Evolution has been a constant throughout Baroness’ 20-year career. Shifting from underground sludge metal heroes to indie rock experimentalists, the band has become increasingly difficult to classify. Throughout this tenure, vocalist-guitarist John Dyer Baizley was Baroness’ lone consistent member until the release of their sixth album on Sept. 15. For the first time, Baroness’ lineup remained the same across two consecutive records: guitarist and vocalist Gina Gleason, bassist Nick Jost and drummer Sebastian Thomson all played on “Gold & Grey” (2019), and they are here to stay on “Stone.”
This continuity plays a large part in making the album an unequivocal triumph. Baroness has never sounded more cohesive, clear and creative, as each member delivers masterful performances. Inspired by a countless array of genres, the band has always aspired to push heavy music into undefined territories, and this lineup’s sheer talent allows them to do exactly that more effectively than ever before.
While “Stone” is not a concept album, it opens with a tranquil folk interlude called “Embers.” The song’s harmonized vocals and disquieting acoustics are referenced throughout the record on tracks like “The Dirge” and “Bloom.” Beginning with a plea to “Leave me a simple life,” the opening track explodes into the album’s lead single, “Last Word,” a heavy, churning and urgent slab of melodic metal. Baizley and Gleason’s dual vocal harmonies helm the forlorn chorus, outlining the album’s preoccupation with loss.
Instrumentally, “Last Word” stands out due to Gleason’s heavily distorted, shredding guitar solo that switches from on to off-beat in a way that echoes the track’s emotional instability. Baizley and Gleason’s guitars also continue to command the spotlight on “Beneath the Rose,” but it is not long before Thomson’s perfectly-constructed drum fills become the focal point of one of Baroness’ best songs to date. Built on metal’s trademarks, the track evolves from a straightforward heavy anthem into a combination of gruff southern rock and intricate art rock, setting up a bridge section in which every second sounds stunning. It is here that Jost’s basslines become unforgettable, echoing vocal and guitar lines before they’re played — driving “Beneath the Rose” headlong into a crushing finale that leads directly into “Choir.”
Baroness has never written anything like “Choir,” a shapeless exploration jam-packed with haunting musicianship and bizarre spoken-word poetry. Each time the track seems like it is moving towards a typical eruption of heaviness, it ignores the impulse and instead becomes even more unsettling. Drums crash and voices distort as the listener is left to make sense of abstract poetry.
“I wander through your garden / On bones of broken glass / To chew your shining halo / With teeth of molten wax,” Baizley grumbles.
Just when it seems like “Stone” has reached its most unpredictable point, “Choir” suddenly becomes “The Dirge,” a one-minute callback to “Embers” produced like a lost recording of a folk song played through time-worn speakers. These odd switch-ups differentiate “Stone” from previous Baroness albums. Genres and styles shift without warning, while atmospheres materialize and dissolve in seconds. The sixth song, “Anodyne,” continues to embody this tendency, punctuating the weirdness of “Choir” and “The Dirge” with the most radio-ready, anthemic and heavy songwriting on “Stone.” Strong enough to stand alone, but made more satisfying by the unpredictability of the preceding tracks, “Anodyne” represents a turning point.
The following tracks — “Shine,” “Magnolia” and “Under the Wheel” — are by no means conventional, but their structures find roots in cinematic power ballads of the past. Starting slow, ramping up into heaviness, coming back down and then returning to heaviness again, these songs might follow similar progressions, but they are a testament to Baroness’ range that they each sound unique.
Given the first half of the record’s volatility, the three songs are a welcome shift in energy — even as they experiment in subtler but just as arresting ways. “Shine” takes its time to accelerate and decelerate, while “Magnolia” moves through different acts of softness and heaviness. “Under the Wheel” also possesses bone-rattling moments, courtesy of Baizley’s near-growled vocals and an emphasis on crushing guitar riffs. As the three songs made clear, no mood or sound is outside Baroness’ grasp, linking themselves together with the band’s most balanced writing to date.
“Bloom,” the album’s acoustic closing track, arrives at the perfect time. It allows the sludge-infused cacophony of “Under the Wheel” to find its natural resolution where it began in “Embers.” Where “Embers” and “The Dirge” showcased the band’s Appalachian and western folk acumen in one-minute segments, “Bloom” elaborates, expanding these interludes into a full-fledged lament.
When “Stone” trails off on its final note, it is jarring. Despite being a 10-song, 46-minute album, its runtime seems deceptively short — and that is a great problem to have. Tracks like “Choir” could have been more interesting and fleshed out with a longer runtime, and “The Dirge” had all the makings of a full-length song. Even then, the length and placement of these songs in the tracklist are justified. Would “Choir” have overstayed its shocking welcome with an expanded runtime? Would “The Dirge” lose its impact as a fleeting moment of peace if it was turned into a full song? Questions like these should be taken as indicators of success rather than setbacks. After all, a band that fails to challenge what a song or an album experience should really feel like is not truly pushing themselves beyond their comfort zone. “Stone” makes it clear that Baroness have only just begun unraveling the full extent of their creative powers, and if this lineup of Baizley, Gleason, Jost and Thomson have the fortune of staying together for future releases, there is no telling what the band could achieve.
Baroness is by no means a young band anymore, but somehow, they have charted an entirely new course that makes their future shine brighter than their past. “Stone” has already cemented itself as one of the best, if not the best, Baroness release yet. Only time will tell if this album’s success foreshadows a new creative frontier for one of heavy music’s most vital bands.
