Over the years, and it has been years for them, Neurosis have slowly developed from the melodic death metal juggernaut that graced us with the masterpiece Through Silver in Blood into a post-rock metal hybrid. Despite twenty years of being a band under their belt, Neurosis continues to remain a relevant force in today's music world.
The Eye of Every Storm starts things off with "Burn," which contains a mix of the band's heavier past as well as touches of its more melodic side that we have seen in recent years. Structurally, the song is ironically similar to that of a hurricane. It starts off slowly, but increases in volume and intensity, and then without warning falls into a lull: the eye. After a brief period of calm, the distortion and heavy hitting of drummer Jason Roeder, which is highly underrated, kick back in. Eventually the guitars fade out and we are left with only the soothing sounds of a keyboard. Moments of the opening track contain qualities that are comparable to post-rock acts like Mogwai and Explosions in the Sky. A few years ago, had you mentioned the words post-rock and Neurosis in the same sentence you would have gotten yourself pile-driven to the ground. But today when you say the two, you are looked upon as insightful and well-informed.
"No River to Take Me Home" reverts back to typical Neurosis method, making use of repetitive sequences, as vocalist Steve Von Till croons throughout. The album's title track clocks in at nearly 12 minutes, which for any other band might be a bit much. But Neurosis has a tendency for recording epics, and "They Eye of Every Storm" is no different. Everything comes together with the addition of electronics and soothing vocal harmonies to the updated post-rock version of Neurosis. I especially love the break just before the 5:00 mark; the snyths partnered with Till's vocals are perfection. "Shelter" makes use of acoustic guitars throughout the majority of its length. I found this to be strikingly unconventional, but then again Neurosis was never the conventional type. However the album does have its misses. "Bridges" contains moments of melodic guitars and carefully placed drum hits as well as distortion loaded rock-outs. Unfortunately, instead of intertwining these different textures, the band seemed to just cut and paste them one after another. The Eye of Every Storm ends with "I Can See You," which opens in a folk-ish fashion created by acoustic guitars, but fails to evolve into anything worth mentioning.
Neurosis has always been a band that pushed the envelope. By doing so, they were constantly on the forefront of writing the most unique music. Unfortunately, when you are writing music of this nature, it can be very hit or miss. While most of The Eye of Every Storm did hit, it had its moments that failed to stimulate my listening pleasure zone.
