The last live show I attended was on February 22nd, 2020 watching Opeth at the Apollo Theater in New York City. It was a magical night, but little did I know that was going to be the last live music I was going to be watching perform in a year. I miss live shows, as I’m sure every single one of you does as well and I was particularly reminded of this since the beginning of last week. Having said that, when The Ocean Collective announced that they were going to play a live stream show of their amazing album Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic (Pelagic Records) in its entirety, I immediately jumped to my feet and said: “I NEED to watch that”, I knew it was going to be magical as everything the German band does.
I’m glad I wasn’t disappointed. The live stream started with an interview with founder, guitar player Robin Staps and vocalist Loïc Rossetti talking about the overall theme around Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic (Pelagic Records), how it was being in the middle of a pandemic and having these types of shows, and the overall preparation for this live set. After this useful piece of information, the band went ahead and started to do what they do best: play beautiful music. The first half of the first track of the album ‘Cambrian II: Eternal Recurrence’ had some technical issues during the actual live stream of the show (later fixed in the recorded version) that enhanced the drums on top of all other instruments. As I was praying that the complete live stream wouldn’t be this way, the sound engineer fixed the issue, and the perfection I was looking forward to came across. The band performed an impeccable set where all the major climax points of the album were played to perfection, making me feel like I was in physical form at the Club100 in Bremen, Germany. The light show and the camera editing that accompanied the performance enhanced the experience showcasing the specific climax points of each track.
It’s really hard to describe this show as anything short than beautiful. A band that has worked as hard as this deserves all the success and recognition in the world and they are marked as my number one priority of bands I need to experience in a live setting, once this whole chaos is over. It’s just a matter of needing to hear and feel the wall of sound coming out of a PA, the screaming of lyrics that have carried me in the toughest times, and the chills and feelings that go along with all of the experience that must be watching The Ocean Collective live. This live stream made me feel that and more, but more than anything reassured my love for this band. Stay tuned for their live show of Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic | Cenozoic (Pelagic Records), voted my favorite album of 2020, for Roadburn Festival in a couple of weeks, you won’t regret it!
Set List:
1. The Cambrian Explosion (Intro)
2. Cambrian II: Eternal Recurrence
3. Ordovicium: The Glaciation of Gondwana
4. Silurian: Age of Sea Scorpions
5. Devonian: Nascent
6. The Carboniferous Ranforest Collapse
7. Permian: The Great Dying
WESLIE NEGRÓN