{"id":547033,"date":"2026-01-27T14:50:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-27T14:50:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/547033\/"},"modified":"2026-01-27T14:50:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-27T14:50:09","slug":"urne-setting-fire-to-the-sky-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/547033\/","title":{"rendered":"URNE – Setting Fire to the Sky Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"The evolution of a band is a fickle thing. Change too much, and you alienate those who started the journey with you; change too little and bore listeners over time, leaving only ardent fans of the sound. URNE<\/strong>, a London three-piece with close ties to Gojira<\/strong> and Mastodon<\/strong>, has already shown a surprising amount of reformation by their third release, Setting Fire to the Sky. The band\u2019s debut, SERPENT & SPIRIT, was a hard-edged mix of post-hardcore, sweeping grooves, and raw vocals, with a little bit of sludge thrown into their clean-singing. Their sophomore album refined the sound and felt like a logical evolution, even with a few missteps (especially on the production side). Setting Fire to the Sky fixes some of these issues and sees the band streamline their songs, but not all change is good. Instead of crawling into a chrysalis and emerging as a flying beauty, they slither out as something more akin to a leech, spilling out of their cocoon and siphoning other bands\u2019 sounds to a fault.<\/p>\n

URNE<\/strong> serves up nearly fifty minutes of Mastodon<\/strong>-infused metalcore on Setting Fire to the Sky. Yes, you read that correctly. Nothing on their third album feels reminiscent of the classic-rock-infused, post-hardcore sludge on their debut, or the post-metal epics on A Feast on Sorrow. Instead, their latest is stuffed with songs that, while expertly played and produced, feel soulless. Joe Nally sounds like a different singer at this point. While his clean singing is infinitely more competent, it sounds too similar to Mastodon<\/strong>\u2019s Troy Sanders. Nally\u2019s basswork fares better, and he manhandles the frets along Angus Neyra\u2019s thrashy riffs and James Cook\u2019s punchy drumming. The trio sounds great, and their work has been honed like a razor, likely due to their time alongside massive acts like Gojira<\/strong> and Mastodon<\/strong>, but they lack the creative bend of either. Setting Fire to the Sky feels meant to cast a wide net, playing arenas and the radio, but leaving much of the spirit (heh) that was present on SPIRIT & SERPENT to wither.<\/p>\n

Expectations hurt URNE<\/strong> on Setting Fire to the Sky. After A Feast on Sorrow, I saw a band poised for their best work yet. URNE<\/strong>\u2019s latest shows a tighter band playing well, and the production is much better than their last outing, but nearly every other facet feels weaker. Songs quickly grow formulaic and repetitive, with \u201cBe Not Dismayed,\u201d \u201cThe Spirit, Alive,\u201d and \u201cSetting Fire to the Sky\u201d starting with a chuggy opening riff (usually the best part) and slowly morphing into a generic metalcore song. Each features the typical swing back and forth between core-style screaming and harmonized clean choruses that feel hamfisted, with generically uplifting lyrics like \u201cBe not dismayed and carry this torch forward.\u201d The album lacks the flourishes of URNE<\/strong>\u2019s past two releases, and rarely do songs deviate from their repetitive structures.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Setting Fire to the Sky isn\u2019t all disappointing. As previously mentioned, the production is great, and James Cook\u2019s snare sounds wonderful throughout. While formulaic, the album is full of riffs that will at least get you headbanging, even if they are without pathos. \u201cThe Ancient Horizon\u201d is an album highlight, featuring a massive lead and a sound worthy of its title while avoiding the pitfalls of the metalcore hole URNE has crawled into. Album closer \u201cNocturnal Forms\u201d falls on the good side of Mastodon<\/strong> worship, with a chorus that feels like something off Emperor of Sand. A few features appear on the album, like the aforementioned \u201cHarken the Waves\u201d with Troy Sanders. A song that feels somewhat comical given Joe Nally\u2019s clear worship of Sander\u2019s iconic style, making for a feature that feels obligatory but not complementary. The second, \u201cBreathe\u201d with Jo Quail, goes nowhere. An overly sappy tune with bland cleans and cringe lyrics like \u201cI saw the world, before the world saw me.\u201d Neither feature feels necessary, and with the latter, you have a track that could be cut altogether.<\/p>\n

I had high expectations, but Setting Fire to the Sky failed to meet them at every turn. The band\u2019s sound changed in a way that many metal fans are familiar with. More generic music, more radio-friendly songs, more clean singing, all the things that make longtime metal fans cringe and flip on a group. While I foresee this album ending up all over year-end lists on the normie sites, this record is a shadow of the band\u2019s clear inspirations and shows a group that should return to what made them stand out in the first place. At least the album artwork is gorgeous.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Rating:<\/b> Mixed
DR: <\/b>N\/A | Format Reviewed:<\/b> Stream \ud83d\ude41
Label: <\/b>Spinefarm<\/a>
Websites: <\/b>urneofficial.com<\/a> | <\/b>instagram.com\/urneband<\/a>
Releases Worldwide:<\/b> January 30th, 2026<\/p>\n

\n\tGive in to Your Anger:\n<\/p>\n