### Neurosis: Given to the rising

#### 13/06/07 || The Duff

A new Neurosis album, and I gotta tell you, I didn’t think they’d be able to do it again; I mean, they’ve influenced a whole shitload of bands that I’m really into, released a long line of absolutely blinding material, and not only that, but also come out with one of the finest albums I have ever heard with “The Eye of Every Storm”; they definitely had some mighty big shoes to fill, and I just naturally assumed that maybe it was time for them to disappoint for a change. I mean, as soon as I heard they were entering the studio to record this album, I was hard for two weeks solid – that’s how much I anticipated this fucker! And do they disappoint on “Given to the Rising”? Well, yes and no… I mean, it’s fucken Neurosis, fer fuck’s sake! How far off could they be? Well, unfortunately due to their stellar back catalogue, “Given to the Rising” could very well be taken as the band’s first let-down.

So let’s start off with the good: this is without a doubt the most diverse Neurosis album I’ve heard; whereas past efforts have had a common vibe throughout, this one mixes it up like none other – you’ve got some of the heaviest stuff the band has ever recorded (much in the same vein as “Through Silver In Blood”), but you’ve also got some of the quietest material it has ever put to disc (quiet to the point where the bandmembers are hardly playing a fucken thing), and in between these extremes can be found material spanning the band’s entire career. This is like all the Neurossissessesss we know and love, plus a couple of other bits and pieces (that appear taken from the bandmembers’ respective side-projects), all combined to form yet another ambitious evolutionary step in the band’s career. What’s more, as varied as this album is, it still flows from one song to the next in a smooth, almost effortless fashion – a testament to the band’s mastery of its art.

Things open up with a riff that is almost pedestrian in that it is both incredibly simple as well as played with about as much finesse as a handful of rocks to the face, but then everything subsides in true Neurosis fashion to give way to some very mellow stuff the likes of which we’re well accustomed to after having followed the band so faithfully all these years, and by the time said riff kicks in a second time, the listener can’t help but be drawn in. It’s as if the band circumvents what could be perceived as tediously regular and integrates it into their sound so as to render it borderline genius. I don’t know how they do it, but they’ve repeated such a feat time and time again in the past, so I shan’t put it down to luck, and instead put it down to that Neurosis magic and just one of many pluses to the “Given to the Rising” experience. Steve Von Till’s vocals have also really become something magnificent to behold. His bellowing days appear long behind him, yet what he delivers here is most discomforting – only years of alcohol abuse or testicular flailing could have given rise to this persona most wrecked and torn.

Now, as mentioned, not everything on this album is coming up roses. At times, the Neurosis formula to arranging songs becomes a little predictable, and this can at times draw away from the well-thought out, incredibly enriched music which often leaves you breathless and covered in your own cum by making it more than a little obvious as to what to expect with each track. Secondly, one of the verses on “To the Wind”, as much as it may fit in with the rest of the song, does sound somewhat emo (or something equally derogatory – not befitting of the Neurosis name). Some of the quieter parts do tend to drag a little (half of “At the End of the Road” and “Origin”), and two of the tracks (“Shadow” and “Nine”) make things worse by comprising simply a couple of spoken words over some background noise – not nearly as cool as the spoken parts on “Through Silver In Blood”. This means that there isn’t really all that much new material for an album that clocks in at over seventy minutes. Also, the second half of the album doesn’t appear as colorful as the first – as great as some of the songs are, they don’t seem to have as much texture too them as the three openers.

I don’t know yet whether I’ll buy this upon its release, and if I do, it might purely be due to my Neurosis fandom (I mean, you can’t have a band this good excluded from your list of favorites); this is not better than “The Eye of Every Storm”, but it breaks the somewhat “safe” style of said album and returns to the really interesting stuff Neurosis are known for – making guitars sound weird n’ shit. What I can say with absolute certainty is that Neurosis have once again diversified their sound and written yet another strong effort, if a little overshadowed by their past works; for those of you waiting for the release date, this comes as recommended.

7 frighteningly consistent bands out of 10.

- Information
- Released: 2007
- Label: Neurot Recordings
- Website: www.neurosis.com
- Band
- Steve Von Till: vocals, guitars
- Scott Kelly: vocals, guitars
- Dave Edwardson: bass, moog
- Noah Landis: keyboards
- Jason Roeder: drums

- Tracklist
- 01. Given to the rising
- 02. Fear & sickness
- 03. To the wind
- 04. At the end of the road
- 05. Shadow
- 06. Hidden faces
- 07. Water is not enough
- 08. Distil (watching the swarm)
- 09. Nine
- 10. Origin