From Oslo, Norway, comes Progressive Extreme Metal act OKULAR. Their last release before this one was nine years ago. The newest release contains nine songs. “Back to Myself and Beyond” is first. The sound is deep and dissonant, and the harsh vocals have a bit of a swinging cadence to them. Although the music is primarily within the realm of Death Metal, there are Progressive elements as well. “Regenerate” has a tinge of Classical music within its dissonance, and there are even some piano notes to round out the sound. So far, the music is quite tight and concise.

“A New Path” begins with clean, melancholy notes, and a feeling of resolve. Then the filth and stench of Death Metal rolls in and covers the listener from head to toe. “Wake-Up Call” has more fire and more energy, and again, the guttural vocals are cadenced. The guitars are always on the move, keeping the listener guessing where they are headed. “Pace Through Chaos” also has a swing to it, as well as meaty bass notes. Pay close attention to the guitar work…it is technical and dense. “Debauchery” is a short instrumental consisting mostly of guitars that begins with clean tones that spiral downward to where the beast hides in the dark.

“Another Dimension of Mind” has a slow, discordant pace and sound, and the riffs morph from legato to staccato strikes and back and forth. The clean vocals are a bit of a surprise, and they add another dimension to the music. “Elevate” closes the album, and the clean, melancholy guitar tones leave a flavor of hopelessness on the listener. The words “elevate, regenerate” then come at you with a renewed passion. Overall, this was a solid album. The guitar work in particular was strong and kept the album moving forward, and the sprinkling in of clean guitars and vocals brought some diversity to the table. For me, the overall message was one of fortitude.