The Word as Law lands somewhere between hardcore and metal to my ears. It’s loud, aggressive, and confrontational, with screamed vocals and plenty of menace, but there’s more going on than simply playing as hard and fast and loud as possible.

There are melodies buried underneath all that noise, and the songs make room for them. Neurosis will go incredibly hard, then pull things back, find a groove, or let the bass come through.

There are some incredible bass moments on this album.

What surprised me most was how introspective some of it can almost sound. The songs build toward their heaviest moments instead of constantly battering me with them, and that made the music much easier for me to follow.

This isn’t really my kind of music, but I got more out of The Word as Law than I expected. There’s melody, atmosphere, and thought underneath all that aggression.

Verdict: Worth a Spin

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