Loud, slow and mesmerizing, a not-so-new sound is gaining ground

1990: A Seattle band heavily influenced by the Melvins and featuring an unknown Kurt Cobain records an album. Released by Seattle label Sub Pop, it kick-starts a new genre of music.

Everyone knows this story, right? But before you say Nirvana, "Nevermind," and grunge, think again. The record was "Extra-Capsular Extraction." The name of the band — still going strong — is Earth. And the genre is drone.

2007: The room is boiling and everyone is covered in sweat. They're swaying back and forth with their eyes closed. Some have their hands raised and their mouths open, as if chanting. The music is coming in slow, undulating waves, and the floor vibrates underneath everyone's feet. This feels like a holy revival, but it's actually the band Lesbian playing a local show, mesmerizing the crowd like they do every time they take the stage.

And the sound is deafening.

The music that began with "Extraction" can come in songs from two minutes to more than an hour long, made by the loudest guitars you've ever heard, with sustained notes that change at a snail's pace. Throw out the drums or use them sparingly, don't worry about vocals, and add in ambient textures in an extra layer of sound from the guitars or other instruments. A dense, atmospheric offshoot of heavy metal, drone is described as everything from an operating method to a meditative state.

The length of songs and the lack of vocals makes Billboard's Hot 100 a practical impossibility for any drone song, but this once-underground music has a mainstream of its own. Earth was the focus of artist/filmmaker Seldon Hunt's 2007 documentary "Within the Drone," and thousands of new listeners have been exposed to bands like Sunn0))) (to pronounce it, just say "sun") and Boris through sites such as MySpace and iTunes. Artists such as Kim Thayil of Soundgarden and local songstress Jesse Sykes have recently turned up on drone records, and expensive limited-edition records often sell out in days, if not hours.

Success and growth aside, though, one thing hasn't changed since the early '90s: the musicians' unflinching dedication to the music.

"People are always questing for something new and different," Dylan Carlson, founder and head architect of Earth, theorizes as to drone's newfound popularity. "When you continue to work on something, after a while people think that maybe there's a reason you continue to do it."

And that's exactly what he's done. Through Seattle's grunge explosion and his own personal struggles with drug addiction, Carlson has been playing guitar and crafting epic songs for the past 17 years. With performances that have sometimes been one chord held out for 30 minutes, Earth has never been concerned about being a "radio-friendly" band.

"With rock 'n' roll there's immediate rewards," Carlson said, "but if you're doing something more experimental, the rewards are there, but different."

From the ground up

Growing up with a love of doom metal bands that played slow and tuned their guitars to lower bass notes — like Black Sabbath and the Melvins — Carlson stumbled upon a musician named La Monte Young, who had inspired bands such as the Velvet Underground to simplify their music and utilize sustained notes called drones.

This idea of drone, which has been an integral part of Indian music as well as fundamental to minimalist composters Young and Terry Riley, inspired Carlson to "move it into a rock framework."

At first, though, this approach baffled most audiences. "We were always the odd man out at shows," said Carlson with a laugh. "We were the art band at rock shows and the rock band at art shows." But by 1993, when Sub Pop released the even more experimental "Earth 2," Seattle musicians began to take notice.

"Obviously the first two Earth albums were a huge influence," said Seattle native Greg Anderson. "The spirit, integrity and experimentations of Dylan Carlson continue to be a valid source of inspiration."

Anderson is a metal legend himself, the co-creator of prominent drone label Southern Lord, where Earth now resides, along with drone progenies Boris and Oren Ambarchi. Anderson is also one half of Sunn0))), drone's most visible band.

"I think that with all the stimulus overload that is happening in modern day life people may be subconsciously craving something more pure and minimal," Anderson said by phone from Tokyo, where he and Sunn0))) co-founder Stephen O'Malley stopped during their current world tour. "Drone is exactly that."

Witness that craving, Anderson said, in Boris, the Japanese trio that is Southern Lord's most popular artist. "This heavy, experimental and once-obscure group from Japan has gained so much popularity and attention in the U.S.," Anderson said. "It's amazing."

Beyond metal

Metal has often been an exclusive, inflexible club, but drone bands are constantly reaching out to different musicians and styles.

"I've never listened to metal," admits Steve Moore, pianist and trombonist for Earth. "But with this band I just heard something different." Initially steeped in jazz, Moore has now become a full-time member of Earth and has worked on other drone projects, such as playing trombone with Sunn0))).

"These guys are doing what I've wanted to see jazz do — a new perspective. I think it's a real shift in music."

His conviction led him to reach out to Grammy-winning jazz guitarist Bill Frisell to record on a few songs for the next Earth album "The Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull."

"It was great," Moore said of the collaboration. "From the first note, everyone was excited."

Added Carlson: "[Frisell] just came in and ripped."

So why did a jazz guy work so well on a drone album? "People like Dylan are honest and put their souls out there. I think Bill appreciates that," Moore said.

Newer local drone acts have also refused to compartmentalize music. Explains Brad Mowen from Asva: "I'm almost 40 and have been playing metal since I was 14. But sometimes you want more than pepperoni on your pizza."

Asva's 2005 release, "Futurists Against the Ocean," is the ultimate expression of this concept, with its meld of down-tuned guitars, organs, and haunting female vocals. Fellow member G. Stuart Dahlquist says that rather than the longhaired, beer-swilling metal bands most people associate with their sound, Asva often derives inspiration from genres as varied as Polish folk and chamber music.

Both Mowen and Dahlquist agree, though, on the power of presenting their music loud. "We've played before, and people have just laid down on the floor to feel the vibrations."

Consistent fan base

Another band carrying the torch is Lesbian, whose four-song debut, "Power Hör," stretches for more than an hour in length, seamlessly flowing from tranquil melodies to discordant riffs. The members had previously been in local metal bands, but none that have drawn such consistent and dedicated crowds. Their songs can be described as hypnotic, weaving together moods and creating atmospheres that can carry you away.

"It's therapeutic," said Lesbian bass player Dorando Hodous, with the other three band members nodding in agreement. Added drummer Benjamin Kennedy: "It's not just like you're just listening to songs. It's something visceral."

Behind the scenes, Seattle producer Randall Dunn has helped sculpt the sonic quality of drone. "Metal is one of the last rigid forms of music, and I think it's finally starting to break open," Dunn believes. "I've worked sound for over a hundred Sunn0))) shows in the last year and half, and I've witnessed all these collisions on stage with different musicians. But it never seems out of place. The more open-minded you are, the more you can appreciate it."

And 17 years in, drone music continues to evolve. Even its originator has stripped down his band for something more pastoral and reminiscent of classic American music, while maintaining Earth's signature sound. "Drone allows you to incorporate your own influences," Carlson said. "It's this method that's open to anything."

Shane Mehling: shanemehling@gmail.com