3 out of 5

Label: Nuclear Blast

Produced by: Julius Mauranen

I very confidently suspect that Oranssi Pazuzu’s Muuntautuja will become one of my favorite releases of theirs, along with being a particularly notable metal album in my catalogue; the kind of release that produces a very specific sound that proves unmatched by any other. There will be a day that I get an itch for its dense, difficult musical melange, put it on, and it “clicks” like never before.

Muuntautuja – translated as ‘Shapeshifter,’ according to numerous reviews – is a logical progression of the beastly psychdelia of Värähtelijä, and the nigh power-violent moments of the electro-dashed Mestarin Kynsi; it is also an utterly cluttered album, and rife with riffs upon riffs upon riffs while maybe cautiously broaching a more ‘mainstream’ trip hop sound. “Cluttered” isn’t a flattering term, of course, and I’m not sure the full-on embrace of electronics is always a boon, as it’s interesting, but kind of forcing the sounds to ill-fitting places at points. But there’s nothing on Muuntautuja that crosses a line into outright indulgence; rather, this is the path Oranssi has been on from the start, of massaging their black metal into various crevices, and adapting along the way. This particular adaption is, perhaps, indicative of some growing pains though, which could either lead to a more streamlined sound… or some next huge evolution. It’s truly exciting being teased for What’s Next.

In the meantime, though, it’s a bit of an uphill battle with Muuntautuja, undeniably exposing its agenda from the start – a ping-pong digital blip that blossoms into the group’s sawing guitars, heavy keys, and Jun-His’ lovely snarls – which is all definitely familiar, and hits with hard beats, but is also broadcasting the kind of sensory overload that will make the listen tough to parse. The followup title track similarly swings big with a swoony synth melody the juxtaposes the volume, but again, all the dials are kind of turned up to 11. Here one might note that many of the tracks on the album are at about the five-minute range; not a short song by traditional means, but perhaps for OP, and maybe suggestive of what’s going on here: too many ideas. I think the desire to bring in some more traditional beats and ambient interludes is intriguing, as-is how this maybe shapes the ideas in more compressed bursts, but the group also doesn’t want to let go of some of their tried and true bags of tricks, leading to Everything being stuffed into less space. Producer Julius Mauranen has been working with the band for a couple releases now, and here I hear struggle also, trying to make the more melodic elements sound as intense as the metal, and rendering the music with less discernible layers as a result.

It’s just a lot to take in.

Again, though, this makes for a very unique puzzle of sounds, and I’ve had the album on repeat for approximate days, trying and trying to get a feel for it. Slowly, songs are coming around on me, but it still remains elusive. Post-Muuntautuja I think will introduce an even more confident OP, and at that point, going back to listen to Shapeshifter will make that title make even more sense, as evidence of the group’s sound being in transition. It’s a bit uncomfortable – a bit unformed – but once you know where its been and where it’s going, witnessing that transition will be pretty revelatory.