Project Description
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THE OCEAN (GER)
+ CAVE IN (USA) + LLNN (DK)
@ 170 Russell, Melbourne,
14th June 2024
(Live Review)
Review by Bri Steele
Photos by Drew Hill (@drewhillphotos)
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THE OCEAN – @drewhillphotos
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German progressive ensemble The Ocean have always stood out from their peers, with strikingly unique blends of delicate atmospheres and paleontological-focused subjects offer listeners an alleviated experience, and is bound to bring any prog fan to their knees. With the release of their album, “Holocene”, released in June of last year, the collective decided to grace their devoted fans in Australia with their most recent tour since 2019, bringing along with them sci-fi prog legends LLNN and hardcore pioneers Cave In.
As soon as the doors to 170 Russell opened, fans streamed in, quickly filling the intimate underground venue well before the first opening act was scheduled to play, which was a comforting site to see all these people ready to fully immerse themselves in music they may not have heard before. Featuring three distinct bands from different countries, each representing their own niche within the prog metal subgenre, the audience was in for a night of performances they likely hadn’t anticipated. Prog metal is a broad fusion of metals finest subgenres, offering bands an opportunity to create experimental, aggressive tracks. The genre’s renowned for its duality, from percussion heavy tracks that are almost tribal in nature to guitar driven brain melting atmospheres that most enthusiasts devour incessantly.
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LLNN – @drewhillphotos
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LLNN was the first to take the stage. Hailing from Copenhagen, Denmark, this four piece manage to create their own deep, dark, post apocalyptic atmosphere within their music. “As huge fans of classic sci-fi scores and video games, we’re fascinated by how cinematic sound design can evoke certain emotions and let our imagination unfold into abstract storytelling,” explains Sejersen. As the band graced the stage, with eerie droning luring the audience’s attention in, there was unfortunately a technical difficulty that caused the audio to cut. Victor Kass, the lead vocalist, apologised for the mishap, saying “We just wanted to set up a vibe and shit, but then we got cut off by our own gear,” and an audience yelled back “Welcome to Melbourne!”.
Despite the setback, as soon as the group slammed into their first song, the room twisted into a dark void that only allowed them to prevail, with luscious, droning guitars and slamming drums permeating and whisking the audience away to some sort of deep space. Their breakdowns were arduous, yet oozed with utter doom, with wavering synths and sonically hypnotising riffs, this set seemed to fly by. The band ended with a track called “Obsidian”, where the lights faded from blue to red, and the drummer rhythmically pounded as vocalist Kass made the audience clap in time while the guitars began to screech and synths blared, a fanatical outro for an equally fantastic band.
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CAVE IN – @drewhillphotos
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Next to grace the stage were metalcore pioneers Cave In, making their first trip from Massachusetts to Australia since the band’s inception in 1995. They played for just under an hour, rarely pausing between songs and incorporating small moments of improvisation. Their instruments would whirr out before seamlessly transitioning into the next track, which interchanged from being a slamming opening riff to gentle, melodic openings. They opened with “Your Reality,” which, despite a shift to more traditional metal undertones with interwoven clean and raw vocals and slick guitar solos, was enriched by electronic elements that highlighted the prog details of the bands overall journey. As they closed with the beloved track, “Sing My Love,” lead singer Bradsky triumphantly shouted, “It only took us 30 years, but we made it!” Each member held up their instruments as the set concluded and the crowd cheered fervently, ready for the final act of the night.
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THE OCEAN – @drewhillphotos
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With the start of the main act’s set, something to note was the lead singer, Loïc Rossetti, took his place further towards the back of the stage, as if consciously doing so so that the audience would focus on the rest of the band first. There were two guitarists, David Ahfeldt and Robin Staps, drummer Paul Seidel and bassist Mattias Hägerstrand, all elevating and intertwining with one another sonically, with a performance so tight even the best of ears could not complain. Their music was like an offering, as smoke swirled through the audience and around the band on stage, and their backdrop shifted and swirled in sync with the music, making for a deeply immersive experience. Their set was a phenomenal hour and 30 minutes, lasting all the way until midnight. It’s incredible to think that a band could maintain peak performance for such a long duration, right up until the very end.
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THE OCEAN – @drewhillphotos
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To call the crowd passionate would be an understatement. As Loïc prowled around the barricade, each head twisted their arms in the air fanatically, moving succinctly with the rhythms of the music. Rossetti eventually crawled over the first row of fans and was sent crowd surfing all throughout the mosh pit, without missing a single beat or note, an impressive feat for any performer. For the encore, the band played “Triassic” and “Jurassic/Cretaceous”, and toward the end of the final track, Rossetti passed off the microphone to a crowd member to finish the song. The fans’ voice was incredible, causing the crowd to cheer even louder as the band grinned from ear to ear. The Ocean’s departure from the stage was a slow one, as they gratuitously thanked everyone in the room and hi fived everyone at the barricade.
Despite the gig not ending until midnight, walking out of the venue, I was buzzing with energy. Each band had so fantastically whisked me away into their own little pocket of the astral plane that is progressive metal. The Ocean’s performance was intricate and opened my mind to a whole new world, and I’m beyond grateful to have experienced it.
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THE OCEAN – @drewhillphotos
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Check out Drew Hill’s (@drewhillphotos) full gallery of this event HERE
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THE OCEAN – @drewhillphotos
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Follow THE OCEAN
Facebook
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THE OCEAN – @drewhillphotos
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Press Release 23rd February 2024 (below) HERE
Destroy All Lines & Pelagic Records Presents
THE OCEAN
announce
AUSTRALIAN HEADLINE TOUR 2024
With special guests
CAVE IN (USA) + LLNN (DK)
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