By Jonny Bakes
I’m a big fan of the level of effort that bands are putting into special edition releases of their albums these days. Gone are the days where the best you could hope for was a couple of bonus tracks or maybe even a bonus disk, now bands are getting really creative to deliver some pretty unique special editions! The bigger, well established bands have the money behind them to get pretty lavish with theirs, we’ve seen big box editions, sex toy sets (yes, multiple occasions!) and even a bespoke N64 as rewards for those who go all out for deluxe editions. But you don’t have to spend lots of money to get a pretty unique special edition as Bioplan has shown with the collection release of the two EPs ‘Epipath’ and ‘Ocular’.
Coming in at a respectable €15 (only €3 more than the digital album) the limited edition of this collection comes in a special 80s nostalgia box. Arriving in a special VHS box, containing the CD, booklet, guitar pick, stickers and more, this edition gives you quite a lot more for the extra cash and is the most appropriate packaging for this album. But that’s only a good deal if you like the music, so let’s spend some time to really delve into these two EPs to see what spending your hard-earned cash would get you.
Bioplan is the brainchild of Swedish multi-instrumentalist Andi Kravijaca, who has made the fantastic decision (in my opinion) to blend instrumental prog/djent with 80s-style synth to create this beast that at times is pretty hard hitting and at others has a real nostalgic sci-fi vibe. As I alluded to before, this release is a collection of two previously released EPs – ‘Epipath’, which was released on 1 May 2020, and the earlier ‘Ocular’, from April 2019. But for me, this is the first time listening to either, and I’m a little disappointed that I didn’t catch this last year!
To try and give you a bit of taste of what you can expect to hear on this album, it’s a bit like a collision between Animals as Leaders and synthwave bands like Miami Nights 1984 or Occams Laser. So, you get some great technical guitar work, as well as that instantly recognizable djent sound, laced with bright and upbeat synthesizer work that will whisk you right back to the 80s. However, these elements aren’t evenly mixed throughout the album and you’ll find some tracks with a heavier emphasis on the synthesizer and others where this becomes more of a background element of the sound.
If you want to get a real flavour for what awaits you in this album, then I would say the second track ‘Perspex Cassidy’ does a pretty good job of summing this up. It’s a track that, like all good progressive music, really flows through different movements, all of which are really bright and give off a positive vibe. If you’re the kind of person who likes their music progressive and a little bit experimental then I have every faith that you will get hooked from this tack onwards!
I’m pretty hooked on this album and will definitely be using this to try and fuel my working-from-home productivity when I find myself getting distracted. Hell, I’ve also already put down an order for the special edition box set because it really is that good. Let’s face it, if there was ever a time to pour money into supporting artists through merchandise purchases, that time is now! For fans of TesseracT, Animals as Leaders and Yngwie Malmsteen, ‘Epipath & Ocular’ deserves to find a home in your music collection. Although be warned that the special edition won’t fit in your CD rack…
- ‘Epipath & Ocular’ is out now. You can get your copy HERE.
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