A Storm Of Light
As The Valley Of Death Becomes Us Our Silver Memories Fade

Josh Graham, better known as the visual component of the infernal machine known as Neurosis, is a graphic designer and musician with a certain prowess, and this must be made clear right away. A Storm Of Light is HIS project, his legacy to the world, his assent, his personal way of relating to civilization, and to the mind of the latter, through these distorted visions stemming from his hyper-prolific audio-visual imagination (let us remember those two near-masterpieces under the name Red Sparowes, the first two, from which he then deliberately distanced himself: yes, even there the hand was his, although the context here is slightly different).

Here we are at the third chapter of HIS saga on Earth and its state of health, its incurable diseases: the first CD, released 4 years ago, "And We Wept The Black Ocean Within," focused on the ocean, global pollution, and the sound was deliberately watered down, full to the brim with floating distortions, riffs overflowing with maritime spirituality, but it was somewhat lacking in personality, paying a significant price with the sound of his main band; the second, "Forgive Us Our Trespasses," focused instead on industrialization (note how the covers are always perfectly themed with the content - in my humble opinion, one of the best graphic designers for album covers around!), on the devastation caused by man's poor care for our planet, and the sound already then acquired more personality, becoming fuller, less aqueous, harder, less full, more focused, distancing itself from his main project.

Now we are at the third delivery, and the title has notably lengthened, while the runtime has been slightly reduced, and already from the splendid (but could it be otherwise?) cover, one can guess the key point of the album: man and his greed for conquest, creating nothing more than a valley of death around him (the title is illustrative in this sense). The sound takes flight, rising to a personality both awaited and unforeseen: slimming down of structures, song form implemented, contained track length, stoner psychedelia in progress, amazing riffs and grooves; it almost feels like listening to Kyuss, the Soundgarden from "badmotorfinger" (on the first track, Missing, there's actually Kim Thayil on six strings as a guest), flirting with the more concise Minsk, to then feast with the more mystical Tool and the more doom-oriented Neurosis.

Perhaps not everything is focused: this rock-stoner turn is lost in some parts of the album in question, but it is in episodes like the opener Missing, the subsequent Collapse, the wonderful "almost ballad" Destroyer, the epic ride of Leave No Wounds, in Death's End (where there's a beautiful atmospheric part by the queen of darkness par excellence: Jarboe), and the closing apocalyptic Wasteland, that the project literally takes flight and shows all its caliber.

I can only deliberately recommend listening to this disc, knowing that for genre enthusiasts it will be a breath of fresh air, and for the rest, a punch straight to the face, with psychedelic and hallucinatory ramifications!

The perfect black CD for the upcoming hot summer is served!

Great Josh, great A Storm Of Light!