Neurosis-Honor Found In Decay

Neurot Recordings
2012

Yes, I'm quite aware of the fact that this album has already been out for sometime now. More then likely if your reading this review then your more of a casual fan of the group verses hardcore follower. The bulk of Neurosis fans would have already scooped this one up and have no doubt already presented good arguments for or against the band's new album. I've made mention before of how "Souls at Zero", the band's 1992 album, had an impact on my teenage years. As such a powerful album it transcended mere description and helped Neurosis become much more then a cult-metal act out of Oakland, California. A lot of time has passed since the band released that one album which was a testament to how you could stretch the boundaries of what was considered hardcore or metal into something completely new and yet still vaguely familiar. With album number 10 now a few months old, and the product of repeated spins by me, I'm still left with a sense of confusion. I've tossed and turned this review over in mind and in my heart and the results are always the same-is this album a sign of a band that can do no wrong and still create something worth heaps of praise for it's epic sense of awe-inspiring post-metal creativity or is this album a mad mess of ill-conceived ideas and a sign that the band has run out of good ideas? If those sound like opposite ends of the spectrum they are. It's well-known though that art, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. And music is an art-form. As I look at and listen to this new release it's art that I have on my mind. If your a fair share older like I am then you'll perhaps remember the controversy of "Piss Christ". If not you can read up on it online easy enough. While some considered it to be art in it's most pure form (it won one or more competitions I believe) most people saw it as pure trash. It proved that one man's treasure can be another man's junk and that what some might consider to be praise worthy others would see as just a gimmick aimed at shock and moral outrage. Obviously Neurosis are a different beast all together. They not going about trying to create shock and moral outrage. Their music has always been presented in a "as is" fashion. There has never seemed to be anything more to the music then the fact that they are looking to create fresh and original material. As such I've always gave them their props for doing their own thing regardless of whether the mainstream would be able to accept it. Of course that doesn't make this review any easier on me. I have listened to "Honor Found In Decay" over and over again and still can't come to a definitive answer. I've simply found myself unsure if this is the sound of a band being brilliant or a sound that defies reason. Obviously that is of little to no hope to anyone who is still looking at whether or not to pull the trigger and buy "Honor Found In Decay". The best advice I can offer is to listen to it yourself before buying it. By now I'd like to think that most of this album has already been posted on YouTube so that is where I'd start. I wish I had more of a yes or no answer to the album, but I'm quite stuck on it and honesty is the best policy here as in life.