Alejandro Jodorowsky’s The Holy Mountain stands as a paragon within the canon of surrealist cinema. It is a visually intense, symbolically rich journey that critiques organized religion, societal hierarchies, and the existential search for meaning through the esoteric and profane. Its labyrinthine narrative has long invited both veneration and bewilderment amongst viewers and critics alike.
Known for their live intensity and aurel alchemy, London-based Japanese psych-rock group Bo Ningen’s The Holy Mountain Live Score provides a striking, layered reinterpretation of this iconic film. The 23-track album is a sonic commentary on Jodorowsky's magnum opus that mirrors its relentless deconstruction of identity and spirituality, transforming its iconic visual intensity into equally visceral soundscapes. On November 28, Bo Ningen will bring these soundscapes to Bucharest as they join Psych Kicks – a two-day psych-rock extravaganza hosted by Control Club.
At the heart of The Holy Mountain is the quest for spiritual wholeness. The protagonist is guided by The Alchemist through a series of symbolic tests. In Jungian psychology, such individuation is a transformative process marked by trials that bring one face-to-face with the shadow self, ultimately leading to self-realization. Through mystique and anticipation, The Alchemist summons his role as the gateway to this hidden wisdom. The track's haunting drones pull us into an altered state between the ordinary and the transcendental.
With brief but intense sound bursts, Encounter encapsulates the protagonist’s abrupt confrontation with urban world absurdity. It is a potent interlude into a society's chaotic, grotesque imagery of moral decay. In the following track, City 1: The Capital, Bo Ningen channels themes of excess and moral bankruptcy through jarring, metallic sounds and avant-garde jazz in an almost satirical depiction of societal hierarchies, consumerist obsession, and militarism.
In Wax Dummies, Bo Ningen paralles the film’s titular wax statues—embodiments of empty idols and false enlightenment. The song’s dissonant riffs evoke a warped serenity that cracks under pressure. Recalling Baudrillard’s concept of simulacra, this is a world where spirituality is co-opted by image-making, where identity and essence become mere commodities.
Ascension introduces an ethereal climb toward enlightenment, echoing the film’s pivotal moment when The Alchemist and Co. embark on their physical and metaphysical ascent up the Holy Mountain. With a gradual, almost hypnotic escalation, this composition suggests physical elevation and inner transformation as the characters begin to shed their worldly identities—a rebirth through trials. Ultimately, the ascension turns into transformation. Across the following two tracks, Bo Ningen comments on the dissolution of the ego, a process central to the film's philosophical underpin.
As the journey progresses through the planets, the next few compositions reflect the film’s use of planetary archetypes as stages of spiritual evolution. With a sensual structure, Venus captures the essence of beauty, love, and sensuality. Mars, on the other hand, unleashes percussive aggression and sharp discord. Jupiter, meanwhile, opens into a more expansive, contemplative, and almost regal sounds that suggest the characters’ encounter with the realm of ambition and pride.
Saturn 1 and Saturn 2 dive into the depths of limited time and Saturn’s role as a gatekeeper in the journey of self-realization. Bo Ningen’s slow but intensely performed repetitions resonate with the film’s theme of karmic cycles and personal responsibility.
The album's final act kicks off with Gathering, a brief piece that signifies the culmination of the convergence of the characters. Journey stands as the album's centerpiece. In this ten-minute odyssey, Bo Ningen weaves previous motifs into the film's denouement.
Pantheon Bar introduces revelry and celebration. Its jubilant melodies reflecting the communal aspect of this spiritual journey. This track reminds us that enlightenment is not a solitary pursuit but a shared experience.
The Climbing is the final push to enlightenment. This nine-minute crescendo is filled with both anticipation and tension. The track’s gradual rise and subsequent resolution parallel the film’s climactic moments as the group approaches the summit, only to encounter the revelation—or anti-revelation—awaiting.
Bo Ningen’s The Holy Mountain Live Score ultimately deepens the classic film’s philosophical provocations. Through distinctively dissonant compositions, they offer a cohesive counterpart to The Holy Mountain’s critique of materialism, spiritual emptiness, and the eternal quest for meaning.
