SEVEN)SUNS: classical music disruptors reimagine The Dillinger Escape Plan's entire "One of Us Is the Killer" album
With 2023 marking the tenth anniversary of The Dillinger Escape Plan's monumental fifth album, One of Us Is the Killer, classical music disruptors Seven)Suns have reinterpreted the entire masterpiece, start to finish, as eleven new pieces, arranged for violin, viola, and cello. The album will be released on Silent Pendulum Records on September 29th.
Seven)Suns founder Earl Maneein – a world-class violinist whose resumé includes performances with Jay-Z and Rihanna, and whom Metallica’s Robert Trujillo has stated to be “a kick ass player who pushes the creative boundaries” – describes his own group’s sound as “dystopian music rooted in the language of avant-metal and hardcore, played by a string quartet.” Based in New York City, the quartet consists of Maneein on violin, Adda Kridler on violin, Fung Chern Hwei on viola, and Jennifer DeVore on cello.
Known for inventing a new musical language, Seven)Suns has broken boundaries in both the metal and classical music worlds. While their core repertoire is original music written by Maneein, the group incorporates songs from metal and punk bands into its set list as well as Western composers such as Arvo Pärt and Hildegard Von Bingen.
Seven)Suns’ collaborations with The Dillinger Escape Plan date back to 2015 when Maneein and his gang grabbed the attention of TDEP’s Ben Weinman with their cover of the band's odd-time mosh anthem, “43% Burnt.” Impressed, Weinman invited Seven)Suns to perform on two songs on TDEP's final album, Dissociation, and he released their debut album, For The Hearts Still Beating, on his label, Party Smasher Inc.
The alliance continued to grow: Seven)Suns performed live at TDEP's farewell shows in NYC in December 2017 and the group worked with TDEP drummer Billy Rymer on a track on his band Thoughtcrimes’ debut album.
Maneein says the concept for Seven)Suns' reimagining of One of Us Is the Killer grew out of a conversation with Weinman during the peak of the pandemic. “I figured transcribing some of the craziest music from one of the craziest bands ever was a good way to pass the time,” he states.
With Maneein and Fung creating string arrangements for all eleven of the dizzying songs, recording commenced at Backroom Studios in Rockaway, NJ, with TDEP guitarist Kevin Antreassian at the helm. The album was mixed and mastered by Joseph Spiller.
Metal Injection’s review of the original album in 2013 stated: "One of Us Is the Killer proves that Dillinger Escape Plan are still, and always will be, some of the best jazz musicians out there, making some of the most standout metal that no band on Earth can emulate with such composure." Metal Hammer called it “the pinnacle of their career to date." As evidenced by the first single, "Understanding Decay," Seven)Suns' approach to TDEP's material is electrifying. Using the language of classical music, Maneein, Kridler, Fung, and DeVore bring new fire and ferocity to the music. TDEP shattered boundaries ten years ago and now Seven)Suns have delivered a brand new shattering.
The group's other recent forays in the metal world include collabs with experimental black metal troupe Imperial Triumphant (on a track also featuring the talents of sax god Kenny G) and post-metal visionaries So Hideous.
Tracklist:
1) Prancer
2) When I Lost My Bet
3) One of Us Is the Killer
4) Hero of the Soviet Union
5) Nothing's Funny
6) Understanding Decay
7) Paranoia Shields
8) CH 375 268 277 ARS
9) Magic That I Held You Prisoner
10) Crossburner
11) The Threat Posed by Nuclear Weapons
Photo by John DeVore
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