Finland’s symphonic black metal visionaries …AND OCEANS return with their second single, Prophetical Mercury Implement, taken from their upcoming album ‘The Regeneration Itinerary’. Accompanied by a visually stunning music video, the track is a deep dive into the album’s overarching themes of transformation, duality, and alchemical rebirth.
Premiering today on the Season of Mist YouTube channel, the music video for Prophetical Mercury Implement manifests the band’s ability to blend ferocious black metal aggression with ethereal symphonic elements, crafting a sonic experience that is both cerebral and devastatingly intense.
With relentless riff work, soaring orchestration, and a labyrinthine structure, Prophetical Mercury Implement encapsulates the essence of The Regeneration Itinerary. Lyrically, the track draws upon the fluid and volatile nature of mercury, a symbol of transformation and introspection in both alchemical and philosophical traditions. Vocalist Mathias Lillmåns explores the concept of dissolving into reflective waters, where self-awareness and annihilation become indistinguishable.
“Now, I am the medium / I am the stream…
Drowning in argent colors / This vast bottomless ocean.”
As the central turning point in the album’s conceptual narrative, the song embodies the struggle between light and darkness, stagnation and progress, fate and free will—mirroring the overarching journey of The Regeneration Itinerary, an album loosely inspired by the dualities explored in Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist.
“The Prophetical Mercury Implement is an existential realization. I was exploring some very deep waters at some point, I could see the mercury dripping from my side, but still wanted more, searching for new dangerous currents to take me further.” Lillmåns notes. “I just kept on feeding the destruction until one day I had reached some kind of a threshold. Even though this track is a view from a vast bottomless depth it also offers a glimpse of the other side, a promise of redemption and transcendence.”
Musically composed by Timo Kontio, the track seamlessly weaves between chaotic black metal precision and expansive, dreamlike atmospheres. With its unpredictable structure, eerie synth-driven passages, and Lillmåns’ commanding vocal presence, Prophetical Mercury Implement stands as a towering demonstration to …AND OCEANS‘ continued evolution in the symphonic black metal landscape.
Due for release on May 23rd, The Regeneration Itinerary is an intricate conceptual work that channels themes of philosophy, alchemical transmutation, and the eternal interplay of opposites. As the successor to 2020’s Cosmic World Mother, the album builds upon the band’s legendary symphonic black metal foundations while pushing their sonic and lyrical scope into uncharted territory.
The Regeneration Itinerary was recorded at Inka Studio / SoundSpiral Audio, produced by Juho Räihä, and mixed & mastered at the renowned Necromorbus Studio by Tore Stjerna. The album’s striking artwork was created by Adrien Bousson, visually encapsulating its themes of regeneration, chaos, and transformation.
The Regeneration Itinerary is out May 23rd on Season of Mist.
