Neurosis Vocalist Scott Kelly Admits To Abusing Family, Former Band Members Break Silence

Over the weekend Neurosis co-founder and vocalist Scott Kelly issued a statement where he admitted to abusing his wife and children. In the statement Kelly details his abuse towards his family while also announcing his complete retirement from music:

“I am 100% permanently retired from being a professional musician. Some people can be in a scene like this where there is no accountability and maintain their integrity. I cannot. My sole focus for the rest of my life is on taking care of my family, allowing them safe space to heal and rebuilding their trust. I hope putting this out there will protect my wife from further attacks and finally allow my family some peace.”

At the time of Kelly’s post Neurosis hadn’t publicly responded or commented on the matter, however, as of yesterday the band released an official statement in response to the disturbing news.

“We cannot overstate the level of disgust and disappointment we feel for a man who we once called Brother.

As a band, we parted ways with Scott Kelly at the end of 2019 after learning about severe acts of abuse he committed towards his family over the previous years. In the past, Scott had disclosed his marital difficulties and acts of verbal abuse, as well as his intention to get help and change his behaviors. The information we learned in 2019 made it clear Scott had crossed a line and there was no way back. We did not share this information out of respect for his wife’s direct request for privacy, and to honor the family’s wish not to let their experience become gossip in a music magazine. With Scott’s Facebook post of August 27, 2022 disclosing much of this information publicly, we can finally say what we believe needs to be said.”

The band’s statement goes on to firmly reinforce that Kelly’s public testimony should not be viewed as an act of bravery.

“Usually, we would view public openness and honesty about mental illness as brave and even productive. We just don’t believe that is the case here. There is nothing brave about systematically abusing your wife and children. There is nothing brave about confessing wrongdoing when you have not done the work to change your behavior. There is nothing brave about refusing to speak honestly, or speak at all, with one’s closest friends and bandmates, people who have supported you and stuck by you for most of your life.”

Neurosis conclude their response in saying, “this is the only statement we plan to make about this issue.”

All of this news came as a huge shock to the metal community. Neurosis has long been revered for their influence in experimental metal sub-genres, and are credited with paving the way for much of today’s acclaimed avant-garde metal. However, Scott Kelly’s musical career goes beyond his work in Neurosis. Kelly is a featured vocalist on a number of fan-favorited Mastodon tracks and he’s performed with the band throughout their career. Apart from this, Kelly has released music through several side projects and even released an album this year with his newly formed ‘supergroup,’ Absent In Body.

National Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-7233 www.thehotline.org