Neurosis

Band Of The Week: Destroy Judas

Image

Creating something epic is no easy task. The dedication it takes to create music with so many moving parts and to be able to connect the lyrics to match is over whelming at times. Luckily there are a few bands that have been able to do that and make it look easy, Neurosis and Isis for example. Destroy Judas is one of those bands. Combining their influences of doom metal, ambient noise, and crust punk, they have created a very deep and thought evoking band. Their debut Wake is full of just what I described. At times it might be construed as depressing but in the most positive of ways. There is a connection between the music and lyrics that really sits well beneath your skin. The drums and bass create a rhythmic foundation that sways and can be earth shattering. The guitars can go from the most subtle sounds to pummeling. The ambient touches really add a dark element that is mixed in perfectly. Vocally the prowess of the growls and soft cleans help guide along the epic nature. The four tracks on the album are all in that vein and unrelenting. The journey that Destroy Judas takes you on is powerful and epic.

 

http://destroyjudas.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/destroyjudas

Neurosis at The Observatory

Image Image

As the fog rolled in on a damp December night in Orange County, it only seemed fitting that the atmospheric pressure would drop as Neurosis came to town. The thunderous Neurosis came back to Southern California for the second time in 2013. This time they rode into Orange County with a mission to obliterate the audience with it’s signature apocalyptic heaviness. Earlier in the year the band decided to stop using any visual aspects in the background as they played, thus leaving 5 members on a dark lit stage. Their new setup really takes things into a different dimension. The songs invoke more use of the audiences imagination and taps into a different part of the psyche. Still riding high on the release of 2012’s Honor Found In Decay, Neurosis’s setlist for the night was one for the books. While playing a few from the newest album, the band tapped back into “A Sun That Never Sets” for the evening. (I’m quite partial to that album, especially “Stones From The Sky,” which closed out the set). Scott Kelly and Steve Von Till carry the beast of the band vocally into the dark sub conscious of the musics being. Their accompanying guitar work on the songs fit perfectly with how Jason Roeder and Dave Edwardson tap into the brooding rhythms, and Noah Landis adds the extra prowess with his ambient landscapes behind the band. The pure energy and emotion that pours throughout the band during their live show is quite a sight. Scott Kelly tends to draw blood during the set, showing that “All we are is blood.” At the end of the night there was no mistaking why Neurosis is one of the most influential bands of the last 20 years. Their mastery of their craft and art is undeniable and reigns true to themselves and the fans.

Before Neurosis took the stage, BL’AST got the audience into a fine frenzy. BL’AST recently reunited and came back with quite a vengeance. Coming off their reissued album “It’s In My Blood” (which was remixed by Dave Grohl), and armed with Nick Oliveri playing bass for the band live, BL’AST delivered a very hardcore set. Cliff Dinsmore despite being a tad out of breath at the end of their set, commanded the stage as though he never left. Armed with the signature AMPEG acrylic guitar Mike Neider chugged through the riffs with authority.

YOB was one of the openers for the night and laid down some heaviness to get things started. Even with their technical problems, the band churned out a well rehearsed set with a good amount of energy to help flow though the night. Also opening the night was Helen Money. Helen is a one person act with a cello that plays deconstruction music. Her sultry cello sounds mixed through distortion and delay radiated though the venue as people started walking in, providing a very diverse sound for the evening.

Neurosis Set List:

A Sun That Never Sets

Locust Star

At The Well

We All Rage In Gold

From The Hill

The Tide

Water Is Not Enough

Bleeding The Pigs

The Doorway

Stones From The Sky

Review by: Brian Lacy

Photos by LEVAN TK instagram.com/levan_t_k