On January 31, 2018, Townsend announced on his Facebook page that he was taking a break from the Devin Townsend Project, which had been his main project since 2008, although 2014 saw the release of both Z², a dual release acting as both a solo album and a Devin Townsend Project album, and Casualties of Cool, by Townsend's eponymous country rock duo; this made Empath Townsend's first release to act solely as a solo album since Ziltoid the Omniscient in 2007, and the first not to be a concept album since his 2006 ambient album The Hummer. Townsend first mentioned Empath in a tweet from January 1, 2017. Two years later, on January 15, 2019, Townsend officially announced the album, on which work had already been completed, with a March 29, 2019 release date. A statement on his official Facebook page stated about the origins of the album: It was also described as "A bold statement with massive production values and dynamic, uncompromised musicality. This is a statement about not only pursuing creative freedom in a conservative scene, but also trying to show that heavy music is truly a valid musical tool." Guest performers include former Frank Zappa collaborators Mike Keneally, Morgan Ågren and Steve Vai, as well as Samus Paulicelli from Decrepit Birth, Anup Sastry, Chad Kroeger, Townsend's regular collaborator Anneke van Giersbergen, Ché Aimee Dorval, Elliot Desgagnés from Beneath The Massacre, and Ryan Dahle. A series of documentary videos detailing the making of Empath has been released on YouTube. On February 22, 2019, the first single from the album, "Genesis", was released. A corresponding video was also debuted that complemented the song's intricate style. On March 15, 2019, a second single titled "Evermore" was released; an accompanying music video was made for the single, which features a 2D animated cat flying through space.
Release
Empath was released on March 29, 2019. Editions include a limited 2-CD digipak with a disc of bonus material, a gatefold 180g 2-LP vinyl + CD + LP booklet edition.
Critical response
Wall of Sound gave the album a perfect score of 10/10, writing: "Devin's need for deeper creative expression has resulted in one of the year's most memorable works". Angry Metal Guy contributor GardensTale gave Empath a score of 4.0/5.0, calling it "...the most Devin album Devin ever recorded." MP3s and NPCs writer Terrance Pryor listed the album at number four on their Top Albums of 2019 list, stating, "With Empath, Devin Townsend pushed himself to the limits in terms of production, and the end result is a 74-minute tidal wave of sound."
