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Polaris is an Australian metalcore outfit with an expansive sound rooted in progressive metal, post-rock, and electronicore elements and a lyrical style that focuses on themes of anxiety, depression, and loss. The band emerged in 2017 with the acclaimed Mortal Coil, which like its successor, 2020's The Death of Me, earned an ARIA nomination for Best Hard Rock or Heavy Metal Album. 2023's hard-hitting Fatalism delivered a potent set of songs inspired by the emotional strife the group felt during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Founded in 2012 by drummer Daniel Furnari and guitarist/vocalist Jake Steinhauser, the Sydney-based group soon coalesced around a lineup that included guitarist Rick Schneider, vocalist Jamie Hails, keyboardist James West, and Jake's brother Matt Steinhauser on bass. West and Matt Steinhauser departed the following year, with Jake taking over bass duties to help focus on his vocals. The band's debut EP, Dichotomy, was released independently later that November -- new guitarist Ryan Siew joined the group that same year. A second EP, The Guilt & the Grief, arrived in 2016 and caught the attention of Nuclear Blast imprint Sharp Tone, which put out the band's debut full-length effort, Mortal Coil, in 2017. Sonically dynamic and thematically personal -- Polaris are candid about their struggles with mental health -- the album was met with considerable acclaim and was nominated for Best Hard Rock Album at the 2018 ARIA Awards. Two years later, the group returned with their sophomore long-player, The Death of Me, which also elicited an ARIA nomination.

Forced into lockdown as the COVID-19 pandemic raged, the band spent the next two years remotely piecing together ideas for their third long-player. Fatalism, which explored the social and societal discord that followed in the wake of the pandemic, was released in September 2023, just months after the death of guitarist Ryan Siew, who passed on June 19 at the age of 26. ~ James Christopher Monger