A stark surprise arrives midway through Not Here Not Gone, the fourth album from ethereal doom quartet Blackwater Holylight. Soon after the guitar feedback of “Heavy, Why?” fades into silence, a distorted techno beat wobbles into that void, like some industrial band’s approximation of dub. The rhythm is a guest spot from Dave Sitek, the TV on the Radio multi-instrumentalist who has made something of a second home at Sonic Ranch, the Texas studio where Blackwater Holylight cut this record. A tide of noise steadily surrounds the beat, two very different forces competing briefly for the same space.
That track, “Giraffe,” may feel like a goof or even a gimmick, a convenient break amid 45 minutes of brawny riffs and martial drums.