Every once in a while, I’ll hear a record that ushers me into new revelations, that shift my musical center within the moments of the first song.

Albums like Sunbather, Panopticon, and Palms self-titled album.

Melting Sun as firmly among them.

While plenty of metal bands have plumbed the atmospheric depths of post rock and shoegaze, few manage to capture the same tranquil haziness. Fewer still are able to do that while retaining metal’s heaviness.

Melting Sun is no ordinary metal record though. And Lantlôs (German for “homeland-less”) is no ordinary band.

The German blackgaze outfit started out playing more straightforward black metal, featuring screamed vocals from Alcest’s Neige. But for their third album, bandleader Markus Siegenhort decided he wanted to go in a different direction. He took over (completely non-screamed) vocal duties and created something that had all of the heaviness of their previous work without the harshness.

The song structures are intricate and dynamic. The songs rise and fall in a way that makes Explosions in the Sky feel monotonous. The atmospheres are as lush as any the gauziest shoegaze, drenched with effect-laden guitar, fuzzy bass, and cooing vocals, sounding as if Slowdive tried to play an homage to Black Sabbath.

There are plenty of crushingly heavy moments, but the record is free of menace and malice. Most of the songs are based on a major key. Siegenhort’s vocals are subdued, never indicating pain or despair.

Rather, this record is one of peace. The lyrics speak of transcending our mortal limitations and becoming one with the world around us. He climbs a ladder into nirvana. He dissolves into the blue sky. He becomes a river and floats into the fading of the universe. There is a bittersweetness here, like coming to peace with your own mortality. But at the end of all things, there is great joy.

And through the combination of this joy and the rich sonic palette, Melting Sun is a record that is singular in voice and vision. And while it might not be remembered alongside the greatest records ever made, it definitely deserves the consideration.