Neurosis - Given to the Rising (Neurot)
3/5
By: Charlie Potter
Neurosis are a woolly mammoth, and that is a fact, plain and simple.
Unfortunately, 'Given to the Rising' finds Neurosis still living in the shadow of their classic 'Times of Grace'. It's a boring and relatively predictable thing to concentrate on, but I get the impression that the current Neurosis psychology is to just make what ever music they want in an uncompromising manner, and whilst the desire to be uncompromising is good, one does get the feeling that there was something more to them around 'Times of Grace', like they knew they were really pushing something as far as it could go.
With all its scary sound manipulation, 'Given to Rising' really does sound remarkably like 'Through Silver in Blood' in places. It's almost as if it's a history of Neurosis, and in providing such a record the band are once again offering further proof that yes, they are pretty much the heaviest band on the planet. If you take heaviness to equal intensity, then here you have all the intensity of 5 orchestras all really going for it, with a bunch of people shouting from the very depths of their souls laid over the top.
There are of course things on 'Given to the Rising' that are new to the band, the most notable of which are the spacey synth sounds, but bear in mind that (especially when one takes in to a account the Tribes of Neurot recordings) Neurosis are no strangers to sound manipulation. The thing that troubles me with Neurosis is that this album is pretty much exactly how I imagined it would be, with very little resembling a surprise thrown in. It could be because now each member has his own side project the band are not taking enough time to push their more unusual ideas on each other, something we've seen happen before with other, similar artists. Neurosis probably had a relatively good time writing this album, something I'm sure they thought was a really positive thing, but one has to wonder, shouldn't they have been constantly arguing, struggling to come up with an album that is better than the sum of its parts, one that was beyond even their own comprehension? After all, they are that sort of band, an incredibly serious band, one making music to heighten your level of thought, to make you really concentrate...
But then one could also ask, am I just getting all funny because this is not the album I wanted it to be? Am I bemoaning it simply because I miss the bagpipes? When you look at it for what it is, 'Given to the Rising' is brilliant, and they've taken the sound manipulation further than they ever have before (the long, intense stretches of sounds are among my favourite bits on it). Also, you could not make this music without caring a massive amount about this music. If you're a stranger to Neurosis, then you'll truly love this album.
If you're an old fan, you'll love this album too - but strangers should still start with 'Times of Grace' or perhaps even 'The Sun That Never Sets, which displayed a bit more by way of an experimental spirit than this LP. My ears will be kept open however, because Neurosis do have a better album in them yet. For now, 'Given to the Rising' quenches a thirst.
Download an MP3 of 'Water Is Not Enough' from 'Given to the Rising' via the Neurosis website HERE.
Artists in this article: Neurosis
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