Today, Melbourne’s Void Of Vision release their fourth studio album, with ‘What I’ll Leave Behind’ out now via UNFD.
A stupefying collection of explosive riffs, viscous textures and serrated metalcore, ‘What I’ll Leave Behind’ finds Void Of Vision channelling their trademark wares into new and scintillating territory, redefining modern heavy music through a sharp and compelling lens.
Today, Void Of Vision also share a brand new video for the track Neurotic; the ultimate ode for vocalist Jack Bergin‘s road to self discovery alongside staggering odds. “Neurotic is my own personal ego death anthem,” Bergin shares. “I’ve spent so many years of my life in the most neurotic headspace. I’ve been a self absorbed, egocentric, and overall shitty person behind the curtain and managed to pull it off under the guise of music. It only took until very recently to realise sometimes we all have to let go of a piece of ourselves to move forward and saying it all out loud in the moment is a part of that step that just makes it more real.”
“Becoming self aware and conscious of my own personal growth since radiotherapy has made me realise what’s really important. The artificial fantasy we trap ourselves in is only built to last so long, feeling it all come to a halt is near bliss. I’m losing unnecessary connections, so many fake people and so much wasted time that is giving me more happiness than I have ever found within this bleak rat race. Unplugging from it all just feels so fucking good.“
Tracing a long and harrowing personal journey for vocalist Jack Bergin, ‘What I’ll Leave Behind’ ultimately captures events that trace back to 2022 when Bergin woke up in an ambulance. Following a seizure and countless tests, Bergin would soon discover the fundamental, tectonic-plates-of-life shifting reason: he had a “glitch” in his head. An arteriovenous malformation (AVM), to be precise, a tangle of blood vessels in his brain, revealed by MRI and CT scans.
Balancing touring, music video filming and the recording of the ‘CHRONICLES III: UNDERWORLD’ EP, Bergin‘s increasing exhaustion alongside his creative commitments prompted him to step back and reconfigure, adapting a shadow-self and creative gimmick dubbed the Angel Of Darkness, accompanying the single of the same name and aiming to help Bergin take space to get through each day, whilst still propelling Void Of Vision‘s artistic world forward.
Alas, the steps taken were not enough; in April of 2023, hospital visits and further scans revealed that the AVM had ruptured, and Bergin was suffering a brain bleed. Surgery was now essential; immediately it was clear that Void Of Vision’s schedule, including headline shows, festivals and the recording of their next album, needed to be wiped clean, as Bergin was hospitalised for the foreseeable future.
Experiencing what he today acknowledges was little short of an existential crisis, Bergin spent the weeks in his hospital bed in a state of exhaustive, draining introspection, reflection and analysis, oscillating between contradictory emotions, facing his own mortality and questioning everything: “Was / is it all worth it? What am I doing with my life? Who am I without the band? What will I leave behind?”
From this state of conflict, Bergin’s internal war of attrition, came ‘What I’ll Leave Behind’, Void Of Vision’s fourth album, with the new album also finding Bergin and his bandmates, James McKendrick (guitar/vocals), George Pfaender (drums) and Mitch Fairlie (guitar) more focused than ever; the genre polyamory of the ‘CHRONICLES’ era smelted and reforged into a sound that is distinctly, unmistakably, joyously their own. Nasty, heavy, yet sleekly surgical, it offers the perfect soundtrack for a journey from disaster to acceptance, via trauma, uncertainty, loss and learning.
Void Of Vision have solidified their standing as one of the most innovative and sonically explosive acts in the heavy scene for over a decade. From their debut EP, 2014’s ‘Broken // Bones’ through to 2016’s ‘Children of Chrome’, 2017’s ‘Disturbia’, 2019’s ‘Hyperdaze’ and the release of the amalgamated ‘CHRONICLES’ series in 2023, a new future was heralded last year by the arrival of a standalone single Angel Of Darkness; an alt metal rager weighted equally by searing heaviness and pulsing pop, helmed by the titular Angel Of Darkness as the band’s representative during the single’s campaign.
With recent unforgettable performances at home and abroad in their wake alongside Stray From The Path, ERRA, Holding Absence, Polaris and the first ever edition of Knotfest Australia, Void Of Vision are currently on the road supporting Aussie juggernauts Parkway Drive on their gargantuan 20 Year Anniversary Tour in Australia, with a packed Brisbane show on Wednesday 18 September kicking off proceedings, a second show in Brisbane tonight to coincide with the release of ‘What I’ll Leave Behind’, and shows still to come for Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and closing out in Perth.
Void Of Vision will also be returning to North America this November and December, supporting The Ghost Inside and also appearing as part of August Burns Red‘s annual Christmas Burns Red event.
“The most beautiful things / Are what I’ll leave behind…”
‘WHAT I’LL LEAVE BEHIND’ IS OUT NOW
LISTEN / STREAM HERE
With thanks to Dallas Does PR
