Album Details

• Artist: Neurosis
• Album: Souls At Zero
• Label: Earsplit
• Year of Release: 2010
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: patchen on 2011-01-25

For Neurosis, it all started in 1992 with, "Souls at Zero." This reissue, among the many recent ones by the band, is particularly generous, as it features demos, unreleased and live tracks, added onto a record that was already a classic. The sweaty Oakland band has never stopped raging full-on, and this reissue is a good reminder of that.

The progressive hardcore of classics like "Crawl Under One's Skin" and "Zero" combine the relentless wall of sound of mid-period Huskers with brain-collapsing, Helmet-esque riffs. The massive, sledgehammering assault of "Takeahnase" and "the Web" are prototypes for so much metal that has come after the. This was a band who could go toe to toe with Pantera and Ministry both on their own terms.

Of the extras, the demo of "Souls" is as fully-formed and expansive as any of their final cuts, and there is an eerie, tribal feel to the live version of "Cleanse III" that stands as one of the most powerful songs I've heard by them.

Neurosis seems like they will always be with us, but "souls at Zero" reminds us of just how cool that is. And it also reminds us of how much they threw down in the beginning that has influenced countless other bands.

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