Album Review: Urne – Setting Fire to the Sky (Spinefarm Records)

What a celebratory way to end January 2026. The mighty Urne are back with their most ambitious release yet. It’s ‘Setting Fire to the Sky’ and it is out January 30th, 2026, via Spinefarm Records.

I would love to start this review off by telling you that I think Urne have reached their apex here, but I’m 99% sure I said the same thing about 2023’s A Feast on Sorrow. A staggering musical achievement that showed just how deep Urne’s music could be and how a wealth of influences could create something original, interesting, and effective. It was, and still is, a brilliant album, and while I don’t think Setting Fire to the Sky quite reaches that high bar, it comes damn close. Especially as several of these new songs are up there as the best that Urne have produced.

One such track is the opener, Be Not Dismayed. Where the richness of modern Urne’s sound can be heard in all its glory (having become a four-piece officially last year with an additional guitarist) and we start to hear how the band (and the individuals within) have evolved. It’s a crowd-pleasing track, filled with vibrant riffs, a variety of vocal styles that show off Joe Nally’s expanded palette, thick and chunky drumbeats (James Cook does not get enough credit for his work), tons of effervescent melody, a chorus that you can sing along to (and head bang), and guitar soloing that roars.

It’s not the most complex song Urne have ever put out, but it does have range, and plenty of Mastodon worship too. Get used to that, amongst so many other elements (such as a continued love of Metallica) that help make this Urne’s most expanded listen yet. You’re going to hear variety here, and one such track that shows off a new side to Urne’s punchy heaviness is Weeping to the World. Another is The Spirit, Alive. Where an even more anthemic side of the band is showcased. It doesn’t feel quite right to call this track a ‘sing-along’, but damn it, the chorus is infectious. It’s also a track with solid riff after solid riff, weighty drums, and huge vocal range.

It, like many others, will be a firm fan favourite for many years to come.

Don’t be under a false impression that Urne have scaled back some of their more intensive, elaborate, and complex arrangements though. That’s far from the case and there are several examples where things head off in those directions. One being the animated and explosive title track, which has shifting tones and different degrees of heaviness throughout.

Another is Towards the Harmony Hall, where unrelenting intensity breaks in spectacular style when the chorus hits. The vocals soar here, and I love them, but for me, a major component of this song’s greatness is the machine-gun fire drumming. Another is the dreamy and haunting melodic latter part that gives off a bit of post vibe before exploding into one of the fastest and heaviest sections of the entire album.

I do love it when Urne go all out, but I also love it when they let their moody melodies speak and The Ancient Horizon speaks loudly.

Taking the Mastodon worship to a whole new level, Harken the Waves features the iconic band’s Troy Sanders. Although, if you didn’t know better, you might think this is an instrumental effort only as the first few minutes deliver a cacophony of progressively tinged heaviness. Hold on though because when the vocals arrive, this track really evolves into something quite unique and puts Sanders in a notably prominent position alongside Nally’s expressive voice. It’s a fascinating track, offering up a deep, atmospheric shift in the middle, dramatic melody, and a potent final minute or so.

How do you follow such an effort? Especially when it’s time to wrap things up? In the case of Urne, you enlist the talents of Jo Quail, the internationally acclaimed composer and virtuoso cellist, and you take things in a soft, mellow, and morose direction. Urne are pros at making the listener feel, and they have plenty of epics on offer here, but the addition of the cello really makes the difference here. That, and the way the vocals whisper calmly and comfortingly. It’s Breathe and it is a beautiful closing track.

I think this is the album that pushes Urne to a higher plateau where they finally, and deservedly, get more attention from a mainstream metal audience. They’ve evolved their sound without compromising who they are and found new creative directions to explore without isolating those who have been along for the ride since day one. Personally, I couldn’t be happier for them and I promise you, we’ll all still be talking about this album at the end of year when it comes to the ‘best of’ lists.

Urne – Setting Fire to the Sky Track Listing:

1. Be Not Dismayed
2. Weeping to the World
3. The Spirit, Alive
4. Setting Fire to the Sky
5. The Ancient Horizon
6. Towards the Harmony Hall
7. Harken the Waves (Feat. Troy Sanders)
8. Breathe (Feat. Jo Quail)

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