Band:	Oranssi Pazuzu
Album:	Värähtelijä
Style:	Psychedelic black metal
Release date:	February 26, 2016
A review by:	Auntie Sahar

01. Saturaatio
02. Lahja
03. Värähtelijä
04. Hypnotisoitu Viharukous
05. Vasemman Käden Hierarkia
06. Havuluu
07. Valveavaruus

It is happening again, here and now. After sailing on the outer regions of the Kuiper belt, and interacting with several extraterrestrial species who could impart new wisdom to them, Oranssi Pazuzu have arrived back on Terra, eager to apply this fresh knowledge to their music. What did the words of those ice giants from beyond Neptune contribute to their new sound? What about the teachings of the Tsuthians, the 9 foot tall gas ghosts who speak only in hisses? Listen carefully, ye carbon-based life forms, and Värähtelijä shall unveil the answers.

In terms of continuity, for Oranssi Pazuzu Värähtelijä very much feels like the logical "next step" after Valonielu, in that it continues its predecessor's formula of overall being far more inclined towards psychedelic music than towards black metal. Yet where Valonielu struck this reviewer as something close to "blackened space rock," with the remaining BM elements simply thrown on top of the trippy, krautrock-ish core, Värähtelijä feels like much more of a seamless fusion of the two. Although once again being dominated by a psychedelic/krautrock sound, the black metal elements that remain here aren't so much a nice little lid on top of the jar, so to speak, but more so the veins and arteries that run throughout the album's body. The infusion is much more noticeable, and this could be the closest that the band have come to a true "psychedelic black metal" album yet. "Havuluu" and "Hypnotisoitu Viharukous" are probably the finest examples of this new approach, and it's quite tasty.

At the same time, there is also an extremely catchy, almost stoner-ish sound that runs all throughout the composition of Värähtelijä. This is really no new news for Oranssi Pazuzu, as they've always written stuff that's easy to bob your head and latch onto, and Valonielu flirted with a bit of a stoner sound as well, but here this technique somehow feels.... much more developed in full. The main, opening riff on the monstrous "Vasemman Käden Hierarkia" is what really gets this action going, and the whole 18 minute track is a triumph from start to Finnish (see what I did there?). Perhaps collaborating with some of the drone doom giants in Dark Buddha Rising for Atomikylä left a bit of an influence on Oranssi for this new record. Perhaps it didn't. But whatever the case, this crunchy, riff heavy sound that listeners are treated to here is simply marvelous.

Four albums into their career, I think it's pretty safe to say that Oranssi Pazuzu have now put any doubts of them being formidable innovators within the realms of both psychedelia and black metal to rest. Värähtelijä roughly translates out to "The Vibrator," and while this release unfortunately isn't a concept album about dildos in space (at least as far as I know), it is most definitely one that can help you "vibrate" to those higher planes that Oranssi Pazuzu are operating on. As the band have employed different techniques on each of their albums, some listeners will probably find the minute details they're looking for here, and some probably won't. But for the most part, it can definitely be said that Värähtelijä is yet another quality chapter in an ever-expanding saga of cosmic DMT black metal from beyond the event horizon. Strap on those oxygen tanks and play it loud.

Go traverse the wormhole.