When 40 Watt Sun first emerged in 2011 with The Inside Room, it served as a vehicle for Patrick Walker to take some of the ideas that he had explored with Warning and push them into different territory. Warning had captivated a lot of people with their second and final full-length Watching From a Distance, providing weighty and crushing riffs alongside somber vocals that added just as much emotional weight. 40 Watt Sun may have initially had some doom elements, but as time has gone by Walker has left much of the distortion and metallic sheen behind and pivoted towards sparser alternative rock and slowcore that emphasize repetition and emotional vocals. 2022’s Perfect Light is the best example of where Walker’s focus has been in recent years, as it removed the distortion almost entirely in favor of haunting melodies that fell somewhere between alternative rock and darker folk and used the vocals and lyrics as the delivery method for all the emotional impact. Two years after that album, 40 Watt Sun has returned with Little Weight, which bridges the gap between more recent material and the first two full lengths while also offering a more compact passage. It does take a few songs to sink in, but when the sweeping instrumentation reaches its peak Little Weight is truly stunning.
Opener “Pour Your Love” makes it clear that Little Weight is going to come in somewhere between the stripped back sound of Perfect Light and the bigger sound of the first two albums. Where its predecessor opened with soft acoustic guitar, Little Weight immediately hits you with denser layers of distortion that have a warmth to them. The bass and drums move forward at a methodical pace and provide a lot of weight with each note and hit, while the guitars use repeating melodies to build a more somber and introspective tone. It’s not necessarily heading back towards doom levels of heaviness, but those that found Perfect Light a little too soft on the instrumental front are likely to see the material on this album as a happy middle ground. 40 Watt Sun has two major patterns at work this time, as some of the tracks use a consistent and steady drone that lets the layers expand until they reach their peak while others have more of a push and pull approach where the sound drops out and explores some softer textures before the distortion comes booming back in. It’s an effective approach, and while the sound is sure to be familiar to anyone that’s followed Walker and company over the years there are subtle tweaks that give this material its own identity. Admittedly it does take a few songs to get going though, as while “Pour Your Love” and “Half a World Away” are likeable, “Astoria” is where things really take off and the melodies start to get under your skin. The one-two punch of “Closer to Life” and “The Undivided Truth” closes things off in an impressive fashion, as this is where Little Weight reaches its highest peaks and captivates with gloomy yet warm melodies that fully envelop the listener. It’s also worth mentioning that this is 40 Watt Sun’s shortest full-length to date at forty-five minutes compared to the hour plus lengths of the last two, and the brevity allows for the ideas to sprawl without feeling overstretched.
There may be particular sections where the guitar work draws you in, but Patrick Walker’s singing continues to be the focal point of 40 Watt Sun’s music. His approach has changed a bit over the years, but there’s always been an emphasis on drawing out as much emotion as possible and making sure that each verse leaves a lasting impact on the listener. This remains true on Little Weight and the way his voice intertwines with the layers of guitar and bass work is mesmerizing. For those that haven’t experienced this group yet, at certain points it’s comparable to later period Anathema, while other sections find Walker with a pitch not too far from Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder. It’s definitely very grunge at point, which could prove to be hit or miss depending on your tastes, but for me it’s one of the elements that makes this band so appealing. “Closer to Life” in particular has some of the best vocal work as Walker soars with a softer, airier pitch that has stuck with me since the first time through.
40 Watt Sun albums have historically been more spread out and taken five to six years to come together, making the much shorter lead time a pleasant surprise. But this hasn’t impacted the quality, as the hooks are just as strong and the more concise track lengths make Little Weight a bit more digestible compared to its predecessor. It does take a song or two to fully find its footing, but once it does the somber melodies and entrancing vocal work will keep you coming back for some time to come. Slow-burning alternative rock like this is a bit of an acquired taste, but 40 Watt Sun continues to be one of the best modern examples of the style. Little Weight is available from Fisher’s Folly.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg