Staff Pick: Sumac - The Healer

What they say: Sumac doubles down on everything that made them one of the most fascinating metal bands in recent memory. Grimier chords, longer and weirder freeform jams, utterly confounding rhythms, seismic heaviness, and profound humanity at its core—all sharpened for maximum effect. - Pitchfork

What we say: They're not a supergroup, but what else do you call the heaviest slabs of metal made by members of Old Man Gloom, Russian Circles, and Baptists? Where the past power of their music came from the raw crunch of their rough-edged sound, this newest for Thrill Jockey is charged with crystal clear volleys of sculpted noise. This is still very much a music of balancing between ascending onslaughts and diving into lulls of murky ambiguity. - Jefferson