The Ocean, (formally The Ocean Collective, from Berlin), is back with the closing chapter of their paleontology-inspired albums series. Holocene, is the title of the new album, which was released on Pelagic Records, on May 19, 2023. Holocene, refers to the last 11,700 years of the Earth’s history, often described as the “Age of Man”.
The Ocean is made up of: on bass, Mattias Hägerstrand; on drums and vibraphone, Paul Seidel; on guitar, David Ramis Åhfeldt; on guitar and vocals, Robin Staps; on keyboards and percussion, Peter Voigtmann; and on lead vocals, Loïc Rossetti.
Their last album, Phanerozoic II, ended with a track titled “Holocene”. And so the foundation was set for the new album. Robin Staps explained the writing process for Holocene: Most of their past albums, “started with a vocal idea. This album is different since every single song is based on a musical idea that was originally written by Peter Voigtmann , who used synth and keyboard sounds”, to create riffs and starting points for Holocene’s dynamic sonic sound. Staps continues, “He came up with these amazing synth parts that were already sounding huge in pre-production, and he sent me some of those raw, unfinished ideas during mid -lockdown 2020… and while it was all electronic, it had that definite Ocean vibe to it. It made me want to pick up my guitar instantly… and so I did, and it didn’t take long until we had an inspiring creative exchange that was heading towards totally unforeseen but very exciting places.”
Staps says, “Holocene is an appendix to the 2 Phanerozoic albums and Precambrian; or the final and concluding chapter, making it a quadrilogy, if you want”. He says that Holocene, “It’s tackling the Holocene epoch, which is the current and shortest chapter in earth’s history, but it is essentially an album about the angst, alienation, loss of reason and critical thinking, rise of conspiracy theories and deconstruction of values in the modern age.”
I have not heard the full three albums before Holocene, which make up the quadrilogy, but I like to review an album on its own merits anyway. I have listened to selected tracks off the earlier albums and believe this album stands very well on its own.
When I first heard Holocene, I immediately compared it to the sound of my favorite Tool album, Fear Inoculum. Not only did the music on Holocene sound bolder, darker, and different, like Fear Inoculum; but there was also a similar warning, about where the world seems to be heading. Holocene is not as good as the most powerful parts of Fear Inoculum, like “Descending”, “Legion Inoculant”, or “7empest”, but it stands out boldly, in the middle of this year.
The album opens with “Preboreal”, which, as Robin Staps said, opens with cool bouncing, keyboards and synth sounds. Then, as the drums begin to fill the air, Loïc Rossetti sings, “No grasp on reality. Attention shaping identities. We’ve lost our capacities. To construct something tangible. Obfuscate the past. Implode it with the future into an undifferentiated mass. (It’s never-ending). A type of never-ending, never-ending presence lost inside. We have all lost our way out long ago!”. His voice is clearly different from Maynard James Keenan, of Tool, but the non-emotional delivery of these powerful lyrics mimics the sound, a modern, science-fiction movie. Imagine trumpet, electric drums and a 2001 Space Odyssey – like feeling and atmosphere. Rossetti delivers the deep lyrics like a robot, rattling off words that are supposed to compel meaning and communicate awareness and demand alertness…and more important…action. He also sings some lyrics in French, one of the daily working languages of the United Nations. A powerful opener, welcoming the listener to this new venture and creation of The Ocean, with an understanding, and a warning of what is to come.
“Boreal”, opens with another cool, rolling keyboard/synth sound, with added percussion, before electric guitar is added spectacularly. One of my favorite songs on the album. Loïc Rossetti’s vocal delivery continues in the monotonous, non-emotional state, until it rises at times to the level of yelling. The lyrics are just as bold and relevant. “In absence of reason. Lost all we believed in. We kneel to all-seeing. Decapitators. Cleave to your opinions. We’re doomed to agree on. The lowest of common. Denominators. In outlands of reason. Wry notions kindle. The fires of eager. Illuminators”. Very powerful indeed. I like it when band’s put this much effort into a concept and creation. Trying to reach out to the world and communicate, beyond the thought of just making music. Later in the song, we get some of the heaviest electric guitars on the album. The guitar and Rossetti’s voice rise in unison magnificently. Just spectacular.
But the best is yet to come. My favorite track is “Sea of Reeds”. The Biblical story of the parting of the sea, is mixed within the lyrics and it gives this song the majestic power that takes it over the top of the rest of the songs on the album. Their view of the story is much different than mine, but the fact that they thought it important enough to include within their final album of the quadrilogy is exceptional. I love the lines, “Clogged the chariot wheels. Made them flee, made them disappear. What you’ve seen today you shall never, ever see again!” For sure! The music and the lyrics make this the most elegant and rewarding song in the collection.
“Atlantic”, is one of the longest tracks on the album. It opens with punching percussion and synths, with keyboards that wonderfully electrify the sound and feeling of the album. Rossetti’s voice sounds great at the start of the song. And it may be his best singing on the album. He sings some of the best lyrics on the album, as well, “If you can understand all the patterns. That redound to your detriment. If you can understand all the patterns. Why do you keep repeating them? High, high defeatism!” The instrumental segments are wonderful. The trumpets remind me of Ennio Morricone, and provide, for me, the image and sound of a dynamic historical presence for this powerful piece of music. It demands the listener to take this section seriously.
The lyrics elevate the music to a higher plane, “Immerse in the dark that you chose to surround you. You’re so hurt and so weak, and you’re so damn afraid of the truth. And you chew on your pain. By denying the past and begriming what used to be your nest. You’re filled to the brim with a guilt. That you can’t come to terms with”. Wow! But the song’s closing lyrics are a pantheon of pinnacle lyrics, “Son, you’ll need a radical change. Son, you deserve something better than this! Son, you’re in need of a tactical switch in defense! Harvest the fruits of years of procrastination. But now, your daydream is…Over!” Yes, indeed. My second favorite song on the album.
“Subboreal”, opens with slow, almost clapping, and a myriad of buzzing and cool synths, before more of Rossetti’s best vocals. He sings, “There’s a faint longing for something that’s long lost and gone. That you remember from another life. Another life, another time. Something quaint, something neat, must have been quite a treat. A shared conspiracy. Something not around, no more”. But then, they tire of delivering the story quietly. Rossetti’s voice roars loudly as the music follows the suite, with deep bass, heavy drums and powerful electric guitar riffs. In fact, Rossetti mostly screams the rest of the lyrics. He finalizes the message, “Now you’re done. You’ve built your castle. All alone. To live in it!” Head the warning!
“Uncomformities”, is the longest song and it opens with some of the best electric synths and cool rhythms. Guest vocalist, Karin Park, sings the powerful lyrics, “Soon I cannot see the shore. Birds circling above. Nothing is like it was before. I hear a voice talking, is it talking to me. It says, “Just a little moment longer and, and then you’ll be free. And I’ll be free. Lift the curse. Baptize me. The dream is broken. I want to be reformed. Let the light shine bright. I am just a child. In a twisted lullaby”. Her voice and the music sounds like something I remember from the 1980s. Sort of a Cure sound, mixed with Dolores O’ Riordan, of the Cranberries. It is another of the best parts of the album. But unfortunately, it doesn’t last long enough. Instead, they switch back to Rossetti, and he continues to sing, “Don’t turn on the bright lights”, increasing the volume of his delivery until he is screaming the lyrics through nearly half of the song. Too much of this. Thankfully, there is an instrumental break, but Rossetti returns to finish the song…yelling the same lyrics. I understand the emphasis in repeated the phrase, but I love half the song…and almost hate the other half.
“Parabiosis”, is the second-longest track on the album and it is much better than the onslaught we were just delivered. It opens with cool synths and an almost “horse- running-full-speed- at-you”, percussion and keyboard sound. The lyrics, just like all of this album, are very deep and profound. “Release. Revive. Reverse. Retire. The hearse. Give grace. It’s tough to stay in shape. Regenerative medicine. We’re so focused on extending our lifespan. We mustn’t want everything. We mustn’t want everything we can. Methuselahs of depravity. Obsessed with youth and longevity. We must embrace the brevity. For the only way to end eternal life is suicide. Let it all begin (Just another time). And never ever learn from our mistakes”. We want to live forever, but do we understand the consequences? The eternal question, “Can we…vs…should we?” So what if we possess the ability, do we have the right? That questioned will be repeated later this year with the release of the movie Oppenheimer. Methuselahs, was the grandfather of Noah, (of Biblical Ark fame). He lived to be 969. Parabiosis is something artificially produced.
“Subatlantic”, is the closing track and has the lone music video so far for the album. It is another of my favorite tracks on the album. Rossetti sings some of the best warning lyrics on this album full of fears, for this Holocene era. This one is about global warming. Warm flute and Karin Park’s soft backing vocal open the track quietly. Rossetti sings, “Take heed. It’s getting warm. Pay heed. To the alarm. Take heed. It’s getting warm. Pay heed. To the alarm”. Then Rossetti takes you back to Nirvana’s “Heart-Shaped Box”, with a similar vocal delivery of, “Hey, mate, this ain’t going away. Death before surrender. Wipe your slate clean. Take heed. It’s getting warm. Pay heed. To the alarm. Take heed. You’ll be disarmed. Pay heed. Time has come. Listen to the wise old men. Listen to what they’ve said. From the beginning. Over and over again. Don’t act as if you were. Unaware of what lies ahead. Squeeze the last drop, lick it up. Grow a better crop, use it up. We’ve had time to develop the plot. And to plan our new home. A new colony. Prepare for departure. Cities of sand. Under glass. This is our new civilization. And the sun always shines. Bright!” Very powerful, indeed!
Holocene, was recorded entirely by the band themselves at Voigtmann’s studio, “Die Mühle”, in the rural north of Germany, and at the band’s own “Oceanland 2.0”, studio in Berlin. More than 20 years into their career, this Berlin-based collective still shake us to the core.
Guest musicians include: on piano, Frieder Hepting, (tracks: 7); on trombone, Steve Thompson, (tracks 3 and 6), on trumpet and horn, Fritz Mooshammer; on vocals, Karin Park, (track 8). The lyrics were written by Robin Staps. Mixed and mastered by Karl Daniel Lidén. Artwork and layout by Martin Kvamme and Stefan Alt.
Holocene is spectacular in its lyrics, meanings, and the warnings they convey to us. The music is also profound and illuminating. Everything you could hope for in new music. I highly recommend this journey to uncover The Ocean’s take on this “Human Era” on Earth. Although it dwells on most of our negative contributions to society and this planet, it serves as a clear and present visualization of what we have done, during this era, and what may undo us as a species. In other words, it needed to be said. And what better way than with powerful music. Take this trip with The Ocean and enjoy their journey through space and time, set to music. Let’s all hope this and the many other messages and warnings we have heard will help re-shape Man’s behavior in the future.
Track List:
Preboreal – 5:04
Boreal – 3:41
Sea of Reeds – 5:49
Atlantic – 8:50
Subboreal – 4:46
Uncomformities – 9:10
Parabiosis – 8:13
Subatlantic – 6:56
Website and Social Media:
https://www.theoceancollective.com/
https://theocean.bandcamp.com/album/holocene
You Tube and Music Videos: