Progressive metal outfit Ne Obliviscaris will be releasing their long-awaited new full-length, “Exul”, on 24th March 2023 via Season of Mist. The band is now sharing the haunting new single ‘Equus’ along with a music video, which was directed and produced by Ne Obliviscaris vocalist Xenoyr.
Pre-orders for “Exul” are now available here. Pre-save the album on streaming services here.
Regarding the video’s powerful yet sombre message, the band explains: “‘Equus’ is dedicated to the lives lost during the lethal bush fires that scarred Australia in 2019-2020. Alongside the people who died or were affected, many millions, if not billions, of animals were killed or displaced from their natural habitats, the enormity of this is something that will never be forgotten, and should not be ignored. It is also a warning that the world we live in is changing from the damage we as a species have contributed to. Within this video, the dancer represents a scorched Mother Earth, from horror to humanity, ever in tune with the heart and flow of the song (and world), and ultimately aware of the inevitable and ever growing destructive cycle we are in.”
Drum tracking for “Exul”, the fourth long-player from Australian extreme progressive metallers Ne Obliviscaris, started in March 2020. There is an ominous tone to that date: March 2020. The pandemic demarcation line. That month, Daniel Presland laid down his drums in Nashville, Tennessee, with American producer Mark Lewis. As flight cancellations increased and borders shuttered, Presland made it home literally hours before Australia closed theirs. Lewis, guitarist Benjamin Baret and bassist Martino Garattoni weren’t as lucky. They were due to land in Australia in the days that followed to continue tracking, but were forced to remain overseas indefinitely. With recording studios shuttered throughout Melbourne, a slow, tedious, life-altering two-year grind to complete “Exul” ensued for Ne Obliviscaris.
What should have been the continued upward swing after 2017’s critically acclaimed “Urn” turned into the most fraught moment of Ne Obliviscaris’s career. Clean vocalist and violinist Tim Charles says the period “came close to breaking us completely.” It was a time filled with death, relationships breaking down, despair and financial loss. Presland, Ne Obliviscaris’s drummer since 2005, amicably parted ways in early 2022, throwing yet another wrench into the band’s plans.
Seven additional studios and three more countries later, “Exul” was finally mixed and mastered in July 2022.
The album personifies Ne Obliviscaris’s distinctive, boundary-pushing ethos. The band’s trademark blend of emotion and beauty is as towering as ever, if not even more compelling, particularly how Charles’ violin lines carefully weave their way around Baret and fellow guitarist Matt Klavins’ riffing. The duality of Charles’ clean vocals and Xenoyr’s growls remains the narrative anchor, elevating songs that emanate sophistication and are a masterclass in composition.
“Our approach is always the same,” says Charles, “which is essentially to just write and see what comes out. Exul definitely had its challenges during the songwriting process. Part of the beauty of how our music comes together is that we are quite different individuals bringing an array of ideas together. From there, we work out how to combine them into something that is seamless and beautiful to us. We were determined to make this our best and most complete album yet, which definitely resulted in it taking longer. But we are so proud of this album and it’s exciting to finally share it with the world.”
The album’s centerpiece is the two-part ‘Misericorde I – As the Flesh Fails’ and ‘Misericorde – Anatomy of Quiescence.’ (A Ne Obliviscaris album is not complete without a multi-part epic!) According to Charles, ‘Part II’ began by taking a song they thought was finished (‘Pt I’) and asking, “What if after that…?” The band then wrote a section that took the piece in a new direction and what was a seven minute song, became an almost seventeen-minute two-part epic.
“The bulk of ‘Part I’ was written more so by Benji and Martino,” notes Charles. “You can hear the very guitar-driven approach present throughout that track. ‘Part II’, by contrast, was written more so by myself in collaboration with others and the emphasis changes more towards expansive solos and slow-developing sections that build towards the epic finale. These two tracks are a great example of how it’s the combination of our different strengths as songwriters spread across an album that results in the sound that is Ne Obliviscaris.”
The “Exul” album title came to Xen when he was summing up the album’s feeling musically and lyrically. Coincidentally, it matched the experience of most people during the pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “I think everyone at some point has felt at odds with the world around them, felt alone, cast out, or misunderstood,” says Xen. ““Exul” felt right to use in a broader sense and as a lone word, for we each have our own history and a story of exile.
“Overall, there’s a darker core to this album, perhaps more ominous than previous releases,” he continues. “However abstract the lyrics are, they involve some form of unwanted departure — all journeys into torment, passion, longing and even despair. They touch on the process of physical and psychological destruction that comes from that sense or reality of being exiled, whether forced from one’s land, ostracized from a community, shunned by a religion, or even simply being treated differently for being who they are.”
Touring will factor heavily into Ne Obliviscaris’s 2023 plans. The band will embark on headlining tours worldwide that will hit new territories. As luck would have it, the return to live show activity will coincide with the release of Exul and the band’s 20th anniversary. As one of Australia’s leading extreme metal exports, there is a distinct sense of gratitude from Charles and his band-mates. They’re looking forward to sharing it with fans when they resume touring.
“Simply getting the opportunity to perform music that we’ve written on stages around the world to people that genuinely love and connect with it,” finishes Charles when talking about Ne Obliviscaris ’s 20-year journey. “There is something incredibly special about the energy that exists between an artist and audience at a concert and it’s an honor to get the opportunity to spend 2023 connecting with people in that way once more.”
Additionally, the band will headline 24 tour dates through the EU and UK that begin May 5 in Helsinki and run until early June before making its grand finale, in Leipzig on June 3. Tickets are on sale starting today HERE.
“Exul” Album Artwork
Ne Obliviscaris w/ Persefone, plus Asymmetric Universe * (or) The Omnific**
5/5 – Tavastia, Helsinki (FI)*
5/6 – Klubi, Tampere (FI)*
5/9 – Bla, Oslo (NO)*
5/10 – Pumpehuset, Copenhagen (DK)*
5/11 – Headcrash, Hamburg (DE)*
5/13 – Luxor, Cologne (DE)*
5/14 – Trix, Antwerp (BE)*
5/16 – Grand Social, Dublin (IE)*
5/17 – Slay, Glasgow (UK)*
5/18 – Rebellion, Manchester (UK)*
5/19 – Islington Academy, London (UK)*
5/20 – Gebr. de Nobel, Leiden (NL)**
5/21 – Petit Bain, Paris (FR)**
5/22 – Ferrailleur, Nantes (FR)**
5/24 – Hard Club, Porto (PT)**
5/25 – RCA Club, Lisbon (PT)**
5/26 – Nazca, Madrid (ES)**
5/27 – Barcelona (ES)**
5/29 – Kofmehl Hall, Solothurn (CH)**
5/30 – Strom, Munich (DE)**
5/31 – Viper Room, Vienna (AT)**
6/1 – Futurum, Prague (CZ)**
6/2 – Hole44, Berlin (DE)**
6/3 – Naumann, Leipzig (DE)**
Ne Obliviscaris announced they parted ways with drummer Daniel Presland in February of this year. Presland had drummed for the band since 2005 and has since confirmed he drummed on “Exul”. As for his future activities, Presland said he plans to stay in music and will continue on with his new band Black Lava. Both Presland and the band said they remain good friends and asked that fans support both bands equally.
Ne Obliviscaris said in a statement, “Dan has been an absolute rock behind the kit for this band for so many years, so many songs, so many tours… Dan has decided to move on to other things and say goodbye to his time in NeO, but he’ll always be a huge part of how we arrived at this point here today and we are so grateful to have shared so many special moments together over the years.”
