ODDWORLD

Ocean Grove have long called their genre-smashing sound “odd world,” but only now has it been enshrined as an all-caps album title. This fourth album also brings back departed members Running Touch—now an in-demand solo artist—and Luke Holmes as contributors and co-producers, adding to the sense of creative consolidation. Nu metal remains the Melbourne band’s north star, and yet they’re constantly veering off into far-flung corners of the sonic map. Powered by abrasive verses and a melodic chorus, “CELL DIVISION” is a concussion flashback to the late 1990s, while “RAINDROP” plays it much straighter with a hooky rock song that recalls Faith No More. Rapping and record scratching rear up on “SOWHAT1999” and “NO OFFENCE DETECTED,” respectively, as other tracks adopt roaring alt-rock (“MY DISASTER”), crusty shoegaze (“LAST DANCE”), and industrial-edged trip-hop (“OTP”). This is heavy music that’s also forcefully exploratory, with liberal use of effects and electronics adding to the dense, foggy production. You’d think that such splintered focus might blunt Ocean Grove’s impact, but the core trio of vocalist Dale Tanner, bassist/vocalist Twiggy Hunter, and drummer/producer Sam Bassal have developed a musical language so kinetic and twisty that we come to expect a wild new curveball every minute or two.