at first listen, sulfur surfer may come off as a confusing and chaotic project, due to its paradoxical lyrics and jittery instrumentals and even its overstimulating cover art. there is, nonetheless, an incredibly intriguing quality to it; a sensation that such a maximalist approach was all part of the plan. with this post i want to share some thoughts i had while listening, in the hopes of providing a skeleton key of sorts that could make the album more endearing.

one of the most immediate aspects of sulfur surfer is that it contains moltitudes. whitearmor’s beats are multifaceted and incorporate glitchy influences, neofolk guitars, a demented and corrupted version of hyperpop, and occasional black metal screams by bladee. as for the cover, it showcases different styles and symbols - a face-painted, bladee-fied ken doll wearing surf shorts and a pagan pendant, a part of the “om” symbol, illegible graffiti, “bladee” written in a frutiger metro style, a shard of the philosopher’s stone and, most of all, an onslaught of bright colors that’s very difficult to parse. how are all these things related? how can these exist simultaneously without contradiction?

“surfing on the yellow lake of black fire - neither good nor evil, terrified to die and thus purify. dual and torn - riding the waves between ecstasy and madness - overflowing with joy and sadness. unable to commit to one side, afraid to live, afraid to die. but in the dark trench lies transcendence. the end is not the end. out of the ashes the sulfur surfer will rise again, in oneness in light - a new and fully integrated night - a beautiful martyr. encompassed by cruel compassion he embarks on his holy hawaiian mission guided by intuition, in imperfect inspiration a glimmer opposing damnation. enshrined by grace in a world so strange. alive afraid, baptized in rain. through dark mirrors ascend - into brimstone and flame, to return once again to his essence.”

the non-diegetic narrator sheds some light into the record’s core ideas. the surfer character - accompanied by a bright and floral hawaiian aesthetic - is surfing between ecstasy and madness, joy and sadness, life and death. his position is in the middle of it all: such an equilibrium is obtained by staying afloat and dominating the sulfur which, in alchemical tradition, represents the soul.

the continuous contradictions in style and lyrics are reflective of the sulfur surfer’s battle against the opposing forces of existence. on one track bladee might sound full of hatred and on another he might advocate for love, or he might sound full of himself just to downplay himself right after, and so on. references to dragonball, the dark knight rises and terminator are balanced by references to dante’s commedia and christian figures like saint george the martyr - who’s especially important in the record’s storytelling. saint george slayed the dragon in order to save the princess, and likewise the sulfur surfer must overcome the soul - and the pain it brings - in order to reach his goals: “i hereby declare war on the evil star, i demand its defeat / i am the upholder of divine law, holder of the golden chainsaw / with the violent nine in mind I shall with violent kindness / correct all wrongs”.

the album manages to channel this chaotic energy not only lyrically but musically too; the absence of hooks makes it so there’s no privileged musical moment, and the sound palette is colorful and dark at the same time. the main difference between this album’s sound and all his other records is a predilection towards glitchy, skittering drums and melodies; listen to the pops in versailles flow that sound like a blown out speaker, or the crunchy buzzing synths throughout durin’s bane. the sound design is at the same time crammed and spacious but subsequent listens reveal a great level of intricacy. i recommend focusing on single sound elements and following their evolution throughout. there’s an insane amount of detail - check for example for the faint knocking sound on the right channel of stoner.

it’s hard to wrap one’s head around this record, which is certainly unique in bladee’s already varied catalogue; it’s mystifying and weird, an artifact. the surfer’s mission is no easy feat and the waves are turbulent, but if there’s one thing that comes across clearly, it’s that he must continue propelling himself forward.