I reviewed Oranssi Pazuzu’s debut album some time ago, and loved it. It is probably one of the most eclectic black metal albums I have heard. Certainly, by now we have no shortage of bands seeking to push the boundaries of black metal, but Muukalainen Puhuu remains pretty unique in its efforts to draw from so many other things within the space of one album- dub, blues, electronica, and so forth. I somehow missed Kosmonument. Probably because I was broke at the time it came out and nobody sent me a free copy. THERE IS NO GOD.

This, their third release, is more focused, I think. Listening to it, the suggestion is that they have decided that their forte is minimalist, scuzzy riffing, given character by trippy electronics. Maybe it is- opener Vino Verso follows this template and is great: guitars and drums just vibin’ on a laid-back stonerish riff, while keys player ‘EviL’ takes centre stage, throwing out bleeps and bloops as if we were all taking ecstacy in a shed in the early 1990s, waving glowsticks like loons. See also the 11-minute epic Uraanisula, whose brooding dynamics and slower tempos conjure a decidedly creepier atmosphere. It builds into an up-tempo, harshly metallic riff and over the top is layered all sorts of freakish Dr Who electronic noises. It’s like the TARDIS has beamed down in the middle of an Oranssi Pazuzu jam session.

What other highlights? Quite a few, in fact. Spooky, tribalistic interlude Reikä Maisemassa gives way to Olen Aukaissut Uuden Silmän which initially seems like a return to fierce black metal. But, this gives way to a sort of strolling indie section, in which, once again, the rest of the band forms a canvass upon which the electronics can add colour. Also requiring of mention is Ympyrä On Viiva Tomussa, Valonielu’s 15-minute closing statement. Five of those minutes are spent pootling about (sounds like something from the soundtrack to a 70s ‘jungle cannibal’ exploitation film, actually), and then it suddenly explodes into a reverberating doom riff to bring this record, so filled with style and colour, to a sufficiently heavy climax.