They had the Ataraxia/Taraxis EP last year (review here), but Forever Becoming will be Pelican‘s first full-length since 2009’s What We all Come to Need. That album (review here) was the last to feature guitarist Laurent Schroeder-Lebec, and though the title hints at a sense of transition, the track “Immutable Dusk,” which the band premiered today, finds their signature blend of post-rock ambience and metallic crunch well intact. If you listen, make sure you listen the whole way through. The payoff at the end is stellar.

Pelican kick off a European tour tomorrow at Stoned from the Underground in Germany and have announced dates on the East Coast with Kings Destroy and others. Behold:

PELICAN ANNOUNCE FIRST NEW ALBUM IN FOUR YEARS

FOREVER BECOMING DUE THIS OCTOBER, FOLLOWED BY US TOUR WITH COLISEUM, KINGS DESTROY, AND OTHERS

Pelican, the Chicago-based quartet whose instrumental excursions to the confluence of caustic heaviness and cathartic melody pioneered a subgenre, have announced their first full album in four years, Forever Becoming, due October 15 on forward-thinking metal imprint Southern Lord. Recorded at Electrical Audio with Chris Common (who engineered the group’s last album as well as albums by Chelsea Wolfe and These Arms Are Snakes), Forever Becoming is an immense, speaker-rattling meditation on the acceptance of mortality and its place in the eternal cycle. Composed of eight songs (full tracklist below), the album boasts a sonic palette that veers from pummeling metal, to contemplative ambience, to melodic catharsis all with landmark grace.

Following a hiatus that saw the departure of founding guitarist Laurent Schroeder-Lebec and the arrival of new second guitarist Dallas Thomas (also of The Swan King), the forthcoming album is the work of a wholly revitalized unit, sounding more focused and assured than ever. The current lineup’s undeniable chemistry was forged in front of crowds at festival appearances, including Bonnaroo, Roadburn, and Maryland Death Fest, as well as a handful of headlining club shows. Pelican return to the road in support of the new album this Fall with reigning post-hardcore stalwarts Coliseum. The tour focuses on the East Coast (the band’s first tour of the area since 2009), in addition to a coveted slot at this year’s Fun Fun Fun Fest and a run of previously announced European dates that kick off this week (all dates below).

US TOUR DATES
Oct 17 – Brooklyn, NY – Invisible Oranges CMJ Showcase*
Oct 18 – Brooklyn, NY – Invisible Oranges CMJ Showcase*
Oct 19 – Allston, MA – Great Scott *
Nov 1 – Cleveland, OH – Peabody’s ^
Nov 2 – Washington, DC – DC9 ^
Nov 3 – Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church ^
Nov 4 – Chapel Hill, NC – Local 506 ^
Nov 5 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade ^
Nov 6 – Birmingham, AL – Zydeco ^
Nov 7 – Baton Rouge, LA – Spanish Moon ^
Nov 8, 9, & 10 – Austin TX – Fun Fun Fun Fest
Nov 13 – Chicago, IL – Bottom Lounge
* w/ King’s Destroy
^ w/ Coliseum

FORVER BECOMING TRACKLIST
1. Terminal
2. Deny the Absolute
3. The Tundra
4. Immutable Dusk
5. Threnody
6. The Cliff
7. Vestiges
8. Perpetual Dawn

PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED EUROPEAN TOUR DATES
July 11 DE – Erfurt – Stoned From The Underground
July 12 DE – Berlin – Festival Kreuzberg
July 13 FIN – Joensuu – Ilosaarirock
July 15 UK – Brighton, The Haunt
July 16 UK – Leeds, Brudenell Social Club (w/ JK Flesh)
July 17 UK – London, The Garage (w/ JK Flesh)
July 18 NL – Tilburg, 013 (w/Torche)
July 19 BE – Dour, Dour Festival (w/Torche, Converge)
July 20 DE – Siegen, Vortex Club
July 22 ITA – Milan, Segrate
July 23 ITA – Roma, Traffic Live
July 24 AT – Innsbruck, PMK
July 25 AT – Vienna, Arena (w/ Mouth Of The Architect)
July 26 RU – Moscow, Plan B (w/ Mouth Of The Architect)
July 27 RU – St Petersburg, Arktika (w/Mouth Of The Architect)

Pelican, “Immutable Dusk” from Forever Becoming