Originally going by the name BLACK TRIP since 2004 when they first began, the band re-christened themselves as VOJD twelve years later. Weirdly enough, little is known of either BLACK TRIP or VOJD save for the fact that they hail from Stockholm. BLACK TRIP erased all their Facebook and homepage links, and little has been linked to VOJD save for a single blurb on the label's site concerning why the band changed its name. Tracing the origins of this band felt like stumbling through a missing person/murder mystery: BLACK TRIP vanishes in 2015 after releasing their sophomore album, destroys almost every trace of who they used to be, two years later they come back under a different name, looking and sounding just like they used to before they disappeared, but they refuse to divulge anything about their past, insisting they've always been known as VOJD with no memory of being anyone else. However, the reason for this new identity is less creepy psychological thriller, and more of just a headache in the legal department. The band apparently got into a dispute over the original name with an American band called BLACK TRIP, and thus were forced to either change their name, or be unable to sell records in the US. Much like what happened to GHOST being forced to go by the name GHOST B.C. for their U.S. releases.

With an unmistakable Doom sound, VOJD comes sailing in on a trippy tidal wave of cymbals and bass riddled riffs in "Break Out". It's not hard to see how Joseph Tholl insists that BLACK TRIP hasn't changed much save for a couple new members, calling "The Outer Ocean" BLACK TRIP's third album. Going through both band's discography there is definitely little to distinguish the two apart as they are one on the same. There are plenty of energetic tracks that are a clear throwback to that classic seventies groove that can be heard in "Secular Wire" and "Delusions in the Sky". Then they say, "Alright, enough of that", and mellows the hell out in their title track "The Outer Ocean", a distorted trip into a sedated dreamland. When they decide to get back up to speed after that tranquil sojourn, they bring it in "Vindicated Blues" and "On an Endless Day of Everlasting Winter". Guitars fire on all sixes, and describing Tholl's vocals won't do enough justice. "Dream Machine" brings some blues rhythm straight out of some quiet dive bar where the patrons don't take kindly to out of towners.

VOJD channels PINK FLOYD, LED ZEPPLIN, and CHURCH OF MISERY in "The Outer Ocean", oscillating between a peaceful and livewire sound. They definitely take you on a journey with their sound and aren't particularly concerned with the destination. Which is fine, because neither are you.