SWIRLY TERMINATION

Though released in the same year as The Hidden Step, Swirly Termination is perhaps best appreciated if one recalls that it wasn't recorded as a cohesive studio album, but instead consisted of a grab-bag of unreleased tracks put out by their former record label after a fraught parting of the ways. Later issues include comments from the band's manager suggesting that it's best seen as a followup to The Bits Between the Bits - the cassette release which put together a disparate range of tracks that didn't make it onto any of their other early cassette albums.

Seen in this light, Swirly Termination is easier to enjoy. Yes, it doesn't sound like what the Ozrics were doing in 2000, but that's because it's not from then - instead it's a brace of leftovers ranging from 1992 to 1998. But precisely because it's a disparate range of tracks of various origins, it does end up being a more varied trip than some Ozrics albums from this period. As such, what it loses on consistency it makes up for in variety and novelty, making it an intriguing release.