Ocrilim

Photograph: David Zombe

Even for fans of extreme sounds, Mick Barr’s music is daunting. The guitarist came to prominence in the early aughts as half of the duo Orthrelm, which performed brief, metallic pieces of awesome speed and complexity. The band is known for releases whose mere stats could induce a seizure: 2002’s Asristir Vieldriox crammed 99 tiny tracks into 13 minutes, while 2005’s OV was a single 40-minute work based on marathon repetition. But earlier this year, Barr released a solo full-length that could almost be termed accessible.

Anoint (I and Ear), credited to Ocrilim, is a suite of seven interrelated compositions for overdubbed electric guitar. The disc sounds at once familiar and new: It places Barr’s trademark tone—a piercing treble—and fleet, gnarled lines in a new context, with more varied tempos and use of harmony than ever before. Themes appear in various forms throughout the record, and the whole work displays a marvelous coherence. As challenging as any of Barr’s previous releases, but easier to digest, Anoint is perhaps the best introduction to his aesthetic. Sunday’s show is the first local performance of this material, and the Stone, which combines the intimacy of a rock club with the austerity of a concert hall, is the perfect venue for compositions this visceral and exquisite. — Hank Shteamer