Finnish firebrands …And Oceans have been doing entirely their own thing for three decades now, and show no sign of stopping on The Regeneration Itinerary . The ever-present comparisons to Dimmu Borgir notwithstanding, their take on progressive/symphonic black metal is quite a unique amalgamation of influences. The strange alchemical mix offered on The Regeneration Itinerary makes for a volatile range of possibilities, and anticipation bubbles below the cork. What strange concoction have they distilled this time? What heady, writhing brew?
Opening track and advance single “Inertiae” unstoppers with an eerie atmospheric synth intro, explodes into heavy blasting and then somehow coagulates into a throbbing electronic beat. Mixologists indeed. A rich palate of success is permeates …And Oceans more experimental endeavours. Album highlight “The Form and the Formless” manages to bottle something akin to Blackened Slugdge and a wildly gorgeous chunk of chiptune that wouldn’t be amiss on an Igorrr album. Follow-up “Prophetical Mercury Implementations” carries on with comparable quality, injecting a drop of Caledonian Loch water into its lilting melodies.
Not all experimentation is as exhilarating. Some of the synth work on “The Way of Sulphur” seems a bit overly dominant, and bonus track “The Discord Static” arguably enjoys a little too many electronics here and there. Combined with the overbearing noise outro, this final draught is a harder one to keep down. Nevertheless, The Regeneration Itinerary packs a mean punch when it wants to. Second track Förnyelse i Tre Akter” opens on a classic black metal riff as nasty as they come, and transitions into some Anaal Nathrakh-adjacent grinding. “Towards the Absence of Light” brings a similar energy in the heavy parts, to great effect. Further album highlight “I am Coin, I am Two” slows down on the tempo initially but injects just as much venom. ...And Oceans introduce a huge riff just after the two minute mark, paired with an excellent ensemble of harsh vocals, before speeding up and jamming the mortar down hard for another grindy winner.
Great melodies swirl around in this peculiar potion too. “Towards the Absence of Light” brings some sweet lead work, and flows beautifully into a stately, regal melody on “The Terminal Filter”. And while not all the melodies on this track are equally as winsome, the song’s melodic climax really brings the majesty. Finishing the late album triptych, the awesomely titled bonus track “Copper Blood, Titanium Stars” really drives home the symphonics and it works like a charm. Shifting between harmony and dissonance, the song introduces an excellent tempo switch around the two minute mark, and then continues to delight with strong melodies while alternately burning an acid grin into one’s face with some lean, mean black metal riffing. This one is a real winner. Not all the guitar melodies are as memorable though, with “Chromium Lungs, Bronze Optics”and “The Fire in Which We Burn” offering much goodness in the heavier parts, but congealing somewhat unfortunately when the melodies open up. This probably has more to do with the embarrassment of riches the album boggles the mind with, than with any fault in the writing.
Individual performances are excellent across the board. Mathias Lillmåns offers a varied array of harsh vocals, commanding a scope beyond Black Metal with aplomb. Guitarists Teemu Saari and Timo Kontio shine especially on the burlier riffs, underwritten by the rumbling (if somewhat buried) bass-work of Pyry Hanski, who carries the groove on “Copper Blood, Titanium Stars” expertly. Keyboard chameleon Antti Simonen supplies this shapeshifting entity with some of its zaniest appendages, to great success. Last but definitely not least, drummer Kausi Kuusisalo might take the fluorescent green cake here. Displaying a chimeric ability to shift between skintight blasts, flashy but never overbearing fills, and some excellent slower drum patterns such as on “Chromium Lungs, Bronze Optics” he impresses ceaselessly. If only those cymbals got a bit more oxygen to react to within the mix and master.
The production is, as alluded to above, on the dense side. While adding to the heft and rarely actively detrimental to the listener’s enjoyment, some more room and dynamism could help The Regeneration Itinerary shine even brighter, and might ease the ears through the sonic amalgam …and Oceans have wrought here. To producer Juho Räihä’s credit, this must have been a tough nut to crack, and it sounds much better than As in Gardens, So in Tombs on my sound systems. This is a great experimental Frankenstein of an album. When the intoxication hits, it hits hard, and the ability to combine the wacky and near carnivalesque atmosphere with these venom-drenched black metal riffs, and some truly majestic melodies commands respect, and offers new wonders with every expertly distilled drop.