Heavy As A Really Heavy Thing

Seeing as the name of this blog came from a badly mislabeled copy of Given To The Rising, I figured it's only appropriate that I pay homage to my not-actually namesakes by putting up some Neurosis. For those of you unfamiliar, Neurosis began life as a hardcore punk band that began taking influence from doom metal, resulting in a blend that became known as "sludge" metal. I think "sludge metal" sounds really stupid, though, so I refuse to use that term. Yes, I am arbitrary.

Anyway, Neurosis songs tend to follow a pattern of gradual crescendo, rather than traditional verse-chorus structure, driven by the immense guitar riffs of Scott Kelly and Steve Von Till, who also both provide the roaring, raging vocals for the band. Since their early days as a punk band, Neurosis has continued to grow, adding more ambient and tribal elements with time (which eventually led to the side project Tribes of Neurot, but that's for another post). Not to say they've gone soft; rest assured, the band is still capable of crushing skulls and leaving a trail of sonic devastation. According to our trusty friends at the Encyclopedia Metallum, their lyrical themes include "Devastation, Evolution Through Pain, Fire & Chaos." Awesome.

Also, if anyone happens to know where "West of Orion" is actually from, could you please tell me? Unless it's really lame or something.

Pain Of Mind

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Aberration

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The Word As Law

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Souls At Zero

This is the album where the band really begins to take off. More atmospheric and ambient elements begin to show, and the band seems to really find its direction.
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Enemy Of The Sun

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Through Silver In Blood

Man, I don't know what through silver in blood means, but it sounds fucking cool as hell. Also, some people consider this Neurosis' peak; they had the perfect mix of anger and atmospherics. I'm not sure about that, but it's a great album no matter what.
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Times Of Grace

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A Sun That Never Sets

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Neurosis And Jarboe

Former Swans vocalist Jarboe collaborated on this album, which actually leans more towards electronic experimentation than a traditional Neurosis album. Unless you're too meat-headed to apreciate vocals that aren't roared by angry, bearded men, you'll probably like this.
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The Eye Of Every Storm


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Given To The Rising

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One more time!