Court. Fans and curious newcomers alike waited eagerly for the duo. “It’s going to be a journey, get ready!” and “Watch your ears,” could be heard among the crowd.
The excitement and anticipation were unmistakable.

At the precise hour, a dense wave of fog engulfed the venue. Cheers and applause quickly gave way to silence. The concert had begun, and so the journey into the cosmos.

The Tennis Court proved to be the perfect setting. Surrounded by trees beneath a clear night sky, it made the experience even more immersive. Art presented in a House of Art.

The very first riff made everything vibrate-everything. The ground, the body, the very core of your being. Faces of astonishment, wide smiles, and dropped jaws were the audience’s immediate response.

For 90 minutes, the venue ceased to be a tennis court and became outer space itself, with the audience transformed into tiny particles drifting through it.
Stephen O’Malley and Greg Anderson were almost completely lost in the dense fog; only the hoods of their black robes and their hands, rising in astonishingly perfect unison, remained visible.

Although their music may appear monotonous to the uninitiated, the truth is that time-or any sense of it-simply disappeared.
The guitars and crushing distortion echoed through the mind while sending waves through the body, drawing the audience into something close to a meditative state.

Seeing Sunn O))) live is not for the faint-hearted.
Many describe it as an endurance test, and not without reason: around a dozen amplifiers pumped out low frequencies ranging from 20 Hz to 60 Hz at an astonishing volume.
The sound was not merely heard-it was felt throughout the body and mind.
Some people moved away from the stage, while others simply gave up and left the audience.

Stephen O’Malley and Greg Anderson delivered far more than a concert.
They created an experience: a journey through the layers of the atmosphere and into a universe of sensations and emotions.

Text by Lara Brito | Photos by Ricardo Silva