2009's Blood, OSI's third release, signaled a new chapter in the group's history by not featuring Mike Portnoy on drums or a guest bassist - the drum seat was filled by Porcupine Tree's Gavin Harrison while Jim Matheos handled both guitar and bass duties himself. Mikael Aekerfeldt of Opeth lends vocals to one track much like Steven Wilson did on OSI's debut album but that would turn out to be the extent of the guest appearances on Blood's standard edition release.
A more aggressive slant is foreshadowed by the crimson-soaked packaging and Blood's content doesn't renege on that promise, opening things up with the band's most straight-ahead track yet recorded in "The Escape Artist", including a compact guitar solo of all things. The tone of the rest of the record is darker on the whole but not just in a way that the heavy songs are heavier: there is a cohesive unity to Blood's composition that elevates the individual songs past the previous electronic/metal either/or approach that marked OSI's previous output as songs like "Radiologue", "Terminal", and "Stockholm" all blend Moore and Matheos' distinct songwriting into a powerful synthesis of sparse electronica and battering-ram riffage. The tracks all feel tight and fat-free (except for "Be The Hero" and it's strange, 2 minute quiet intro) without wandering into Chroma Key synth-pop territory - these pieces have a clearly identifiable "OSI-ness" to them that some of the lighter material on previous records lacked, coupled with some of the strongest standalone songs they've ever written: "Radiologue", "Terminal", and especially the haunting title track are immediate home runs that do well to prop up some of the weaker numbers. Blood's heavier tracks in particular suffer for being played a bit too straight and the similarities between "The Escape Artist", "False Start", and "Be The Hero" stand out more since they're put up against the more distinct soundscapes of the quieter tracks "Terminal", "Stockholm", and especially the title track, which deserves a shout-out for being the headiest shot of concentrated atmosphere and keyboard work the band has ever assembled.
Gavin Harrison does a good job of propelling Blood's more turgid moments as he's got a style all his own, playing more beneath the rest of the music than alongside it. His drumming doesn't feel as chopped up or restricted as Portnoy's and it lends an organic, almost jazzy feel to the album, especially on the lone instrumental "Microburst Alert" and the heavier tunes. The only real casualty of Blood's instrumental makeup is the bass: Matheos is a capable player, but nothing he provides ever really stands out in a way that Sean Malone or Joey Vera's grooves did. Moore's vocals are reassuringly somber, and the vivid lyrics he provides for "Terminal" and the title track only further cement his reputation as prog metal's Peter Watts.
Blood, finally, represents both a peak and a valley for OSI. They achieve a sonic mind-meld with a consistency unseen in their earlier work, but it seems to have come at the cost of some of the more experimental material found in past albums. It doesn't really drag so much as stew in it's own juices, and while that can make for a great album to visit when in a certain mood it's liable to grow stale on you.
C+
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