When it came time to make their new album, The Death Of Me, Sydney metalcore outfit Polaris knew they had a tall order on their hands. Its predecessor, 2017 debut The Mortal Coil, was an ARIA-nominated, Top 10 hit in Australia, introducing the group to legions of fans around the country and, thanks to an extensive international touring schedule, the world.

As the main lyric writer in Polaris, Furnari warns that The Death Of Me contains some of the bleakest material he’s ever penned, with recurring lyrical motifs and ideas floating throughout.“There is a kind of arc to the lyrics that takes you across the record,” he starts, while stressing that The Death Of Me isn’t a concept album. “It’s really a record about losing faith in yourself and the world, and finding it again temporarily before losing it once more. It’s this cycle of ups and downs and highs and lows and victory and defeat again and again, struggling to find balance in our lives and within ourselves.”

Such lyrical layers complement the expansive nature of the music, resulting in an album that adheres to the band’s initial vision: it’s distinctly the work of Polaris, but reflects the experiences and growth of the past two years.