Yunoverse

Yunoverse is the forthcoming eighth full-length studio album by the American metal band Osmosis. The album was released through Season of Mist on February 18, 2014, and in Europe and Japan a half-a-month later. It is the first of the outfit's albums to be issued under said label.

Background and recording
After the critical success of their seventh album and third extended play, Soul Society and Pull on the Strings respectively, Osmosis revealed that on August 13, 2013, they entered the recording studio with Fredrik Nordström and begun the writing process altogether. Initially, rumors were spreading about this release being the last album the band will ever record, as the members themselves appeared to be looking forward to continuing with side projects and venturing new things; this was later proven to be "half-false", as the quintet would only be entering a long-time hiatus. Most of the album will be recorded at Studio Fredman, located in Gothenburg, Sweden. It will be the band's first record for them to be recording outside of North America; when asked at a concert performance regarding this decision, frontman Marco Simmer replied:


 * "Growing up as somebody in my early teens, I remember that my dad used to give away old CDs to me like Like an Ever Flowing Stream and Contradictions Collapse. Ever since that period in my life, I've always been mesmerized when listening to my favorite metal groups that originated from Sweden. Whether the production was raw or not, the best part about those albums had to be the amount of creativity and emotion. I think that the guys and I need to attempt to capture that presence for this upcoming album!"

The title of the album, which is Yunoverse, was revealed on September 12. At the time, three song titles for the full-length were also rumored; these were: "Kirito the Master Beater", "Commercialized Weapon", and "Eat the Apple, Throw Away the Core". As of November 11, one day before the launch of "Better Love Stories Than Twilight" (the debut single from the album), lead guitarist Adam Guerilla announced that those names had been since proven untrue, and confirmed two new tracks: "Tsurara" and "What(ever) Happened to the Petercopter?", the latter of which being a Japan-exclusive song. On December 3, the standard track listing had finally been unveiled.

Musical direction
Yunoverse, Osmosis' eigth full-length album, combines elements from just about every single CD from the band released until now. Similar to Pull on the Strings, the quintet's third EP, Simmer shares his vocal duties with Guerilla, culminating with a few of the tracks including both of their voices (Guerilla, however, is mainly confined to choruses). Having said that, the album is "Osmosis' most ambitious and varied material to date", featuring a multitude of sounds and unusual instruments. The official final track off this release, "Yunoverse", is a slow-paced song inspired by the sound of Type O Negative, with lead vocals provided by bass player Ash Beale; it is, thematically, a continuation of "I'm You" from Break the Stars.

Rhythm guitarist Phoenix Laston described the music on Yunoverse as:


 * "A far more mature effort than previous outings. With Fredrik at the helm, he remodeled us into an entirely new group. All and all, we are still the exact same band... with the exact same attitude towards the mainstream industry. But we're stronger and more daring than ever! I'm most certain that our new CD is sure to have something for everybody, and... well, some tracks NOT for everyone. Compared to Soul Society, Yunoverse is on a whole different plane. {laugh}"

Release
On September 12, Osmosis announced the title of their newest album: Yunoverse. The cover art for said record is by mangaka Sakae Esuno. Farrell has revealed that it will be the first of any of their material to have physical or digital issues outside of North America. Both of the American and European versions contain two bonus tracks, with "Flowers Suck Ass" being an unreleased ditty.

Singles
On the exact day that the title and album cover for their eighth album were unveiled, Simmer said that the band was to premiere their first single off the CD in early-November. It was later announced on October 13 that the debut single off of their eighth album was to be "Better Love Stories Than Twilight", which got released on November 12

Word had finally got out that, on December 22, Osmosis confirmed that the song "Tsurara" was the official second single from Yunoverse. It was launched on January 4, 2014.

Music videos

 * Kirito in Aincraidheim; Ramon Boutviseth
 * Tsurara; Mitch Massie

Video information: Kirito in Aincraidheim
The music video for "Kirito in Aincraidheim", the ninth track off of the album, was released on January 11. The video features scenes of the band playing in a desecrated ballroom interspersed with various images that allude to the lyrical content. Much of the video was shot in black and white, with some unique coloring done to certain props, paying homage to Sin City. It is the first music video that Osmosis has released in which their vocalist, Simmer, is shown without any face paint.

Video information: Tsurara
Osmosis' music video for "Tsurara", the fourth track off the band's latest album, was released on April 4. The video depicts the band's frontman, Marco Simmer (wearing corpse paint and a dark red, hooded robe), venturing through an abandoned field that is entirely covered in snow. Directed by Mitch Massie, the video utilizes a myriad of shaky camera techniques and callbacks (i.e. the ghoulish female who made appearances in "I Can Fly!" and "Pierce Through the Heavens", and  the aliens that were in "Battle of the Planet's Wife" (who are now entrapped in mechanical suits made from ice)).

Track listing
All lyrics written by Marco Simmer.
 * 1) "Wacky Osmetal Rock" (Instrumental) - 1:34
 * 2) "Moves Like Yeager" - 3:28
 * 3) "The Beautiful Duwang" - 3:53
 * 4) "Tsurara" (つらら; Icicle) - 3:42; Simmer, Corey Farrell
 * 5) "Better Love Stories Than Twilight" - 3:32
 * 6) "Everybody Hates Kyubey" (skit) - 0:31
 * 7) "...In the Keyhole" - 5:14; Adam Guerilla
 * 8) "1000 Ways to Knock Out Triple H" - 3:25
 * 9) "Kirito in Aincradheim" - 4:01; Farrell, Guerilla, Phoenix Laston
 * 10) "So I Married My Eclectic Retard (S.I.M.M.E.R.)" - 3:46
 * 11) "Career Suicide" (skit) - 0:52
 * 12) "Headline: Girl Gets Raped by School Uniform" - 2:37
 * 13) "No Disassemble!" - 3:19; Ash Beale
 * 14) "We Minus Always Laugh" - 3:22
 * 15) "Yunoverse" - 13:03; Beale, Laston, Simmer
 * 16) "Flowers Suck Ass" - 4:36/Special Edition track
 * 17) "Agitated Screams of Maggots (Dir En Grey cover)" - 3:18/Special Edition track
 * 18) "What(ever) Happened to the Petercopter?" - 4:06; Japan-exclusive

Osmosis

 * Marco Simmer - lead vocals (all except Track 15), keyboards, turntables, synthesizer, electronics, samples, melodica, vocoder, acoustic guitar, violin, theremin, oud
 * Adam Guerilla - lead guitar, lap steel, programming, co-lead vocals, bagpipes, shakuhachi
 * Ash Beale - bass guitar, pipa, six-string banjo, whamola, trumpet, lead vocals (Track 15)
 * Phoenix Laston - rhythm guitar, alto saxophone, backing vocals, mellotron, biwa
 * Corey Farrell - drums, marimba, xylophone, piano (Track 15), percussion

Additional

 * Fredrik Nordström - production
 * Jens Bogren - mixing
 * Henrik Udd - additional mixing
 * Christian Olde Wolbers - engineer
 * Stephen Marcussen - mastering
 * Colin Marston - additional mastering
 * Sakae Esuno - cover art
 * Hiroshi Shiibashi - illustrations
 * Dean Karr - photography

Samples

 * JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
 * Monday Night Raw
 * "Sirius" by Eir Aoi
 * Short Circuit
 * Conan
 * Up in Smoke
 * "I Went Back in Time and Voted for Hitler" by Anal Cunt

Details

 * Released: February 18, 2014 (USA) /March 4, 2014 (JPN & EU)
 * Recorded: Studio Fredman at Gothenburg, Sweden; August-December 2013
 * Label: Season of Mist (USA), Lifeforce (EU), Sony Music (JPN)
 * Producer: Fredrik Nordström