I’ll admit to consoling myself a little at this year’s Roadburn when I missed Torpor with the thought that I might get another opportunity to see them. So much for that, as the UK outfit are calling it a day on the heels of their wildly well-received 2023 album, Abscission (LP on Human Worth, tape on Sludgelord). To put a pin on their tenure, they’ll do a run of eight shows from Nov. 13-22 with Hostbody, going as far north from their home in Bristol as Glasgow and capping with a hometown show at The Lousiana that’s sure to be one for the ages. The message here is pretty simple — if you ever want to see them, now is probably the time to do it, any subsequent reunions notwithstanding.

More than a decade on from their outset, Torpor by no means owe anyone anything, but, I mean, okay, guitarist/vocalist Jon Taylor doesn’t want to tour anymore. So maybe don’t? I’m not sure how that precludes being a band at all and even maybe doing the occasional show or fest appearance, but sometimes these things are more complex than what’s publicly announced lets on. In any case, what Taylor, bassist/vocalist Lauren Mason and drummer Simon Mason might do next isn’t a thing I’m in-the-know enough to know, but the lesson I’m taking away is go see bands when you can.

Hence posting the tour dates in the poster below along with the band’s announcement from socials:

[UPDATE 09/19: Added comment from Taylor that was in a subsequent social post. It’s the paragraph that begins “Says Jon.”]

**Tour announcement plus big sad news**

Hey everyone, we’re excited to be heading out for a run of shows in November with Bristol heavies @hostbodynoise! We’ll be playing some of our favourite cities, plus finally getting up to Newcastle, and back to Glasgow for the first time since lockdown!

The sad news is that this will be our FINAL tour. We always knew ‘Abscission’ would be our last record, so this announcement has been a long time coming. We love making music together, but Jon no longer wants to be in a touring band so we must lay Torpor to rest. Our 12 years together have taken us on a wonderful journey, and we’re really looking forward to celebrating with you all before we say goodbye!

Tickets for Bristol, Newcastle and Notts linked in bio, for everywhere else save the date! Still looking for a show in Midlands/North on the 18th so give us a shout if you can help!

Huge thanks to all the friends and promoters who’ve helped put this tour together 🧡🧡🧡

Says Jon: “I don’t usually say anything but it feels appropriate and respectful to all those who have followed our music to say a few words now. Torpor is the only band I’ve ever been in and never imagined we would have gone on to do the things we’ve done. I only thought I’d end up playing a few pub gigs and have a chance to play guitar somewhere that wasn’t my bedroom. The fact that it has resonated with anyone at all is a very lovely thing. I can’t speak for the others but gaining a few years, a good few extra pounds and living miles away from each other hasn’t made keeping the band going easy. You also get to points in life when you want to live differently and spend time on other things. We might make music together again; we might not. I didn’t want to just carry on reluctantly or half-heartedly out of habit. Thank you to everyone who has been listening and supporting us over the years, Jon”

Tour poster by @jamessheridanart

https://www.facebook.com/torporsound/
https://www.instagram.com/torpor_uk/
https://torpornoise.bandcamp.com/
https://linktr.ee/TORPOR_UK

https://www.facebook.com/HumanWorthMusic
https://www.instagram.com/humanworthmusic/
https://humanworth.bandcamp.com/
https://linktr.ee/humanworthmusic

Torpor, Abscission (2023)

It would seem I missed Torpor‘s 2019 album, Rhetoric of the Image — hey, can’t catch ’em all; I do my best — but I dug their 2015 debut, From Nothing Comes Everything (review here), and with the excuse to dig into the sophomore outing I’m finding myself without regrets, the hard-slogging post-metallic crunch as atmospherically dense as one would hope but still able to move when it wants and engage some dynamic in terms of atmospherics and noise and so on while remaining utterly ferocious on the whole. I don’t mind a bit of homework to do, especially when it involves a riff like that in the middle of “Enigmatic Demand” from the last LP. That’ll do quite nicely, thanks.

No audio from the new one yet, but if you’re like me and checking out the preceding offering, you’ll be glad already they went back to Wayne Adams to record. The PR wire confirms a Sept. 15 release for Abscission and brings more details. I believe them when they put ‘absolutely crushing heaviness’ in all-caps.

Go to town:

CRUSHING UK SLUDGE VISIONARIES TORPOR ANNOUNCE THEIR 3RD LP ABSCISSION

Bristol based sludge trio TORPOR announce their obliterating 3rd album ABSCISSION. Over the past ten years this colossal trio have been crushing stages across the UK and mainland Europe, leaving behind an impressive discography along the way. Abscission weaves A fine tapestry of sludge metal, lumbering doom riffs, forward thinking post-rock dynamics, cerebral drone passages, ambient textures and stark spoken poetry – distilling all their greatest strengths and influences into their tightest and leanest set of songs to date. Recorded by producer Wayne Adams (Petbrick, Big Lad) out in the Welsh windswept wilderness of Giant Wafer Studios, Abscission promises to be a paean to earth shattering tones, subtle detailed textures, immersive sound design and most importantly… ABSOLUTELY CRUSHING HEAVINESS.

Abscission will be released on September 15th 2023 on environmentally conscious Eco-Mix Vinyl and Digital formats through emerging London based label Human Worth. 10% of all proceeds will be donated to registered charity Second Step – a leading mental health charity in Bristol and the South West. Torpor have performed live with the likes of Pigs x7, Primitive Man, The Body, Amenra, Bossk, Conan, Wallowing, Bismuth, Plebian Grandstand and have performed at festivals including Raw Power, Dreadfest, Entombed, Incubate, Doomlines and were selected to appear at Roadburn.

PRE-ORDERS WILL LAUNCH ON AUGUST 4TH THROUGH HUMAN WORTH: https://humanworth.bandcamp.com/

ABSCISSION
1. Interior Gestures [10:46]
2. As Shadow Follows Body [9:20]
3. Accidie [6:16]
4. Carbon [3:32]
5. Island Of Abandonment [10:59]

https://www.facebook.com/torporsound/
https://www.instagram.com/torpor_uk/
https://torpornoise.bandcamp.com/
https://linktr.ee/TORPOR_UK

https://www.facebook.com/HumanWorthMusic
https://www.instagram.com/humanworthmusic/
https://humanworth.bandcamp.com/
https://linktr.ee/humanworthmusic

Torpor, Rhetoric of the Image (2019)