Review: The Long Hunt ‘Natural Order’
The Long Hunt are from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and are Trevor Richards – guitar, Allison Kacmar Richards – bass and Mark Lyons – drums, with Natural Order marking the trio’s fourth full-length album to date. Prior releases comprise 2022’s Threshold Wanderer, 2018’s All Paths Lead To Here and 2017’s Wilderness Tales.
In case you’d been asleep at the wheel, a track premiere for Spine Of Dusk from the band’s latest record was premiered here on The Shaman back in May. The album was also touched upon in said premiere, a strong emphasis being placed on the fact that this is their fourth record and how the number four is ‘associated with the four elements: earth, air, fire, and water, which are seen as foundational to the world and physical nature. It’s a number often linked to order, structure, and natural cycles, such as the four seasons and the four phases of the moon.’
This suggests an organic, naturalistic feel to the band’s approach, one far removed from the synthesised post-punk and industrial worlds I have been recently inhabiting, thanks in large part to Ministry’s recently released The Squirrely Years as well as my own listening habits.
It Hunts The Shadows is the album’s shortest track at a mere two minutes twenty and embodies the folklore and mysticism common with Led Zeppelin, though, fortunately, due to being an instrumental band, the cringier aspects such as the lyrics are thankfully bypassed. There is some really beautiful melodic guitar work present courtesy of Trevor Richards, which easily rivals that of Messrs Robertson and Gorham of Thin Lizzy. An excellent opener.
The Cosmic Egg alternates between celestial psychedelia and the kind of kickass Sabbathian grooves performed by Sweden’s Saint Karloff, albeit a little more subtle. In an age where that sound has now become ubiquitous, it’s impressive that the band manage to sound so satisfying and original. Assiduous Gnawhas more of a desert rock feel, think vintage Yawning Man and the type of expansiveness that outfit pioneered, with a little space-rock present too, ala contemporaries such as Giöbia. A truly blissful, otherworldly piece.
A truly blissful, otherworldly piece…
The aforementioned Spine Of Dusk has a languid, bluesy sensibility to it, think Eric Clapton or Gary Moore, but with more soul and infinitely less tedium, especially when it comes to the former. Somehow, I don’t see these guys doing an ill-advised cover of I Shot The Sheriff anytime soon. If the harder edged proggy psych of Greeks Naxatras floats your boat, then climb aboard, Tooth And Claw is definitely the track for you. Interestingly, there’s also a grunge tinge which ups the piece and offers a sludgier, darker hue, which is what the relatively tougher sounding title intonates, wondrous.
The Liminal Flow seems to touch on a noise-rock style dissonance, with parts bringing to mind Sonic Youth around their Daydream Nation heyday. Grunge once again also comes to the forefront of my mind, Soundgarden in particular, and the more experimental moments from Badmotorfinger such as Mind Riot. This produces an aurally satisfying and highly effective blend of musical weirdness and heaviness, amen to that I say!
A Narrow Path appears to borrow from a similar sonic palate to Earth, especially on Hex; Or Printing In The Infernal Method. So, drones galore, but ones that are given a Morricone inspired Spaghetti Western backdrop. This affords for a perfectly dust-laden and epic conclusion to the album.
It’s incredible that Natural Order is only a mere thirty-two minutes long, as listening to it, you forget about time, always a good sign of an album truly hitting the spot.
Label: Independent
Band Links: Official | Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Scribed by: Reza Mills
