SOUVARIS
A Hat
(Gringo)

DEFCON 4
The Bad Road
(Supernova)

HAIL! HORNET
S/T
(Dwell)

EVOKEN
A Caress of the Void
(I Hate)

NORTHERN LIBERTIES
Ghost Mind Electricity
(Badmaster)

GEZOLEEN
Black Spaces Between Stars 

(Acerbic Noise Development)

LARKIN
Every Day Begs the Question

(Mother Should Know)

MORE REVIEWS

At this juncture little can be said that hasn’t already been reported, said and written about a couple of hundred times. Neurosis will come down in history as trailblazers. Arguably the first to expand on a scene that was too obsessed with hardened sounds, this Oakland combo found a more subtle and thoughtful way to approach brutality. Their music would require patience and perhaps a bit of introspection form the listener. And surely, in the beginning things weren’t as easy. Coming down as critic’s darlings did very little for the fans, who in these fields of music usually opt for the easiest and more immediate compensation, but time has given Neurosis the benefit to be able to play up to many different audiences.

One of the most memorable live experiences I have is of seeing Neurosis open up for Cannibal Corpse. During their set people didn’t beat each other up. A few seemed zombified, clumsily standing on their feet letting their bodies move in all directions as if the roof had been taken off and wind was shaping up a vortex. My head bubbled non-stop during their show, by the end of it I had a massive headache and couldn’t have cared less if Cannibal Corpse had cancelled right there. I still would have gone home a happy camper.

By now there are non-believers. Those who opt to stay away have their reasons, we know they are just chickens. Given to the Rising, Neurosis’ latest sonic assault, does indeed show a new side to the band. Think not of a reinvention but of a step, arguably sideways or forward, into a more direct sound. The songs waste little time to display heavy volumes, and build ups move from heavy to heavier. At its core, Neurosis’s sound remains tacit; the guitars are simple but layered and carefully built at the core of a massive wall of sound. The drums never dropping into 4/4 patterns stand in mid air, as if awaiting for the sound to take off.  Blunt psychedelia for the first time seems to be sipping in, “Fear and Sickness” has sci-fi filtered vocals, for lack of a better term. Once again ‘engineered’ by Steve Albini (this is their fifth work together) Given to the Rising sounds like the band grew tired of pacing around and view in deafening deep tones a way to grow in mechanics. Vocals are reticent, when delivered assured but for the most part the music does the talking. What do I like the best? The fact that the band is able to convey so many emotions while keeping that heavy guitar tone turned up to 11.

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