Omnivortex is already releasing its second album.
Three years after the release of Diagrams of Consciousness, their debut opus, the Finnish band comprising Mikael Reinikka (bass), Severi Saarioja (guitar/vocals), Mikko Pylkkö (guitar) and Aaro Österman (drums) announce the release of Circulate, on Inverse Records.
The band’s opening track Dwells offers an ominous sound, then lets all its power crush us, while a catchy groove leads the surge and its incessant double kick. The band’s Prog approach doesn’t detract from its punch, whether on the instrumental or the devastating screams, but also lets the more ethereal parts offer us a well-deserved break, but fury quickly returns to the charge as on Transforming To Pale Mist, which offers an extremely heavy, jerky sound without taking away the complex touches. The clean sound that follows the wave of devastation seamlessly blends into the composition, giving it an ethereal final, then Of Aeons Past returns to pure aggression with catchy riffs that let their epic Heavy Metal influences join the more polished parts. We also find this disturbing touch on the second half of the track, which leads us to Slumbering In Black and its monstrous vocal parts accentuating the oppression the band plays on under its soothing harmonics, but the contrast is shattered with the final explosion. The rhythm suddenly picks up with Mechanical Motions and its modern touch, turning the riffs into an as complex as uncompromising hurricane of fury, with howls flourishing and leaving us no respite other than this calm, heady parts, which flares up again before Husk follows suit, adopting a similar strategy. The band’s relentlessness is perfectly paced, giving the leads a fitting introduction, before a relatively melodic final transitions into Harbingers Of Cosmic Death, the shortest track, but clearly not less aggressive, skilfully linking the dissonant melodies with the devastating basis underneath the furious screams. The band fights until the last second, which naturally segues into Endless, the ironic final track, which takes advantage of its length to let the musicians play a more haunting, but also heavier rhythm, whose groove easily hypnotizes us while remaining focused on this sound’s aggressiveness mastered from start to finish, even during the clear vocal parts.
I personally discovered Omnivortex with Circulate, and although I’m used to Death Metal-oriented technical prowess, the album’s natural richness immediately won me over. I can only encourage you to give it a try if you’re a music lover!
90/100