"What Once Was Is" mirrors "Returns" earlier on the album. Its sudden shifts from one section to the next were intended to be like the disorienting shift from one world to the next, or like some kind of sudden manifestation. Its original working title was "Intrusions", which I think is also appropriate.
This is actually a different take of "Returns" that was modified with a number of added sections- the original take now provides the glue between those.
Throwing mathcore, emo, and ambient into the mix, Estonia's Kaschalot push progressive rock's multitasking approach to its limits. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 10, 2021