This is Neurosis’ first album without longtime vocalist Scott Kelly, who publicly resigned from the band in 2022, when he publicly confessed to “emotional, financial, verbal and physical abuse” towards his family. He had actually been fired in 2019 for undisclosed reasons, which came to light through his public admission of abuse. In his place, the album features Aaron Turner of fellow post-metal architects Isis and Sumac on vocals.

Speaking of his feelings towards the new project, Turner said that “from the moment I first heard Neurosis over 30 years ago, I felt this was the music my heart and mind had been seeking but not yet heard”, declaring that he feels happy with the band’s trajectory.

The general theme of the album is the climate crisis and humanity’s impact upon the earth, suitable for a band who have made a career out of grand soundscapes which carry natural undertones. Speaking of the album’s theme, Neurosis released a statement declaring that “it is enough to cause you to completely lose your mind if you can’t find release or catharsis. This strange emotionally charged music has always been our method of trying to survive this and this is what we’ve always been singing about… this was now or never”.

The album sonically fits in well with their wider discography, with huge sonic experimentation and emotional vulnerability paired with heavy riffs and abstract, occasionally sludgy, effects. Beginning with a distant piece, the title track, which contains only vocals, the album fully kicks in with track two and the dense riffage of ‘Mirror Deep’. Across the hour-length run time, the band continue with a modern version of their classic sound.

Neurosis began life as a markedly different band. Their first album, 1987’s ‘Pain of Mind’, is a crust punk release. By 1992’s ‘Souls at Zero’, they had begun including more progressive and sludgy elements into the sound, taken to new heights on 1996’s ‘Through Silver in Blood’, often hailed as a landmark release in the evolution of the dreamy yet crushing post-metal that followed in the coming years. With Kelly’s departure, now known to have taken place in 2019, the band began a period of hiatus, saying that “in due course, when it’s appropriate, we will provide more information about our future musical endeavors, but that time is not now.”

With the release of the album and their return to music, the band have also announced their presence at this year’s Fire in the Mountains festival in Montana in aid of teenage suicide awareness. Steve von Till, the band’s guitarist, said that “last year’s Fire in the Mountains festival was the most profound music event I have ever been a part of. The weekend took on a healing, cathartic ceremonial nature that is difficult to put into words. Using emotionally heavy music to build community and collectively stare darkness in the eye is something we have always believed in”.

Showing their displeasure with convention from the outset, Neurosis revealed what would become an instinct for transformation in sound and scope. Over the collective’s past eleven albums and their memorable live shows, the band has invited audiences to join them on the path their music carved. The band have advanced beyond remarkable, instead the have become unforgettable.

Formed in 1985, Neurosis have revelled in the unpredictable and embraced the unknown possibility of where their music would take them. Meanwhile, Supersonic, for fifteen years, has been guided by the same adventurous spirit, and fiercely independent principles, playing host to ground-breaking musicians and artists from around the globe including: LCD Soundsytem, Anna Von Hausswolff, Holly Herndon and The Bug, Goblin, SUNN O))), Jenny Hval, Godflesh, Mogwai, Gazelle Twin, Moor Mother, and Shirley Collins. This year sees Supersonic fulfil a life-long ambition, of welcoming, Neurosis, to Birmingham next July.

Speaking about their forthcoming headline performance, at Supersonic, Neurosis’ Steve Von Till said, “It’s been a long time coming, but finally Neurosis is teaming up with the folks at Supersonic for a special event in Birmingham, a holy land for heavy music. We have known Supersonic to be kindred spirits since we first met years ago to discuss our mutual commitment to supporting independent, emotionally intense artists. Their line-up over the years has mirrored our own appreciation for eclectic sound with a depth of spirit and passion, creating a platform for some of the most interesting and inspired artists around. This is not to be missed.”

We’re so excited to announce that for our 15th edition of Supersonic Festival we have special guests @neurosisoakland performing
weekend tickets now on sale https://t.co/opefWrNFXg
Get them while you can!!! pic.twitter.com/8N3BB8WUFU

— supersonic festival (@supersonicfest) 28 November 2018

Supersonic Festival 2019 will run in parallel with a major Home Of Metal exhibit — celebrating the forefathers of metal — Black Sabbath. This immersive exhibition will feature portraits from the Home of Metal Black Sabbath fan archive, historical photos, ephemera, and memorabilia sourced directly from the band members, joining the dots between music, social history, visual art, and fan cultures to produce a new perspective on heavy metal. One that is celebratory, eschews notions of high/low art and joins audiences and performers together. See more on Supersonic Festival HERE and HERE.

Supersonic Festival, started out as a one-day event in Birmingham in 2003, was curated and produced by Capsule, an internationally renowned experimental music and arts festival. The festival occupies an exalted position at the heart of Birmingham’s cultural life, and it also attracts an international audience.

The festival has been named as the UK’s premier experimental music festival, with rave reviews from The Independent, Arts Desk and The Quietus to name but a few, and topping The Guardian’s Guide to the best experimental music festivals in Europe. It brings together live performances by some of the worlds most extraordinary artists, visual art, and audience participation to create a legendary one-of-a-kind festival. 

Photo credit: Raymond Flotat

On September 23rd Neurosis will release their eleventh full-length studio album entitled Fires Within Fires following the 2012 Honor Found in Decay. Neurosis celebrated their 30th anniversary with three shows in San Francisco and two at the prestigious Roadburn festival. Presently Neurosis are touring Europe throughout August, see dates below:

10/8 – Brutal Assault Festival – Jaromer, CZ
11/8 – Festa Radio Onda D’Urto – Brescia, IT
12/8 – Rock Altitude Festival – Le Locle, CH
13/8 – Oya Festival – Oslo, NO
14/8 – Arena – Vienna, AT
15/8 – UT Connewitz – Leipzig, DE
16/8 – Gruenspan – Hamburg, DE
17/8 – Patronaat – Haarlem, NL
18/8 – Pukkelpop Festival – Hasselt, BE
19/8 – Substage – Karlsruhe, DE
20/8 – Motocultor Festival – St. Nolff, FR
21/8 – Amplifest – Porto, PT
7/11 – Koko – London, UK
8/11 – Koko – London, UK

When the release date of Fires With Fires was announced at the beginning of August, the band’s press release described in a highly unique way:

In true Ouroborean style, Fires Within Fires gives due to its predecessors while progressing forward into the unfamiliar and formidable. Striking NEUROSIS’s signature balance between light and dark, beauty and repulsion, dense sonic heaviness and reflective space. Fires Within Fires is succinct, raw and deeply soulful, an all-encompassing reminder to all that transfiguration in sound remains their most commanding and inimitable strength. Our first and only glimpse of the music on this record, prior to release date, is sampled in a new video which has emerged, here you can also marvel at the exquisite album artwork from the renowned Thomas Hooper.

Formed in 1985 – Pain of Mind being their debut album in 1987 – this new album and tour will be a welcome return for diehard fans who will see the three original members: Scott Kelly (lead vocals/guitar), Dave Edwardson (bass), and Jason Roeder (drums).

See the album video below: