Ramping up your hype for an album over time and then having it deliver is a great, albeit too rare, feeling. Luckily, Oddland have delivered unto us exactly that sort of blue-moon experience with their much anticipated release, Origin. It is everything you’d want a follow up release to be: it has many shared, thematic points with their previous release but they innovate where it matters, namely the musical approach. Origin is more agile, more expansive where The Treachery of Senses was dense and direct. It gives their specific brand of Nordic progressive metal space in which to grow, in which to try new things with their sound. Because of all of that, and much more, we’re super proud to be premiering the album exclusively, two days ahead of its release. Head on below to check it out!
I’ve already gone on in length about “Skylines”, one of my favorite tracks on the album, but there’s much more to check it out there. “Will” for example is one of the strongest closing tracks I’ve head on a progressive metal album. It’s chunky guitar tone, represents some of the heavier moments on the album while the slightly out of earshot lead is a perfect compliment to its more Meshuggah influenced tones and intimations. Of course, above it all the vocals operate in their full majesty. Their interaction with the lead on the verse is simply magic, with their soaring notes perfectly leading up to multiple bridges and moving choruses. This element reminds us perhaps of “Penumbra”, more to the beginning of the album, where that balance between vocals and leads is used in a darker sense.
I could, quite honestly, single out every track on this album. They all have their strong points, their hooks and catchy moments. Luckily, you can just listen for yourself now and make up your own damn mind. Once you’ve done that, don’t forget to head over here and get your pre-order. A strong opening to this album cycle hopefully means we won’t have to wait four years for the next one.