As Oceans Divide push metalcore’s emotional and sonic boundaries with the crushing new single “World Collapse.”
Ontario metalcore force As Oceans Divide continue their ascent with the announcement of their next single, “World Collapse”. The track marks the third release from the band’s upcoming self‑titled EP, following the momentum of previous singles “White Noise” and “Into The Dying Light.”
The lyric video for “World Collapse” expands the EP’s overarching themes of tension, internal conflict, and emotional weight, concepts visually represented in the EP’s striking artwork: a chained sea serpent wrapped around an anchor, thrashing against a violent ocean backdrop. The imagery mirrors the band’s sonic identity: a constant push and pull between aggression and melody, chaos and control, heaviness and atmosphere.
“World Collapse” delves deeper into the EP’s emotional core. While “Into The Dying Light” explored acceptance, resistance, and the confrontation of one’s breaking point, “World Collapse” widens the lens, capturing the feeling of everything falling apart at once, both internally and externally.
Musically, the track blends the band’s signature elements of technical, hard‑hitting riffs, dynamic melodic passages, atmospheric tension, and a powerful vocal performance from Tom Emmans that shifts seamlessly between aggression and clarity. The result is a song that feels massive, immersive, and emotionally charged, an embodiment of the EP’s core contrasts.
As Oceans Divide’s debut EP is built around contrast. Every track balances intensity with reflection, heaviness with melody, and chaos with structure. Lyrically, the EP dives into themes of internal struggle, loss, resilience, and the weight of what lies beneath the surface. The band describes the EP as “a journey rather than a collection of parts,” with each song crafted to pull listeners in, hit hard, and leave space for emotional connection.
First off care to introduce yourself to our readers?
We’re As Oceans Divide, a five-piece melodic metal band from Southern Ontario made up of musicians who have spent years playing in bands like Battlesoul, Bloodshoteye, Atria, Odium, Aquila, and Hellfire Syndicate. Although this is a new project, we’ve all known each other for years through touring, recording, and the local metal scene.
Our goal has always been to create music that combines technical musicianship with emotion. We love writing heavy, aggressive songs, but we also want them to have atmosphere, melody, and something meaningful to say. At the end of the day, we want listeners to walk away feeling something, not just hearing another heavy song.
Tell us a bit about your recent release.
We’re really excited about our debut EP, releasing on July 9th. Over the past few months we’ve introduced listeners to As Oceans Divide through our first three singles, Into The Dying Light, White Noise, and World Collapse. Each song showcases a different side of the band, but together they lead into a collection of music that tells a much bigger story.
The EP captures everything we set out to create as a band. It’s heavy and technical, but it’s equally focused on melody, atmosphere, and emotional honesty. Lyrically, it explores themes of struggle, resilience, loss, and confronting the things we carry beneath the surface. Musically, we wanted every song to have its own identity while still feeling connected as part of a complete listening experience.
Walk us through your creative process when creating music.
Most songs begin with Eric and Matt building the instrumental foundation. We’ll develop riffs, drum arrangements, song structures, and early vocal ideas before bringing them to the rest of the band.
Once Tom and Thomas get involved, that’s when the songs really come alive. Tom’s vocal melodies and lyrical ideas, along with Thomas’ production and creative input, often take the music somewhere we never expected. It’s a collaborative process built on trust, and everyone has the freedom to challenge ideas if it makes the song stronger.
The goal is never to show off technically, it’s to make every part serve the emotion of the song.
Now that the music is out, what does the ‘road ahead’ look like? Beyond tours and videos, what’s one ‘bucket list’ goal you hope to achieve with this release?
Right now we’re focused on introducing As Oceans Divide to as many people as possible. We’re continuing to write new material, releasing more music, and preparing to bring these songs to the stage.
As for a bucket-list goal, we’d love to earn a spot on a major Canadian metal festival and eventually share the stage with some of the bands that inspired us growing up. More than anything, though, we hope these songs connect with people. If someone hears our songs and it helps them through a difficult time, that’s every bit as meaningful as any milestone.
Every artist has a ‘lightbulb moment’ where things just clicked. Looking back, what’s the one performance or milestone that made you realize, ‘Okay, this is what I was meant to do’?
For most of us, it wasn’t one specific show, it was years of playing in different bands and realizing that no matter where life took us, we always came back to making music.
The moment that really clicked for As Oceans Divide was hearing our first completed songs come together. What started as a few demos evolved into something that genuinely sounded like its own band with its own identity. That’s when we knew this wasn’t just another project, it was something worth investing everything into.
We love championing Canadian talent. If you were curating a ‘Must-Listen’ playlist of emerging artists right now, who is the first person you’d add?
There are so many great bands coming out of Canada right now, but we’d definitely encourage people to check out the local and independent metal scene. There are incredible musicians putting out world-class music that deserve far more attention.
One of the best things about the Canadian metal community is how supportive it is. We’ve been fortunate to meet and play alongside a lot of talented artists over the years, and we’d encourage people to dive into their local scene, you’ll probably discover your next favourite band there. If I had to pick one on the top of my head it’s a band I seen live just a few weeks ago and they blew me away. Crimson Shadows.
There’s nothing like the energy of a live room. Where can fans catch you on stage next, and for someone seeing you for the first time, what should they expect from a As Oceans Divide live experience?”
We’re currently working toward bringing As Oceans Divide to the stage, so the best place to keep up with announcements is through our social media.
When people do see us live, they can expect a performance that’s every bit as dynamic as the recordings. We want the audience to experience the emotion behind the songs just as much as the heaviness. It’ll be aggressive, melodic, energetic, and honest, the kind of show where every member leaves everything on stage.