''The Witness'' is a 2021 album by Canadian rock band

Suuns Suuns () is a Canadian rock band from Montreal. It was formed in mid-2007 when vocalist and guitarist Ben Shemie and guitarist and bassist Joe Yarmush got together to make some beats which quickly evolved into a few songs. The duo was soon join ...

, released on September 3, 2021, by

Joyful Noise Recordings Joyful Noise Recordings is an independent record label from Indianapolis, Indiana. The label was founded in 2003 in Bloomington, Indiana by Karl Hofstetter, who also played drums on many of the label's first releases. Joyful Noise maintains an a ...

and

Secret City Records Secret City Records is a Canadian independent record label based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The music label was founded in 2006 by Andrew Rose and Justin West, originally as sublabel of Justin Time Records. It became fully independent in late ...

. The album was recorded from December 2019 through September 2020 at

Breakglass Studios Breakglass Studios is a Canadian analogue and digital recording studio established in 2005. Co-founded by producer Dave Smith and Jace Lasek, the studio space is located in the Le Plateau-Mont-Royal area of Montreal, Quebec. Since its inceptio ...

, with additional tracking at Studio Toute Garnie, both in Montreal.

Reception

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

''s Phillipe Roberts called ''The Witness'' Suuns' "most cohesive album yet, the first that never gets lost in its own dark gravity", and that the album "unlocks a parallel universe for the band, and though Suuns are still sculpting monoliths to paranoia, to hear them chipping away with such steady hands is a welcome treat." ''

Loud and Quiet ''Loud and Quiet'' is a British bi-monthly music magazine that focuses on new music from underground indie, alternative, electronic and hip hop artists. History and profile The magazine was founded in January 2005 by Stuart Stubbs as a home-print ...

''s Zara Hedderman called the album "immediately immersive" and "an excellent and engrossing record" on which the band includes "more patience and consideration applied to their performances." ''

The Line of Best Fit ''The Line of Best Fit'' is an independent online magazine based in London, concentrating on new music. It publishes independent music reviews, features, interview, and media. Founded by Richard Thane in February 2007 and currently edited by P ...

''s Aymeric Dubois wrote that "''The Witness'' has the power to guide you in a sensory journey where abstract, psychedelic, futuristic or exoticism are mixed", but that "the only small thorn lies in the melodies and vocals, sometimes too shy or idealistic to sublimate the whole." ''Dusted''s Tim Clarke wrote that "The more you listen to ''The Witness'', the harder it is to grasp. There’s no denying that its elusive character is part of its charm, but there are stretches where it feels more evasive than elusive, stubbornly refusing to engage more directly." ''

Beats Per Minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ( ...

''s Tim Sentz wrote "Continuing down the path they set out on with 2016's '' Hold/Still'', Canada's Suuns have finally, it seems, arrived at a rewarding destination on their latest, ''The Witness'' - an immersive electronic abyss" and that producer

John Congleton John Congleton is an American Grammy Award-winning record producer, engineer, mixer, writer and musician. In addition to his production work, Congleton has fronted the alternative rock band the Paper Chase, and writes music for a newer project e ...

helps "to uncover crevices of Suuns' noise potential", but that "Some of the lacking aspects of their previous record have carried over, albeit minutely" and "While ''The Witness'' is a certain improvement from ''

Felt Felt is a textile material that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers together. Felt can be made of natural fibers such as wool or animal fur, or from synthetic fibers such as petroleum-based acrylic or acrylonitrile or wood ...

'', it remains a bit mixed", concluding by calling the project "a serviceable

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

album, one that ends up as an interesting listen but with little to pull us back to it." AllMusic's Fred Thomas called the album "a consumptive listening experience, designed with precision and purpose in the same way as the immersive albums that came before it by Portishead,

Talk Talk Talk Talk were an English band formed in 1981, led by Mark Hollis (vocals, guitar, piano), Lee Harris (drummer), Lee Harris (drums), and Paul Webb (bass). The group achieved early chart success with the synth-pop singles "Talk Talk (Talk Talk s ...

Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...

, and other artists willing to take their time systematically disassembling and rebuilding their music."

Year-end lists

Track listing

Personnel

*All songs written and performed by SUUNS. *

– producer, mixer *

Jace Lasek Jace Lasek is a Canadian musician and producer living in Montreal. He and his wife Olga Goreas are the principal songwriters for the Montreal-based indie rock band The Besnard Lakes. Lasek plays guitar, bass, drums and keyboards. He is also the b ...

– engineer, mixer (track 4) *Ryan Morey – mastering *Max Henry – synth (tracks 2, 4, 7) *

Mathieu Charbonneau Avec pas d'casque is a folk music, folk band from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, composed of members Stéphane Lafleur, Joël Vaudreuil, Nicolas Moussette, and Mathieu Charbonneau. The band's French language, French name literally means "with no hocke ...

– synth (tracks 1, 3, 5) *Erik Hove – saxophone, flute (tracks 1, 5) *Studio Safar – design *

Myriam Boulos Myriam Boulos (ميريم بولس) (born 1992) is a Lebanon, Lebanese documentary photographer and artist. Her work has been published in ''Vogue (magazine), Vogue, Time (magazine), Time,'' and ''Vanity Fair (magazine), Vanity Fair'', among other ...

– cover photo

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Witness (Suuns album), The 2021 albums Suuns albums Joyful Noise Recordings albums Albums produced by John Congleton Post-punk albums by Canadian artists Post-rock albums by Canadian artists Krautrock albums