UMUR "Forward Into Regression" is the 2nd full-length studio album by US grindcore/ deathgrind act Maruta. The album was released in March 2011 by Willowtip Records/ Hammerheart Records.

"Forward Into Regression" features 16 tracks of aggressive extreme metal somewhere on the border between grindcore and death metal. While the band definitely blast their way through parts of the album, they certainly aren´t a one trick pony. The music features a lot of dissonance, screaming guitar notes, pretty technical playing and tempo changes and some of those parts definitely don´t sound like "straight" grindcore. The vocals are mostly harsh screaming "core" type vocals, but there are deeper growling type vocals in the music too. I´m happy that the band have chosen to include the latter type as the former gets a bit enervating after a while. At least to my ears.

One of the features I noticed and liked on the album is the distored bass and how powerful it sounds, but "Forward Into Regression" is all in all a very well produced album recorded by skilled musicians.

I´m well entertained throughout the album´s playing time, but it´s generally a bit hard to tell the songs apart and that´s not a plus in my book. A track like album closer "Blood of the Luddite" is an example of a track that sets itself apart and it´s nice to hear that Maruta occasionally emphasize memorability over sheer aggression. A 3 - 3.5 star rating is warranted.