Sun Moon Holy Cult is a psychedelic/stoner doom metal band from Tokyo, Japan who formed in 2022. They released a demo in 2023 but this self-titled release is their debut-full length album. And it is utterly fantastic. There is just something about doom with female vocals that always hits the spot. Hakuka’s vocals are out of this world—what a set of pipes!!
Fortunately, the other three members of the band match her intensity and effectiveness. The entire band is definitely hungry for this sound and it shows within their music in a big way. The guitars, bass, drums….it’s all just so massive. I listened to this with headphones on…such a deep, rich sound that seems to go for days. I can’t believe this is their debut album—the band’s synergy is well placed, the members all very obviously comfortable with each other and their chosen style of music. Ame (bass), Bato (drums), and Ryu (guitars) bring it hard.
The album opens with “I Cut Your Throat,” which is as vicious as the title would suggest. The drums hit hard while the riffs just roll over the song like a body being crushed by a steamroller. The bass could be a dimension unto itself–deep, wide, and effective as any other element.
After nearly a minute and a half, the band stops rocking for a second to let the song breathe a little bit. The bass and Hakuka’s vocals lead the way here in between bouts of crashing drums and riffs. The middle segment of the song is spacey and psychedelic, offering a different path for the themes to walk. The build up is excellent, especially the blues infused doom riffs around the 5:30 mark that rock the song out hard until its end.
“Savoordoom,” begins darkly, dredging up riffs that must have been recorded in a deep cavern. The vocals are entrancing, turning the whole song into a hypotonic force that grabs and never lets go. The drums/bass keep the rhythm of the song going strong throughout the journey, ensuring the heavy factor never leaves the mental psychedelic carnage.
The song is nearly 14 minutes long but doesn’t feel like it. It actually feels like a living, breathing creature such is the way in unfurls. After a kickass solo, the drums take center stage before the groove kicks up the tempo a little. This whole part is one giant headbanging movement...then the bass drops around the 9:45 mark and it somehow gets even more intense.
“Mystic River,” is the shortest song on the album and, as such, I believe it gives a solid overview of the album and the band’s sound. I love the bass in the opening as well as the crashing cymbals. The rumbling riffs ride in and out of blues style groove. The whole song is catchy and smooth. Hakuka’s vocals are particularly impressive–she was born to do this, I have no doubt.
The final song is “Out of the Dark,” and opens with a jaunty bass line and impressive riffs. A psychedelic solo cuts through after the two minute mark before the song returns to heavier waters. The vocals let it all hang out, giving one hell of a performance for the song’s last opus. As the song moves along, it gets more out there in terms of spacey and psychedelic themes. But the last few minutes are doomy groove after doomy groove—the ending is absolutely a throttling experience.
All in all, Sun Moon Holy Cult’s self-titled full-length is one hell of a debut album with a lot of depth and fantastic ideas that are pulled expertly and beyond the band’s actual years. A stunning release and highly recommended.
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